How many times is "only begotten" in the Bible?
The phrase "only begotten" appears 6 times in the King James Version, in 6 verses. It is found in 3 of the 66 books. The World English Bible words it differently: one and only 6.
All six are about a one and only son: John 1:14, 1:18, 3:16 and 3:18, Hebrews 11:17 (Isaac) and 1 John 4:9. The World English Bible says one and only in the same six verses.
Only begotten in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of only begotten counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| only begotten | 6 | not counted |
| one and only | not counted | 6 |
| Total | 6 | 6 |
First and last mention of only begotten
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
Verses with only begotten on our topic pages
4 verses that use only begotten in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
He who believes in him is not judged. He who doesn’t believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.
The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.
On: Christmas
By this God’s love was revealed in us, that God has sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
On: Love
Common questions
How many times is only begotten in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 0 of the 6 uses are in the Old Testament and 6 in the New Testament. Only begotten appears in 3 books of the 66 in the King James Version. John has the most (4), then Hebrews (1) and 1 John (1).
Where is only begotten first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is John 1:14: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." The last is 1 John 4:9.
More word counts: love, God, Jesus, Christ, Lord, Holy Spirit, faith, hope, or all 686 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-11-03.