John 13 · Verse 20

John 13:20

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
John 13:20, King James Version

John 13:20 in other translations

BSBTruly, truly, I tell you, whoever receives the one I send receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives the One who sent Me.”
WEBMost certainly I tell you, he who receives whomever I send, receives me; and he who receives me, receives him who sent me.”
ASVVerily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
YLTverily, verily, I say to you, he who is receiving whomsoever I may send, doth receive me; and he who is receiving me, doth receive Him who sent me.'
DARBYVerily, verily, I say to you, He who receives whomsoever I shall send receives me; and he that receives me receives him who has sent me.
BBETruly I say to you, He who takes to his heart anyone whom I send, takes me to his heart; and he who so takes me, takes him who sent me.
WebsterVerily, verily, I say to you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me; and he that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me.

What does John 13:20 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
20. He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me, &c.--(See on Mt 10:40). The connection here seems to be that despite the dishonor done to Him by Judas, and similar treatment awaiting themselves, they were to be cheered by the assurance that their office, even as His own, was divine.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 20. He that receiveth, &c. This sentiment is found in the instructions which Jesus gave to his disciples in Mt 10:40. Why he repeats it at this time cannot now be known. It is certain that it is not closely connected with the subject of his conversation. Perhaps, however, it was to show how intimately united he, his Father, his apostles, and all who received them were. They who received them received him, and they who received him received God. So he who betrayed him, betrayed, for the same reason, God. Hence Judas, who was about to betray him, was also about to betray the cause of religion in the world, and to betray God and his cause. Everything pertaining to religion is connected together. A man cannot do dishonour to one of the institutions of religion without injuring all; he cannot dishonour its ministers or the Saviour without dishonouring God. And this shows that one prominent ground of the Saviour's solicitude was that his Father might be honoured, and one source of his deep grief at the treason of Judas was that it would bring injury upon the whole cause of religion in the world.

(p) "He that receiveth" Mt 10:40

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 20 He that received whomsoever I send - See similar words, Mat 10:40, etc. Our Lord spoke this to comfort his disciples: he showed them that, although they should be rejected by many, they would be received by several; and that whoever received them should reap the utmost benefit by it.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on John 13:18-30

Our Lord had often spoken of his own sufferings and death, without such trouble of spirit as he now discovered when he spake of Judas. The sins of Christians are the grief of Christ. We are not to confine our attention to Judas. The prophecy of his treachery may apply to all who partake of God's mercies, and meet them with ingratitude. See the infidel, who only looks at the Scriptures with a desire to do away their…

Read the full comment on John 13:18-30 →

John 13:20 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ἀμὴνamēnAmenG281
ἀμὴνamēnAmenG281
λέγωlegōI sayG3004
ὑμῖν·huminto you;G4771
ὁhothe [one]G3588
λαμβάνωνlambanōnreceivingG2983
ἄνanmaybeG302
τιναtinaanyG5100
πέμψω,pempsōI shall send,G3992
ἐμὲemeMe myselfG1473
λαμβάνει·lambaneireceives;G2983
ὁhothe [one]G3588
δὲdenowG1161
ἐμὲemeMe myselfG1473
λαμβάνων,lambanōnreceiving,G2983
λαμβάνειlambaneireceivesG2983
τὸνtonthe [One]G3588
πέμψαντάpempsantahaving sentG3992
με.¶meMe.G3165

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for John 13:20

  • Luke 10:16

    He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.

  • Luke 9:48

    And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

  • Mark 9:37

    Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

  • Matthew 25:40

    And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

  • Matthew 10:40-42

    He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

  • Galatians 4:14

    And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.

  • John 12:44-48

    Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. …

  • Colossians 2:6

    As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

  • 1 Thessalonians 4:8

    He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
He.
12:44-48; Mt 10:40-42; 25:40; Mr 9:37; Lu 9:48; 10:16; Ga 4:14
Col 2:6; 1Th 4:8

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • John 13:19

    Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.

  • John 13:20

    Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

  • John 13:21

    When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.

Read all of John 13

John 13:20 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		De cierto, de cierto os digo: El que recibe al que yo enviare, á mí recibe; y el que á mí recibe, recibe al que me envió.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		En vérité, en vérité, je vous dis: Celui qui reçoit quelqu’un que j’envoie, me reçoit; et celui qui me reçoit, reçoit celui qui m’a envoyé.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Wahrlich, wahrlich, ich sage euch: Wer aufnimmt, wen irgend ich senden werde, nimmt mich auf; wer aber mich aufnimmt, nimmt den auf, der mich gesandt hat.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Amen, amen dico vobis: qui accipit si quem misero, me accipit; qui autem me accipit, accipit eum qui me misit.