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

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.

Josiah Keeps the Passover^(A)

35 Now ^(B)Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem, and they slaughtered the Passover lambs on the ^(C)fourteenth day of the first month. ² And he set the priests in their ^(D)duties and ^(E)encouraged them for the service of the house of the Lord. ³ Then he said to the Levites ^(F)who taught all Israel, who were holy to the Lord: ^(G)“Put the holy ark ^(H)in the house which Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built. ^(I)It shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel. ⁴ Prepare yourselves ^(J)according to your fathers’ ^[a]houses, according to your divisions, following the ^(K)written instruction of David king of Israel and the ^(L)written instruction of Solomon his son. ⁵ And ^(M)stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the fathers’ houses of your brethren the lay people, and according to the division of the father’s house of the Levites. ⁶ So slaughter the Passover offerings, ^(N)consecrate yourselves, and prepare them for your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.”

⁷ Then Josiah ^(O)gave the lay people lambs and young goats from the flock, all for Passover offerings for all who were present, to the number of thirty thousand, as well as three thousand cattle; these were from the king’s ^(P)possessions. ⁸ And his ^(Q)leaders gave willingly to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand six hundred from the flock, and three hundred cattle. ⁹ Also ^(R)Conaniah, his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave to the Levites for Passover offerings five thousand from the flock and five hundred cattle.

¹⁰ So the service was prepared, and the priests ^(S)stood in their places, and the ^(T)Levites in their divisions, according to the king’s command. ¹¹ And they slaughtered the Passover offerings; and the priests ^(U)sprinkled the blood with their hands, while the Levites ^(V)skinned the animals. ¹² Then they removed the burnt offerings that they might give them to the divisions of the fathers’ houses of the lay people, to offer to the Lord, as it is written ^(W)in the Book of Moses. And so they did with the cattle. ¹³ Also they ^(X)roasted the Passover offerings with fire according to the ordinance; but the other holy offerings they ^(Y)boiled in pots, in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them quickly among all the lay people. ¹⁴ Then afterward they prepared portions for themselves and for the priests, because the priests, the sons of Aaron, were busy in offering burnt offerings and fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared portions for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron. ¹⁵ And the singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their places, according to the ^(Z)command of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer. Also the gatekeepers ^(AA)were at each gate; they did not have to leave their position, because their brethren the Levites prepared portions for them.

¹⁶ So all the service of the Lord was prepared the same day, to keep the Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of King Josiah. ¹⁷ And the children of Israel who were present kept the Passover at that time, and the Feast of ^(AB)Unleavened Bread for seven days. ^18 (AC)There had been no Passover kept in Israel like that since the days of Samuel the prophet; and none of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as Josiah kept, with the priests and the Levites, all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁹ In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this Passover was kept.

Josiah Dies in Battle^(AD)

^20 (AE)After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against ^(AF)Carchemish by the Euphrates; and Josiah went out against him. ²¹ But he sent messengers to him, saying, “What have I to do with you, king of Judah? I have not come against you this day, but against the house with which I have war; for God commanded me to make haste. Refrain from meddling with God, who is with me, lest He destroy you.” ²² Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but ^(AG)disguised himself so that he might fight with him, and did not heed the words of Necho from the mouth of God. So he came to fight in the Valley of Megiddo.

²³ And the archers shot King Josiah; and the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am severely wounded.” ^24 (AH)His servants therefore took him out of that chariot and put him in the second chariot that he had, and they brought him to Jerusalem. So he died, and was buried in one of the tombs of his fathers. And ^(AI)all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.

²⁵ Jeremiah also ^(AJ)lamented for ^(AK)Josiah. And to this day ^(AL)all the singing men and the singing women speak of Josiah in their lamentations. ^(AM)They made it a custom in Israel; and indeed they are written in the Laments.

²⁶ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his goodness, according to what was written in the Law of the Lord, ²⁷ and his deeds from first to last, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.