Jesus’ title for the Holy Spirit in John 14–16, and John’s for Jesus in 1 John 2:1: one called alongside to help and speak for you. English Bibles render it Comforter, Counselor, Advocate or Helper.
Paraklētos comes from parakaleō, to call alongside, a verb the New Testament uses more than a hundred times for urging, pleading, encouraging and comforting. In a Greek law court the paraklētos was the friend who stood beside you and spoke for you. Jesus promises the disciples “another” paraklētos, the Spirit, who will teach them and remind them of what he said; 1 John calls Jesus himself our paraklētos before the Father. The KJV made the Spirit “the Comforter” and Jesus “an advocate”, so most readers never see that it is one title; the BSB and WEB keep one word for both.
παράκλητος paraklētos, one called alongside
Five uses, all in John’s writings. Four times Jesus promises the Spirit as “another” paraklētos, which implies he has been one himself; the fifth calls Jesus the paraklētos who speaks for us before the Father.
The Spirit and Jesus, in ten translations
| Translation | The Spirit, John 14:16 | Jesus, 1 John 2:1 |
|---|---|---|
| BSB | Advocate | advocate |
| WEB | Counselor | Counselor |
| KJV | Comforter | advocate |
| ASV | Comforter | Advocate |
| LSV | Comforter | Advocate |
| YLT | Comforter | advocate |
| DBY | Comforter | patron |
| FBV | Comforter | someone who defends us |
| OEB | helper | advocate |
| T4T | encourage/be like a legal counsel | speaks to the Father on our behalf |
Only the BSB and the WEB (marked) use one word for both, so a reader can see it is the same title; the KJV’s “Comforter” and “advocate” hide it. The word itself is the one a law court used for someone who stands beside you and speaks for you.
The words it comes from
παρακαλέω parakaleō, to call alongside 109 uses
παράκλησις paraklēsis, a calling alongside 29 uses
How the BSB translates the verb and the noun. The same word can mean urge, plead, encourage or comfort depending on who is calling whom alongside; in 2 Corinthians 1:3–7 Paul uses it 10 times in five verses. Counted in the site’s Greek by Strong’s number: G3875, G3870 and G3874.