For God did not so love the whole world – only Israel! John 3:16 revisited

Abstract

John 3:16 is probably the most popular and widely proclaimed proof-text for God's love for all of humankind -the "world". This interpretation of the verse is based on a meaning for which the Greek word cosmos can be used, but the word is used to denote many other meanings as well. The one interpretation of cosmos as "world" is then read into all instances where cosmos appears, including John 3:16. This position is held and defended by some in an almost fanatical manner by some. However, if this verse is exegetically considered in its primary context, the Fourth Gospel, it becomes clear that John 3:16 does not speak of God's universal love of all of human kind. Far from it. The verse indeed has a completely different meaning.

Exploring issues around Biblical, Western and African social values

“…It is thus necessary to re-evaluate Jesus research in terms of the research that has been done in this regard, since the Jesus depicted in many studies could just not have been any part of an ancient world as we have now come to know it. Even the utterance in John 3:16 that God so loved the world that he gave his only Son can convincingly be shown to be aimed at Israel only and not humankind of all ages in general (see Botha & Rousseau 2005). I must add here that many of the newer studies on the historical Jesus do indeed reflect some knowledge of the contribution of the social science to the understanding of Jesus.…”

Penggunaan Terminologi Kosmos Berdasarkan Yohanes 3:16: Suatu Kajian Teologi Biblika Atas Ekoteologi

“…Botha dan Rousseau menerangkan bahwa kosmos atau dunia oleh kelompok ekoteologis dimaknai sebagai alam semesta sehingga konsep penebusan Kristus dalam teks Yohanes 3:16 diyakini bersifat universal di mana alam tercakup di dalamnya (Kristologi ekologis). 18 Nathan Aaberg menegaskan bahwa kosmos dalam teks Yohanes 3:16 bukan hanya manusia melainkan seluruh ciptaan termasuk alam semesta. 19 Moltmann melihat Kristus sebagai penyelamat bagi seluruh kosmos, dan menganggap bahwa Inkarnasi mengungkapkan anugerah Allah dan mengandaikan serta menyempurnakan ciptaan.…”

“…Keduanya berpendapat bahwa dalam konteks Injil, pernyataan dalam Yohanes 3:16 menggambarkan kualitas agape yang tiada tara dalam kesetiaan Allah yang tiada henti terhadap umat-Nya Israel. 68 Frase selanjutnya adalah "… sehingga Ia telah mengaruniakan Anak-Nya yang tunggal," yang dalam Greek New Testament dituliskan ὥστε τὸν ⸀υἱὸν τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν. Kata "μονογενῆ" atau "monogenes" merupakan kata adjektif kasus akusatif maskulin tunggal.…”