1 John 3-5

English Standard Version

3 See ^(A)what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called ^(B)children of God; and so we are. The reason why ^(C)the world does not know us is that ^(D)it did not know him. ² Beloved, we are ^(E)God's children ^(F)now, and what we will be ^(G)has not yet appeared; but we know that ^(H)when he appears^{[a] (I)}we shall be like him, because ^(J)we shall see him as he is. ³ And everyone who ^(K)thus hopes in him ^(L)purifies himself as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; ^(M)sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that ^(N)he appeared in order to ^(O)take away sins, and ^(P)in him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; ^(Q)no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. ⁷ Little children, ^(R)let no one deceive you. ^(S)Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. ^8 (T)Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was ^(U)to destroy the works of the devil. ^9 (V)No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's^[b] seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. ¹⁰ By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, ^(W)nor is the one who ^(X)does not love his brother.

Love One Another

¹¹ For ^(Y)this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, ^(Z)that we should love one another. ¹² We should not be like ^(AA)Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? ^(AB)Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous. ¹³ Do not be surprised, brothers,^{[c] (AC)}that the world hates you. ¹⁴ We know that ^(AD)we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. ^15 (AE)Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that ^(AF)no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

¹⁶ By this we know love, that ^(AG)he laid down his life for us, and ^(AH)we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. ¹⁷ But ^(AI)if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet ^(AJ)closes his heart against him, ^(AK)how does God's love abide in him? ¹⁸ Little children, let us not ^(AL)love in word or talk but in deed and ^(AM)in truth.

¹⁹ By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; ²⁰ for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. ²¹ Beloved, ^(AN)if our heart does not condemn us, ^(AO)we have confidence before God; ²² and ^(AP)whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and ^(AQ)do what pleases him. ²³ And this is his commandment, ^(AR)that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and ^(AS)love one another, ^(AT)just as he has commanded us. ^24 (AU)Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God,^[d] and God^[e] in him. And ^(AV)by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

Test the Spirits

4 Beloved, ^(AW)do not believe every spirit, but ^(AX)test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for ^(AY)many ^(AZ)false prophets ^(BA)have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: ^(BB)every spirit that confesses that ^(BC)Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ and every spirit ^(BD)that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and ^(BE)now is in the world already. ⁴ Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for ^(BF)he who is in you is greater than ^(BG)he who is in the world. ^5 (BH)They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and ^(BI)the world listens to them. ⁶ We are from God. ^(BJ)Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know ^(BK)the Spirit of truth and ^(BL)the spirit of error.

God Is Love

⁷ Beloved, ^(BM)let us love one another, for love is from God, and ^(BN)whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. ^8 (BO)Anyone who does not love does not know God, because ^(BP)God is love. ⁹ In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that ^(BQ)God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. ¹⁰ In this is love, ^(BR)not that we have loved God ^(BS)but that he loved us and sent his Son to be ^(BT)the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹ Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ^12 (BU)No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and ^(BV)his love is perfected in us.

^13 (BW)By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And ^(BX)we have seen and testify that ^(BY)the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of ^(BZ)the world. ^15 (CA)Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ¹⁶ So ^(CB)we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. ^(CC)God is love, and ^(CD)whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. ¹⁷ By this ^(CE)is love perfected with us, so that ^(CF)we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because ^(CG)as he is so also are we in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love, but ^(CH)perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not ^(CI)been perfected in love. ^19 (CJ)We love because he first loved us. ^20 (CK)If anyone says, “I love God,” and ^(CL)hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot^[f] love God ^(CM)whom he has not seen. ²¹ And ^(CN)this commandment we have from him: ^(CO)whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Overcoming the World

5 ^(CP)Everyone who believes that ^(CQ)Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and ^(CR)everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. ^2 (CS)By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. ³ For ^(CT)this is the love of God, that we ^(CU)keep his commandments. And ^(CV)his commandments are not burdensome. ⁴ For ^(CW)everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—^(CX)our faith. ⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes ^(CY)that Jesus is the Son of God?

Testimony Concerning the Son of God

⁶ This is he who came ^(CZ)by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And ^(DA)the Spirit is the one who testifies, because ^(DB)the Spirit is the truth. ⁷ For there are three that testify: ⁸ the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. ^9 (DC)If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God ^(DD)that he has borne concerning his Son. ¹⁰ Whoever believes in the Son of God ^(DE)has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God ^(DF)has made him a liar, ^(DG)because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. ¹¹ And this is the testimony, that God gave us ^(DH)eternal life, and ^(DI)this life is in his Son. ^12 (DJ)Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

That You May Know

¹³ I write ^(DK)these things to you who ^(DL)believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. ¹⁴ And this is ^(DM)the confidence that we have toward him, that ^(DN)if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

¹⁶ If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and ^(DO)God^[g] will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. ^(DP)There is sin that leads to death; ^(DQ)I do not say that one should pray for that. ^17 (DR)All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

¹⁸ We know that ^(DS)everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but ^(DT)he who was born of God ^(DU)protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

¹⁹ We know that we are from God, and ^(DV)the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

²⁰ And we know that the Son of God has come and ^(DW)has given us understanding, so that we may know ^(DX)him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and ^(DY)eternal life. ²¹ Little children, ^(DZ)keep yourselves from idols.