The Bible, Douay-Rheims Part 704

1:47. Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him and he saith of him: Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile.

1:48. Nathanael saith to him: Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said to him: Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.

1:49. Nathanael answered him and said: Rabbi: Thou art the Son of G.o.d.

Thou art the King of Israel.

1:50. Jesus answered and said to him: Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, thou believest: greater things than these shalt thou see.

1:51. And he saith to him: Amen, amen, I say to you, you shall see the heaven opened and the angels of G.o.d ascending and descending upon the Son of man.

John Chapter 2

Christ changes water into wine. He casts the sellers out of the temple.

2:1. And the third day, there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee: and the mother of Jesus was there.

2:2. And Jesus also was invited, and his disciples, to the marriage.

2:3. And the wine failing, the mother of Jesus saith to him: They have no wine.

2:4. And Jesus saith to her: Woman, what is that to me and to thee? My hour is not yet come.

What is that to me, etc... These words of our Saviour, spoken to his mother, have been understood by some commentators as harsh, they not considering the next following verse: Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye, which plainly shows that his mother knew of the miracle that he was to perform, and that it was at her request he wrought it; besides the manner of speaking the words as to the tone, and the countenance shown at the same time, which could only be known to those who were present, or from what had followed: for words indicating anger in one tone of voice, would be understood quite the reverse in another.

2:5. His mother saith to the waiters: Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye.

2:6. Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three measures apiece.

2:7. Jesus saith to them: Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.

2:8. And Jesus saith to them: Draw out now and carry to the chief steward of the feast. And they carried it.

2:9. And when the chief steward had tasted the water made wine and knew not whence it was, but the waiters knew who had drawn the water: the chief steward calleth the bridegroom,

2:10. And saith to him: Every man at first setteth forth good wine, and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse. But thou hast kept the good wine until now.

2:11. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

2:12. After this, he went down to Capharnaum, he and his mother and his brethren and his disciples: and they remained there not many days.

2:13. And the pasch of the Jews was at hand: and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2:14. And he found in the temple them that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting.

2:15. And when he had made, as it were, a scourge of little cords, he drove them all out of the temple, the sheep also and the oxen: and the money of the changers he poured out, and the tables he overthrew.

2:16. And to them that sold doves he said: Take these things hence, and make not the house of my Father a house of traffic.

2:17. And his disciples remembered, that it was written: The zeal of thy house hath eaten me up.

2:18. The Jews, therefore, answered, and said to him: What sign dost thou shew unto us, seeing thou dost these things?

2:19. Jesus answered and said to them: Destroy this temple; and in three days I will raise it up.

2:20. The Jews then said: Six and forty years was this temple in building; and wilt thou raise it up in three days?

2:21. But he spoke of the temple of his body.

2:22. When therefore he was risen again from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this: and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had said.

2:23. Now when he was at Jerusalem, at the pasch, upon the festival day, many believed in his name, seeing his signs which he did.

2:24. But Jesus did not trust himself unto them: for that he knew all men,

2:25. And because he needed not that any should give testimony of man: for he knew what was in man.

John Chapter 3

Christ's discourse with Nicodemus. John's testimony.

3:1. And there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.

3:2. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him: Rabbi, we know that thou art come a teacher from G.o.d; for no man can do these signs which thou dost, unless G.o.d be with him.

3:3. Jesus answered and said to him: Amen, amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of G.o.d.

3:4. Nicodemus saith to him: How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born again?

3:5. Jesus answered: Amen, amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the kingdom of G.o.d.

Unless a man be born again, etc... By these words our Saviour hath declared the necessity of baptism; and by the word water it is evident that the application of it is necessary with the words. Matt. 28. 19.

3:6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh: and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

3:7. Wonder not that I said to thee: You must be born again.

3:8. The Spirit breatheth where he will and thou hearest his voice: but thou knowest not whence he cometh and whither he goeth. So is every one that is born of the Spirit.

3:9. Nicodemus answered and said to him: How can these things be done?

3:10. Jesus answered and said to him: Art thou a master in Israel, and knowest not these things?

3:11. Amen, amen, I say to thee that we speak what we know and we testify what we have seen: and you receive not our testimony.

3:12. If I have spoken to you earthly things, and you believe not: how will you believe, if I shall speak to you heavenly things?

3:13. And no man hath ascended into heaven, but he that descended from heaven, the Son of man who is in heaven.