What does it mean to be born of water?

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John 3:1-5, There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

There are some people who think a person must be baptized in order to be saved. John 3:5 is a verse sometimes used to support this idea. The fundamental flaw in that argument, though, is the unproven assumption that “born of water” means “baptized.” I don't believe it does.

In all of Scripture, the term “born of water” occurs exactly once. Besides this verse, there is no other passage we can examine that might shed more light on the meaning of this term. Consequently, we only have the context of this verse to help us understand what Jesus meant by His statement to Nicodemus. Though this may not be an exhaustive list, there are at least 4 possible meanings to this term:

It could mean baptism

We should consider the possibility that it does mean water baptism. The words “baptize” or “baptism” occur approximately 85 times in Scripture. Yet even though baptism is frequently mentioned, nowhere is it called, being “born of water” or even associated with that term. The word "baptism" isn't used anywhere in this passage.  Also, nowhere else is the word “born” used in the same context with the word “baptize” or "baptism."  That is, there is no passage that says something like “born through baptism.” If someone wants to associate “born of water” with baptism, the burden should be upon him to do so. To simply say the term means baptism based solely on this context isn't sufficient.

Furthermore, to interpret this verse to mean, “one must be baptized and born of the Spirit” is antithetical to the rest of Scripture which says we are saved by grace through faith and not by any outward acts such as good deeds or circumcision (Ephesians 2:8, Romans 4:9-12, et al).

It could mean a washing by the Word

As has already been said, we are saved by grace through faith. Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” In other words, we can only believe by hearing the word. Then, by believing, we receive grace and are saved. There are a few passages that support the idea there is a “washing by the word.”

Ephesians 5:25-26, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.”

John 15:3, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.”

John 13:5-10, “After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.”

This last verse is particularly interesting.  If a saved person is considered “washed,” “cleansed,” or “bathed,” then Jesus' words to Peter become clear: we never have to be “bathed” again. If we sin – that is, get our feet dirty – we only need to be restored by the washing of our feet. We do not need to become saved again.

I think “born of water” could fit with the idea of being washed by the Word but I cannot dogmatically insist they are the same thing.

An alternative translation of the Greek conjunction

In the clause, “be born of water and the Spirit,” the word translated as “and” is the Greek conjunction kai (Strong's word 2532, καί). According to Strong's, kai can mean, “and, even, also, namely.” This means an alternative translation of the subject verse could be, “Except a man be born of water, even of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” In this sense, being born of water would essentially be the same as being born of the Spirit.

When Jesus spoke with the Samaritan woman at the well, He told her He could give her “living water.” In John 4:13-14 we read, “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.” In this light, the living water would be the Holy Spirit, indwelling the believer and giving him eternal life.

Born of water could be a euphemism for physical birth

Even today, we refer to the amniotic fluid as “water.” When a woman's “water breaks,” we know the birth is imminent. In this passage, we cannot lose sight of the fact that Jesus is explaining our spiritual rebirth by comparing it to our physical birth. When Jesus is talking with Nicodemus, He said (v. 3), “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” To say, “born again” implies there was already a first birth. We know with certainty that Nicodemus understood this to mean the physical birth because of his response in v. 4, “Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?”

In v. 5-6, Jesus expands upon the rebirth. Read both verses together, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” To me, I believe His meaning is clear but let me paraphrase it this way: “A person must be born physically AND spiritually because that which is born of the flesh is only flesh but that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Later in the chapter, Nicodemus is still struggling to understand the concept of a second birth. In v. 12, Jesus tells him, “If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” So we see, yet again, Jesus is explaining a heavenly concept by comparing it to something earthly. Jesus did this often in His ministry. Consider the number of times Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like...” Then He would go on to use an analogy like farming or shepherding to make His point. Jesus was certainly doing that here.

“Born of water” meaning physical birth also comports well with 1 Peter 1:23, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” Our first birth, then, would be of corruptible seed, that is of the flesh. Our second birth, our spiritual birth, would be of incorruptible seed.

There may be other meanings of the term “born of water” that I hadn't considered. I'm happy to hear them but any other possible meaning must be supported by Scripture. Of these four, I believe a reference to the physical birth is the most likely meaning. I also believe a reference to baptism to be the least likely meaning.