JOHN 1:15-16 NKJV

John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ”

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.

JOHN 1:15-16 NKJV

John 1:15 He was before me: Jesus was born after John the Baptist (Luke 1:36) and began His ministry later than John the Baptist. Yet John the Baptist said Jesus was before him, meaning that Jesus’ existence is from eternity past (v. 30). John is an excellent example of the singlemindedness that is needed to fulfill a person’s ministry before God. He knew the specific message God gave him to preach and he did not deviate from that message.

John 1:16 Most people take the words of v. 15 to be John the Baptist’s. Probably the words of vv. 16–18 are those of John the writer of this Gospel, although they too may be John the Baptist’s. Grace for grace means grace piled upon grace. The background of this doubled term, as well as the use of the term in v. 17, is found in Ex. 32—34. Moses and the people had received grace, but they were in tremendous need of more grace (Ex. 33:13).