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John 5:19
ESV So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.
NIV Jesus gave them this answer: "Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.
NASB Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way.
CSB Jesus replied, "Truly I tell you, the Son is not able to do anything on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son likewise does these things.
NLT So Jesus explained, 'I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does.
KJV Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
NKJV Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.

What does John 5:19 mean?

This begins an extended passage featuring Jesus' defense of His ministry. These words are delivered in a specific context. He has been challenged by the Pharisees over two major points: First, Jesus has violated their traditional view of the Sabbath (John 5:16). Second, in so doing, Jesus has made a claim to equality with God (John 5:18). Rather than back off from this claim, Jesus will use the next few verses to make even more specific claims about His equality with God the Father.

Jesus introduces this section by repeating the word amēn. This word is often translated as "truly." Using it at the end of a statement was a way of declaring the truth of the statement. This word has survived use in various other languages, and many people still end prayers with the word amen. Using such a phrase at the beginning of a statement, however, implied that what was being said was first-hand information. This was used for original teachings, or eyewitness accounts. When Jesus says, "Amēn, amēn, legō hymin…"—"truly, truly I say to you"—He is claiming to know these things personally, directly, and first-hand.

The first claim to equality with God is in works: actions and deeds. Jesus is acting under submission to God the Father, meaning any works He does cannot be considered violations of God's will. At the same time, Jesus claims that what He does is equivalent to the works of God the Father. Both ideas factor into later statements (John 10:30), where Jesus will proclaim "I and the Father are one."

In upcoming verses, Jesus will claim three other areas where He is equal to God: in love (John 5:20), judgment (John 5:22), and honor (John 5:23).
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