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There is something in Nathaniel's sudden conversion that reminds one of Thomas, and
the very reply of the Lord to Nathaniel has something reminiscent in it of the scene in
that room when the disciples were assembled described in John 20: 26-29.
"Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig-tree believest thou? Thou shalt see
greater things than these. And He said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall
see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man"
(John 1: 50, 51).
"Verily" is the translation of the word Amen, a word brought over from the Hebrew
into the Greek. John is the only one that records these double Amens of the Lord, of
which there are no less than twenty-five occurrences, and we feel that we cannot omit
presenting to the reader the complete list so that, should time permit, he may be able to
weigh them over in the balance of the sanctuary.
The Double Verities (Amens) of John's Gospel.
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Open heaven. Angels ascending and descending (1: 51).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Without new birth, cannot see kingdom (3: 3).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Unless born of water and spirit, no entrance (3: 5).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. We speak that we do know (3: 11).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. The Son can do nothing of Himself (5: 19).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that heareth . . . . . hath . . . . . life (5: 24).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. The dead shall hear . . . . . and live (5: 25).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Ye seek Me . . . . . because ye did eat . . . . . (6: 26).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Moses gave you not that bread from heaven (6: 32).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life (6: 47).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Except ye eat . . . . . drink . . . . . no life (6: 53).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Whosoever commits sin is its servant (8: 34).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. If keep My saying, never see death (8: 51).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Before Abraham was, I am (8: 58).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Thieves climb up some other way (10: 1).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. I am the door of the sheep (10: 7).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Except wheat . . . . . die . . . . . abideth alone (12: 24).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Servant is not greater than his lord (13: 16).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that receiveth whom I send, receiveth Me (13: 20).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. One of you shall betray Me (13: 21).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. The cock shall not crow, before denial (13: 38).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. The believer shall do greater works (14: 12).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Ye shall weep . . . . . but it will turn to joy (16: 20).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. Whatever you ask in My Name, The Father will give
(16: 23).
Verily, verily, I say unto you. When young . . . . . guidest self . . . . . when old another
guide thee (21: 18).
Unless one can bring to the task unlimited time and patience, and has available
unlimited space, analysis of this formidable list is doomed to failure. That these
sentences, so solemnly introduced, are of the greatest weight, we have no doubt, and we
shall better appreciate their contribution to the great testimony of the whole, if we note
their place and association as the story of this Gospel unfolds. We therefore keep the list
before us for future reference. There is no reason, of course, why the reader should not
make his own analysis. He will soon discover that these statements of our Lord have to