John 1:17

1:17 For the law was given through Moses, but ¹  grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ.

John 1:45

1:45 Philip found Nathanael ²  and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the law, and the prophets also ³  wrote about – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

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¹ tn “But” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the implied contrast between the Mosaic law and grace through Jesus Christ. John 1:17 seems to indicate clearly that the Old Covenant (Sinai) was being contrasted with the New. In Jewish sources the Law was regarded as a gift from God (Josephus, Ant. 3.8.10 [3.223]; Pirqe Avot 1.1; Sifre Deut 31:4 §305). Further information can be found in T. F. Glasson, Moses in the Fourth Gospel (SBT).

² sn Nathanael is traditionally identified with Bartholomew (although John never describes him as such). He appears here after Philip, while in all lists of the twelve except in Acts 1:13, Bartholomew follows Philip. Also, the Aramaic Bar-tolmai means “son of Tolmai,” the surname; the man almost certainly had another name.

³ tn “Also” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.