John 3:17 (ASV)

Passage

For God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through him.

Nearby Context

John 3:15 that whosoever believeth may in him have eternal life.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life.

John 3:17 For God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through him.

John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not judged: he that believeth not hath been judged already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God.

John 3:19 And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "world", "saved", "sent", "judge", "should", and "through". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "world" and "saved", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "For God so loved the world that..." into verse 18's "He that believeth on him is not...", so "world" and "saved" belong inside that flow. In Jesus Explains God's Saving Love, the local focus is new birth, eternal life, belief and unbelief, and God's saving love.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "world" and "saved" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.