1:15

Here John interrupted his description of Jesus the Word by telling what John the Baptist said about him. Some English versions indicate this interruption by putting this verse in parentheses. Consider whether or not it is natural to use parentheses in your language.

1:15a

John testified concerning Him: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as testified refers to telling about what the speaker witnessed. See the note on 1:7a, where the same word appears. (The phrase testified concerning is a verb phrase that means “testified about.” It does not mean that John spoke to him, Jesus, about what he witnessed.) The Greek verb here in 1:15a is in the present tense. However, in many languages it may be more natural to use the past tense, as the Berean Standard Bible did. For example:

John told the people what he knew about the Word.
-or-
John declared the truth about him. (New Century Version)
-or-
John spoke about him. (Contemporary English Version)

Him: The person about whom John testified was the Word: Jesus Christ. If you need to make this explicit, refer to “the Word,” as in 1:14a.

1:15b

In Greek, 1:15a and 1:15b are connected with the common conjunction that the New Revised Standard Version translates as “and.” The Berean Standard Bible does not translate this conjunction and starts a new sentence. You may also use “when,” and translate 1:15a–b like this:

John declared the truth about him when he said loudly…. (God’s Word)

Connect 1:15a and 1:15b in the way that is natural in your language.

cried out: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as cried out here means “spoke loudly.” Use a word that refers to the public proclaiming of an important, even urgent, message.

Here are other ways to translate this word:

proclaimed (Revised English Bible)
-or-
shouted to the crowds (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
preached

1:15c–e

“This is He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’”: This sentence is a quote that includes a quote. John the Baptist quoted something he had said earlier. See the General Comment at on 1:15c–e for more information about translating a quote that includes a quote.

1:15c

This is He of whom I said: John was referring to the Word, Jesus Christ. He was identifying someone he described earlier. In many languages it will be more natural to use the present tense: “This is he.” For example:

This is the One whom I told you (plur.) about.
-or-
This is the One I was talking about. (Good News Translation)

1:15d

He: This pronoun refers to Jesus, the Word.

who comes after me: This clause indicates that Jesus came after John in time. John was about six months older than Jesus (see the narrative in Luke 1, especially Luke 1:26). John began his public ministry before Jesus did. When John said this, Jesus had not yet begun his ministry.

Here are other ways to translate this clause:

He comes after me (Revised English Bible)
-or-
Someone is coming after me (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
There is someone coming after me who…

has surpassed me: The phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as has surpassed me means “is greater than I am” or “is more important than I am.” For example:

who is far greater than I am (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
is superior to me (Tagbanwa Back Translation)

1:15e

because He was before me: This clause indicates the reason why Jesus was greater than John. Although he was six months younger than John, Jesus existed before John was born. He existed with God as the Word. In your translation, try to imply that this refers to Jesus always living rather than his age on earth. Here are other ways to translate this clause:

for he existed long before I did (NET Bible)
-or-
before I was born, he already was (Revised English Bible)

General Comment on 1:15c–e

This verse includes a quotation that includes a quotation. In some languages it may be natural to avoid this quotation that includes a quotation by using indirect speech. For example:

15c This is the one about whom I spoke when I said that 15d one would come after me. And he would be one who is greater than I am, 15e because he existed before me.

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