What does it mean that the Word dwelt among us (John 1:14)?

In John 1:14, the apostle writes, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (ESV). Among the many wonderful truths expressed in this verse is that God Himself, in the Person of Jesus Christ, chose to dwell among us. “Jesus is not ashamed to call [us] brothers and sisters” (Hebrews 2:11).

The prologue of John’s Gospel presents Jesus as the eternal, pre-existent Word of God made incarnate. The Word is the agent of creation (John 1:3; see also Colossians 1:16). He is the source of life and light (John 1:4–5). The Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us is the most incredible event in human history.

When John writes that the “Word became flesh,” he affirms the authentic humanity of Jesus. Jesus did not just seem or appear to be human, as the Gnostics taught, but He was truly, fully human. As the Apostles’ Creed declares, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.” In short, Jesus assumed human flesh and became human in every way, except that He was without sin (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Not only did the Word add a human nature to His divine nature, but He “dwelt among us” (John 1:14). The Greek word translated as “dwelt” (eskēnōsen) comes from a verb that means “to dwell as in a tent.” The word could be literally translated as “tabernacled.” One commentary explains the significance of the word this way: “The term ‘dwelling’ is reminiscent of the Old Testament tabernacle, where God’s presence resided among the Israelites (Exodus 25:8–9). This suggests that Jesus is the new tabernacle, the place where God’s presence is fully realized. The Greek word used . . . implies pitching a tent, indicating a temporary but significant presence” (The Berean Study Bible, https://biblehub.com/john/1-14.htm, accessed 10/10/25). God has always sought a place to live with His people. The tabernacle of the Old Testament held God’s glory, and so did Jesus.

The glory of God in the incarnate Word was not perceived by everyone. John writes, “He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” (John 1:10–11, ESV). Every miracle that Jesus performed pointed to the fact that He is “the Holy One of God” (John 6:69), but only a relative few trusted in Him for eternal life.

The Word who became flesh and dwelt among us fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy of Immanuel: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Matthew relates the meaning of the name Immanuel: “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). The Son of God did not come to us as an angel or an intangible force or a magnificent abstraction; He came as one of us. He ate our food, walked our roads, shared our burdens, and was “touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Hebrews 4:15, KJV). All so He could be our substitute on the cross, providing the perfect sacrifice for sin: “Now [God] has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:22).