What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. " - John 3:16


"For the Scripture says, whosoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed." - Romans 10:11

"And they said, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved, and your house." - Acts 16:31


What is the distinct difference between believing on Jesus and believing in Jesus? and why is it interchanged?

I have heard it means the same, yet I can't quite understand how that can be. The words "on" and "in" are not that similar, nor can be used in the same context(to my understanding). Each word has its own ability to lay out separate instructions.

For example: "You can put your books on the table" versus "You can put your books in the table".

So is anyone able to explain why the words are interchanged and for what reason? I'm kind of confused.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

Basically the same.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

no difference

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

I believe in Jesus - I believe on Jesus - He doesn't care which word I use. He only looks upon the heart.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

Really good question.

The Greek word translated in really means into. The Greek word translated on really means upon. Here's a picture that explains the dynamic of Greek prepositions. You can see into and upon:



In the first case, I think it means believe into the reality of Christ. In the second case, I think it means base the foundation of your faith upon the name of Christ.

In the examples you suggested, it would be like place this book upon the table (where it will rest), or put the book into the bookshelf (where it will be safe).

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

There is no real difference as the same outcome on either should lead to obedience in the faith of Jesus Christ out of our love for Him.

Believing on and in Him is for both on what faith in Him leads to and does for us in our life !!!

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

It is the same as the difference between 12 inches and a foot, or between 8 ounces and a cup, or the difference between 4 quarts and a gallon.

There is no difference---- just two different ways of saying the same thing.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

IMO, the directionality of the pronouns would be significant if the verb pisteuo believe were transitive; but it is stative, .

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

To be saved one must esxceed the righteousness of the Pharisees and even the belief level of demons.

James 2:19 (KJV) [SUP]19 [/SUP] Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

So they believe there is one God. Muslims believe that way too. But we must understand what God has in mind about believing.

Next level: Mark 3:11-12 (KJV)
[SUP]11 [/SUP] And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.
[SUP]12 [/SUP] And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known.

Believing there is one God is good. Believing Jesus is the Son of God isn't enough to save demons.

Mark 5:7-9 (KJV)
[SUP]7 [/SUP] And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.
[SUP]8 [/SUP] For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.
[SUP]9 [/SUP] And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.

Being face to face with Jesus, conversing with Jesus, will not save anyone. Remember Judas Iscariot, and others the apostles told of ruining their faith.

So what level of belief saves? Both upon and into by faith.

John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The Greek transliteration is eis. It's used by far most often in the KJV as "into". It's a preposition meant "to be in", as in
'he jumped into the lake'. He didn't just believe there was a lake. "That store has a good purpose." might involved believing it is there, and you might go to it, but not enter into it and take part in its purpose.

The concept around which that famous verse is structured is in the preceding verse.

John 3:14 (KJV) And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

That refers to the event of
Numbers 21:8-9 (KJV)
[SUP]8 [/SUP] And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
[SUP]9 [/SUP] And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

Just believing that serpent pole existed wasn't enough to be healed. Victims had to behold it, believing the promise of beholding it enough to go behold it. It was vital to spread the word about it so many could be saved.

Next: Romans 10:11 (KJV)
[SUP]11 [/SUP] For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
and Acts 16:27-34 (KJV)
[SUP]27 [/SUP] And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.
[SUP]28 [/SUP] But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.
[SUP]29 [/SUP] Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
[SUP]30 [/SUP] And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
[SUP]31 [/SUP] And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
[SUP]32 [/SUP] And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.
[SUP]33 [/SUP] And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.
[SUP]34 [/SUP] And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.


The jailer didn't simply believe "about" Jesus, but believed into Jesus. The Greek transliterated epi in both passages means to superimpose oneself ino Crist. The best explanation of that is Romans 10:9-11 (KJV)
[SUP]9 [/SUP] That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
[SUP]10 [/SUP] For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
[SUP]11 [/SUP] For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

BTW, that says believing in the resurrection of Jesus from the grave is a requirement of salvation. Many believe in a historical Jesus, but far fewer believe properly.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

IMO, the directionality of the pronouns would be significant if the verb pisteuo believe were transitive; but it is stative.

I suppose that one can argue whether Biblical belief is an act of the mind = credence or a condition of the heart= trust & Salvation.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

Why doesn't it state en, then? En is static.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

To be saved one must esxceed the righteousness of the Pharisees and even the belief level of demons.

James 2:19 (KJV) [SUP]19 [/SUP] Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.

So they believe there is one God. Muslims believe that way too. But we must understand what God has in mind about believing.

Next level: Mark 3:11-12 (KJV)
[SUP]11 [/SUP] And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.
[SUP]12 [/SUP] And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known.

Believing there is one God is good. Believing Jesus is the Son of God isn't enough to save demons.

Mark 5:7-9 (KJV)
[SUP]7 [/SUP] And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.
[SUP]8 [/SUP] For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.
[SUP]9 [/SUP] And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.

Being face to face with Jesus, conversing with Jesus, will not save anyone. Remember Judas Iscariot, and others the apostles told of ruining their faith.

So what level of belief saves? Both upon and into by faith.

John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The Greek transliteration is eis. It's used by far most often in the KJV as "into". It's a preposition meant "to be in", as in
'he jumped into the lake'. He didn't just believe there was a lake. "That store has a good purpose."might involved believing it is there, and you might go to it, but not enter into it and take part in its purpose.

The concept around which that famous verse is structured is in the preceding verse.

John 3:14 (KJV) And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

That refers to the event of
Numbers 21:8-9 (KJV)
[SUP]8 [/SUP] And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
[SUP]9 [/SUP] And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

Just believing that serpent pole existed wasn't enough to be healed. Victims had to behold it, believing the promise of beholding it enough to go behold it. It was vital to spread the word about it so many could be saved.

Next: Romans 10:11 (KJV)
[SUP]11 [/SUP] For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
and Acts 16:27-34 (KJV)
[SUP]27 [/SUP] And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.
[SUP]28 [/SUP] But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.
[SUP]29 [/SUP] Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
[SUP]30 [/SUP] And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
[SUP]31 [/SUP] And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
[SUP]32 [/SUP] And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.
[SUP]33 [/SUP] And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.
[SUP]34 [/SUP] And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.


The jailer didn't simply believe "about" Jesus, but believed into Jesus. The Greek transliterated epi in both passages means to superimpose oneself ino Crist. The best explanation of that is Romans 10:9-11 (KJV)
[SUP]9 [/SUP] That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
[SUP]10 [/SUP] For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
[SUP]11 [/SUP] For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

BTW, that says believing in the resurrection of Jesus from the grave is a requirement of salvation. Many believe in a historical Jesus, but far fewer believe properly.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

It's both...

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

If the dialects were included from this question of interchanging words,
We may consider the "No" thoughts of someone who understand his/her native tounge :smoke:

Please let us tell you the story
Of the untold :blush:
According to their people
The word "IN" signifies a potential of your being from the time that you was born which
they :dontknow:
defined as the destiny not by choice nor freewill
While
the word "ON" dictates a situation where a being was been there all along from time
to time that he/she could
also attain the potential of
others :dontknow:
who by themselves always asking like this
"what they :dontknow: know, they fear?"
And
who by themselves forever answering while trembling
"others :dontknow: why they are asking like this"

Same goes here as well :happy:
Where and When is up to us
Whether in nor on
the truth shall always remain forever :smoke:

:ty:

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

Typographical error
:read: this part again if
as it pleases you . ...

Please let us tell you the story
Of the untold :blush:
According to their people
The word "IN" signifies a potential of your being from the time that you was born which
they :dontknow:
defined as the destiny not by choice nor freewill
While
the word "ON" dictates a situation where a being was been there all along from time
to time that he/she could
also attain the potential of
others :dontknow:
who by themselves always asking like this
"what they :dontknow: knows what they fear?"
And
who by themselves forever answering while trembling
"others :dontknow: why they are asking like this"

Same goes here as well :happy:
Where and When is up to us
Whether in nor on
the truth shall always remain forever :smoke:

:ty:

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

there is no such thing as 'tense' in biblical Hebrew. Biblical Hebrew is not a 'tense' language. Modern grammarians recognize that it is an 'aspectual' language. This means that the same form of a verb can be translated as either past, present, or future depending on the context and various grammatical cues.

According to someone who we never met before.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

"Οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται ἀλλὰ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον." John 3:16 Greek

εἰς - eis - accusative in, into, among

"λέγει γὰρ ἡ γραφή· Πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων ἐπ’ αὐτῷ οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται." Romans 10:11 Greek

ἐπ' or epi - genitive - on, over, when; dative - on the basis of, at; accusative - on, to against.

"οἱ δὲ εἶπαν· Πίστευσον ἐπὶ τὸν κύριον Ἰησοῦν, καὶ σωθήσῃ σὺ καὶ ὁ οἶκός σου." Acts 16:31 Greek

ἐπὶ epi - same as Romans 10:11

As you can see, there is a lot of leeway in translating the preposition for both eis and epi. Translators gradually get a feel for the right word. That sounds kind of silly, and when I first heard it I said "oh yeah! (NOT)" But after a while, things really do start to have a way of finding the right English word to use in translation, especially with prepositions.

IMHO, there really is basically no difference in what the Biblical writers are saying. It is not the preposition that is important! It is whether we believe in Jesus!

PS. John did not have good Greek, compared to Paul and Luke. So maybe his choice of words would not have been the same as other Biblical writers. However, the message of Jesus, and believing in or on him, is more important than the word choice he made, as opposed to Paul or Luke.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

I beieive in the chair at my dining table, now I am going to sit in that chair - I believe on the chair now that it will support me.

The first is objective, the second is subjective.

I can't believe the replies, of course their is a difference, like day and night.

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

A very meaningful observation coming from
A very observant person :happy:

godbless you my sister
And also to all our brothers

" in the beginning . ...
until that day come's before us
Mark 13: 32 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.
Matthew 24: 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

:ty:

Re: What's the difference between believing "in" and believing "on"?

Thanks all for the explanations! Some were very insightful ones too! It makes much more sense on how each word is being used. Also, I hadn't thought of looking at the Greek origins either, which certainly helped with clarification.