This notion of a lack of sarcastic comments and dry wit are of course false.
No one even considers the fact that Nicodemus, who recognized Jesus as being sent by God, would be sarcastic to a bona fide messenger of God. And likely he wouldn't be.
But that doesn't mean that Jesus wouldn't be a bit incredulous at Nicodemus' answer back to him.
As the scripture above in
for_his_glory 's post shows the conversation...
Lets assume for just a moment that Tyndale nor Erasmus were not correct. And that Jerome was busy pontificating upon the less known double entendre of what Jesus said instead of the main thing people would understand from "born from above" or Born Anew.
What could the Jesus who spoke in parables so that the Pharisees deliberately would not understand what he was saying actually saying? And what could Nicodemus' reply actually mean?
Not that I actually am trying to promote a notion of Calvinism of Election...but a notion of Predestination of having foreknowledge from a God who knows the end of things as well as He knows the Beginning of all things.
The very notion that Nicodemus understood really well of being not just Called but Chosen by God to be a Hassid/Saint and not just a Hakham/Sage or knowledgeable person. Someone who was "Bene Elohim" and was deliberately born of God to perform a very specific task for All of Israel.
Jesus said, "No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is a Bene Elohim/Born Anew/Born as a messenger with a task to benefit ALL OF ISRAEL...like Moses, Isaac, or Sampson.
As a member of the Sanhidrin, a religious leader, and Rabbi/teacher of the Masses this would seem like empty flattery that Nicodemus did not understand how he could possibly satisfy...even with the double entendre of meaning that Nicodemus would understand half of. (The repenting and becoming a "Child of Abraham" once again. because he was a Rabbi...repenting of a mispent life was not on his agenda...nor did he need to. He was the interpreter of the Law and followed it closely)
This prompted the question that Nicodemus had of how he could possibly do his whole life over again at this point in the game. He would need to. So that his birth could be foretold by prophets, and all of Israel could look forward to his life changing the lives of everyone in Israel.
Now the term Jesus used was a backhanded way of saying Bene Elohim but not THE Son of God which was reserved for the Messiah...and Jesus wanted to make that distinction clear. Jesus knew exactly who he was...and was busy explaining to Nicodemus, who stopped by to make a friend of Jesus, who he truly was.
The answer petrified Nicodemus right down to his core more so than an entire legion of Roman soldiers coming to arrest him ever could. "There's no way possible" comes to mind when being told something like this. I'm sure this was Nicodemus' first thought. One that kept repeating itself through his mind.
While Jesus explains the same lesson he explained about the Sower and the different soils...or in the Old Testament about the Potter and the Clay. The better the quality of the soil the better the harvest or the better the quality of the clay the better the quality of the finished vessel.
That Nicodemus had been born of water and Spirit...
Water...its a backhanded, metaphoric reference to Law.
Moses started this with the sprinkling of the People with the water to cleanse them when he brought with him the "contract" of the first written words of God to the Children of Israel.
Lets look at some expressions...
Genesis
....And the Spirit of God was Hovering/Shaking/Controlling over the face of the "waters" is how scriptures say that God was choosing which laws of physics would rule the Universe.
1Peter:
The Heavens existed and the Earth was formed out of water and by water....(anything God says simply is the Law...even if you argue with it)
Wash her with the water of the Word...
More could be said but suffice it to say that the chapter divisions put into scriptures around the time people were getting access to them was deliberately done to obfuscate the reason why Jesus decided to walk upon the Tehovm/Sea/Abyss of Gallilee.
The natural chapter breaks otherwise coming from the sections of scriptures would indicate a very serious problem with the current state of things with the Holy Roman Empire's church. Nevermind the truth...we are the "good guys".
Soooo
Long and dry reading....but it does propose a more complete understanding of what was said and why it was said than anything else listed above.
and that if you happen to be reading this...you have been Called...and Chosen to do something.