John 12:25

Whoever loves his life will lose it, but whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Jesus addresses His followers in Jerusalem, speaking immediately after the wheat kernel analogy to explain the necessity of His impending death. The words — φιλῶν (philōn) = loving; ἀπολλύει (apolluei) = loses. The text states that clinging to one’s own life results in its destruction, while rejecting it in this age secures eternal life. The thread — This loss-and-gain antithesis runs through Matthew 10:39 and Mark 8:35, where Jesus explicitly ties the forfeiture of earthly life to gaining it for His sake. Why it lands — It demands a reader to choose between self-preservation and self-denial, recognizing that earthly survival is forfeited to gain eternal life.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

Cross-references

Matthew 10:39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
Luke 9:23 Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.
Mark 8:35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and for the gospel will save it.
Luke 17:33 Whoever tries to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it.
Matthew 16:25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
Luke 14:26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be My disciple.
Matthew 19:29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.
Acts 20:24 But I consider my life of no value to me, if only I may finish my course and complete the ministry I have received from the Lord Jesus—the ministry of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.
Revelation 12:11 They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. And they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.
Ecclesiastes 2:17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind.