John 1:32

John 1:32 Meaning and Commentary

John 1:32

And John bare record
The same day that he said the above things, and at the same time:

saying, I saw the Spirit;
that is, of God, as is said in ( Matthew 3:16 ) and which Nonnus here expresses; and the Ethiopic version reads, "the Holy Ghost",

descending from heaven like a dove;
at the time of his baptism; (See Gill on Matthew 3:16).

And it abode upon him;
for some time; so long as that John had a full sight of it, and so was capable of giving a perfect account of it, and bearing a certain and distinct testimony to it.

John 1:32 In-Context

30 This is the One I was talking about when I said, 'A man will come after me, but he is greater than I am, because he was living before me.'
31 Even I did not know who he was, although I came baptizing with water so that the people of Israel would know who he is."
33 Then John said, "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven in the form of a dove and rest on him. Until then I did not know who the Christ was. But the God who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'You will see the Spirit come down and rest on a man; he is the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'
34 I have seen this happen, and I tell you the truth: This man is the Son of God."
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.