John 1:18 (YLT)

Passage

God no one hath ever seen; the only begotten Son, who is on the bosom of the Father--he did declare.

Nearby Context

John 1:16 and out of his fulness did we all receive, and grace over-against grace;

John 1:17 for the law through Moses was given, the grace and the truth through Jesus Christ did come;

John 1:18 God no one hath ever seen; the only begotten Son, who is on the bosom of the Father--he did declare.

John 1:19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent out of Jerusalem priests and Levites, that they might question him, `Who art thou?'

John 1:20 and he confessed and did not deny, and confessed--`I am not the Christ.'

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "only begotten Son", "hath", "ever", "seen", "bosom", "father--he", and "declare". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "only begotten Son" and "hath", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "for the law through Moses was given..." into verse 19's "And this is the testimony of John...", so "only begotten Son" and "hath" 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 "only begotten Son" and "hath" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.