Humanitext Reader

New Testament · 1 John §3.1-3.24

Children of God and Loving One Another in Deed

Passage 3 of 5 · Greek

Summary

The author expounds on the privilege of being children of God, contrasts righteous living with sinful behavior, and emphasizes the necessity of loving one another not merely in word but in deed and truth.

§3.1Ἴδετε ποταπὴν ἀγάπην δέδωκεν ἡμῖν ὁ πατὴρ ἵνα τέκνα θεοῦ κληθῶμεν, καί ἐσμεν.
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.
διὰ τοῦτο ὁ κόσμος οὐ γινώσκει ἡμᾶς ὅτι οὐκ ἔγνω αὐτόν.
For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
§3.2Ἀγαπητοί, νῦν τέκνα θεοῦ ἐσμέν, καὶ οὔπω ἐφανερώθη τί ἐσόμεθα.
Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we will be.
οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἐὰν φανερωθῇ ὅμοιοι αὐτῷ ἐσόμεθα, ὅτι ὀψόμεθα αὐτὸν καθώς ἐστιν.
We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.
§3.3καὶ πᾶς ὁ ἔχων τὴν ἐλπίδα ταύτην ἐπʼ αὐτῷ ἁγνίζει ἑαυτὸν καθὼς ἐκεῖνος ἁγνός ἐστιν.
And everyone who has this hope set on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
§3.4Πᾶς ὁ ποιῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν καὶ τὴν ἀνομίαν ποιεῖ, καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐστὶν ἡ ἀνομία.
Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
§3.5καὶ οἴδατε ὅτι ἐκεῖνος ἐφανερώθη ἵνα τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἄρῃ, καὶ ἁμαρτία ἐν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν.
You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.
§3.6πᾶς ὁ ἐν αὐτῷ μένων οὐχ ἁμαρτάνει· πᾶς ὁ ἁμαρτάνων οὐχ ἑώρακεν αὐτὸν οὐδὲ ἔγνωκεν αὐτόν.
No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or has come to know Him.
§3.7Τεκνία, μηδεὶς πλανάτω ὑμᾶς· ὁ ποιῶν τὴν δικαιοσύνην δίκαιός ἐστιν, καθὼς ἐκεῖνος δίκαιός ἐστιν· §3.8ὁ ποιῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐκ τοῦ διαβόλου ἐστίν, ὅτι ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς ὁ διάβολος ἁμαρτάνει.
Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
εἰς τοῦτο ἐφανερώθη ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἵνα λύσῃ τὰ ἔργα τοῦ διαβόλου.
The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.
§3.9Πᾶς ὁ γεγεννημένος ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἁμαρτίαν οὐ ποιεῖ, ὅτι σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ μένει, καὶ οὐ δύναται ἁμαρτάνειν, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ γεγέννηται.
No one who has been born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
§3.10ἐν τούτῳ φανερά ἐστιν τὰ τέκνα τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὰ τέκνα τοῦ διαβόλου· πᾶς ὁ μὴ ποιῶν δικαιοσύνην οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ ὁ μὴ ἀγαπῶν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ.
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.
§3.11ὅτι αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ἀγγελία ἣν ἠκούσατε ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς, ἵνα ἀγαπῶμεν ἀλλήλους· §3.12οὐ καθὼς Καὶν ἐκ τοῦ πονηροῦ ἦν καὶ ἔσφαξεν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ·
For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother.
καὶ χάριν τίνος ἔσφαξεν αὐτόν;
And for what reason did he slay him?
ὅτι τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ πονηρὰ ἦν, τὰ δὲ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ δίκαια.
Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.
§3.13Μὴ θαυμάζετε, ἀδελφοί, εἰ μισεῖ ὑμᾶς ὁ κόσμος.
Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.
§3.14ἡμεῖς οἴδαμεν ὅτι μεταβεβήκαμεν ἐκ τοῦ θανάτου εἰς τὴν ζωήν, ὅτι ἀγαπῶμεν τοὺς ἀδελφούς·
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.
ὁ μὴ ἀγαπῶν μένει ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ.
He who does not love abides in death.
§3.15πᾶς ὁ μισῶν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ ἀνθρωποκτόνος ἐστίν, καὶ οἴδατε ὅτι πᾶς ἀνθρωποκτόνος οὐκ ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον ἐν αὐτῷ μένουσαν.
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
§3.16Ἐν τούτῳ ἐγνώκαμεν τὴν ἀγάπην, ὅτι ἐκεῖνος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἔθηκεν· καὶ ἡμεῖς ὀφείλομεν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀδελφῶν τὰς ψυχὰς θεῖναι.
We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
§3.17ὃς δʼ ἂν ἔχῃ τὸν βίον τοῦ κόσμου καὶ θεωρῇ τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ χρείαν ἔχοντα καὶ κλείσῃ τὰ σπλάγχνα αὐτοῦ ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ, πῶς ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ θεοῦ μένει ἐν αὐτῷ;
But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?
§3.18Τεκνία, μὴ ἀγαπῶμεν λόγῳ μηδὲ τῇ γλώσσῃ ἀλλὰ ἐν ἔργῳ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ.
Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
§3.19Ἐν τούτῳ γνωσόμεθα ὅτι ἐκ τῆς ἀληθείας ἐσμέν, καὶ ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ πείσομεν τὴν καρδίαν ἡμῶν §3.20ὅτι ἐὰν καταγινώσκῃ ἡμῶν ἡ καρδία, ὅτι μείζων ἐστὶν ὁ θεὸς τῆς καρδίας ἡμῶν καὶ γινώσκει πάντα.
We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.
§3.21Ἀγαπητοί, ἐὰν ἡ καρδία μὴ καταγινώσκῃ, §3.22παρρησίαν ἔχομεν πρὸς τὸν θεόν, καὶ ὃ ἂν αἰτῶμεν λαμβάνομεν ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ, ὅτι τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ τηροῦμεν καὶ τὰ ἀρεστὰ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ποιοῦμεν.
Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.
§3.23καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ἐντολὴ αὐτοῦ, ἵνα πιστεύσωμεν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ ἀγαπῶμεν ἀλλήλους, καθὼς ἔδωκεν ἐντολὴν ἡμῖν.
This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us.
§3.24καὶ ὁ τηρῶν τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ μένει καὶ αὐτὸς ἐν αὐτῷ·
The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him.
καὶ ἐν τούτῳ γινώσκομεν ὅτι μένει ἐν ἡμῖν, ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος οὗ ἡμῖν ἔδωκεν.
We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

Notes

  1. 3.1ἵνα τέκνα θεοῦ κληθῶμεν — This ἵνα clause serves not only to express purpose but also functions appositionally or substantively to explain the concrete content of the preceding phrase "what kind of love" (ποταπὴν ἀγάπην).
  2. 3.20ὅτι ἐὰν καταγινώσκῃ ἡμῶν ἡ καρδία, ὅτι μείζων ἐστὶν ὁ θεὸς — A highly difficult syntax containing a double ὅτι. The first ὅτι is interpreted as introducing a noun clause that serves as the object of πείσομεν ("assure our heart... that even if our heart condemns us"), while the second ὅτι functions causally ("because God is greater than our heart"). This structure best fits the comforting context where God's mercy overcomes our self-condemnation.

Cite this passage

New Testament, 1 John §3.1-3.24. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0031.tlg023.humanitext-grc2:3.1-3.24

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.