1 John 2
New King James Version
The Test of Knowing Christ
2 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, (A)we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And (B)He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but (C)also for the whole world.
The Test of Knowing Him
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a (D)liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But (E)whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God [a]is perfected (F)in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 (G)He who says he abides in Him (H)ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
7 [b]Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had (I)from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard [c]from the beginning. 8 Again, (J)a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, (K)because the darkness is passing away, and (L)the true light is already shining.
9 (M)He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. 10 (N)He who loves his brother abides in the light, and (O)there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But he who (P)hates his brother is in darkness and (Q)walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
Their Spiritual State
12 I write to you, little children,
Because (R)your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.
13 I write to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is (S)from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
Because you have overcome the wicked one.
I write to you, little children,
Because you have (T)known the Father.
14 I have written to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men,
Because (U)you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,
And you have overcome the wicked one.
Do Not Love the World
15 (V)Do not love the world or the things in the world. (W)If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, (X)the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And (Y)the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Deceptions of the Last Hour
18 (Z)Little children, (AA)it is the last hour; and as you have heard that (AB)the[d] Antichrist is coming, (AC)even now many antichrists have come, by which we know (AD)that it is the last hour. 19 (AE)They went out from us, but they were not of us; for (AF)if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out (AG)that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.
20 But (AH)you have an anointing (AI)from the Holy One, and (AJ)you[e] know all things. 21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
22 (AK)Who is a liar but he who denies that (AL)Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 23 (AM)Whoever denies the Son does not have the (AN)Father either; (AO)he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
Let Truth Abide in You
24 Therefore let that abide in you (AP)which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, (AQ)you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 (AR)And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.
26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to [f]deceive you. 27 But the (AS)anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and (AT)you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing (AU)teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you [g]will abide in Him.
The Children of God
28 And now, little children, abide in Him, that [h]when He appears, we may have (AV)confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. 29 (AW)If you know that He is righteous, you know that (AX)everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.
Footnotes
- 1 John 2:5 has been completed
- 1 John 2:7 NU Beloved
- 1 John 2:7 NU omits from the beginning
- 1 John 2:18 NU omits the
- 1 John 2:20 NU you all know.
- 1 John 2:26 lead you astray
- 1 John 2:27 NU omits will
- 1 John 2:28 NU if
1 John 2
Modern English Version
Christ Our Advocate
2 My little children, I am writing these things to you, so that you do not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 By this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 Whoever says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word truly has the love of God perfected in him. By this we know we are in Him. 6 Whoever says he remains in Him ought to walk as He walked.
The New Commandment
7 Brothers, I am writing no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you have heard from the beginning. 8 Yet a new commandment I am writing to you, which holds true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.
9 Whoever says he is in the light but hates his brother is in darkness even until now. 10 Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in darkness, and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
12 I am writing to you, little children,
because your sins are forgiven for His name’s sake.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
I am writing to you, little children,
because you have known the Father.
14 I have written to you, fathers,
because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17 The world and its desires are passing away, but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
The Antichrist
18 Little children, it is the last hour. As you have heard that the antichrist will come, even now there are many antichrists. By this we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have remained with us. But they went out, revealing that none of them were of us.
20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. 21 I have written to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is a liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? Whoever denies the Father and the Son is the antichrist. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father.
24 Let that which you have heard from the beginning remain in you. If that which you have heard from the beginning remains in you, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.
26 I have written these things to you concerning those who deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. For as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and just as it has taught you, remain in Him.
Children of God
28 And now, little children, remain in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him when He comes.
29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who does righteousness is born of Him.
1 John 2
International Standard Version
The Messiah is Our Advocate
2 My little children, I’m writing these things to you so that you might not sin. Yet if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus, the Messiah,[a] one who is righteous. 2 It is he who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world’s.
3 This is how we can be sure that we have come to know him: if we continually keep his commandments. 4 The person who says, “I have come to know him,” but does not continually keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth has no place in that person. 5 But whoever continually keeps his commandments is the kind of person in whom God’s love has truly been perfected. This is how we can be sure that we are in union with God:[b] 6 The one who says that he abides in him must live the same way he himself lived.
We Must Obey God’s Commandments
7 Dear friends, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning. This old commandment is the word you have heard. 8 On the other hand, I am writing to you a new commandment that is truly in him and in you. For the darkness is fading away, and the true light is already shining.
9 The person who says that he is in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10 The person who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no reason for him to stumble. 11 But the person who hates his brother is in the darkness and lives in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
12 I am writing to you, little children,
because your sins have been forgiven
on account of his name.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you have known the one who
has existed from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young people,
because you have overcome the evil one.
14 I have written to you, little children,
because you have known the Father.
I have written to you, fathers,
because you have known the one who
has existed from the beginning.
I have written to you, young people,
because you are strong
and because God’s word remains in you
and you have overcome the evil one.
15 Stop loving[c] the world and the things that are in the world. If anyone persists in loving the world, the Father’s love is not in him. 16 For everything that is in the world—the desire for fleshly gratification,[d] the desire for possessions,[e] and worldly arrogance—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world and its desires are fading away, but the person who does God’s will remains forever.
Live in the Messiah
18 Little children, it is the last hour. Just as you heard that an antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19 They left us, but they were not part of us, for if they had been part of us, they would have stayed with us. Their leaving made it clear that none of them was really part of us.
20 You have an anointing from the Holy One and know all things.[f] 21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because lies don’t come from truth. 22 Who is a liar but the person who denies that Jesus is the Messiah?[g] The person who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father. The person who acknowledges the Son also has the Father.
24 What you have heard from the beginning must abide in you. If what you have heard from the beginning abides in you, you will also abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 The message that the Son[h] himself declared to us is eternal life. 26 I have written[i] to you about those who are trying to deceive you. 27 The anointing you received from God[j] abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you this.[k] Instead, because God’s[l] anointing teaches you about everything and is true and not a lie, abide in him, as he taught you to do.[m]
Abide in Him
28 Even now, little children, abide in him. Then, when he appears, we will have confidence and will not turn away from him in shame when he comes. 29 Since you know that he is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been fathered by God.[n]
Footnotes
- 1 John 2:1 Or Christ
- 1 John 2:5 Lit. him
- 1 John 2:15 Or Don’t love
- 1 John 2:16 Lit. for the flesh
- 1 John 2:16 Lit. of the eyes
- 1 John 2:20 Other mss. read and all of you know
- 1 John 2:22 Or Christ
- 1 John 2:25 Lit. that he
- 1 John 2:26 Lit. written these things
- 1 John 2:27 Lit. him
- 1 John 2:27 The Gk. lacks this
- 1 John 2:27 Lit. his
- 1 John 2:27 The Gk. lacks to do
- 1 John 2:29 Lit. by him
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
