1:3a
Through Him all things were made: The clause that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Through Him all things were made is more literally “all things were/became.” This clause indicates that it was through the Word that the universe began. God created all things through the Word. This includes things that are alive and things that are not alive. It includes planets and stars, water and rocks, plants, animals, and humans. Here the author John continued to connect the Word with the story of creation in Genesis 1. See also 1 Corinthians 8:6, Hebrews 1:2, and Colossians 1:16–17.
Here are other ways to translate this clause:
Everything began to exist by means of him.
-or-
Through him God made all things. (Good News Translation)
-or-
God created everything through him. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
⌊God worked through⌋ the Word to cause everything to exist
Through Him: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Through here means “by means of.” It refers to the person who made something happen. Here it refers to the way or agent that God used to make everything. It was “by means of” or Through the Word that God created all things. For example:
By means of him.
-or-
With the Word as ⌊God’s⌋ agent
Him: This pronoun continues to refer to the Word. In some languages it may be natural to make this explicit. For example:
And with this Word, God created all things. (NET Bible)
1:3b
and without Him nothing was made that has been made: There are two ways to connect that has been made to the surrounding clauses:
(1) It is the end of the sentence that begins with 1:3a–b. It should be translated as “that was made” (Revised Standard Version) or “that was created.” For example:
3b without him nothing was made 3c that has been made. 4a In him was life (New International Version)
(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, Revised Standard Version, God’s Word, NET Bible, New Century Version, Good News Translation, New Living Translation (1996), English Standard Version)
(2) It is the beginning of a new sentence that continues in 1:4. It should be translated as “What has come into being” (New Revised Standard Version) or “Everything that was created” (Contemporary English Version). For example:
3b Nothing was made without the Word. 3c Everything that was created 4a received its life from him (Contemporary English Version)
(New Jerusalem Bible, Contemporary English Version, New Living Translation (2004), New Revised Standard Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Interpretation (1) is more in agreement with John’s style and doctrine, and makes more sense in the context. Also, most English translations follow this interpretation. The New International Version has therefore been used in the Display.
The meaning of interpretation (1) is that nothing that was made was made apart from the Word. It is a negative way of saying what 1:3a says in a positive way. No one else made anything that was made. The Word made everything that was made.
Here are other ways to translate these clauses:
not one thing in all creation was made without him (Good News Translation)
-or-
Not one thing that exists was made without him. (God’s Word)
and: The common Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and here introduces a statement that repeats the idea of 1:3a. This restatement uses a negative instead of a positive verb. In some languages it may be natural to leave this conjunction untranslated, as the Good News Translation has done.
without Him nothing was made that has been made: This clause means “only with/through the Word has anything begun to exist.” This is another way of saying “Through him all things were made” (1:3a). This restatement emphasizes the information.
Here are other ways to translate this clause:
nothing was made without him (New Century Version)
-or-
God did not make anything without him (EE)
In some languages it may be natural to translate the double negative with a positive statement. For example:
only through him has anything come into being
without Him: This phrase means “without the Word,” meaning apart from the person or activity of the Word. Here is another way to translate this phrase:
apart from him (NET Bible)
nothing was made that has been made: This expression is more literally “nothing came into being.” Here are other ways to translate this clause:
no created thing came into being (Revised English Bible)
-or-
nothing that ⌊God⌋ made began to exist
General Comment on 1:3a-b
These clauses mean the same thing. 1:3a uses a positive statement and 1:3b uses a negative statement. This repetition emphasizes the idea. In some languages it is more natural to emphasize the idea with one strong statement. For example:
all things without exception were made through/by the Word
-or-
absolutely nothing was made except (lit. if not) through him (Kankanaey Back Translation)
-or-
God created absolutely everything with the Word.
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