John 4 · Verse 46

John 4:46

So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.

John 4:46, King James Version

John 4:46 in other translations

BSB	So once again He came to Cana in Galilee, where He had turned the water into wine. And there was a royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum.
WEB	Jesus came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine. There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.
ASV	He came therefore again unto Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.
YLT	Jesus came, therefore, again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine, and there was a certain courtier, whose son was ailing in Capernaum,
DARBY	He came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain courtier in Capernaum whose son was sick.
BBE	So he came to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And there was a certain man of high position whose son was ill at Capernaum.
Webster	So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.

What does John 4:46 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 4:46-47

46-47. nobleman--courtier, king's servant, or one connected with a royal household; such as Chuza (Lu 8:3), or Manaen (Ac 13:1). heard that Jesus was come out of Judea--"where he had doubtless seen or heard what things Jesus had done at Jerusalem" (Joh 4:45), [Bengel]. come down--for Capernaum was down on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee.

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

Barnes' Notes

A certain nobleman. One who was of the royal family, connected by birth with Herod Antipas; or one of the officers of the court, whether by birth allied to him or not. It seems that his ordinary residence was at Capernaum. Capernaum was about a day's journey from Cana, where Jesus then was.

(f) "he made the water wine" Jn 2:1,11 (1) "nobleman" or, "courtier" or, "ruler"

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 46 Where he made the water wine - See the notes on Joh 2:1, etc. Cana was on the road from Nazareth to Capernaum and the Sea of Tiberias. A certain nobleman - An officer of the king's court: for this is the meaning of the original word, βασιλικος, which the Vulgate translates regulus, a little king. This officer belonged to Herod Antipas, who was then tetrarch of Galilee. Jerome calls him Palatinus, and says he was an officer of the king's palace. Others think it was Chuza, mentioned Luk 8:3; and others think it was Manaen, spoken of Act 13:1. One of these opinions may be true, but all solid proof is wanting. This officer, whoever he was, appears to have had his ordinary abode at Capernaum, and hearing that Christ was at Cana, he came express from Capernaum thither, to entreat him to heal his child.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on John 4:43-54

The father was a nobleman, yet the son was sick. Honours and titles are no security from sickness and death. The greatest men must go themselves to God, must become beggars. The nobleman did not stop from his request till he prevailed. But at first he discovered the weakness of his faith in the power of Christ. It is hard to persuade ourselves that distance of time and place, are no hinderance to the knowledge…

Read the full comment on John 4:43-54 →

John 4:46 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.

ἮλθενĒlthenHe cameG2064

οὖνounthereforeG3767

πάλινpalinagainG3825

εἰςeistoG1519

τὴνtēn<the>G3588

ΚανὰKanaCanaG2580

τῆςtēs<the>G3588

Γαλιλαίας,Galilaiasof Galilee,G1056

ὅπουhopouwhereG3699

ἐποίησενepoiēsenHe had madeG4160

τὸtotheG3588

ὕδωρhudōrwaterG5204

οἶνον.oinonwine.G3631

καὶkaiAndG2532

ἦνēnthere wasG1510

τιςtisa certainG5100

βασιλικὸςbasilikosroyal officialG937

οὗhouwhoseG3739

ὁho<the>G3588

υἱὸςhuiossonG5207

ἠσθένειēstheneiwas sickG770

ἐνeninG1722

Καφαρναούμ.KapharnaoumCapernaum.G2584

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

Cross references for John 4:46

John 2:1-11
And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. …
Psalms 50:15
And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
Hosea 5:15
I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.
Matthew 9:18
While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.
Luke 8:42
For he had one only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a dying. But as he went the people thronged him.
Luke 7:2
And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die.
Matthew 15:22
And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
Matthew 17:14-15
And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.
John 21:2
There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Cana."It is worthy of remark," says Dr. E. D. Clarke, who visited Cana a few years ago, "that, walking among the ruins of a church, we saw large massy pots, answering the description given of the ancient vessels of the country; not preserved, but lying about, disregarded by the present inhabitants, as antiquities with whose original use they were unacquainted. From their appearance, and the number of them, it was quite evident that a practice of keeping water in large pots, each holding from eighteen to twenty-seven gallons, was once common in the country." (Compare the account of the water pots. ch. 2:6.)
2:1-11; 21:2; Jos 19:28
nobleman. or, courtier, or, ruler. whose.
Ps 50:15; 78:34; Ho 5:15; Mt 9:18; 15:22; 17:14,15; Lu 7:2; 8:42

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

Context

John 4:45
Then when he was come into Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all the things that he did at Jerusalem at the feast: for they also went unto the feast.
John 4:46
So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.
John 4:47
When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judea into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, and heal his son: for he was at the point of death.

Read all of John 4

John 4:46 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Vino pues Jesús otra vez á Caná de Galilea, donde había hecho el vino del agua. Y había en Capernaum uno del rey, cuyo hijo estaba enfermo.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Il vint donc encore à Cana de Galilée, où il avait, de l’eau, fait du vin. Et il y avait à Capernaüm un seigneur de la cour, duquel le fils était malade;
German Elberfelder 1871	Er kam nun wiederum nach Kana in Galiläa, wo er das Wasser zu Wein gemacht hatte. Und es war ein gewisser königlicher Beamter, dessen Sohn krank war, in Kapernaum.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Venit ergo iterum in Cana Galilææ, ubi fecit aquam vinum. Et erat quidam regulus, cujus filius infirmabatur Capharnaum.