Confession is successful (and this is critical to John’s argument) because of the character of God. His forgiveness is not an act of mercy, as if he were setting aside some usual disposition in response to a religious act of penitence. God’s character is to be faithful and just (cf. Deut. 32:4; Ps. 89:1–4; Rom. 3:25; Heb. 10:23). It is essential not to oppose these two ideas, as if God’s loving-kindness or faithfulness (Gk. pistos) and his justice or righteousness (Gk. dikaios) were at odds. His faithfulness to us has prompted him to make a way for our purification and thereby satisfy his demand for righteousness.

Confession enjoys the good character of God and is empowered by it. Two consequences necessarily follow: forgiveness and purification. To forgive (Gk. aphiemi) really means “to let go” (as a debt, cf. Luke 7:43), and so John indicates that our sins are removed from God’s accounting. To purify (cf. 1:7) carries a different nuance and suggests the removal of the residual effects of sin, consequences that linger (such as a stain). Therefore there is hope. The past and its errors as well as the future and its propensity toward sinfulness are both addressed.