1 John 2

New American Standard Bible

Christ Is Our Advocate

2 ^(A)My little children, I am ^(B)writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, ^(C)we have an ^[a]^(D)Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; ²and He Himself is ^(E)the ^[b]propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also ^(F)for the sins of the whole world.

³^(G)By this we know that we have come to ^(H)know Him, if we ^(I)keep His commandments. ⁴The one who says, “^(J)I have come to ^(K)know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a ^(L)liar, and ^(M)the truth is not in him; ⁵but whoever ^(N)follows His word, in him the ^(O)love of God has truly been perfected. ^(P)By this we know that we are in Him: ⁶the one who says that he ^(Q)remains in Him ^(R)ought, himself also, walk just as He walked.

⁷^(S)Beloved, I am ^(T)not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had ^(U)from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard. ⁸^[c]On the other hand, I am writing ^(V)a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because ^(W)the darkness is passing away and ^(X)the true Light is already shining. ⁹The one who says that he is in the Light and yet ^(Y)hates his ^(Z)brother or sister is in the darkness until now. ¹⁰^(AA)The one who loves his brother and sister remains in the Light, and there is nothing in him to cause stumbling. ¹¹But the one who ^(AB)hates his brother or sister is in the darkness and ^(AC)walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has ^(AD)blinded his eyes.

¹²I am writing to you, ^(AE)little children, because ^(AF)your sins have been forgiven you on account of His name. ¹³I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him ^(AG)who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because ^(AH)you have overcome ^(AI)the evil one. I have written to you, children, because ^(AJ)you know the Father. ¹⁴I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him ^(AK)who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are ^(AL)strong, and the ^(AM)word of God remains in you, and ^(AN)you have overcome the evil one.

Do Not Love the World

¹⁵Do not love ^(AO)the world nor the things in the world. ^(AP)If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶For all that is in the world, ^(AQ)the lust of the flesh and ^(AR)the lust of the eyes and ^(AS)the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. ¹⁷^(AT)The world is passing away and also its lusts; but the one who ^(AU)does the will of God continues to live forever.

¹⁸Children, ^(AV)it is the last hour; and just as you heard that ^(AW)antichrist is coming, ^(AX)even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. ¹⁹^(AY)They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, ^(AZ)so that ^[d]it would be evident that they all are not of us. ²⁰^[e]But you have an ^(BA)anointing from ^(BB)the Holy One, and ^(BC)you all know. ²¹I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but ^(BD)because you do know it, and ^[f]because no lie is ^(BE)of the truth. ²²Who is the liar except ^(BF)the one who denies that Jesus is the ^[g]Christ? This is ^(BG)the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. ²³^(BH)Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also. ²⁴As for you, see that what you heard ^(BI)from the beginning remains in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, you also ^(BJ)will remain in the Son and in the Father.

The Promise Is Eternal Life

²⁵^(BK)This is the promise which He Himself ^[h]made to us: eternal life.

²⁶These things I have written to you concerning those who are trying to ^(BL)deceive you. ²⁷And as for you, the ^(BM)anointing which you received from Him remains in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing ^(BN)teaches you about all things, and is ^(BO)true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, ^[i]you remain in Him.

²⁸Now, ^(BP)little children, remain in Him, so that when He ^(BQ)appears, we may have ^(BR)confidence and ^(BS)not ^[j]draw back from Him in shame ^[k]at His ^(BT)coming. ²⁹If you know that ^(BU)He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness also ^(BV)has been born of Him.

Footnotes

1 John 2:1 Or Intercessor
1 John 2:2 I.e., means of reconciliation with God by atoning for sins; or sin-offering
1 John 2:8 Lit Again
1 John 2:19 Lit they would be revealed
1 John 2:20 Lit And
1 John 2:21 Or you know that no lie
1 John 2:22 I.e., Messiah
1 John 2:25 Lit promised us
1 John 2:27 Or remain in Him (a command)
1 John 2:28 Lit be put to shame from Him
1 John 2:28 Or in His presence

Song of Solomon 3-5

New American Standard Bible

The Bride’s Troubled Dream

3 “On my bed night after night I sought him
^(A)Whom my soul loves;
I ^(B)sought him but did not find him.
²‘^[a]I must arise now and ^[b]go around in the city;
In the ^(C)streets and in the public squares
^[c]I must seek him whom my soul loves.’
I sought him but did not find him.
³^(D)The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me,
And I said, ‘Have you seen him whom my soul loves?’
⁴^(E)Hardly had I ^[d]left them
When I found him whom my soul loves;
I ^(F)held on to him and would not let him go
Until I had ^(G)brought him to my mother’s house,
And into the room of her who conceived me.”

The Groom

⁵“^(H)Swear to me, you daughters of Jerusalem,
By the ^(I)gazelles or by the does of the field,
That you will not disturb or awaken my love
Until she pleases.”

Solomon’s Wedding Day

The Bride

⁶“^[e]^(J)What is this coming up from the wilderness
Like ^(K)columns of smoke,
Perfumed with ^(L)myrrh and ^(M)frankincense,
With all the scented powders of the merchant?

The Chorus

⁷Behold, it is ^[f]the traveling couch of Solomon;
Sixty warriors around it,
Of the warriors of Israel.
⁸All of them are wielders of the sword,
^(N)Expert in war;
Each man has his ^(O)sword at his side,
Guarding against the ^[g]^(P)terrors of the night.
⁹King Solomon has made for himself a ^[h]sedan chair
From the timber of Lebanon.
¹⁰He made its posts of silver,
Its ^[i]back of gold
And its seat of purple fabric,
With its interior lovingly inlaid
By the ^(Q)daughters of Jerusalem.
¹¹Go out, you ^(R)daughters of Zion,
And look at King Solomon with the ^[j]crown
With which his mother has crowned him
On the ^(S)day of his wedding,
And on the day of the joy of his heart.”

Solomon’s Love Expressed

4 “^[k]How beautiful ^(T)you are, my darling,
^[l]How beautiful you are!
Your ^(U)eyes are like doves ^(V)behind your veil;
Your ^(W)hair is like a flock of goats
That have descended from Mount ^(X)Gilead.
²Your ^(Y)teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep
Which have come up from their watering place,
All of which bear twins,
And not one among them has lost her young.
³Your lips are like a ^(Z)scarlet thread,
And your ^(AA)mouth is beautiful.
Your ^(AB)temples are like a slice of a pomegranate
Behind your veil.
⁴Your ^(AC)neck is like the tower of David,
Built with layers of stones
On which are ^(AD)hung a thousand shields,
All the round ^(AE)shields of the warriors.
⁵Your ^(AF)two breasts are like two fawns,
Twins of a gazelle
That ^(AG)graze among the lilies.
⁶^(AH)Until ^[m]the cool of the day
When the shadows flee,
I will go my way to the mountain of ^(AI)myrrh
And to the hill of ^(AJ)frankincense.

⁷“^(AK)You are altogether beautiful, my darling,
And there is no blemish on you.
⁸Come with me from ^(AL)Lebanon, my ^(AM)bride,
You shall come with me from Lebanon.
You shall ^[n]come down from the summit of ^(AN)Amana,
From the summit of ^(AO)Senir and Hermon,
From the dens of lions,
From the mountains of leopards.
⁹You have ^[o]enchanted my heart, ^(AP)my sister, my bride;
You have ^[p]enchanted my heart with a single glance of your eyes,
With a single strand of your ^(AQ)necklace.
¹⁰^(AR)How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride!
How much ^[q]^(AS)sweeter is your love than wine,
And the ^(AT)fragrance of your oils
Than that of all kinds of balsam oils!
¹¹Your lips ^(AU)drip ^(AV)honey, my bride;
Honey and milk are under your tongue,
And the fragrance of your garments is like the ^(AW)fragrance of Lebanon.
¹²A locked garden is my sister, my bride,
A locked spring, a ^(AX)sealed ^(AY)fountain.
¹³Your branches are an ^[r]^(AZ)orchard of ^(BA)pomegranates
With ^(BB)delicious fruits, ^(BC)henna with nard plants,
¹⁴^(BD)Nard and saffron, spice reed and ^(BE)cinnamon,
With all the trees of ^(BF)frankincense,
^(BG)Myrrh, and aloes, along with all the finest balsam oils.
¹⁵You are a garden spring,
A well of ^[s]^(BH)fresh water,
And flowing streams from Lebanon.”

The Bride

¹⁶“Awake, north wind,
And come, wind of the south;
^[t]Make my ^(BI)garden breathe out fragrance,
May its balsam oils flow.
May ^(BJ)my beloved come into his garden
And eat its ^(BK)delicious fruits!”

The Torment of Separation

The Groom

5 “I have ^(BL)come into my garden, ^(BM)my sister, my bride;
I have gathered my ^(BN)myrrh along with my balsam.
I have eaten my honeycomb with my ^(BO)honey;
I have ^(BP)drunk my wine with my milk.
Eat, ^(BQ)friends;
Drink and ^[u]drink deeply, lovers.”

The Bride

²“I was asleep but my heart was awake.
A voice! My beloved was knocking:
‘Open to me, ^(BR)my sister, my darling,
^(BS)My dove, my perfect one!
For my head is ^[v]drenched with dew,
My ^(BT)locks with the dew drops of the night.’
³I have ^(BU)taken off my dress,
How can I put it on again?
I have ^(BV)washed my feet,
How can I dirty them again?
⁴My beloved extended his hand through the opening,
And my ^(BW)feelings were stirred for him.
⁵I arose to open to my beloved;
And my hands ^(BX)dripped with myrrh,
And my fingers with drops of myrrh,
On the handles of the bolt.
⁶I opened to my beloved,
But my beloved had ^(BY)turned away and had gone!
My ^[w]heart went out to him as he ^(BZ)spoke.
I ^(CA)searched for him but I did not find him;
I ^(CB)called him but he did not answer me.
⁷The ^(CC)watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me,
They struck me and wounded me;
The guards of the walls took my shawl away from me.
⁸^(CD)Swear to me, you daughters of Jerusalem,
If you find my beloved,
As to what you will tell him:
For ^(CE)I am lovesick.”

The Chorus

⁹“^[x]What kind of beloved is your beloved,
O ^(CF)most beautiful among women?
^[y]What kind of beloved is your beloved,
That you make us swear in this way?”

Admiration by the Bride

The Bride

¹⁰“My beloved is dazzling and ^[z]^(CG)reddish,
^(CH)Outstanding among ten thousand.
¹¹His head is like gold, pure gold;
His ^(CI)locks are like clusters of dates
And black as a raven.
¹²His ^(CJ)eyes are like doves
Beside streams of water,
Bathed in milk,
And perched in their ^(CK)setting.
¹³His cheeks are like a ^(CL)bed of balsam,
^[aa]Banks of herbal spices;
His lips are ^(CM)lilies
^(CN)Dripping with drops of myrrh.
¹⁴His hands are rods of gold
Set with ^(CO)topaz;
His abdomen is panels of ivory
Covered with ^[ab]^(CP)sapphires.
¹⁵His thighs are pillars of alabaster
Set on pedestals of pure gold;
His appearance is like ^(CQ)Lebanon,
Choice as the ^(CR)cedars.
¹⁶His ^[ac]^(CS)mouth is full of sweetness.
And he is wholly ^(CT)desirable.
This is my beloved and this is my friend,
You daughters of Jerusalem.”