Bible Figure
Nathanael
Follower of Jesus
Nathanael was a Galilean disciple introduced to Jesus by Philip in John 1. Initially skeptical that anything good could come from Nazareth, he changed quickly when Jesus revealed supernatural knowledge of him and confessed Jesus as the Son of God and King of Israel. Nathanael later appears with disciples by the Sea of Galilee after the resurrection.
Biography
Philip found Nathanael after being called by Jesus and told him that they had found the one written about by Moses and the prophets: Jesus of Nazareth. Nathanael responded with the famous skeptical question, 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth?' Philip simply invited him to come and see. As Nathanael approached, Jesus described him as an Israelite in whom there was no deceit. When Nathanael asked how Jesus knew him, Jesus said He had seen him under the fig tree before Philip called him. Whatever personal significance this statement carried, it convinced Nathanael that Jesus possessed extraordinary knowledge, and he confessed Him as Rabbi, Son of God, and King of Israel. Jesus promised that Nathanael would see greater things and alluded to Jacob's ladder with the Son of Man as the meeting point of heaven and earth. John 21 identifies Nathanael as being from Cana in Galilee and places him among the disciples who encountered the risen Jesus by the Sea of Tiberias. The traditional identification of Nathanael with Bartholomew is plausible but not explicit.
Biblical Significance
Nathanael's movement from skepticism to confession is a concise model of honest inquiry transformed by encounter with Christ. His confession gathers important Johannine titles for Jesus, and Jesus' reply points beyond Nathanael's personal experience to the greater revelation centered in the Son of Man.