Gospel of John in Greek (Chapter 1)

5 κατελαβεν. This is probably the so-called "gnomic aorist," stating a truth that is valid in all times and places by referring to a single instance in the past (in this case, perhaps, alluding to the Resurrection, but not confining the validity of the statement to that single event).

9 ῆν ... ερχομενον. The Greek of the New Testament uses a past progressive tense form similar to the one used in English ("was coming"). Compare Verse 28, ῆν ... βαπτιζων.

15 μαρτυρεῖ. This is the so-called "historical present," designed to give a vivid quality to past events by using present-tense verb forms. We are plunged into actual history at this point as first-hand participants rather than second-hand readers. Note that κεκραγεν also has a present-tense meaning, even though its form is perfect tense. (A number of Greek verbs behave that way, notably οιδα "know".)

19 Ιουδαῖοι. There are three different territories involved in this first chapter. The Jordan River connects the Sea of Galilee in the north with the Dead Sea in the south. To the east of the Jordan River, along its southern half, is a region called Perea, which is where John the Baptist encounters Jesus. Up north, to the west of the Sea of Galilee, is the territory of Galilee, which includes the towns of Nazareth, Cana and Capernaum. (Galilee and Perea are both under the rule of Herod Antipas at the time of these events.) To the west of the Dead Sea in the south is the Roman province of Judea, which includes the capital city, Jerusalem. The Ιουδαῖοι, then, are Judeans from Jerusalem who have traveled twenty miles or so to question John the Baptist, crossing the Jordan (the territorial boundary) into Perea.

28 Βηθανίᾳ ... περαν του Ιορδανου. Not to be confused with the town of Bethany on the outskirts of Jerusalem. This was probably a ferryboat crossing near Jericho, but on the opposite side of the Jordan River (in Perea), and close to the hill where Elijah was traditionally supposed to have risen into heaven.

39 ὡρα ῆν ὡς δεκατη. There is no special significance in the Gospel of John for either this number (10) or this time of day (4 PM). One reason for mentioning the hour would be to emphasize the reality of the events, completing the shift from the timelessness of the prologue to the specificity of historic fact: this is a description of what actually happened in our world, among people like us, at a particular time on a certain day. Additionally, this journalistic touch may hint that the second disciple, who for some reason is left unnamed, was the Gospel writer himself. John would thus have been an eyewitness to the beginning of Jesus' ministry.

48 ὑπο την συκην. The fig tree is mentioned conspicuously here, but its significance is not explained. (For the fig tree as an image of peaceful life in the Messianic age, cf. Micah 4:4 and Zechariah 3:10.) John often gives a sense of deliberately leaving out much of what he could be telling us; the Gospel ends with a disclaimer along those lines. His narrative style is calculated to instill a hunger for more knowledge and at the same time to enforce a sense of the infinite mystery and grace underlying historical events.

51 αγγελους ... αναβαινοντας και καταβαινοντας. Compare Jacob's dream of the angelic stairway to heaven (Genesis 28:12). Because Jesus has just praised Nathanael as a man lacking in deceit, there seems to be an implied contrast with Jacob (Israel), who came to power by deceiving his father with the help of his mother (Genesis 27:1-45). We have seen Jesus receive his heavenly father's blessing, and in the next chapter we will see him perform his first miracle at the prompting of his mother.