John 1:40 tells us that one of two disciples who first followed Jesus was Andrew, and that he was the brother of Simon Peter. The verse is a simple identification, but it marks the moment a man who had been listening to John the Baptist began to follow Jesus instead. It is spoken by the Gospel writer, who is traditionally identified as the apostle John, and it is addressed to readers who are being told how the first disciples came to Jesus.
One of the two who heard John, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.
John 1:40 (WEB)
What John 1:40 Means
The verse begins with “One of the two,” which tells you that Andrew was not alone. He was one of a pair who had heard John the Baptist point to Jesus as the Lamb of God and then chose to walk after him. The verb “followed” is the same word used for following a teacher, so the text is describing discipleship in its earliest form: a person leaving one voice to listen to another.
The phrase “Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother” does two things. It names a real person, and it identifies him by his relationship to someone the reader will soon meet more fully. Andrew is introduced in terms of his family because the story is about to move from him to Simon. The verse does not promise Andrew any particular future, wealth, or ease. It simply records that he came, and that his coming mattered.
The Context of John 1:40
John’s Gospel was written late in the first century and is traditionally attributed to the apostle John, one of the twelve. Its audience is generally understood to be early Christian communities who needed to know why Jesus was believed to be the Messiah and the Son of God. The author writes with a careful eye for witnesses, and the names of early disciples are recorded so that readers can see how faith spread from person to person.
The verses just before and after give the setting. In verse 37 the two disciples hear Jesus and follow him, and in verse 38 Jesus asks them what they are looking for. In verse 41 Andrew goes to find his own brother, saying “We have found the Messiah.” Read in that sequence, verse 40 is the hinge: Andrew is the one who answers Jesus’s question by staying with him, and then becomes the one who brings someone else to Jesus.
Key Phrases in John 1:40
John 1:41
He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is, being interpreted, Christ).
(WEB)
The next verse shows what Andrew did with what he had found. He went straight to his brother, and that instinct to share good news is the natural continuation of the decision to follow Jesus that verse 40 describes.
Matthew 4:19
He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men.”
(WEB)
In Matthew, Jesus calls Andrew and Simon directly to follow him and offers them a new purpose. Reading it alongside John 1:40 shows how the Gospels fit together to describe the same brothers coming to Jesus from different angles.
A Short Prayer From John 1:40
Lord Jesus, thank you that Andrew heard about you, followed you, and then went to find someone he loved. Give me the same willingness to listen when you speak through others, and to take a step toward you even when I do not yet understand where it will lead. Help me to stay close to you each day, the way Andrew stayed with you that afternoon. Let the good news I have received become something I am ready to share with the people around me. Amen.