What does “the Word became flesh” mean in John 1:14?

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

JOHN 1:14 · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE

John opens his Gospel with the Word who was with God and was God, and verse 14 is where the Word becomes flesh. The phrase translated “made His dwelling” is often linked to the tabernacle, and the commentators below discuss what “flesh,” “glory,” and “grace and truth” each add.

What named scholars say

Three commentaries, quoted, not summarized.

JAMIESON, FAUSSET & BROWN · 1871
verified
And the Word, &c.--To raise the reader to the altitude of this climax were the thirteen foregoing verses written. was made flesh--BECAME MAN, in man's present frail, mortal condition, denoted by the word "flesh" (Isa 40:6; Pe1 1:24). It is directed probably against the DocetÃ&brvbr, who held that Christ was not really but only apparently man; against whom this gentle spirit is vehement in his Epistles (Jo1 4:3; Jo2 1:7, Jo2 1:10-11), [LUCKE, &c.]. Nor could He be too much so…
JAMIESON, FAUSSET & BROWN ON JOHN 1:14
MATTHEW HENRY · 1708–1710
verified
…The word was made flesh, Joh 1:14. This expresses Christ's incarnation more clearly than what went before. By his divine presence he always was in the world, and by his prophets he came to his own. But now that the fulness of time was come he was sent forth after another manner, made of a woman (Gal 4:4); God manifested in the flesh, according to the faith and hope of holy Job; Yet shall I see God in my flesh, Job 19:26. Observe here, (1.) The human nature of Christ with which he was veiled…
MATTHEW HENRY ON JOHN 1:14 · FROM THE SECTION BEGINNING AT VERSE 6
JOHN GILL · 1748
verified
And the word was made flesh,.... The same word, of whom so many things are said in the preceding verses; and is no other than the Son of God, or second person in the Trinity; for neither the Father, nor the Holy Ghost, were made flesh, as is here said of the word, but the Son only: and "flesh" here signifies, not a part of the body, nor the whole body only, but the whole human nature, consisting of a true body, and a reasonable soul; and is so called, to denote the frailty of it…
JOHN GILL ON JOHN 1:14

Public-domain works from the OpenLumin corpus. Quotations are trimmed at a sentence and marked where cut.

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