John 20 · Verse 28

John 20:28

And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.
John 20:28, King James Version

John 20:28 in other translations

BSBThomas replied, “My Lord and my God!”
WEBThomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
ASVThomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.
YLTAnd Thomas answered and said to him, ‘My Lord and my God;'
DARBYThomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God.
BBEAnd Thomas said in answer, My Lord and my God!
WebsterAnd Thomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God.

What does John 20:28 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 20:26-29

26-29. And after eight days--that is, on the eighth, or first day of the preceding week. They probably met every day during the preceding week, but their Lord designedly reserved His second appearance among them till the recurrence of His resurrection day, that He might thus inaugurate the delightful sanctities of THE Lord's Day (Re 1:10). disciples were within, and Thomas with them ... Jesus ... stood in the midst…

Read the full comment on John 20:26-29 →

Barnes' Notes
Verse 28. My Lord and my God. In this passage the name God is expressly given to Christ, in his own presence and by one of his own apostles. This declaration has been considered as a clear proof of the divinity of Christ, for the following reasons:

1st. There is no evidence that this was a mere expression, as some have supposed, of surprise or astonishment.

2nd. The language was addressed to Jesus himself-- "Thomas-- said UNTO HIM."

3rd. The Saviour did not reprove him or check him as using any improper language. If he had not been divine, it is impossible to reconcile it with his honesty that he did not rebuke the disciple. No pious man would have allowed such language to be ad dressed to him. Comp. Acts 14:13-15, Rev 22:8,9.

4th. The Saviour proceeds immediately to commend Thomas for believing; but what was the evidence of his believing? It was this declaration, and this only. If this was a mere exclamation of surprise, what proof was it that Thomas believed? Before this he doubted. Now he believed, and gave utterance to his belief, that Jesus was his Lord and his God.

5th. If this was not the meaning of Thomas, then his exclamation was a mere act of profaneness, and the Saviour would not have commended him for taking the name of the Lord his God in vain. The passage proves, therefore, that it is proper to apply to Christ the name Lord and GOD, and thus accords with what John affirmed in Jn 1:1, and which is established throughout this gospel.

(f) "My Lord and my God." Ps 118:28, Jn 5:23, 1Timm 3:16

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 28 Thomas answered, etc. - Those who deny the Godhead of Christ would have us to believe that these words are an exclamation of Thomas, made through surprise, and that they were addressed to the Father and not to Christ. Theodore of Mopsuestia was the first, I believe, who gave the words this turn; and the fifth Ecumenic council, held at Constantinople, anathematized him for it. This was not according to the spirit of the Gospel of God. However, a man must do violence to every rule of construction who can apply the address here to any but Christ. The text is plain: Jesus comes in - sees Thomas, and addresses him; desiring him to come to him, and put his finger into the print of the nails, etc. Thomas, perfectly satisfied of the reality of our Lord's resurrection, says unto him, - My Lord! and My God! i.e. Thou art indeed the very same person, - my Lord whose disciple I have so long been; and thou art my God, henceforth the object of my religious adoration. Thomas was the first who gave the title of God to Jesus; and, by this glorious confession, made some amends for his former obstinate incredulity. It is worthy of remark, that from this time forward the whole of the disciples treated our Lord with the most supreme respect, never using that familiarity towards him which they had often used before. The resurrection from the dead gave them the fullest proof of the divinity of Christ. And this, indeed, is the use which St. John makes of this manifestation of Christ. See Joh 20:30, Joh 20:31. Bishop Pearce says here: "Observe that Thomas calls Jesus his God, and that Jesus does not reprove him for it, though probably it was the first time he was called so." And, I would ask, could Jesus be jealous of the honor of the true God - could he be a prophet - could he be even an honest man, to permit his disciple to indulge in a mistake so monstrous and destructive, if it had been one?

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on John 20:26-29

That one day in seven should be religiously observed, was an appointment from the beginning. And that, in the kingdom of the Messiah, the first day of the week should be that solemn day, was pointed out, in that Christ on that day once and again met his disciples in a religious assembly. The religious observance of that day has come down to us through every age of the church. There is not an unbelieving word in our…

Read the full comment on John 20:26-29 →

John 20:28 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.

ἀπεκρίθηapekrithēAnsweredG611
ΘωμᾶςThōmasThomasG2381
καὶkaiandG2532
εἶπενeipensaidG2036
αὐτῷ·autōto Him;G846
ὁhoOG3588
κύριόςkuriosLordG2962
μουmouof MineG3165
καὶkaiandG2532
ὁhoOG3588
θεόςtheosGodG2316
μου.mouof mine!G3165

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

Cross references for John 20:28

  • John 1:1

    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

  • Isaiah 9:6

    For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

  • Isaiah 7:14

    Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

  • 1 Timothy 3:16

    And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

  • Matthew 14:33

    Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.

  • John 5:23

    That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.

  • Isaiah 25:9

    And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

  • Acts 7:59-60

    And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

  • Luke 24:52

    And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:

  • Revelation 5:9-14

    And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. …

  • John 9:35-38

    Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.

  • John 20:16

    Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
My Lord.The disbelief of the apostle is the means of furnishing us with a full and satisfactory demonstration of the resurrection of our Lord. Throughout the divine dispensations every doctrine and ever important truth is gradually revealed; and here we have a conspicuous instance of the progressive system. An angel first declares the glorious event; the empty sepulchre confirms the women's report. Christ's appearance to Mary Magdalene shewed that he was alive; that to the disciples at Emmaus proved that it was at the least the spirit of Christ; that to the eleven shewed the reality of his body; and the conviction given to Thomas proved it the self-same body that had been crucified. Incredulity itself is satisfied; and the convinced apostle exclaims, in the joy of his heart, "My Lord and my God!"
16,31; 5:23; 9:35-38; Ps 45:6,11; 102:24-28; 118:24-28; Isa 7:14; 9:6
Isa 25:9; 40:9-11; Jer 23:5,6; Mal 3:1; Mt 14:33; Lu 24:52
Ac 7:59,60; 1Ti 3:16; Re 5:9-14

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

Context

  • John 20:27

    Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

  • John 20:28

    And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

  • John 20:29

    Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Read all of John 20

John 20:28 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Entonces Tomás respondió, y díjole: ¡Señor mío, y Dios mío!
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Thomas répondit et lui dit: Mon Seigneur et mon Dieu!
German
Elberfelder 1871		Thomas antwortete und sprach zu ihm: Mein Herr und mein Gott!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Respondit Thomas, et dixit ei: Dominus meus et Deus meus.