John 1:13 (DBY)

Passage

who have been born, not of blood, nor of flesh's will, nor of man's will, but of God.

Nearby Context

John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own received him not;

John 1:12 but as many as received him, to them gave he [the] right to be children of God, to those that believe on his name;

John 1:13 who have been born, not of blood, nor of flesh's will, nor of man's will, but of God.

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we have contemplated his glory, a glory as of an only-begotten with a father), full of grace and truth;

John 1:15 (John bears witness of him, and he has cried, saying, This was he of whom I said, He that comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me;)

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "been", "born", "blood", "flesh's", and "man's". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "been" and "born", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "but as many as received him to..." into verse 14's "And the Word became flesh and dwelt...", so "been" and "born" belong inside that flow. In John context, the local focus is the identity of Jesus, new birth, eternal life, and belief and unbelief.

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