1 John4

The chapter exhorts believers to test spirits, distinguishing true prophets who confess Jesus Christ in the flesh from false ones. It then emphasizes that God is love, and His love was manifested by sending His Son as propitiation for sins. Consequently, believers are commanded to love one another, for genuine love for God is inseparable from love for one's brother, and perfect love casts out fear.

Test the Spirits

1
Beloved, every spirit believe not, but prove the spirits, if of God they are, because many false prophets have gone forth to the world;
2
in this know ye the Spirit of God; every spirit that doth confess Jesus Christ in the flesh having come, of God it is,
3
and 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.
4
Ye--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.
5
They--of the world they are; because of this from the world they speak, and the world doth hear them;
6
we--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.

God Is Love

7
Beloved, 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;
8
he who is not loving did not know God, because God is love.
9
In 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;
10
in 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.
11
Beloved, if thus did God love us, we also ought one another to love;
12
God 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;

Assurance Through the Spirit

13
in this we know that in Him we do remain, and He in us, because of His Spirit He hath given us.
14
And we--we have seen and do testify, that the Father hath sent the Son--Saviour of the world;
15
whoever may confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God in him doth remain, and he in God;
16
and 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.

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear

17
In 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;
18
fear 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;

The Basis and Proof of Love

19
we--we love him, because He--He first loved us;
20
if 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?
21
and this is the command we have from Him, that he who is loving God, may also love his brother.
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