John 3:9

9 "How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.

John 3:9 Meaning and Commentary

John 3:9

Nicodemus answered and said unto him
Remaining still as ignorant as ever, though Christ had explained the phrase "born again", at which he stumbled, by a being "born of water and of the Spirit", or of the grace of the Spirit of God; and had illustrated this by the free, powerful, and invisible blowing of the wind:

how can these things be?
The Arabic version reads, "how can this be?" referring either to the last thing said, that a man's being born of the Spirit, is like the blowing of the wind; or to the explanation of the first expression, that a man should be born of water, and of the Spirit; or to the first assertion itself, that a man should be born again; which notwithstanding the explanation and illustration, seemed as impossible, and as impracticable as ever; or rather to them all, and so the Persic version reads, "how can all these things be?"

John 3:9 In-Context

7 You should not be surprised when I say, 'You must all be born again.'

8 "The wind blows where it wants to. You hear the sound it makes. But you can't tell where it comes from or where it is going. It is the same with everyone who is born through the Spirit."

9 "How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.

10 "You are Israel's teacher," said Jesus. "Don't you understand these things?

11 "What I'm about to tell you is true. We speak about what we know. We give witness to what we have seen. But still you people do not accept our witness.