¹Kwaiva nemunhu wekuvaFarisi, Nikodhimo riri zita rake, mutungamiriri wevaJudha.

¹And there was a man of the Pharisees, Nicodemus his name, a ruler of the Jews,

²Uyu wakauya kuna Jesu usiku, akati kwaari: Rabhi*, tinoziva kuti muri Mudzidzisi wakabva kuna Mwari; nekuti hakuna unogona kuita zviratidzo izvi zvamunoita imwi, kana Mwari asinaye.

²this one came unto him by night, and said to him, `Rabbi, we have known that from God thou hast come — a teacher, for no one these signs is able to do that thou dost, if God may not be with him.`

³Jesu akapindura ndokuti kwaari: Zvirokwazvo, zvirokwazvo, ndinoti kwauri: Kunze kwekuti munhu aberekwa kutsva, haagoni kuona ushe hwaMwari.

³Jesus answered and said to him, `Verily, verily, I say to thee, If any one may not be born from above, he is not able to see the reign of God;`

⁴Nikodhimo akati kwaari: Munhu unogona kuberekwa sei ava mukuru? Ungapinda rwechipiri mudumbu ramai vake agoberekwa here?

⁴Nicodemus saith unto him, `How is a man able to be born, being old? is he able into the womb of his mother a second time to enter, and to be born?`

⁵Jesu akapindura akati: Zvirokwazvo, zvirokwazvo, ndinoti kwauri: Kana munhu asina kuberekwa nemvura neMweya, haagoni kupinda muushe hwaMwari.

⁵Jesus answered, `Verily, verily, I say to thee, If any one may not be born of water, and the Spirit, he is not able to enter into the reign of God;

⁶Icho chakaberekwa nenyama inyama; nechakaberekwa neMweya, mweya.

⁶that which hath been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which hath been born of the Spirit is spirit.

⁷Usashamisika kuti ndati kwauri: Zvakafanira kuti muberekwe kutsva.

⁷`Thou mayest not wonder that I said to thee, It behoveth you to be born from above;

⁸Mhepo inovhuvhuta painoda, uye unonzwa inzwi rayo, asi hauzivi painobva nepainoenda; wakadaro wose wakaberekwa neMweya.

⁸the Spirit where he willeth doth blow, and his voice thou dost hear, but thou hast not known whence he cometh, and whither he goeth; thus is every one who hath been born of the Spirit.`

⁹Nikodhimo akapindura ndokuti kwaari: Zvinhu izvi zvinogona kuitika sei?

⁹Nicodemus answered and said to him, `How are these things able to happen?`

¹⁰Jesu akapindura, ndokuti kwaari: Iwe uri mudzidzisi waIsraeri, asi haunzwisisi zvinhu izvi here?

¹⁰Jesus answered and said to him, `Thou art the teacher of Israel — and these things thou dost not know!

¹¹Zvirokwazvo, zvirokwazvo, ndinoti kwauri: Tinotaura zvatinoziva, tichipupura zvatakaona; asi hamugamuchiri uchapupu hwedu.

¹¹`Verily, verily, I say to thee — What we have known we speak, and what we have seen we testify, and our testimony ye do not receive;

¹²Kana ndakakuudzai zvinhu zvenyika uye mukasatenda, muchatenda sei kana ndichikuudzai zvinhu zvekudenga?

¹²if the earthly things I said to you, and ye do not believe, how, if I shall say to you the heavenly things, will ye believe?

¹³Uye hakuna munhu wakakwira kudenga, kunze kwewakaburuka kudenga, Mwanakomana wemunhu uri kudenga.

¹³and no one hath gone up to the heaven, except he who out of the heaven came down — the Son of Man who is in the heaven.

¹⁴Uye Mozisi sezvaakasimudza nyoka murenje, saizvozvowo Mwanakomana wemunhu unofanira kusimudzwa;

¹⁴`And as Moses did lift up the serpent in the wilderness, so it behoveth the Son of Man to be lifted up,

¹⁵kuti ani nani unotenda maari arege kuparara asi ave neupenyu hwusingaperi.

¹⁵that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during,

¹⁶Nekuti Mwari wakada nyika zvakadai, kuti wakapa Mwanakomana wake wakaberekwa umwe woga, kuti ani nani unotenda kwaari arege kuparara, asi ave neupenyu hwusingaperi.

¹⁶for God did so love the world, that His Son — the only begotten — He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during.

¹⁷Nekuti Mwari haana kutuma Mwanakomana wake munyika kuti ape nyika mhosva, asi kuti nyika iponeswe naye.

¹⁷For God did not send His Son to the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him;

¹⁸Unotenda kwaari haapiwi mhosva; asi usingatendi watopiwa mhoswa, nekuti haana kutenda kuzita reMwanakomana waMwari wakaberekwa umwe woga.

¹⁸he who is believing in him is not judged, but he who is not believing hath been judged already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

¹⁹Uku ndiko kupiwa mhosva, kuti chiedza chakasvika panyika, asi vanhu vakada rima pane chiedza; nekuti mabasa avo akange akaipa.

¹⁹`And this is the judgment, that the light hath come to the world, and men did love the darkness rather than the light, for their works were evil;

²⁰Nekuti umwe neumwe unoita zvakaipa unovenga chiedza, uye haauyi pachiedza, kuti mabasa ake arege kutsiurwa.

²⁰for every one who is doing wicked things hateth the light, and doth not come unto the light, that his works may not be detected;

²¹Asi unoita chokwadi unouya pachiedza, kuti mabasa ake aratidzwe, kuti akaitwa muna Mwari.

²¹but he who is doing the truth doth come to the light, that his works may be manifested, that in God they are having been wrought.`

²²Shure kwezvinhu izvi wakauya Jesu nevadzidzi vake munyika yeJudhiya; zvino akagarako navo uye akabhabhatidza.

²²After these things came Jesus and his disciples to the land of Judea, and there he did tarry with them, and was baptizing;

²³NaJohwaniwo wakange achibhabhatidza muAinoni pedo neSarimi, nekuti paiva nemvura zhinji ipapo; uye vaiuyapo vachibhabhatidzwa.

²³and John was also baptizing in Aenon, nigh to Salem, because there were many waters there, and they were coming and were being baptized —

²⁴Nekuti Johwani wakange asati akandwa mutirongo.

²⁴for John was not yet cast into the prison —

²⁵Zvino gakava rikamuka pakati pevadzidzi vaJohwani nevaJudha pamusoro pekuchenura.

²⁵there arose then a question from the disciples of John with [some] Jews about purifying,

²⁶Zvino vakauya kuna Johwani vakati kwaari: Rabhi, uya waiva nemwi mhiri kwaJoridhani, wamaipupura nezvake, tarirai, iye unobhabhatidza, uye vanouya kwaari vose.

²⁶and they came unto John, and said to him, `Rabbi, he who was with thee beyond the Jordan, to whom thou didst testify, lo, this one is baptizing, and all are coming unto him.`

²⁷Johwani akapindura ndoti: Munhu haagoni kugamuchira chinhu, kunze kwekuti achipiwa kubva kudenga.

²⁷John answered and said, `A man is not able to receive anything, if it may not have been given him from the heaven;

²⁸Imwi mumene munopupura nezvangu kuti ndakati: Handisi Kristu ini, asi kuti ndakatumwa mberi kwake.

²⁸ye yourselves do testify to me that I said, I am not the Christ, but, that I am having been sent before him;

²⁹Uyo une mwenga muwani; asi shamwari yemuwani, imire ichimunzwa, inofara nemufaro nekuda kwenzwi remuwani. Naizvozvo mufaro wangu uyu wazadziswa.

²⁹he who is having the bride is bridegroom, and the friend of the bridegroom, who is standing and hearing him, with joy doth rejoice because of the voice of the bridegroom; this, then, my joy hath been fulfilled.

³⁰Iye unofanira kukura, asi ini kudukupa.

³⁰`Him it behoveth to increase, and me to become less;

³¹Unobva kumusoro uri pamusoro pezvose. Unobva panyika unobva panyika, uye unotaura achibva panyika; unobva kudenga uri pamusoro pezvose.

³¹he who from above is coming is above all; he who is from the earth, from the earth he is, and from the earth he speaketh; he who from the heaven is coming is above all.

³²Uye zvaakaona nezvaakanzwa, ndizvo zvaanopupura; asi hakuna munhu unogamuchira uchapupu hwake.

³²`And what he hath seen and heard this he doth testify, and his testimony none receiveth;

³³Unogamuchira uchapupu hwake unoisa mucherechedzo kuti Mwari ndewechokwadi.

³³he who is receiving his testimony did seal that God is true;

³⁴Nekuti uyo Mwari waakatuma, unotaura mashoko aMwari; nekuti Mwari unopa Mweya kwete nechiyero.

³⁴for he whom God sent, the sayings of God he speaketh; for not by measure doth God give the Spirit;

³⁵Baba vanoda Mwanakomana, uye vakapa zvinhu zvose muruoko rwake.

³⁵the Father doth love the Son, and all things hath given into his hand;

³⁶Iye unotenda kuMwanakomana une upenyu hwusingaperi; asi iye usingatendi Mwanakomana, haazooni upenyu, asi kutsamwa kwaMwari kunogara pamusoro pake.

³⁶he who is believing in the Son, hath life age-during; and he who is not believing the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God doth remain upon him.`