From his fullness: grace and truth through Jesus Christ (John 1:16–17)

Says The text reads ὅτι ("for"): "for from his fullness" (ἐκ τοῦ πληρώματος αὐτοῦ, ek tou plērōmatos autou) "we all received" (var.John.1.16.hoti-kai). The word πλήρωμα (plērōma, "fullness") takes up πλήρης ("full") from 1:14, so 1:16 explains 1:14. What was received is χάριν ἀντὶ χάριτος (charin anti charitos). With the genitive, ἀντί normally means "in place of" (note.language.John.1.16.charin-anti-charitos). A second ὅτι gives the ground: ὁ νόμος διὰ Μωϋσέως ἐδόθη (ho nomos dia Mōyseōs edothē, "the law was given through Moses"), ἡ χάρις καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐγένετο (hē charis kai hē alētheia dia Iēsou Christou egeneto, "grace and truth came through Jesus Christ"). Here the Word is named for the first time: Jesus Christ. The two clauses stand side by side without a connective, and the verbs differ: the law "was given" (ἐδόθη), while grace and truth "came" (ἐγένετο) (note.language.John.1.17.law-grace-truth).

Implies Believers receive inexhaustible grace from Christ's fullness. The contrast with Moses is not between a bad gift and a good one. The law "was given," and it was God's gift. The contrast is between a gift mediated through a servant and the reality now come in the Son. The "grace and truth" that the Lord proclaimed at Sinai (Exod 34:6, חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת) have now "come" in Jesus Christ (note.language.John.1.14.chesed-emet; xref.John.1.17.Exod.34.6.heb; xref.John.1.17.Exod.33.12-Exod.33.17.heb).

Uncertain The sense of χάριν ἀντὶ χάριτος. There are three views: (1) replacement, the grace of the gospel in place of the grace given through the law; (2) accumulation, "grace upon grace" (BSB); (3) correspondence, which is weakly supported. Following the Greek Scholar, the commentary leans to view 1, read as fulfillment and not as disparagement of the law, because of the explanatory ὅτι in 1:17. View 2 is close to it, and both affirm abundant grace (note.language.John.1.16.charin-anti-charitos). Sirach (non-canonical) identifies Wisdom's dwelling with the law of Moses (Sir 24:8, 23), whereas John places grace and truth in Jesus Christ. Whether John consciously answers such a view cannot be shown (note.historical.John.1.1-John.1.18.wisdom-philo).