John 3:1
Greek Textus Receptus
Ἦν δὲ ἄνθρωπος ἐκ τῶν Φαρισαίων, Νικόδημος ὄνομα αὐτῷ, ἄρχων τῶν Ἰουδαίων·
Free Grace Translation
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
Free Grace Study Notes
"The name, in this instance, indicated the man’s station. Nicodemus means 'ruler of the people.' This outstanding Pharisee, of blameless life, was a suited example through whom to emphasize the imperative necessity of the birth from above." —H. A. Ironside, "Jesus Instructs a Great Teacher." The Sunday School Times (December 26, 1942), Vol. 84, Issue 52, p. 9.
John 3:2
Greek Textus Receptus
οὗτος ἦλθε πρὸς τὸν Ἰησοῦν νυκτός, καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ῥαββί, οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀπὸ Θεοῦ ἐλήλυθας διδάσκαλος· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ταῦτα τὰ σημεῖα δύναται ποιεῖν ἃ σὺ ποιεῖς, ἐὰν μὴ ᾖ ὁ Θεὸς μετ’ αὐτοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
He came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one is able to do these miraculous signs that you do, unless God is with Him."
John 3:3
Greek Textus Receptus
Ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω σοι, ἐὰν μή τις γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν, οὐ δύναται ἰδεῖν τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born from above, he is not able to see the kingdom of God."
Free Grace Study Notes
"While doubtless appreciating the earnestness of Nicodemus,
the Lord broke in on his laudatory introduction by a declaration that must have astonished this religious leader. The words of Jesus indicated that all his morality and spiritual culture counted for nothing. There must be a new life. What was needed was not simply a Teacher, but a life-giving Saviour. Till born again, one is blind to the realities of God’s Kingdom." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:4
Greek Textus Receptus
λέγει πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ Νικόδημος, Πῶς δύναται ἄνθρωπος γεννηθῆναι γέρων ὤν; μὴ δύναται εἰς τὴν κοιλίαν τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ δεύτερον εἰσελθεῖν καὶ γεννηθῆναι;
Free Grace Translation
Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot go into his mother's womb a second time and be born, can he?"
Free Grace Study Notes
"'How can a man be born when he is old?' The amazed Pharisee raised a very natural question. How was this new birth to be brought about? Could one go through the whole process of nature a second time and so be born anew?" —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:5
Greek Textus Receptus
ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω σοι, ἐὰν μή τις γεννηθῇ ἐξ ὕδατος καὶ Πνεύματος, οὐ δύναται εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born of water and Spirit, he is not able to enter the kingdom of God."
Free Grace Study Notes
"Water is the well-known symbol, as used in both Testaments of the Word of God, which gives life and cleanses. See Psalm 119:9 and Ezekiel 36:25, 26. Compare John 4:14 and Ephesians 5:26. No matter if one could be born a second time according to the natural order, he would be no better off than before. The birth of which Jesus spoke must be produced by the Word and Spirit of God. See 1 Peter 1:23-25 and James 1:18. Compare with these Titus 3:5." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:6
Greek Textus Receptus
τὸ γεγεννημένον ἐκ τῆς σαρκὸς σάρξ ἐστι· καὶ τὸ γεγεννημένον ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος πνεῦμά ἐστι.
Free Grace Translation
"What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is Spirit."
Free Grace Study Notes
"'Born of the flesh . . . born of the Spirit.' The two are contrasted. The birth after the flesh produces flesh. The birth after the Spirit produces spirit — a new, spiritual nature. See this amplified in Galatians 5:17-24. Nothing can change flesh into spirit. There must be a new life altogether." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:7
Greek Textus Receptus
μὴ θαυμάσῃς ὅτι εἶπόν σοι, Δεῖ ὑμᾶς γεννηθῆναι ἄνωθεν.
Free Grace Translation
"Don't be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.'"
Free Grace Study Notes
"'Ye must be born again.' This is the only way by which one, born after the flesh, may become a new creature. In Tennyson’s 'Maud' he cries out,
This is exactly what occurs when one receives the Gospel message in faith. Then the Spirit of God produces the new life and the man is born again." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:8
Greek Textus Receptus
τὸ πνεῦμα ὅπου θέλει πνεῖ, καὶ τὴν φωνὴν αὐτοῦ ἀκούεις, ἀλλ’ οὐκ οἶδας πόθεν ἔρχεται καὶ ποῦ ὑπάγει· οὕτως ἐστὶ πᾶς ὁ γεγεννημένος ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος.
Free Grace Translation
"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you don't know where it comes from and where it goes, so is everyone [who is] born of the Spirit."
Free Grace Study Notes
"Jesus draws a lesson from nature. The wind is unseen and no man comprehends its origin or its activity. So it is with the new birth. When one is born again, the change is seen in his behavior and attitude toward God and man, but none can analyze or explain the spiritual reality that has taken place." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:9
Greek Textus Receptus
ἀπεκρίθη Νικόδημος καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Πῶς δύναται ταῦτα γενέσθαι;
Free Grace Translation
Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"
Free Grace Study Notes
"'How can these things be?' The question of Nicodemus indicates both his bewilderment and his concern. He had received a new idea of what is involved in relationship to God, but how was it to be brought about?" —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:10
Greek Textus Receptus
ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Σὺ εἶ ὁ διδάσκαλος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ, καὶ ταῦτα οὐ γινώσκεις;
Free Grace Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and you don't understand these things?"
Free Grace Study Notes
"Jesus drives home the fact that all his learning has fallen short of the mark, for, though familiar with the letter of Scripture, Nicodemus had never realized its spiritual import. Is not this true of many today?" —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:11
Greek Textus Receptus
ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω σοι ὅτι ὃ οἴδαμεν λαλοῦμεν, καὶ ὃ ἑωράκαμεν μαρτυροῦμεν· καὶ τὴν μαρτυρίαν ἡμῶν οὐ λαμβάνετε.
Free Grace Translation
"Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak about what we know, and we testify about what we've seen, and yet you don't receive our testimony."
Free Grace Study Notes
"Jesus dealt not in religious theories or sacramental vagaries. He bore witness to realities, for all down through the centuries of the past, God had been producing this new birth in those who received His Word — as the Scriptures bear witness — but this the doctor of the law had failed to realize." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:12
Greek Textus Receptus
εἰ τὰ ἐπίγεια εἶπον ὑμῖν καὶ οὐ πιστεύετε, πῶς, ἐὰν εἴπω ὑμῖν τὰ ἐπουράνια, πιστεύσετε;
Free Grace Translation
"If I told you earthly things and you don't believe, how, if I tell you heavenly things, will you believe?"
Free Grace Study Notes
"'Earthly things . . . heavenly things.' The necessity of the new birth was not a strange and novel doctrine. It was linked with the entire earthly system given by Moses. David knew this when he cried, 'Create in me a clean heart, . . . and renew a right spirit within me' (Psa. 51:10). But the fuller revelation of eternal life connected with the birth from above was a new and heavenly revelation which was characteristic of our Lord’s ministry. This He was about to unfold to Nicodemus, though he seemed as yet unready to receive it." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:13
Greek Textus Receptus
καὶ οὐδεὶς ἀναβέβηκεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, εἰ μὴ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς, ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὁ ὤν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ
Free Grace Translation
"And no one has ascended into heaven, except He who came down from heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven."
Free Grace Study Notes
"This verse seems to come in parenthetically, in order to explain the Lord’s title to minister heavenly things. He belonged to Heaven. Even while walking the earth as man, He dwelt in the bosom of the Father in the fullness of communion as the Heavenly One." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:14
Greek Textus Receptus
καὶ καθὼς Μωσῆς ὕψωσε τὸν ὄφιν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὕτως ὑψωθῆναι δεῖ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου·
Free Grace Translation
"And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,"
Free Grace Study Notes
"'As Moses lifted up the serpent . . . even so must the Son of man be lifted up.' With the event to which Jesus referred, Nicodemus was familiar. The application was new. As the uplifted, brazen serpent was for all who looked to it the means of life and healing, so the Lord Jesus must be lifted up on the cross for the redemption of a lost world." —H. A. Ironside.
"The Serpent of Brass. This was a remarkable type of Christ taking the sinner’s place — being made sin for us (Num. 21:8). It was through the serpent (Satan) that sin came into the world. The serpent of brass pictured Jesus Christ enduring the judgment (of which brass is the symbol) when He bore our sins in His own body on the tree. But though made sin, He was sinless (2 Cor. 5:21). In that brazen serpent there was no poison. So Jesus was holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners (Heb. 7:26). All who looked to the lifted-up serpent were freed from their agony and pain. All who look to Jesus Christ are saved eternally." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:15
Greek Textus Receptus
ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ’ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
Free Grace Translation
"so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Bible Translation Notes
“The man who has faith has (the present tense points to a present possession) eternal life in Christ. . . . This is the first mention in this Gospel of eternal life”. (Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John [Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1971], pp. 226-227, ellipsis added, comment on John 3:15.)
“Anyone who believes has (the present tense points to a present possession) eternal life in Christ. . . . This is the first mention in this Gospel of eternal life”. (Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, Revised Edition [Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995], pp. 200-201, ellipsis added, comment on John 3:15.)
Free Grace Study Notes
"Of old, it was whosoever looked to the serpent was healed. Now, whosoever believes, that is, looks in faith to the crucified Saviour, receives eternal life. To have eternal life is to be born again." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:16
Greek Textus Receptus
Οὕτω γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ’ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον.
Free Grace Translation
"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone [who] believes in Him should not perish, but should have everlasting life."
Bible Translation Notes
Grk. πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν. Literally, every one believing in Him.
Grk. ἀπόληται, ἀλλ’ ἔχῃ. "'The change from the aorist (ἀπόληται) to the present (ἔχῃ) is to be noted, the utter ruin being spoken of as an act, the possession of life eternal as an enduring experience' (Meyer, Weiss, Holtzmann)." —Expositor's Greek Testament, commentary on John 3:16.
Free Grace Study Notes
"'God so loved . . . that he gave.' Well has this verse been called 'The Miniature Bible' and 'The Gospel in a Nutshell.' It is the whole story of God’s grace to lost mankind told in twenty-five words. In love God gave His Son — gave Him up to the death of the cross — that anyone who trusts in Him may know that death and judgment
are forever past, and everlasting life is the present portion of each believer." —H. A. Ironside.
John 3:17
Greek Textus Receptus
οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστειλεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἵνα κρίνῃ τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλ’ ἵνα σωθῇ ὁ κόσμος δι’ αὐτοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
"For God did not send His Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."
John 3:18
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν οὐ κρίνεται· ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων ἤδη κέκριται, ὅτι μὴ πεπίστευκεν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
"The [one] [who] believes in Him is not judged; but the [one] [who] does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God."
John 3:19
Greek Textus Receptus
αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ κρίσις ὅτι τὸ φῶς ἐλήλυθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον καὶ ἠγάπησαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι μᾶλλον τὸ σκότος ἢ τὸ φῶς· ἦν γὰρ πονηρὰ αὐτῶν τὰ ἔργα
Free Grace Translation
"And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light, for their deeds were evil."
John 3:20
Greek Textus Receptus
πᾶς γὰρ ὁ φαῦλα πράσσων μισεῖ τὸ φῶς, καὶ οὐκ ἔρχεται πρὸς τὸ φῶς, ἵνα μὴ ἐλεγχθῇ τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
"For everyone acting wickedly hates the light, and does not come to the light, so that his deeds may not be exposed."
John 3:21
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ δὲ ποιῶν τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἔρχεται πρὸς τὸ φῶς, ἵνα φανερωθῇ αὐτοῦ τὰ ἔργα, ὅτι ἐν Θεῷ ἐστιν εἰργασμένα.
Free Grace Translation
"But the one who does the truth comes to the light, in order that his works may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."
Free Grace Study Notes
Dr. Ironside writes: "'But he that doeth truth (i.e. he that is absolutely honest with God), cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.' Are you going to turn away from the light today or are you coming into the light? Will you trust the Blessed One who is the light of the world, and thus rejoice in the salvation which He so freely offers you?" (H. A. Ironside, Addresses on the Gospel of John, p. 116.)
Arno C. Gaebelein similarly states: "But he that doeth truth, who in sincerity believes, cometh to the light, and walks in that light, and thus it will be manifested that his deeds are wrought in God, the fruits of that new nature he received in believing on the Son of God." (Gaebelein, The Gospel of John, p. 77.)
John 3:22
Greek Textus Receptus
Μετὰ ταῦτα ἦλθεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν γῆν· καὶ ἐκεῖ διέτριβε μετ’ αὐτῶν καὶ ἐβάπτιζεν.
Free Grace Translation
After these things Jesus and His disciples went into the Judean countryside, and He was sojourning there with them and was baptizing.
John 3:23
Greek Textus Receptus
ἦν δὲ καὶ Ἰωάννης βαπτίζων ἐν Αἰνὼν ἐγγὺς τοῦ Σαλείμ, ὅτι ὕδατα πολλὰ ἦν ἐκεῖ· καὶ παρεγίνοντο καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο.
Free Grace Translation
Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there, and people were coming and were being baptized.
John 3:24
Greek Textus Receptus
οὔπω γὰρ ἦν βεβλημένος εἰς τὴν φυλακὴν ὁ Ἰωάννης.
Free Grace Translation
For John had not yet been thrown into prison.
John 3:25
Greek Textus Receptus
ἐγένετο οὖν ζήτησις ἐκ τῶν μαθητῶν Ἰωάννου μετὰ Ἰουδαίων περὶ καθαρισμοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
Then a dispute arose between John's disciples and [some] Jews concerning ceremonial washing.
John 3:26
Greek Textus Receptus
καὶ ἦλθον πρὸς τὸν Ἰωάννην καὶ εἶπον αὐτῷ, Ῥαββί, ὃς ἦν μετὰ σοῦ πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, ᾧ σὺ μεμαρτύρηκας, ἴδε οὗτος βαπτίζει, καὶ πάντες ἔρχονται πρὸς αὐτόν.
Free Grace Translation
And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you on the other side of the Jordan, to whom you have borne witness — behold, He is baptizing, and all [the people] are going to Him!"
John 3:27
Greek Textus Receptus
ἀπεκρίθη Ἰωάννης καὶ εἶπεν, Οὐ δύναται ἄνθρωπος λαμβάνειν οὐδέν, ἐὰν μὴ ᾖ δεδομένον αὐτῷ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven."
John 3:28
Greek Textus Receptus
αὐτοὶ ὑμεῖς μοι μαρτυρεῖτε ὅτι εἶπον, Οὐκ εἰμὶ ἐγὼ ὁ Χριστός, ἀλλ’ ὅτι ἀπεσταλμένος εἰμὶ ἔμπροσθεν ἐκείνου.
Free Grace Translation
"You yourselves bear witness to me that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but 'I have been sent before Him.'"
John 3:29
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ ἔχων τὴν νύμφην, νυμφίος ἐστίν· ὁ δὲ φίλος τοῦ νυμφίου, ὁ ἑστηκὼς καὶ ἀκούων αὐτοῦ, χαρᾷ χαίρει διὰ τὴν φωνὴν τοῦ νυμφίου· αὕτη οὖν ἡ χαρὰ ἡ ἐμὴ πεπλήρωται.
Free Grace Translation
"The one who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom, the one who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly because of the voice of the bridegroom. Therefore this joy of mine has been made full."
John 3:30
Greek Textus Receptus
ἐκεῖνον δεῖ αὐξάνειν, ἐμὲ δὲ ἐλαττοῦσθαι.
Free Grace Translation
"He must increase, but I must decrease."
Bible Translation Notes
Grk. ἐκεῖνον. Demonstrative pronoun. Accusative, masculine, singular. Thus it can be translated: "That (man)," "That (one)," or simply "Him".
Grk. αὐξάνειν. Present, active, infinitive.
Grk. ἐλαττοῦσθαι. Present, middle or passive, infinitive.
Translated more literally, John the Baptist says: "It is necessary for that [one] to increase, but [for] me to decrease myself/be decreased."
John 3:31
Greek Textus Receptus
Ὁ ἄνωθεν ἐρχόμενος ἐπάνω πάντων ἐστίν. ὁ ὢν ἐκ τῆς γῆς, ἐκ τῆς γῆς ἐστι, καὶ ἐκ τῆς γῆς λαλεῖ· ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐρχόμενος ἐπάνω πάντων ἐστί.
Free Grace Translation
"The One who comes from on high is above all. The one who is from the earth, is earthly, and speaks of the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all."
Bible Translation Notes
I followed Tyndale's translation for my translation of John 3:31 in regards to the phrase "on high". This was also the reading used in several of the other early English Bibles, e.g. The Geneva Bible, The Bishops Bible, and The Coverdale Bible (where the same phrase is variously spelled "an hye" or "an hie"). Most of the more recent English Bible translations read similar to how the English Standard Version translates it: "He who comes from above is above all" (Jn. 3:31, ESV), where two different Greek words (ἄνωθεν, ἐπάνω) are translated using the same English word ("above"). I chose to follow Tyndale's translation here because it points to the fact that two different words are employed in the Greek.
John 3:32
Greek Textus Receptus
καὶ ὃ ἑώρακε καὶ ἤκουσε, τοῦτο μαρτυρεῖ· καὶ τὴν μαρτυρίαν αὐτοῦ οὐδεὶς λαμβάνει.
Free Grace Translation
"And what He has seen and heard, this He testifies, and yet no one receives His testimony."
John 3:33
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ λαβὼν αὐτοῦ τὴν μαρτυρίαν ἐσφράγισεν ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς ἀληθής ἐστιν.
Free Grace Translation
"The one who receives His testimony confirms that God is true."
John 3:34
Greek Textus Receptus
ὃν γὰρ ἀπέστειλεν ὁ Θεός, τὰ ῥήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ λαλεῖ· οὐ γὰρ ἐκ μέτρου δίδωσιν ὁ Θεὸς τὸ Πνεῦμα.
Free Grace Translation
"For He whom God sent, speaks the words of God. For God gives the Spirit without measure."
John 3:35
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ πατὴρ ἀγαπᾷ τὸν υἱόν, καὶ πάντα δέδωκεν ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ.
Free Grace Translation
"The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand."
John 3:36
Greek Textus Receptus
ὁ πιστεύων εἰς τὸν υἱὸν ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον· ὁ δὲ ἀπειθῶν τῷ υἱῷ, οὐκ ὄψεται ζωήν, ἀλλ’ ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ μένει ἐπ’ αὐτόν.
Free Grace Translation
"The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who refuses to believe in the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him."
Bible Translation Notes
Grk. ὁ δὲ ἀπειθῶν τῷ υἱῷ. Literally, "but the one refusing to be persuaded by the Son." The Greek word ἀπειθῶν is a present active participle = "refusing to be persuaded." J. H. Thayer notes the following in his Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: "ἀπειθέω, ἀπειθῶ; imperfect ἠπείθουν; 1 aorist ἠπείθησα; to be ἀπειθής (which see); not to allow oneself to be persuaded; not to comply with; a. to refuse or withhold belief (in Christ, in the gospel; opposed to πιστεύω): τῷ υἱῷ, John 3:36;" (Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament [Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1977], p. 55, s.v. ἀπειθέω, ἀπειθῶ. Note: The Fourth Edition of Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, published by T. and T. Clark in 1901, was used in preparation of this edition.)
Also see Bauer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1st edition) on the same word, when it says: "since, in the view of the early Christians, the supreme disobedience was a refusal to believe their gospel, a[peitheō] may be restricted in some passages to the m[eaning] disbelieve, be an unbeliever. This sense, though greatly disputed (it is not found outside our lit[erature]), seems most probable in J 3:36; Ac 14:2; 19:9; Ro 15:31, and only slightly less prob. in Ro 2:8; 1 Pt 2:8; 3:1, perh[aps] also vs. 20; 4:17; IMg 8:2." (Walter Bauer, William F. Arndt, and F. Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 1st English Edition [Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1957], p. 82, brackets added.)
The Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament notes: "[I]n John 3:36….ʾAπειθειν becomes a t.t. [technical term] for nonacceptance of the Christian faith.” (Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament [Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1990], vol. 1, p. 118, ellipsis added.)
Bill Mounce, the NT Greek scholar, affirms: "ἀπειθέω [-, ἠπείθησα, -, -, -] to be uncompliant; to refuse belief, disbelieve, John 3:36;" (William D. Mounce, The Analytical Lexicon to the Greek New Testament [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993], p. 84, brackets his.)
