John 15:1—Was Jesus the vine or the root?

Problem: John portrays Jesus as the vine of which believers are the branches. But elsewhere the Bible calls Him a “root out of dry ground” (Isa. 53:2).

Solution: Both of these are appropriate figures of Christ, each describing a different aspect of His ministry. Jesus was a root (source of life) in relation to the vine (Israel) in the OT. But He is the vine in which believers abide for spiritual life in the NT (John 15:1, 3).

This excerpt is from When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1992). © 2014 Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Click here to purchase this book.