3 See how great a love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God! For this cause the world doesn’t know us, because it didn’t know him. ² Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be; but we know that when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him just as he is. ³ Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who sins also commits lawlessness. Sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and no sin is in him. ⁶ Whoever remains in him doesn’t sin. Whoever sins hasn’t seen him and doesn’t know him.

⁷ Little children, let no one lead you astray. He who does righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. ⁸ He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. To this end the Son of God was revealed: that he might destroy the works of the devil. ⁹ Whoever is born of God doesn’t commit sin, because his seed remains in him, and he can’t sin, because he is born of God. ¹⁰ In this the children of God are revealed, and the children of the devil. Whoever doesn’t do righteousness is not of God, neither is he who doesn’t love his brother. ¹¹ For this is the message which you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another— ¹² unlike Cain, who was of the evil one and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s righteous.

¹³ Don’t be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. ¹⁴ We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. He who doesn’t love his brother remains in death. ¹⁵ Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.

¹⁶ By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. ¹⁷ But whoever has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, then closes his heart of compassion against him, how does God’s love remain in him?

¹⁸ My little children, let’s not love in word only, or with the tongue only, but in deed and truth. ¹⁹ And by this we know that we are of the truth and persuade our hearts before him, ²⁰ because if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. ²¹ Beloved, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have boldness toward God; ²² so whatever we ask, we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight. ²³ This is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he commanded. ²⁴ He who keeps his commandments remains in him, and he in him. By this we know that he remains in us, by the Spirit which he gave us.