Deutero Q

The word for “world” in John 3:16 is cosmos (κόσμος), and occurs 185 times in the New Testament (78 times in John’s gospel and 27 times in his other letters). The word has a wide range of uses: it can refer to the created universe, the earth, humanity, people living in hostility to God, etc.

The use of “world” as referencing people opposed to God-in-Christ is common in John’s letters (e.g., John 12:31; 15:18; 1 John 2:15-17). As for John 3:16, many Christians understand “world” there and elsewhere in Scripture as indicative of every single human being.

However, the careful Bible student will note that “world” is also used more generally in Scripture. For example, the brothers of Jesus said to Him, “Show yourself to the world” (John 7:4). Obviously they did not have every single human being in mind, but people in general. The same is true of John 12:19, where the Pharisees said about Jesus, “Look how the whole world has gone after him!” Of course, not every single person in the world followed Jesus; rather, all kinds of people—both Jew and Gentile—followed Him.

Relatedly, and on a personal note, I was surprised to learn years ago that the English word “whosoever” or “whoever” (depending on Bible version) in John 3:16 is not found in the Greek manuscripts from which we get our translations. The literal rendering of the “whosoever” section of John 3:16 is declarative, and reads: “so that every one believing in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Jesus makes very clear in John 6 who the believing ones are: they are people given by the Father to the Son (John 6:37, 44). Therefore many Christians, especially those within the Reformed tradition, understand John 3:16’s “world” in more particular terms: as referring to God’s chosen people—the elect—throughout the world, rather than every single person in the world.

In light of Scripture as a whole, the more particular understanding of “world” (i.e., the elect) in John 3:16 is not without exegetical merit.