Saying 108 - Assimilation To Jesus

Nag Hammadi Coptic Text

BLATZ (108) Jesus said: He who drinks from my mouth will become like me, and I will become like him, and the hidden things will be revealed to him.

LAYTON (108) Jesus said, "Whoever drinks from my mouth will become like me; I, too, will become that person, and to that person the obscure things will be shown forth."

DORESSE 112 [108]. Jesus says: "He who drinks from my mouth will become like me. As for me, I will become what he is, and what is hidden will be revealed to him."

 

Funk's Parallels

John 4:7-15
There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.

John 7:37-39
In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

Rev 22:17
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

 

Scholarly Quotes

Marvin Meyer writes:

"Compare saying 13; John 4:13-14; 7:37-39; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4; Sirach 24:21, on drinking of Wisdom. In Odes of Solomon 30:1, 5, it is said that living water flows from the lips of the Lord."

(The Gospel of Thomas: The Hidden Sayings of Jesus, p. 107)

Gerd Ludemann writes of 108:1,

"This is a commentary on 13.5."

(Jesus After 2000 Years, p. 642)

For the other two verses, Ludemann connects them to the prologue.

Robert M. Grant and David Noel Freedman write:

"Jesus is the source of the water of life, as in Saying 12 (cf., John 4:14 and 7:37; Revelation 22:17); the person who drinks from his mouth becomes one with him, as in various Gnostic writings (Irenaeus, Adv. haer., 1, 13, 3; Pistis Sophia, chpter 96; Gospel of Eve in Epiphanius, Pan., 26, 3, 1: 'I am you and you are I')."

(The Secret Sayings of Jesus, p. 193)

Visitor Comments

Jesus is saying that anyone who listens to and truly understands his words can accomplish all that he has done and more. Far from being a sacrificial lamb who takes away the sins of the world, Jesus is a pointer of the way to truth!
- Wynford

This statement is direcly related to his statement about the lion and the man. If a person truly ingest Jesus, Jesus will love through that person because Jesus has "become" the person.
- justlooking

The "drink from his mouth" refers to the Gnostic Holy kiss where the master would ingest the sacred qaneh incense and pass it to the initiate who if properly prepared would achieve enlightenment.
- Ishgog

Jesus is saying more than just listen. To make his words an intergral part of your being. In doing so you will find the real truth or meaning in his word.
- King

This is a beautiful metaphor that says let Jesus into your heart of hearts. Breathe him in and imbibe him into yourself so there is no more you but only him
- Unknown