Yohanes 1:42

1:42 Andrew brought Simon ¹  to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, the son of John. ²  You will be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter). ³ 

Yohanes 1:47-48

1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and exclaimed, ⁴  “Look, a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” ⁵  1:48 Nathanael asked him, “How do you know me?” Jesus replied, ⁶  “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, ⁷  I saw you.”

[1:42]  ¹ tn Grk “He brought him”; both referents (Andrew, Simon) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:42]  ² tc The reading “Simon, son of John” is well attested in Ì^66,75,106 א B* L 33 pc it co. The majority of mss (A B² Ψ Ë^1,13 Ï) read “Simon, the son of Jonah” here instead, but that is perhaps an assimilation to Matt 16:17.

[1:42]  ³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. The change of name from Simon to Cephas is indicative of the future role he will play. Only John among the gospel writers gives the Greek transliteration (Κηφᾶς, Khfas) of Simon’s new name, Qéphâ (which is Galilean Aramaic). Neither Πέτρος (Petros) in Greek nor Qéphâ in Aramaic is a normal proper name; it is more like a nickname.

[1:47]  ⁴ tn Grk “said about him.”

[1:47]  ⁵ tn Or “treachery.”

[1:47]  sn An allusion to Ps 32:2.

[1:48]  ⁶ tn Grk “answered and said to him.” This is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation to “replied.”

[1:48]  ⁷ sn Many have speculated about what Nathanael was doing under the fig tree. Meditating on the Messiah who was to come? A good possibility, since the fig tree was used as shade for teaching or studying by the later rabbis (Ecclesiastes Rabbah 5:11). Also, the fig tree was symbolic for messianic peace and plenty (Mic 4:4, Zech 3:10.)