1  “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2  He takes away every branch in me that doesn’t bear fruit, and He prunes every branch that bears fruit, so that it may bear more fruit. 3  You are already pruned clean because of the words which I have spoken to you. 4  Live in me, as I live in you. As the branch can’t bear fruit of itself, unless it lives in the vine, so neither can you, unless you live in me. 5  I am the vine, and you are the branches. Whoever lives in me, and I in them, bears much fruit; for apart from me you can do nothing. 6  Anyone who doesn’t live in me is thrown away as a branch, and dries up. The dried up branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7  If you live in me, and my words live in you, ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you. 8  My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, so you will prove to be my disciples.

9  “Just as the Father has sincerely loved me, I have also sincerely loved you. Continue to live in my sincere love. 10  If you keep my commandments, you will continue to live in my sincere love; just as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and continue to live in His sincere love. 11  I have told you these things, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. 12  This is my commandment, that you sincerely love one another, just as I have sincerely loved you. 13  No one has greater sincere love than this, than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14  You are my friends if you do whatever I command you. 15  I don’t call you servants any longer, because a servant doesn’t know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16  You didn’t choose me, but I chose you and appointed you, so that you should go and bear fruit, and so that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in my name He may give you. 17  I command you this, that you sincerely love one another.

18  “If the world hates you, know that it hated me before it hated you. 19  If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own. Because you aren’t the world’s, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20  Remember that I told you, ‘A servant isn’t greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed my teaching, they will also obey yours. 21  The world will do all these things to you, however, for My name’s sake, because they don’t know Him who sent me. 22  If I hadn’t come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23  Whoever hates me also hates my Father. 24  If I hadn’t done the works which no one else did among them, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both me and my Father. 25  This was to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’*Psalms 35:19; Psalms 69:4 26  When the Counselor comes, who I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of me. 27  You will also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.