for God did so love the world, that His Son — the only begotten — He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during. (John 3:16 YLT)
This verse is often used by mainstream Christianity in their evangelical efforts, a sort of Evangelical Protestant manifesto. As it is usually translated, John 3:16 states that “whosoever believeth in [Christ] should not perish, but have everlasting life“ (KJV), and Christians believe this to be a universal statement about the dichotomy between unbelievers (who will go into eternal torment) and believers (who will go into ‘heaven’). But is this really what John meant when he wrote this? What did he mean by “life age-during” (ζωη αιωνιος in Greek), and who was his primary audience?
The Context of John 3:16
As always, the context of a verse must be examined before proper exegesis. John 3:16 is actually part of John’s own interpretation of Jesus’ discourse about salvation with the Pharisee Nicodemus, which covers vv. 1 - 12 of this chapter. These verses are reproduced below:
And there was a man of the Pharisees, Nicodemus his name, a ruler of the Jews, this one came unto him by night, and said to him, “Rabbi, we have known that from God thou hast come — a teacher, for no one these signs is able to do that thou dost, if God may not be with him.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Verily, verily, I say to thee, If any one may not be born from above, he is not able to see the kingdom of God;”
Nicodemus saith unto him, “How is a man able to be born, being old? is he able into the womb of his mother a second time to enter, and to be born?”
Jesus answered, “Verily, verily, I say to thee, If any one may not be born of water, and the Spirit, he is not able to enter into the kingdom of God; that which hath been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which hath been born of the Spirit is spirit. Thou mayest not wonder that I said to thee, It behoveth you to be born from above; the Spirit where he willeth doth blow, and his voice thou dost hear, but thou hast not known whence he cometh, and whither he goeth; thus is every one who hath been born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to him, “How are these things able to happen?”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Thou art the teacher of Israel — and these things thou dost not know! Verily, verily, I say to thee — What we have known we speak, and what we have seen we testify, and our testimony ye do not receive; if the earthly things I said to you, and ye do not believe, how, if I shall say to you the heavenly things, will ye believe?”
This passage demonstrates that what Jesus and Nicodemus were discussing was not what Christians today consider ‘our eternal destiny’ (the false and unbiblical dichotomy between ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’), but rather whether one is able to “see” or “enter into the kingdom of God”. To do this, according to Jesus, one must be “born from above” (or ‘born again’) of water and of Spirit.
Although the “kingdom of God” or “kingdom of the heavens” which Jesus preached is often associated by Christians with the realm of ‘heaven’, or more allegorically, as a term referring to the Church, this term actually refers to the Messianic kingdom which will be established on earth at Christ’s second coming (Isa. 11:6-9; Dan. 2:44-45; 7:13-14; Hab. 2:14; Zech. 14:8-9; Matt. 16:28; 19:28-30; Lk. 1:32-33; Acts 1:3-7; Rev. 11:15, etc.) This motif is clearly repeated throughout all of Old Testament prophecy, and Nicodemus, as a Pharisee learned in the Jewish scriptures, would have immediately thought of this when Jesus spoke of “the kingdom of God”.
After describing Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, John goes on to provide his own commentary on this discussion in vv. 13 - 21:
And no one hath gone up to the heaven, except he who out of the heaven came down — the Son of Man who is in the heaven. And as Moses did lift up the serpent in the wilderness, so it behoveth the Son of Man to be lifted up, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during, for God did so love the world, that His Son — the only begotten — He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during. For God did not send His Son to the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him; he who is believing in him is not judged, but he who is not believing hath been judged already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light hath come to the world, and men did love the darkness rather than the light, for their works were evil; for every one who is doing wicked things hateth the light, and doth not come unto the light, that his works may not be detected; but he who is doing the truth doth come to the light, that his works may be manifested, that in God they are having been wrought.
This passage is explicit that, at least as far as John’s audience is concerned, everyone who disbelieves on the Son will perish, whereas those who believe will have life age-during. The question, then, is what the terms “perish” and “life age-during” actually mean, and whether they are descriptions of the infernalist dichotomy between eternal torment and life in heaven, or if they refer to something else entirely.
What is age-during life?
Throughout the New Testament, we are told that some people will experience what is called ζωη αιωνιος, properly translated as “life age-during”. We are also told that this age-during life will only be experienced by a small subset of people, namely, those who believe in and participate in the faith of Jesus Christ (John 3:16, 36; 5:24; Acts 13:48; Rom. 6:22-23; 1 Tim. 1:16; 1 John 5:13). But what, exactly, is the nature of age-during life, and does it have anything to do with immortality as suggested by the usual translation “everlasting life”?
As a matter of fact, the phrase “age-during life” has nothing to do with whether one has immortality or not. Although we will be made immortal and incorruptible at the resurrection, this is a mystery that was only first revealed to Paul (1 Cor. 15:51-55). Instead, in the only two places where this phrase is defined by Jesus, it is explicitly related to both the privilege of believers in this age to maintain a personal relationship with God and Christ, as well as the privilege of believers to live in the coming Messianic age:
“this is the life age-during, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and him whom Thou didst send — Jesus Christ” (John 17:3)
“Verily I say to you, that there is not one who left house, or parents, or brothers, or wife, or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who may not receive back manifold more in this time, and in the coming age, life age-during.” (Lk. 18:29-30, cf. Mk. 10:29-30)
The “coming age” spoken of in Luke 18:30 refers to the thousand-year Messianic age (Rev. 20:1-7), which will be established when Christ returns at the end of this age (Matt. 16:28; 24:3; Lk. 21:27-31). Likewise, in the context of John 3:16 itself, the question that Nicodemus and Jesus were discussing was who would “see” or “enter into” the Messianic kingdom (see above), not who would obtain immortality as suggested by the translation ‘everlasting life’. Jesus elaborates on this meaning of “age-during life” elsewhere in the gospel of John:
“this is the will of Him who sent me, that every one who is beholding the Son, and is believing in him, may have life age-during, and I will raise him up in the last day.” (John 6:40)
In this passage, age-during life is connected in some way with being raised up “in the last day”. Jesus’ Jewish audience would have understood Him to be referring to Daniel’s prophecy of the resurrection of the just, in Dan. 12:11-13:
“And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. But you, go your way till the end; for you shall rest, and will arise [LXX αναστημι, same word as in John 6:40] to your inheritance at the end of the days.” (NKJV)
Jesus’ statement that He would raise up to age-during life those who believed in Him “in the last day” almost certainly refers to this same resurrection of the saints which will occur “at the end of the days”, or exactly 1335 days after the “abomination of desolation” will be set up at the midpoint of the tribulation (Dan. 9:27). In his Revelation, John elaborates on what will happen to the righteous ones who partake in what he calls “the first resurrection”:
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them, and the souls of those who have been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus, and because of the word of God, and who did not bow before the beast, nor his image, and did not receive the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand, and they did live and reign with Christ the thousand years; and the rest of the dead did not live again till the thousand years may be finished; this [is] the first rising again. Happy and holy [is] he who is having part in the first rising again; over these the second death hath not authority, but they shall be priests of God and of the Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Rev. 20:4-6, cf. Rev. 5:10)
Therefore, when Jesus spoke of the “age-during life” which believers would partake in after rising again on the last day, He was certainly talking about the fact that they would be allowed to live and reign with Him for a thousand years in the coming Messianic age.
However, contrary to some views of eschatology (including amillennialism), the age to come in which we will experience “age-during life” is not everlasting. Instead, scripture is absolutely clear that there will be multiple ages to come, in which Christ will reign as King and believers will experience age-during life by reigning with Him. Here are three key passages that demonstrate this:
“Lo, thou shalt conceive in the womb, and shalt bring forth a son, and call his name Jesus; he shall be great, and Son of the Highest he shall be called, and the Lord God shall give him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign over the house of Jacob to the ages; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” (Lk. 1:31-33)
God, being rich in kindness, because of His great love with which He loved us, even being dead in the trespasses, did make us to live together with the Christ, (by grace ye are having been saved,) and did raise [us] up together, and did seat [us] together in the heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus, that He might show, in the ages that are coming, the exceeding riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:4-7)
to the only wise God our Saviour, [is] glory and greatness, power and authority, both now and to all the ages! Amen. (Jude 25)
Although these are not the only passages that demonstrate the fact that there will be multiple ages to come (notably, “the ages of the ages” for which Christ and believers will reign is also plural and very likely relates to the same period of time; Rev. 11:15; 22:5), they suffice to show that the coming Messianic age cannot be everlasting. There will be at least one age after it, followed by the end of the ages when all rule (including even that of Christ) will be abolished and God will become “all in all” (1 Cor. 15:24-28; Heb. 9:26).
Thus, the age-during life which believers will experience in the Messianic age will eventually come to an end; John 3:16 cannot be about our ‘eternal destiny’, but rather about the privilege that those who believe in Christ in this life will experience, by the glory of an early resurrection and life in the kingdom of God.
“Shall not perish for the age”
In stark contrast to the reward of believers, John presents the judgment which will come upon those who disbelieve the Son as “perishing”. John says that those who remain in darkness have already been judged by their choice to do so, and so they shall not see life, but rather the wrath of God will remain upon them (Jn. 3:36). If Christian tradition is to be followed, then the “perishing” which John spoke of is referring to eternal torment in the Lake of Fire. But is this really what he meant?
Elsewhere in the gospel of John, the age-during life of believers is contrasted with the fate which they are escaping, which is not eternal torment, but rather dying “for the [Messianic] age”. See the following passages:
“Verily, verily, I say to you, If any one may keep my word, death he may not see for the age.” (Jn. 8:51)
“My sheep my voice do hear, and I know them, and they follow me, and life age-during I give to them, and they shall not perish for the age, and no one shall pluck them out of my hand” (Jn. 10:27-28)
Jesus said to her, “I am the rising again, and the life; he who is believing in me, even if he may die, shall live; and every one who is living and believing in me shall not die for the age“ (Jn. 11:25-26)
The Greek phrase εις τον αιωνα, literally “for the age”, is often translated “forever” in modern dynamic-equivalence translations (possibly because of the influence of amillennialism, which argues that the coming age is ‘forever’). However, if translated that way in these passages, it would seem that Jesus is saying that believers will never die, which is demonstrably false and goes against reality; rather, He is making the very specific claim that those who believe in and follow Him will not die for the Messianic age.
This interpretation makes sense in the context, since those who do not live for the age will, naturally, be dead throughout the age. This confirms what was seen in my previous article about the nature of Gehenna, in which I demonstrated that this punishment spoken of by Jesus refers to the fact that the corpses of Jewish unbelievers will be cast into the Valley of Hinnom near Jerusalem and burned during the Messianic age, thereby disqualifying them from the first resurrection of the saints and entry into the kingdom (and causing them to remain dead for that age). Therefore, the “perishing” spoken of by John in Jn. 3:16 is not about eternal conscious torment, but rather about remaining dead through the Messianic age.
John’s intended audience
Keeping the judgment passages like Matthew 25:31-46 and Romans 2:6-10 in mind, the question must be asked, how can John say that everyone who disbelieves on the Son will not have age-during life (Jn. 3:36), when we know that at least a few Gentile unbelievers will pass through judgment unscathed? Ezekiel 47:22-23 and Matthew 25:34-40 state that some Gentile unbelievers (those who aided the Jews during the tribulation) will inherit land in the Messianic kingdom and receive age-during life, and Romans 2:7 (along with Isa. 65:20, indirectly) indicates that unbelievers who do good in this life will be rewarded with age-during life on the New Earth. But how is this compatible with John’s gospel?
In fact, this is because John’s gospel (and all the messages therein) were written primarily to and about the Jews, not about the Gentiles. As Paul says in Galatians 2:9, John, along with Peter and James, was specifically sent “to the Circumcision” (that is, to Jewish believers), whereas Paul and Barnabas were the only apostles to the Gentiles. Likewise, the very central message of the gospel of John - that Jesus is the Messiah (Jn. 20:31) - is highly Jewish in nature. Although the Jews were largely removed from Judea by the 90s AD when this gospel was written, it was almost certainly written to the “dispersion” of Jewish people in Asia Minor (Jas. 1:1; 1 Pet. 1:1).
Therefore, although it is true that some Gentile unbelievers will receive age-during life, John’s statement that “he who is not believing the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God doth remain upon him” (Jn. 3:36) was entirely true for his intended Jewish audience. As Paul says in Rom. 2:12, Jews are held to a higher standard than Gentiles, because as the recipients of the Mosaic law, Jewish unbelievers will be judged by the law.
Conclusion
John 3:16 is often considered to be the key text of Christianity, the “gospel in a nutshell”. According to the vast majority of Christians, this verse tells us of how God sent His Son to die for our sins, so that anyone who believes in Him will escape eternal torment and get to go to ‘heaven’ instead. However, when this verse is examined in context, and the meaning of ζωη αιωνιος (“life age-during”) is elucidated from other Johannine passages, it becomes quite clear that the unbiblical dichotomy between ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’ is not in view here, but rather John 3:16 is about how anyone who follows Jesus will be allowed to live and reign in His kingdom during the Messianic age.
Any mention of Christ’s death “for our sins” (1 Cor. 15:3) must be eisegeted into this passage; it is not about His death (which was only revealed later in Jn. 12:32-33), but rather about how God sent the Messiah into the world. Furthermore, since the primary audience of the gospel of John was Jewish, none of the statements made in Jn. 3 can be generalized to Gentiles as well; in fact, doing so would create contradictions with other passages. Therefore, John 3:16 is not the “gospel in a nutshell”, nor is it about escaping ‘hell’, but rather it is a message to Jewish believers about how to enter the Messianic kingdom.
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