Three Declarations

John 1:1 makes three claims. First: In the beginning was the Word - echoing Genesis 1:1, the Word pre-existed creation. Second: he Word was with God - personal distinction, face-to-face relationship within the Godhead. Third: he Word was God - full identification with the divine essence. Distinct from the Father yet essentially one with him. This single verse is the foundation of Trinitarian theology.

The Logos

For Greeks, logos was the rational principle governing the universe. For Jews, the Word of God was the active agent of creation (Ps. 33:6) and divine wisdom personified (Prov. 8). John takes both traditions and declares: the Logos is not an abstract principle - he is a person, and that person became flesh (v.14).

The Word Became Flesh

John 1:14: The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us...full of grace and truth. The Greek eskenosen (dwelt) means tabernacled - pitched his tent among us. The incarnation is the eternal Word taking human nature without ceasing to be divine. The glory Moses saw at Sinai is now visible in human form. The disciples beheld it.

Rejection and Adoption

He came to his own, and his own received him not (v.11). But to as many as received him, he gave power to become sons of God (v.12). The prologue compresses the entire gospel: eternal God, incarnate, rejected by many, yet victorious in creating a new family. The Word who was in the beginning becomes the Jesus who is touched, heard, and seen (1 John 1:1-3).

Key Verses

• John 1:1 — In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
• John 1:14 — The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.