The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 "I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener.
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I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener.
2 Every branch which is part of me but fails to bear fruit, he cuts off; and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes, so that it may bear more fruit.
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He takes away every branch in me which has no fruit, and every branch which has fruit he makes clean, so that it may have more fruit.
3 Right now, because of the word which I have spoken to you, you are pruned.
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You are clean, even now, through the teaching which I have given you.
4 Stay united with me, as I will with you -- for just as the branch can't put forth fruit by itself apart from the vine, so you can't bear fruit apart from me.
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Be in me at all times as I am in you. As the branch is not able to give fruit of itself, if it is not still on the vine, so you are not able to do so if you are not in me.
5 "I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who stay united with me, and I with them, are the ones who bear much fruit; because apart from me you can't do a thing.
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I am the vine, you are the branches: he who is in me at all times as I am in him, gives much fruit, because without me you are able to do nothing.
6 Unless a person remains united with me, he is thrown away like a branch and dries up. Such branches are gathered and thrown into the fire, where they are burned up.
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If a man does not keep himself in me, he becomes dead and is cut off like a dry branch; such branches are taken up and put in the fire and burned.
7 "If you remain united with me, and my words with you, then ask whatever you want, and it will happen for you.
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If you are in me at all times, and my words are in you, then anything for which you make a request will be done for you.
8 This is how my Father is glorified -- in your bearing much fruit; this is how you will prove to be my talmidim.
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Here is my Father's glory, in that you give much fruit and so are my true disciples.
9 "Just as my Father has loved me, I too have loved you; so stay in my love.
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Even as the Father has given me his love, so I have given my love to you: be ever in my love.
10 If you keep my commands, you will stay in my love -- just as I have kept my Father's commands and stay in his love.
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If you keep my laws, you will be ever in my love, even as I have kept my Father's laws, and am ever in his love.
11 I have said this to you so that my joy may be in you, and your joy be complete.
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I have said these things to you so that I may have joy in you and so that your joy may be complete.
12 "This is my command: that you keep on loving each other just as I have loved you.
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This is the law I give you: Have love one for another, even as I have love for you.
13 No one has greater love than a person who lays down his life for his friends.
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Greater love has no man than this, that a man gives up his life for his friends.
14 You are my friends, if you do what I command you.
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You are my friends, if you do what I give you orders to do.
15 I no longer call you slaves, because a slave doesn't know what his master is about; but I have called you friends, because everything I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
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No longer do I give you the name of servants; because a servant is without knowledge of what his master is doing: I give you the name of friends, because I have given you knowledge of all the things which my Father has said to me.
16 You did not choose me, I chose you; and I have commissioned you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last; so that whatever you ask from the Father in my name he may give you.
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You did not take me for yourselves, but I took you for myself; and I gave you the work of going about and producing fruit which will be for ever; so that whatever request you make to the Father in my name he may give it to you.
17 This is what I command you: keep loving each other!
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So this is my law for you: Have love one for another.
18 "If the world hates you, understand that it hated me first.
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If you are hated by the world, keep in mind that I was hated by the world before you.
19 If you belonged to the world, the world would have loved its own. But because you do not belong to the world -- on the contrary, I have picked you out of the world -- therefore the world hates you.
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If you were of the world, you would be loved by the world: but because you are not of the world, but I have taken you out of the world, you are hated by the world.
20 Remember what I told you, `A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you too; if they kept my word, they will keep yours too.
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Keep in mind the words I said to you, A servant is not greater than his lord. If they were cruel to me, they will be cruel to you; if they kept my words, they will keep yours.
21 But they will do all this to you on my account, because they don't know the One who sent me.
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They will do all this to you because of my name--because they have no knowledge of him who sent me.
22 "If I had not come and spoken to them, they wouldn't be guilty of sin; but now, they have no excuse for their sin.
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If I had not come and been their teacher they would have had no sin: but now they have no reason to give for their sin.
23 Whoever hates me hates my Father also.
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He who has hate for me has hate for my Father.
24 If I had not done in their presence works which no one else ever did, they would not be guilty of sin; but now, they have seen them and have hated both me and my Father.
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If I had not done among them the works which no other man ever did, they would have had no sin: but now they have seen, and they have had hate in their hearts for me and my Father.
25 But this has happened in order to fulfill the words in their Torah which read, `They hated me for no reason at all.'
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This comes about so that the writing in their law may be made true, Their hate for me was without cause.
26 "When the Counselor comes, whom I will send you from the Father -- the Spirit of Truth, who keeps going out from the Father -- he will testify on my behalf.
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When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father even the Spirit of true knowledge who comes from the Father--he will give witness about me;
27 And you testify too, because you have been with me from the outset.
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And you, in addition, will give witness because you have been with me from the first.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.