1 John 4:1-21
4 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but put the spirits to the test, whether they come from God, because there have many pretended prophets gone out into the world.
2 You know God’s Spirit by this: any spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ to have come in flesh comes from God,
3 and any spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus does not come from God; and this is that of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and it is already in the world now.
4 You come of God, children, and have won the victory over them because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
5 * They come of the world; that is why they speak words of the world and the world hears them.
6 We come of God; he who knows God hears us, he who does not come of God does not hear us. It is from this that we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of delusion.
7 Dear friends, let us love each other, because love is from God and everyone who loves is born out of God and knows God.
8 He who does not love never got to know God, because God is love.
9 God’s love was displayed in our case by this, that God has sent his only Son into the world in order that we may live through him.
10 * This is where love comes in, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be a propitiation for our sins.
11 Dear friends, if God loved us like that, we are in duty bound to love each other too.
12 Nobody has ever looked upon God; if we love each other God is dwelling in us, and his love has been carried to perfection in us.
13 That we are dwelling in him and he in us we know by this, that he has given us some of his Spirit.
14 And we have seen the sight and testify to it that the Father has sent the Son to be savior of the world.
15 Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God is dwelling in him and he in God.
16 And we know, and have believed, the love that God has in our case.God is love, and he who dwells in love is dwelling in God and God in him.
17 It is in this that love has been brought to perfection with us, that we should have confidence on the day of judgment because what he is we too, in this world, are.
18 * There is no fear in love, but perfect love throws fear out, because fear involves the idea of punishment and he who fears has not come to perfection in love.
19 We love because he loved us first.
20 If one says “I love God” and hates his brother he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen,
21 and we have from him this commandment, that he who loves God should love his brother too.
Footnotes
^ 4:5 Lit. speak out of the world
^ 4:10 Lit. Love is in this, not
^ 4:18 Lit. fear has punishment
