John 12:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

NIV: Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.

NASB: Truly, truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

CSB: Truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces much fruit.

NLT: I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels — a plentiful harvest of new lives.

KJV: Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

NKJV: Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.

As He often does when making a bold point, Jesus uses the "Truly, truly" phrase. This comes from a repetition of the word amen, which invokes agreement. Used at the end of a statement—as many do with prayer—it implies agreeing with something already said or believed. Used at the beginning of a remark, as here, implies it's the first-hand original knowledge of the one speaking.

Paul expands on this metaphor of planted seeds in 1 Corinthians 15:36–42. The seed which is planted seems to "die." It sacrifices everything and is lost, so far as it appears. In truth, the seed must be planted in order to become what it was always meant to be. Just as the seed must "lose its life" to fulfill its ultimate purpose, so too does each person need to "lose" their worldly life in order to gain eternity (John 12:25). That doesn't literally mean physical death or martyrdom, but rather the willingness to sacrifice everything in order to follow Christ (Mark 8:35–36).

Jesus will continue to refine this idea in the following verses. That explanation includes a typical ancient-middle-eastern contrast using terms like "love" and "hate."

John 12:20–26 describes a group of Greeks—non-Jewish people who worshipped God—who approach Jesus after the triumphal entry. The disciples appear to be carefully vetting everyone who wants to come near Jesus, knowing that local religious leaders have marked Him for death. Jesus' response indicates that the time has come for His ultimate sacrifice, an event which opens the gospel of grace to the entire world.

Jesus is treated to an honorary dinner at the home of Lazarus, whom He has recently raised from death. At this dinner, Lazarus' sister, Mary, anoints Jesus with expensive oil. Jesus then enters Jerusalem to great fanfare, stoking fears that His popularity will attract the anger of the Roman Empire. That anger even inspires a murder plot against Lazarus. After being approached by non-Jewish seekers, Jesus offers a final plea for people to understand His ministry. In effect, these are the last public words spoken by Jesus in the gospel of John.

In the prior chapter, Jesus spectacularly raised Lazarus from death in front of a crowd of witnesses. This inspired local religious leaders to commit to having Him killed. Here, after a celebratory dinner where Jesus is anointed with oil, He will fulfill prophecy by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, celebrated with shouts of ''Hosanna'' and a massive crowd. This leads to a group of curious non-Jews approaching Him. Christ then offers a final plea for belief in Him and His message. After this, His ministry will turn to preparing the disciples for His impending death and resurrection. The next several chapters of the gospel of John are almost entirely made up of his teachings to these men.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.