1 John 1–2

The Incarnation of the Word of Life

1That which was from the beginning,^a which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes,^b which we have looked at and our hands have touched^c—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. ²The life appeared;^d we have seen it and testify to it,^e and we proclaim to you the eternal life,^f which was with the Father and has appeared to us. ³We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard,^g so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.^{h 4}We write thisⁱ to make our^a joy complete.^j

Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness

⁵This is the message we have heard^k from him and declare to you: God is light;^l in him there is no darkness at all. ⁶If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness,^m we lie and do not live out the truth.^{n 7}But if we walk in the light,^o as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all^b sin.^p

⁸If we claim to be without sin,^q we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.^{r 9}If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins^s and purify us from all unrighteousness.^{t 10}If we claim we have not sinned,^u we make him out to be a liar^v and his word is not in us.^w

2My dear children,^x I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate^y with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. ²He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins,^z and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.^a

Love and Hatred for Fellow Believers

³We know^b that we have come to know him^c if we keep his commands.^{d 4}Whoever says, “I know him,”^e but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person.^{f 5}But if anyone obeys his word,^g love for God^a is truly made complete in them.^h This is how we knowⁱ we are in him: ⁶Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.^j

⁷Dear friends,^k I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning.^l This old command is the message you have heard. ⁸Yet I am writing you a new command;^m its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passingⁿ and the true light^o is already shining.^p

⁹Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister^bq is still in the darkness.^{r 10}Anyone who loves their brother and sister^c lives in the light,^s and there is nothing in them to make them stumble.^{t 11}But anyone who hates a brother or sister^u is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness.^v They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them.^w

Reasons for Writing

¹²I am writing to you, dear children,^x

because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.^y

¹³I am writing to you, fathers,

because you know him who is from the beginning.^z

I am writing to you, young men,

because you have overcome^a the evil one.^b

¹⁴I write to you, dear children,^c

because you know the Father.

I write to you, fathers,

because you know him who is from the beginning.^d

I write to you, young men,

because you are strong,^e

and the word of God^f lives in you,^g

and you have overcome the evil one.^h

On Not Loving the World

¹⁵Do not love the world or anything in the world.ⁱ If anyone loves the world, love for the Father^d is not in them.^{j 16}For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh,^k the lust of the eyes,^l and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. ¹⁷The world and its desires pass away,^m but whoever does the will of Godⁿ lives forever.

Warnings Against Denying the Son

¹⁸Dear children, this is the last hour;^o and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming,^p even now many antichrists have come.^q This is how we know it is the last hour. ¹⁹They went out from us,^r but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.^s

²⁰But you have an anointing^t from the Holy One,^u and all of you know the truth.^{ev 21}I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it^w and because no lie comes from the truth. ²²Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son.^{x 23}No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.^y

²⁴As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning^z remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.^{a 25}And this is what he promised us—eternal life.^b

²⁶I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.^{c 27}As for you, the anointing^d you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things^e and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.^f

God’s Children and Sin

²⁸And now, dear children,^g continue in him, so that when he appears^h we may be confidentⁱ and unashamed before him at his coming.^j

²⁹If you know that he is righteous,^k you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.^l