Font Size
1 John 1
New International Version
1 John 1
New International Version
The Incarnation of the Word of Life
1 That 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. 2 The 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. 3 We 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 this(I) to make our[a] joy complete.(J)
Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness
5 This 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. 6 If 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)
8 If 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)
Footnotes
- 1 John 1:4 Some manuscripts your
- 1 John 1:7 Or every
1 John 1
The Message
1 John 1
The Message
1 1-2 From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in—we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we’re telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The infinite Life of God himself took shape before us.
3-4 We saw it, we heard it, and now we’re telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!
Walk in the Light
5 This, in essence, is the message we heard from Christ and are passing on to you: God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him.
6-7 If we claim that we experience a shared life with him and continue to stumble around in the dark, we’re obviously lying through our teeth—we’re not living what we claim. But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin.
8-10 If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—simply come clean about them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we’ve never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God.
1 John 1
Holman Christian Standard Bible
1 John 1
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Prologue: Our Declaration
1 What was from the beginning,(A)
what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes,
what we have observed
and have touched with our hands,
concerning the Word(B) of life—
2 that life was revealed,(C)
and we have seen it
and we testify and declare to you
the eternal life that was with the Father
and was revealed to us(D)—
3 what we have seen and heard
we also declare to you,
so that you may have fellowship(E) along with us;
and indeed our fellowship is with the Father(F)
and with His Son Jesus Christ.
4 We are writing these things[a]
so that our[b] joy(G) may be complete.
Fellowship with God
5 Now this is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light,(H) and there is absolutely no darkness in Him.(I) 6 If we say, “We have fellowship(J) with Him,” yet we walk in darkness,(K) we are lying and are not practicing[c] the truth.(L) 7 But if we walk in the light(M) as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus(N) His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say, “We have no sin,”(O) we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive(P) us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say, “We don’t have any sin,” we make Him a liar, and His word(Q) is not in us.(R)
Footnotes
- 1 John 1:4 Other mss add to you
- 1 John 1:4 Other mss read your
- 1 John 1:6 Or not living according to
1 John 1
King James Version
1 John 1
King James Version
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)
3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
1 John 1
Amplified Bible
1 John 1
Amplified Bible
Introduction, The Incarnate Word
1 [I am writing about] what existed from the beginning, what [a]we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life [the One who existed even before the beginning of the world, Christ]— 2 and the Life [an aspect of His being] was manifested, and we have seen [it as eyewitnesses] and testify and declare to you [the Life], the eternal Life who was [already existing] with the Father and was [actually] made visible to us [His followers]— 3 what we have seen and heard we also proclaim to you, so that you too may have fellowship [as partners] with us. And indeed our fellowship [which is a distinguishing mark of born-again believers] is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing these things to you so that our joy [in seeing you included] may be made complete [by having you share in the joy of salvation].
God Is Light
5 This is the message [of God’s promised revelation] which we have heard from Him and now announce to you, that God is Light [He is holy, His message is truthful, He is perfect in righteousness], and in Him there is no darkness at all [no sin, no wickedness, no imperfection]. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness [of sin], we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we [really] walk in the Light [that is, live each and every day in conformity with the precepts of God], as He Himself is in the Light, we have [true, unbroken] fellowship with one another [He with us, and we with Him], and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin [by erasing the stain of sin, keeping us cleansed from sin in all its forms and manifestations]. 8 If we say we have no sin [refusing to admit that we are sinners], we delude ourselves and the truth is not in us. [His word does not live in our hearts.] 9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just [true to His own nature and promises], and will forgive our sins and cleanse us continually from all unrighteousness [our wrongdoing, everything not in conformity with His will and purpose]. 10 If we say that we have not sinned [refusing to admit acts of sin], we make Him [out to be] a liar [by contradicting Him] and His word is not in us.
Footnotes
- 1 John 1:1 John the Apostle wrote the Gospel of John, this letter along with two others, and the book of Revelation. He and his brother James (also an apostle) were the sons of Zebedee and Salome.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible (AMP) 
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.