John 5:19

Bible in Basic English (1941)

So Jesus made answer and said, Truly I say to you, The Son is not able to do anything himself; he is able to do only what he sees the Father doing; whatever the Father does the Son does it in the same way.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

Ἀπεκρίνατο οὖν ὁ Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, Ἀμὴν, ἀμὴν, λέγω ὑμῖν, Οὐ δύναται ὁ Υἱὸς ποιεῖν ἀφʼ ἑαυτοῦ οὐδέν, ἐὰν μή τι βλέπῃ τὸν Πατέρα ποιοῦντα: ἃ γὰρ ἂν ἐκεῖνος ποιῇ, ταῦτα καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς ὁμοίως ποιεῖ.

Transliteration

Apekrinato oun the Iēsous and eipen to them, Amēn, amēn, I legō to you, Not dynatai the Huios poiein from heautou ouden, if not anything blepē the Patera poiounta: whatever for that one poiē, these things also the Huios homoiōs poiei.

Grammar Details

• *Apekrinato*: aorist middle indicative, 3rd singular of *apokrinomai* - answered
• *oun*: inferential particle - therefore/so
• *Iēsous*: noun, nominative, masculine, singular - Jesus
• *eipen*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular of *legō* - said
• *autois*: personal pronoun, dative, masculine, plural - to them
• *Amēn*: Hebrew term transliterated - truly/verily
• *legō*: present active indicative, 1st singular - I say/tell
• *hymin*: personal pronoun, dative, 2nd plural - to you
• *Ou dynatai*: present middle indicative, 3rd singular of *dynamai* - is not able
• *Huios*: noun, nominative, masculine, singular - Son
• *poiein*: present active infinitive of *poieō* - to do
• *aph' heautou*: prepositional phrase - from himself
• *ouden*: adjective, accusative, neuter, singular - nothing
• *ean mē*: conditional phrase - unless/if not
• *ti*: indefinite pronoun, accusative, neuter, singular - anything
• *blepē*: present active subjunctive, 3rd singular of *blepō* - he may see
• *Patera*: noun, accusative, masculine, singular - Father
• *poiounta*: present active participle, accusative, masculine, singular - doing
• *ha*: relative pronoun, accusative, neuter, plural - whatever things
• *gar*: postpositive conjunction - for
• *an*: modal particle with subjunctive - would/may
• *ekeinos*: demonstrative pronoun, nominative, masculine, singular - that one
• *poiē*: present active subjunctive, 3rd singular of *poieō* - may do
• *tauta*: demonstrative pronoun, accusative, neuter, plural - these things
• *kai*: conjunction - also/even
• *homoiōs*: adverb - likewise/in the same way
• *poiei*: present active indicative, 3rd singular of *poieō* - does

Word Meanings

• *Amēn, amēn*: truly, truly/most assuredly
• *dynatai*: is able/can/has power
• *aph' heautou*: from himself/of his own accord
• *blepē*: may see/observes/perceives
• *poiounta*: doing/performing/acting
• *homoiōs*: likewise/in the same way/similarly

Referenced Verses

• John 8:28 : 28 So Jesus said, When the Son of man has been lifted up by you, then it will be clear to you who I am, and that I do nothing of myself, but say as the Father gave me teaching.
• John 12:49 : 49 For I have not said it on my authority, but the Father who sent me gave me orders what to say and how to say it.
• John 14:10 : 10 Have you not faith that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words which I say to you, I say not from myself: but the Father who is in me all the time does his works.
• John 5:28-30 : 28 Do not be surprised at this: for the time is coming when his voice will come to all who are in the place of the dead, 29 And they will come out; those who have done good, into the new life; and those who have done evil, to be judged. 30 Of myself I am unable to do anything: as the voice comes to me so I give a decision: and my decision is right because I have no desire to do what is pleasing to myself, but only what is pleasing to him who sent me.
• John 11:25-26 : 25 Jesus said to her, I am myself that day and that life; he who has faith in me will have life even if he is dead; 26 And no one who is living and has faith in me will ever see death. Is this your faith?
• Rom 8:11 : 11 But if the Spirit of him who made Jesus come again from the dead is in you, he who made Christ Jesus come again from the dead will in the same way, through his Spirit which is in you, give life to your bodies which now are under the power of death.
• 1 Pet 3:18 : 18 Because Christ once went through pain for sins, the upright one taking the place of sinners, so that through him we might come back to God; being put to death in the flesh, but given life in the Spirit;
• Isa 45:24 : 24 Only in the Lord will Jacob overcome and be strong: together all those who were angry with him will be put to shame and come to destruction.
• Jer 17:10 : 10 I the Lord am the searcher of the heart, the tester of the thoughts, so that I may give to every man the reward of his ways, in keeping with the fruit of his doings.
• Luke 21:15 : 15 For I will give you words and wisdom, so that not one of those who are against you will be able to get the better of you, or to put you in the wrong.
• John 2:19 : 19 And Jesus said to them, Send destruction on this Temple and I will put it up again in three days.
• John 3:3 : 3 Jesus said to him, Truly, I say to you, Without a new birth no man is able to see the kingdom of God.
• John 5:21 : 21 In the same way, as the Father gives life to the dead, even so the Son gives life to those to whom he is pleased to give it.
• John 5:24-26 : 24 Truly I say to you, The man whose ears are open to my word and who has faith in him who sent me, has eternal life; he will not be judged, but has come from death into life. 25 Truly I say to you, The time is coming, it has even now come, when the voice of the Son of God will come to the ears of the dead, and those hearing it will have life. 26 For even as the Father has life in himself, so he has given to the Son to have life in himself.
• John 9:4 : 4 While it is day we have to do the works of him who sent me: the night comes when no work may be done.
• John 10:18 : 18 No one takes it away from me; I give it up of myself. I have power to give it up, and I have power to take it again. These orders I have from my Father.
• Gen 1:1 : 1 At the first God made the heaven and the earth.
• Gen 1:26 : 26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, like us: and let him have rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every living thing which goes flat on the earth.
• Exod 4:11 : 11 And the Lord said to him, Who has made man's mouth? who takes away a man's voice or hearing, or makes him seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?
• Ps 50:6 : 6 And let the heavens make clear his righteousness; for God himself is the judge. (Selah.)
• Ps 138:3 : 3 When my cry came to your ears you gave me an answer, and made me great with strength in my soul.
• Prov 2:6 : 6 For the Lord gives wisdom; out of his mouth come knowledge and reason:
• Isa 44:24 : 24 The Lord, who has taken up your cause, and who gave you life in your mother's body, says, I am the Lord who makes all things; stretching out the heavens by myself, and giving the earth its limits; who was with me?
• Col 1:16 : 16 For by him all things were made, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, authorities, lords, rulers, and powers; all things were made by him and for him;
• John 14:16-23 : 16 And I will make prayer to the Father and he will give you another Helper to be with you for ever, 17 Even the Spirit of true knowledge. That Spirit the world is not able to take to its heart because it sees him not and has no knowledge of him: but you have knowledge of him, because he is ever with you and will be in you. 18 I will not let you be without a friend: I am coming to you. 19 A little time longer, and the world will see me no more; but you will see me; and you will be living because I am living. 20 At that time it will be clear to you that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I in you. 21 He who has my laws and keeps them, he it is who has love for me: and he who has love for me will be loved by my Father, and I will have love for him and will let myself be seen clearly by him. 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, How is it that you will let yourself be seen clearly by us and not by the world? 23 Jesus said to him in answer, If anyone has love for me, he will keep my words: and he will be dear to my Father; and we will come to him and make our living-place with him.
• Acts 2:24 : 24 But God gave him back to life, having made him free from the pains of death because it was not possible for him to be overcome by it.
• Rom 6:4 : 4 We have been placed with him among the dead through baptism into death: so that as Christ came again from the dead by the glory of the Father, we, in the same way, might be living in new life.
• 1 Cor 15:12 : 12 Now if the good news says that Christ came back from the dead, how do some of you say that there is no coming back from the dead?
• 2 Cor 4:14 : 14 Because we are certain that he who made the Lord Jesus come back from the dead, will do the same for us, and will give us a place in his glory with you.
• 2 Cor 5:10 : 10 For we all have to come before Christ to be judged; so that every one of us may get his reward for the things done in the body, good or bad.
• 2 Cor 12:9-9 : 9 And he said to me, My grace is enough for you, for my power is made complete in what is feeble. Most gladly, then, will I take pride in my feeble body, so that the power of Christ may be on me. 10 So I take pleasure in being feeble, in unkind words, in needs, in cruel attacks, in troubles, on account of Christ: for when I am feeble, then am I strong.
• Eph 1:18-19 : 18 And that having the eyes of your heart full of light, you may have knowledge of what is the hope of his purpose, what is the wealth of the glory of his heritage in the saints, 19 And how unlimited is his power to us who have faith, as is seen in the working of the strength of his power,
• Eph 2:5 : 5 Even when we were dead through our sins, gave us life together with Christ (by grace you have salvation),
• Eph 3:16 : 16 That in the wealth of his glory he would make you strong with power through his Spirit in your hearts;
• Phil 3:21 : 21 By whom this poor body of ours will be changed into the image of the body of his glory, in the measure of the working by which he is able to put all things under himself.
• Phil 4:13 : 13 I am able to do all things through him who gives me strength.
• Col 1:11 : 11 Full of strength in the measure of the great power of his glory, so that you may undergo all troubles with joy;
• 1 Thess 4:14 : 14 For if we have faith that Jesus underwent death and came back again, even so those who are sleeping will come again with him by God's power.
• Rev 2:23 : 23 And I will put her children to death; and all the churches will see that I am he who makes search into the secret thoughts and hearts of men: and I will give to every one of you the reward of your works.
• Ps 27:14 : 14 Let your hope be in the Lord: take heart and be strong; yes, let your hope be in the Lord.