Θεοῦ (Theou) in John 1:13: Noun Genitive Singular Masculine
Θεοῦ (Theou) in John 1:13
Textual Witness
The witness reads ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐγεννήθησαν, and the phrase stands in contrast to the earlier negated human sources in the verse.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form supports reading the clause as a contrast between humanly generated origins and a birth whose source is God.
How To Communicate It
In explanation or translation, preserve the idea of divine source so readers hear the contrast the verse is making.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Genitive case here signals relationship or source in the clause, but it does not by itself settle every theological detail.
- Masculine grammatical gender is a form feature only and must not be turned into a gender claim about God.
What Does The Label Mean?
Noun: the word names a person, reality, or concept, and here it names God as the source mentioned in the clause.
Genitive: the form commonly marks relationship or source, and here it works with ἐκ to express the origin of the birth described.
Singular: the form is grammatically singular in this occurrence, so it points to one source rather than a plural group.
Masculine: the noun is in the masculine grammatical class, which is a formal feature and does not by itself make a theological or biological claim.
What The Form Does In This Verse
ἐκ
The genitive form is governed by the preposition ἐκ and belongs to the phrase ἐκ Θεοῦ, which states source or origin in this verse.
It functions as the source term in the final contrast, indicating that the new birth is from God rather than from human causes.
It does not by itself describe the manner of the birth, replace the subject of the verb, or prove more than the source relation stated in context.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The genitive noun with the source preposition identifies God as the source of the birth described in John 1:13.
Genitive singular noun in a source phrase. names God as the origin of the birth. Attached to the from-God phrase in John 1:13. Governed by the preposition that contrasts divine source with human sources. The form anchors divine source; the repeated negatives and final verb supply the contrast.
From whom is the birth said to come? The phrase says the birth is from God, in contrast to the human sources denied earlier in the verse.
Direct: The prepositional genitive directly supports wording such as "from God" or "of God."
The source sense comes from the preposition with the genitive, not from the noun form alone. The masculine grammatical form belongs to the noun and should not be made into a separate claim about divine gender.
Genitive alone proves source: The source reading depends on the preposition, the genitive form, and the contrast in the sentence. grammar alone explains the whole doctrine of new birth: The form identifies God as source; John 1:12-13 supplies the larger theological claim.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐγεννήθησαν, and the phrase stands in contrast to the earlier negated human sources in the verse.
The lemma θεός normally denotes God or a deity, and in this context the broader verse and canonical setting identify the one true God.
The genitive after ἐκ naturally communicates origin or source, so the phrase says the birth is from God and not from human will or action.
The verse presents new birth as rooted in God rather than in bloodline, fleshly desire, or human decision.
This fits the Gospel's larger emphasis that divine life and becoming children of God depend on God's initiative.
For teaching or translation, the phrase should be rendered as a source statement, such as from God or of God, according to the surrounding sense.
Do not infer from the genitive alone any added detail about process, agency, or degree beyond the source relation that the verse actually states.