1:12 But to all who received him, he gave to them the right to become children of God, to those who believe in his name (ὅσοι δὲ ἔλαβον αὐτόν, ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι, τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ). Verse 11 made clear that all creation, even the people with whom God had made covenant, rejected the one to whom they owe existence and allegiance. In essence, vv. 10–11 describe how the manifestation of the Word-man has been met with rejection. If the result is the rejection of God, the cause is a crisis of identity. The world has become distinct from its Creator. But there is a new creation! For as v. 12 will reveal, the Creator is not done creating. Even without relying on his chiastic interpretation, Neyrey may be correct when he describes this verse as “the functional center of the prologue.” In this verse the prologue shifts from tragedy to triumph.

1:12 凡接待他的，就是信他名的人，他就賜他們權柄，作神的兒女。 (ὅσοι δὲ ἔλαβον αὐτόν, ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι, τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ).。第 11 節清楚地表明，所有受造物，甚至是神與他們立約的人們，都拒絕了他們賴以生存和效忠的那一位。本質上，第 10-11 節描述了道-人的顯現如何遭到拒絕。如果結果是對神的拒絕，那麼原因就是認同危機。世界已經變得與其創造者截然不同。但有一個新的創造！因為正如第 12 節所揭示的，造物主的創造尚未完成。即使不依賴他的交錯法解經，內瑞（Neyrey）將這節經文描述為“序言的功能中心”也可能是正確的。在這節經文中，序言從悲劇轉向得勝。

Verse 12 begins with a pendent nominative, which we translated as “but to all” (ὅσοι δὲ), which functions as an emotional and strong contrast to the rejectors of the last two verses, putting emphasis on them as the beneficiaries of the one who has come. At the same time, it leaves open the exact identity of the beneficiaries—an identity to be shortly described. John simply begins v. 12 by telling that some “received him” (ἔλαβον αὐτόν), in sharp contrast to those described in vv. 10–11. The term “received” (ἔλαβον) can have a more general meaning related to reception (“receive what is offered”) or a more specific meaning related to authority (“accept or recognize someone’s authority”). Interestingly, the term is found to have the latter meaning in 5:43 and 13:20, and in both cases it is equated with “to believe” (cf. 5:44 and 13:19), matching the context of v. 12.

第 12 節以懸垂主格開始，我們將其翻譯為“但對所有人”（ὅσοι δὲ），它與最後兩節經文的拒絕者形成情感上的強烈對比，強調他們是來臨之人的受益者。同時，它也沒有透露受益人的確切身份——稍後將對此進行描述。約翰在第 12 節開始時簡單地說，有些人“接待了他”（ἔλαβον αὐτόν），這與第 10-11節中描述的情況形成鮮明對比。 10-11。“接待”(ἔλαβον)這個術語可以具有與接收相關的更一般含義（“接收了所提供的”），也可以具有與權柄相關的更具體含義（“接受或承認某人的權柄”）。有趣的是，這個詞在 5:43 和 13:20 中被發現具有後一種含義，並且在這兩種情況下它都等同於“相信”（參見 5:44 和 13:19），與 12節 的上下文相匹配。

約5:43，“我奉我父的名來，你們並不接待我。若有別人奉自己的名來，你們倒要接待他。”

約13:20，“我實實在在地告訴你們，有人接待我所差遣的，就是接待我。接待我，就是接待那差遣我的。”

The second clause contains two significant parts that are loaded with significant terminology. Combined, the two parts become a narrative movement that introduces the source and nature of the benefits to be received. First, “He gave to them the right” (ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν). The source of the benefits is the Word-man. The grammatical subject is still the Word, or the “he.” The one who receives the Word will be benefited by him. What looked like a tragic story has been triumphantly reversed. The noun we translated as “right” (ἐξουσίαν) is difficult to define with precision. In this context, the term denotes the right to do something or the power to do something. But which one: “right” or “power”? In the context it can only be the former since John does not speak of power (an inherent ability) but of status (an authorization, an imparted title to a new status).

第二條包含兩個重要部分，其中包含重要術語。這兩部分結合起來，成為一個敘述性的動態，介紹了所獲得的好處的來源和性質。首先，“祂就賜他們權柄”（ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐψουσίαν）。好處的來源是道-人。語法主語仍然是道，或者“祂”。接受道的人將從祂那裡受益。看似悲慘的故事已被勝利逆轉。我們翻譯作“權柄”的名詞（ἐxiουσίαν）很難精確定義。在這種情況下，該術語表示做某事的權柄或做某事的能力。但“權柄”還是“能力”，哪一個意思是對的？在上下文中，它只能是前者，因為約翰沒有談論能力（一種固有的能力），而是談論地位（授權，賦予新地位的頭銜）。

Second, “to become children of God” (τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι). The nature of the benefits is becoming children of God. In the Gospel of John, the term “children” (τέκνα) refers to Christians, whereas “son” (υἱός) is always reserved for Christ. The latter term can be used in the NT to refer to Christians, most clearly in the two classic Pauline passages (Rom 8 and Gal 3–4) dealing with adoptive sonship. While it is difficult to define the difference in meaning between the two terms, one can speak generally of a nuance between the terms’ usages. The term “children” describes the offspring from the viewpoint of the relationship to their progenitors and is therefore normally used of small children with an accompanying awareness of their weakness, their utter dependence on their parents, and their total trust. In contrast, generally speaking, “sons” is more adaptable and more comfortably used for maturing or adult offspring. Thus, “children of God” (τέκνα θεοῦ) functions innately as a more intimate and affectionate term. The plural use of the term may reflect the communal nature of the conferred status, an issue addressed later in the Gospel, but the emphasis is primarily on the derived status, not its corporately independent function. Ultimately, one must “become” a child of God. It is almost certain that we are to understand “become” (γενέσθαι) in a similar manner to “came into existence” (ἐγένετο) in v. 3 and v. 6 where it expressed, as we argued above, the creative force of God ex nihilo (see comments on v. 17). Such children are a new creation; they are those not of this world (17:6, 16), who have received the spiritual rebirth from above (3:1–11). To say that they have “become” children of God places the emphasis on the Word that provided the possibility. The “children” are only what they have been given.¹⁰⁴

第二，“作神的兒女”（τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι）。好處的本質就是成為神的兒女。在約翰福音中，“兒女”（τέκνα）一詞指的是基督徒，而“兒子”（υἱός）則始終保留給基督。後一個術語在新約中可以用來指代基督徒，最明顯的是在涉及嗣子身份的兩段經典的保羅經文（羅馬書 8 章和加拉太書 3-4章）中。雖然很難定義這兩個術語之間的含義差異，但人們可以概括地說這兩個術語的用法之間存在細微差別。 “兒女”一詞從與祖先的關系的角度描述後代，因此通常用於小孩子，他們意識到自己的弱點，對父母的完全依賴和完全信任。相比之下，一般來說，“兒子”更適應並且更適合用於成熟或成年的後代。因此，“神的兒女”（τέκνα θεοῦ）本質上是一個更親密和深情的術語。該術語的複數使用可能反映了所賦予地位的公共性質，這是這本福音書中稍後觸及的問題，但重點主要是派生的地位，而不是其集體獨立的功能。最終，一個人必須“成為”神的孩子。幾乎可以肯定的是，我們對“成為”（γενέσθαι）的理解與第 3 節和第 6 節中的“進入實存”（ἐγένετο）類似，正如我們上面所討論的，它表達了神從無到有ex nihilo的創造力（參見第 17 節的評論）。這樣的孩子是新造的人；他們是那些不屬於這個世界的人（17:6, 16），但已經從上而獲得了屬靈的重生（3:1-11）。說及他們已經“成為”神的兒女，強調的是提供這種可能性的道。 “兒女”只是他們所得到的。104

約1:3，“萬物是借着他造的（ἐγένετο）。凡被造的（ἐγένετο），沒有一樣不是借着他造的（γέγονεν ）。”

約1:6，“有（ἐγένετο）一個人，是從神那裡差來的，名叫約翰。”

The third clause of v. 12 makes explicit to whom this right is given: “to those who believe in his name” (τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ). The potent central clause of v. 12 is bookended by two parallel phrases: those that “receive him” are those “who believe in his name.” These phrases are parallel ways to describe the same spiritual change: when one ceases to rely on one’s own merits and achievements and comes to trust in the Word (Christ). Two things in this final clause are worthy of comment. First, “believe” is a central term for John, used a total of ninety-eight times, which towers above the use of the term by other NT authors (even more than Paul—fifty-four times). Such belief yields allegiance to the Word and complete trust in the Word, as appropriate for (small) children.

第 12 節第三個從句明確指出誰享有這項權柄：“就是信祂名的人”（τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ）。第 12 節有力的中心從句由兩個平行的短語結尾：那些“接待祂”的人是那些“信祂名的人”。這些短語是描述同一個屬靈變化的平行方式：當一個人不再依賴自己的功德和成就，而開始相信神的道（基督）時。最後的從句中有兩件事值得評論。首先，“相信”是約翰的核心術語，總共使用了九十八次，遠遠高於其他新約作者使用該術語的次數（甚至比保羅還多——五十四次）。這種信仰會產生對神的話語的忠誠和對神的話語的完全信任，這對於（小）孩子來說是合適的。

Second, this belief is specifically directed “in his name.” The concept of a “name” in the ancient world was not merely a label but comprised the character of a person. When, for example, the psalmist spoke of the name of God (Ps 20:1), he did not have in mind simply the uttering of the name; he was speaking of all that “God” means. However, to what name is John referring? While “life” and “light” were in the Word (vv. 3–4), the Word has not yet been given any additional name, much less a personal name; he has only otherwise been referred to with a pronoun. Since the almost exact phrase occurs at the end of the Gospel just before the epilogue (20:31), where the name of Jesus is stated, by implication the rest of the Gospel is needed to make manifest the name, that is, the character of the person in whom the children of God are to believe.

其次，這種相信是“以他的名”明確指向的。在古代世界，“名字”的概念不僅僅是一個標籤，而且包含了一個人的性格。例如，當詩篇作者談到上帝的名字時（詩20:1），他想到的不僅僅是說出這個名字；他想到的是神的名字。他所說的是“神”的全部含義。然而，約翰指的是什麼名字呢？雖然“生命”和“光”都在道中（3-4節），但道還沒有被賦予任何額外的名字，更不用說有位格的名字了。他僅在其他情況下被用代詞提及。由於幾乎完全相同的短語出現在福音書的結尾，就在尾聲之前（20:31），其中提到了耶穌的名字，因此需要福音書的其餘部分來闡明這個名字，即神的兒女要相信的位格的性格。

^[1]

^[1] Edward W. Klink III, John, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2016), 103–106.