And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This isn't just about having eternal life, but about its very essence: knowing God as the sole reality and Jesus as the One sent by Him. The focus is on a deep, relational recognition, not just intellectual agreement, of who God is and who Jesus is in that divine relationship.
And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus is praying, just before his arrest and crucifixion, for himself, his disciples, and all future believers. He asks the Father to glorify him so that he can glorify the Father, explaining that this shared glory is the very source of eternal life for those entrusted to him. This verse defines that life not as mere endless existence, but as a deep, relational knowledge of the one true God and of Jesus Christ, whom God sent.
Think eternal life is just about living forever? Jesus says it's about something much deeper – a specific kind of knowing.
This verse, John 17:3, is the heart of Jesus' high priestly prayer. He's not just defining eternal life as endless existence; he's explaining its very essence.
A Living Relationship
Jesus uses the Greek word 'ginosko' (γνῶσις), which doesn't just mean intellectual understanding. It implies an intimate, experiential knowledge, like knowing a person deeply through relationship and experience, not just knowing about them. It's a knowledge that transforms.
The True God vs. Idols
He contrasts this with the 'many false, spurious gods of the heathen.' In Jesus' day, people worshipped countless deities. But Jesus points to one singular, 'only true God.' This isn't about numbers; it's about reality. Knowing this God, the genuine article, is the foundation of eternal life.
Jesus states that knowing the 'only true God' is key to eternal life. But how do we access that knowledge? He immediately points to Himself.
Jesus doesn't just identify the 'only true God'; he reveals Him. The phrase 'and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent' is crucial here. It's not an afterthought; it's integral to knowing God.
The Sent One
Ask a follow-up
Jesus is presented as 'Him whom You sent.' This highlights his unique divine mission. He is the authorized messenger, the one sent directly by the Father with the authority and power to reveal God's very nature and will.
The Divine Connection
By placing Jesus alongside the Father in this definition of eternal life, Jesus implies a profound connection. Knowing the Father is knowing Jesus, and knowing Jesus is knowing the Father. This inseparable link shows that Jesus is not merely a prophet or a teacher, but the very embodiment of God's revelation to humanity.
Understand the original words
ginōskō · Greek Verb
In a biblical sense, this denotes an intimate, experiential, and relational knowledge, far exceeding mere intellectual awareness or accumulation of facts.
apostellō · Greek Verb (participle)
The one who has been dispatched by the Father with divine authorization to act as His representative and the sole mediator of salvation.
This passage directly states that Jesus Christ 'is the true God and eternal life,' echoing John 17:3's identification of knowing God and Jesus Christ as eternal life. It reinforces the divine nature of Christ and His role in bringing eternal life.
Jeremiah 31:33-34This Old Testament prophecy speaks of God's future covenant where He will put His law within people, write it on their hearts, and forgive their iniquity. This parallels John 17:3 by describing an intimate, internal knowledge of God as the basis of a transformed life and relationship, fulfilling the covenant through Christ.
Matthew 11:27Jesus declares that 'all things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.' This highlights that true knowledge of God comes through Jesus, mirroring John 17:3's emphasis on knowing God through the one He has sent.
1 Corinthians 8:6This verse states, 'yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.' It directly parallels John 17:3 by presenting the Father as the one true God and Jesus Christ as the mediator through whom we know Him and come to exist.
cambridgeJohn 17:3: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
3 . And this is life eternal ] More exactly, But the life eternal is this . ‘ The life eternal’ means that which has just been mentioned; and ‘is this’ means ‘this is what it consists in:’ comp. John 3:19 , John 15:12 . that they might know ] Literally, in order that they may recognise ; comp. John 6:29 , John 15:12 ; 1 John 3:11 ; 1 John 3:23 ; 1 John 5:3 ; 2 John 1:6 . Th…
jfbJohn 17:3: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
- this is—that.life eternal, that they might—may.know, &c.—This life eternal, then, is not mere conscious and unending existence, but a life of acquaintance with God in Christ (Job 22:21).thee, the only true God—the sole personal living God; in glorious contrast equally with heathen polytheism, philosophic naturalism, and mystic pantheism.and Jesus Christ whom thou hast se…
This isn't just about having eternal life, but about its very essence: knowing God as the sole reality and Jesus as the One sent by Him. The focus is on a deep, relational recognition, not just intellectual agreement, of who God is and who Jesus is in that divine relationship.
Jesus is praying, just before his arrest and crucifixion, for himself, his disciples, and all future believers. He asks the Father to glorify him so that he can glorify the Father, explaining that this shared glory is the very source of eternal life for those entrusted to him. This verse defines that life not as mere endless existence, but as a deep, relational knowledge of the one true God and of Jesus Christ, whom God sent.
Jesus is praying, just before his arrest and crucifixion, for himself, his disciples, and all future believers. He asks the Father to glorify him so that he can glorify the Father, explaining that this shared glory is the very source of eternal life for those entrusted to him. This verse defines that life not as mere endless existence, but as a deep, relational knowledge of the one true God and of Jesus Christ, whom God sent.
"And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." — This isn't just about having eternal life, but about its very essence: knowing God as the sole reality and Jesus as the One sent by Him. The focus is on a deep, relational recognition, not just i…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026