1 Beloved, ^tdo not believe every spirit, but ^utest the spirits to see whether they are from God, for ^vmany ^wfalse prophets ^xhave gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: ^yevery spirit that confesses that ^zJesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit ^athat does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and ^bnow is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for ^che who is in you is greater than ^dhe who is in the world. 5 ^eThey are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and ^fthe world listens to them. 6 We are from God. ^gWhoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know ^hthe Spirit of truth and ⁱthe spirit of error.

7 Beloved, ^jlet us love one another, for love is from God, and ^kwhoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 ^lAnyone who does not love does not know God, because ^mGod is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that ⁿGod sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, ^onot that we have loved God ⁿbut that he loved us and sent his Son to be ^pthe propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 ^qNo one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and ^rhis love is perfected in us.

13 ^sBy this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And ^twe have seen and testify that ^uthe Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of ^vthe world. 15 ^wWhoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So ^xwe have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. ^yGod is love, and ^zwhoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this ^ais love perfected with us, so that ^bwe may have confidence for the day of judgment, because ^cas he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but ^dperfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not ^abeen perfected in love. 19 ^eWe love because he first loved us. 20 ^fIf anyone says, “I love God,” and ^ghates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot¹ love God ^hwhom he has not seen. 21 And ⁱthis commandment we have from him: ^jwhoever loves God must also love his brother.

1 ^kEveryone who believes that ^lJesus is the Christ has been born of God, and ^meveryone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. 2 ⁿBy this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For ^othis is the love of God, that we ^pkeep his commandments. And ^qhis commandments are not burdensome. 4 For ^reveryone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—^sour faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes ^tthat Jesus is the Son of God?

6 This is he who came ^uby water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And ^vthe Spirit is the one who testifies, because ^wthe Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 9 ^xIf we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God ^ythat he has borne concerning his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God ^zhas the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God ^ahas made him a liar, ^bbecause he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us ^ceternal life, and ^dthis life is in his Son. 12 ^eWhoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

13 I write ^fthese things to you who ^gbelieve in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 And this is ^hthe confidence that we have toward him, that ⁱif we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

16 If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and ^jGod² will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. ^kThere is sin that leads to death; ^lI do not say that one should pray for that. 17 ^mAll wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.

18 We know that ⁿeveryone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but ^ohe who was born of God ^pprotects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

19 We know that we are from God, and ^qthe whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

20 And we know that the Son of God has come and ^rhas given us understanding, so that we may know ^shim who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and ^teternal life. 21 Little children, ^ukeep yourselves from idols.