Word Etymology - "Born Again"

by Bonnie Calhoun

Today, lets study the etymology of a phrase used by Jesus..."born again".

Although some people regard the phrase as modern lingo denoting enthusiastic Christians, Jesus Himself used the expression to describe those who have experienced genuine salvation. However, the idiom didn't originate at His John 3 encounter with Nicodemus.

To the first century Jew, "born again" was a commonly understood term for certain rites of passage in a man's life—six different events were so labeled in Rabbinic Judaism.

First was the bar mitzvah (literally, "son of the commandment"), a confirmation ritual whereby 13-year-old boys entered manhood and shared the moral and religious responsibilities of the adult community. A man was said to be "born again" a second time when he married, and the expression was also used if he was ordained as a rabbi. Becoming the head of a rabbinic academy—a position open only to rabbis who were married—was a fourth time the term applied. The final two usages of "born again" were a Gentile's conversion to Judaism and a man being crowned king.

In light of this, the encounter between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3:1-21 becomes more understandable. As a member of the Jewish ruling council known as the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus is identified as a "ruler of the Jews" and "the teacher of Israel." (vv. 1, 10) As such, he was obviously considered "born again" in the first four ways; namely, he was bar mitzvahed, married, ordained, and a rabbi in leadership.

So when Jesus said to him, "Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God" (v. 3), Nicodemus was naturally confused—he had already been "born again" in all of the four ways available to him. Notice his response: "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he? (v. 4) He was thinking that the only way to go through any of those rites of passage would be to start physical life over as a baby.

The Lord met Nicodemus where he was and then broadened his understanding to include the spiritual: ",,,Unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (vv. 5-6).

Though his comprehension was incomplete that night, Nicodemus later showed evidence that he understood another way to be born again (John 7:50; 19:39)