¹See ye what love the Father hath given to us, that children of God we may be called; because of this the world doth not know us, because it did not know Him; ²beloved, now, children of God are we, and it was not yet manifested what we shall be, and we have known that if he may be manifested, like him we shall be, because we shall see him as he is; ³and every one who is having this hope on him, doth purify himself, even as he is pure.

⁴Every one who is doing the sin, the lawlessness also he doth do, and the sin is the lawlessness, ⁵and ye have known that he was manifested that our sins he may take away, and sin is not in him; ⁶every one who is remaining in him doth not sin; every one who is sinning, hath not seen him, nor known him. ⁷Little children, let no one lead you astray; he who is doing the righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous, ⁸he who is doing the sin, of the devil he is, because from the beginning the devil doth sin; for this was the Son of God manifested, that he may break up the works of the devil; ⁹every one who hath been begotten of God, sin he doth not, because his seed in him doth remain, and he is not able to sin, because of God he hath been begotten. ¹⁰In this manifest are the children of God, and the children of the devil; every one who is not doing righteousness, is not of God, and he who is not loving his brother.

¹¹Because this is the message that ye did hear from the beginning, that we may love one another, ¹²not as Cain—of the evil one he was, and he did slay his brother, and wherefore did he slay him? because his works were evil, and those of his brother righteous. ¹³Do not wonder, my brethren, if the world doth hate you.

¹⁴We—we have known that we have passed out of the death to the life, because we love the brethren; he who is not loving the brother doth remain in the death. ¹⁵Every one who is hating his brother—a man-killer he is, and ye have known that no man-killer hath life age-during in him remaining, ¹⁶in this we have known the love, because he for us his life did lay down, and we ought for the brethren the lives to lay down; ¹⁷and whoever may have the goods of the world, and may view his brother having need, and may shut up his bowels from him—how doth the love of God remain in him? ¹⁸My little children, may we not love in word nor in tongue, but in word and in truth! ¹⁹and in this we know that of the truth we are, and before Him we shall assure our hearts.

²⁰Because if our heart may condemn—because greater is God than our heart, and He doth know all things. ²¹Beloved, if our heart may not condemn us, we have boldness toward God, ²²and whatever we may ask, we receive from Him, because His commands we keep, and the things pleasing before Him we do.

²³And this is His command, that we may believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and may love one another, even as He did give command to us, ²⁴and he who is keeping His commands, in Him he doth remain, and He in him; and in this we know that He doth remain in us, from the Spirit that He gave us.

Chapter 4

¹Beloved, every spirit believe not, but prove the spirits, if of God they are, because many false prophets have gone forth to the world; ²in this know ye the Spirit of God; every spirit that doth confess Jesus Christ in the flesh having come, of God it is, ³and every spirit that doth not confess Jesus Christ in the flesh having come, of God it is not; and this is that of the antichrist, which ye heard that it doth come, and now in the world it is already.

⁴Ye—of God ye are, little children, and ye have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world. ⁵They—of the world they are; because of this from the world they speak, and the world doth hear them; ⁶we—of God we are; he who is knowing God doth hear us; he who is not of God, doth not hear us; from this we know the spirit of the truth, and the spirit of the error.

⁷Beloved, may we love one another, because the love is of God, and every one who is loving, of God he hath been begotten, and doth know God; ⁸he who is not loving did not know God, because God is love. ⁹In this was manifested the love of God in us, because His Son—the only begotten—hath God sent to the world, that we may live through him; ¹⁰in this is the love, not that we loved God, but that He did love us, and did send His Son a propitiation for our sins. ¹¹Beloved, if thus did God love us, we also ought one another to love; ¹²God no one hath ever seen; if we may love one another, God in us doth remain, and His love is having been perfected in us; ¹³in this we know that in Him we do remain, and He in us, because of His Spirit He hath given us.

¹⁴And we—we have seen and do testify, that the Father hath sent the Son—Saviour of the world; ¹⁵whoever may confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God in him doth remain, and he in God; ¹⁶and we—we have known and believed the love, that God hath in us; God is love, and he who is remaining in the love, in God he doth remain, and God in him.

¹⁷In this made perfect hath been the love with us, that boldness we may have in the day of the judgment, because even as He is, we—we also are in this world; ¹⁸fear is not in the love, but the perfect love doth cast out the fear, because the fear hath punishment, and he who is fearing hath not been made perfect in the love; ¹⁹we—we love him, because He—He first loved us; ²⁰if any one may say—‘I love God,’ and his brother he may hate, a liar he is; for he who is not loving his brother whom he hath seen, God—whom he hath not seen—how is he able to love? ²¹and this is the command we have from Him, that he who is loving God, may also love his brother.

Chapter 5

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