The instrument by which this vital element is conveyed is the ‘word’: James 1:18; 1 Pet. 1:23; Luke 8:12, 8:15. The absence of the article (σπέρμα not τὸ σπέρμα) directs attention to the character of the divine principle and not to the divine principle communicated in the particular case. See v. 10 note. οὐ δύναται ἁμ.] he cannot sin. The ideas of divine sonship and sin are mutually exclusive. As long as the relationship with God is real (ὅτι ἐκ θεοῦ γεγένν.) sinful acts are but accidents.