Study Notes

1:1–4 The introduction to this letter deals with the same subject and uses several of the same words as the introduction to John’s Gospel (1:1–4)—especially “beginning,” “Word” and “life.”

1:1 was from the beginning. Has always existed. we. John and the other apostles. heard . . . seen . . . looked at . . . touched. The apostle had made a careful examination of “the Word of life.” He testifies that the one who has existed from eternity “became flesh” (Jn 1:14; see note there), i.e., a flesh-and-blood man. He was truly divine and truly human. At the outset, John contradicts the heresy of the Gnostics (see Introduction: Gnosticism). Word of life. The one who is life and reveals life (see v. 2 and note). “Word” here speaks of revelation (see note on Jn 1:1).

1:2 The life . . . the eternal life. Christ. He is called “the life” because he is the living one who has life in himself (see Jn 1:4; 11:25; 14:6 and notes). He is also the source of life and sovereign over life (5:11). The letter begins and ends (5:20) with the theme of eternal life (see Jn 17:3 and note).

1:3 you also may have fellowship with us. Believers can share in the author’s experience of Christ through his ministry. Participation with us (vicariously) in our experience of hearing, seeing and touching the incarnate Christ (v. 1). Fellowship (Greek koinonia) is the spiritual union of the believer with Christ—as described in the figures of the vine and branches (Jn 15:1–5) and the body and the head (1Co 12:12; Col 1:18)—as well as communion with the Father and with fellow believers (see vv. 6–7).

1:4 our joy complete. John’s joy in the Lord could not be complete unless his readers shared the true knowledge of the Christ (see 2Jn 12; cf. Php 2:2).

1:5 from him. From Christ. light . . . darkness. Light represents what is good, true and holy, while darkness represents what is evil and false (Jn 3:19–21).

1:6–7 walk in the darkness . . . in the light. Two lifestyles—one characterized by wickedness and error, the other by holiness and truth.

1:6 we. John and his readers. to have fellowship with him. To be in living, spiritual union with God. walk. A metaphor for living. truth. See note on Jn 1:14.

1:7 sin. A key word in 1 John, with the noun occurring 17 times and verb 10 times in the Greek.

1:9 faithful and just. Indicates that God’s response toward those who confess their sins will be in accordance with his nature and his gracious commitment to his people (see Ps 143:1; Zec 8:8 and note; cf. Pr 28:13 and note). faithful. To his promise to forgive (see Jer 31:34; Mic 7:18–20; Heb 10:22–23 and notes). will forgive us. Will provide the forgiveness that restores the communion with God that had been interrupted by sin (as requested in the Lord’s Prayer, Mt 6:12).

1:10 we have not sinned. Gnostics denied that their outwardly immoral actions were sinful.

2:1 dear children. John, the aged apostle, often used this expression of endearment (vv. 12,28; 3:7,18; 4:4; 5:21). advocate. Refers to someone who speaks in court in behalf of a defendant (see note on Jn 14:16). Righteous One. In God’s court the defender must be, and is, sinless (cf. Ac 3:14 and note).

2:2 atoning sacrifice for our sins. God’s holiness demands punishment for human sin. God, therefore, out of love (4:10; Jn 3:16), sent his Son to make substitutionary atonement for the believer’s sin. In this way the Father’s wrath against the Christian’s sin is satisfied in Christ’s representative death. See note on Ro 3:25. for the sins of the whole world. Forgiveness through Christ’s atoning sacrifice is not limited to one particular group only; it has worldwide application (Jn 1:29). It must, however, be received by faith (Jn 3:16). Thus this verse does not teach universalism (that all people ultimately will be saved), but that God is an impartial God.

2:3 We know. John’s purpose in writing is to assure his readers that they already know the truth, so they need not be led astray by the false teachers. know. Forty times 1 John uses one of two Greek verbs normally translated “know.” One of these verbs is related to the name of the Gnostics, the heretical sect that claimed to have a special knowledge (Greek gnosis) of God (see Introduction: Gnosticism). keep his commands. Does not mean that only those who never disobey (1:8–9) know God, but simply refers to those whose lives are characterized by obedience.

2:5 love for God is truly made complete in them. The NIV main text translation (“love for God”) means that our love for God becomes complete when it expresses itself in acts of obedience (3:16–18). The NIV text note rendering means that God’s love for the believer is made complete when it moves the believer to acts of obedience (4:12). in him. Spiritual union with God (see Jn 17:21; Eph 1:1 and note; see also article).

2:7–8 new command. See Jn 13:34–35 and notes. The biblical command to love was old (see Lev 19:18; see also Mt 22:39–40). But its newness is seen in: (1) the new and dramatic illustration of divine love on the cross; (2) the NT teaching that the law is fulfilled when the commandments are kept (Ro 13:8–10); and (3) the daily experience of believers as they grow in love for each other.

2:7 Dear friends. Like “dear children” (see note on v. 1), a favorite term of John (used ten times in two letters: here; 3:2,21; 4:1,7,11; 3Jn 1, 2,5,11). since the beginning. The beginning of their Christian experience, when they first heard the gospel.

2:8 true light. Used in the NT only here and in Jn 1:9 (see note on Jn 1:4), this phrase refers to Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world (see Jn 8:12 and note; cf. 2Co 4:6 and note).

2:9–10 hates . . . loves. In the Bible hatred and love as moral qualities are not primarily emotions but attitudes expressed in actions (3:15–16).

2:9 light . . . darkness. See note on 1:5. brother or sister. See note on Ro 1:13. See NIV text note.

2:10 loves their brother and sister. See Jn 13:34–35 and notes. stumble. Into sin.

2:12–14 I am writing to you . . . because. By extended repetition in these verses, John assures his readers that, in spite of the rigorous tests contained in the letter, he is confident of their salvation. dear children . . . fathers . . . young men. As elsewhere in this letter, “dear children” probably refers to all John’s readers (see note on v. 1), including fathers and young people. The terms “fathers” and “young men” may, however, describe two different levels of spiritual maturity. Some hold that all three terms refer to levels of spiritual maturity.

2:12 his name. Jesus (see 3:23; 5:13; see also note on Ac 4:12).

2:13–14 him who is from the beginning. Christ (see note on 1:1).

2:13 because you know. See v. 3 and note; see also v. 14.

2:15 world. Not the world of people (Jn 3:16) or the created world (Jn 17:24), but here the world, or realm, of sin (v. 16; see Jas 4:4 and note), which is controlled by Satan and organized against God and righteousness (see note on Jn 1:9). love for the Father. Cf. 2:5 and note.

2:16 lust of the flesh . . . lust of the eyes . . . pride of life. Physical craving, covetousness, and a desire for self-aggrandizement. These are the same three avenues through which sin entered the world (cf. Ge 3:6 and note; 2Sa 11–12; Mt 4:1–11; Lk 4:1–3 and note).

2:18 last hour. With other NT writers, John viewed the whole period beginning with Christ’s first coming as the last days (see Ac 2:17; 2Ti 3:1 and note). They understood this to be the “last” of the days because neither former prophecy nor new revelation concerning the history of salvation indicated the coming of another era before the return of Christ. The word “last” in “last days,” “last times” and “last hour” also expresses a sense of urgency and imminence (see Heb 1:2 and note). The Christian is to be alert, waiting for the return of Christ (Mt 25:1–13). the antichrist . . . many antichrists. John assumed his readers knew that a great enemy of God and his people would arise before Christ’s return. That person is called “antichrist” (here), “the man of lawlessness” (2Th 2:3; but see note there) and “the beast” (Rev 13:1–10). But prior to him there will be many antichrists. These are characterized by the following: (1) They deny the incarnation (see 4:2 and note; 2Jn 7) and that Jesus is the divine Christ (v. 22); (2) they deny the Father (v. 22); (3) they do not have the Father (v. 23); (4) they are liars (v. 22) and deceivers (2Jn 7); (5) they are many (v. 18); (6) in John’s day they left the church because they had nothing in common with believers (v. 19). The antichrists referred to in John’s letter were the early Gnostics. The “anti” in “antichrist” means “against” or “in place of” (cf. 2Th 2:4 and note; Rev 13:6–7; cf. also Mt 24:4–5, 10–11,15,23–24).

2:19 The occasion of the letter (see Introduction: Occasion and Purpose).

2:20 anointing. The Holy Spirit (see v. 27; Jn 14:16–17; 15:26; 16:13; Ac 10:38). Holy One. Either Jesus Christ (Mk 1:24; Jn 6:69; Ac 2:27; 3:14; 22:14) or the Father (2Ki 19:22; Job 6:10). you know the truth. John assures his readers of their salvation in contrast to what the false teachers are saying (see Introduction: Occasion and Purpose).

2:22 Jesus is the Christ. See note on Mt 16:16. This means that the man Jesus is the divine Messiah (see the parallel confession in 5:5; see also Introduction: Gnosticism and note on 5:6), refuting the Gnostic idea that the man Jesus was distinct from the Christ-spirit.

2:23 See 2Jn 9 for the same thought.

2:25 eternal life. See Jn 3:15 and note; cf. Mt 19:16 and note.

2:26 One of the statements of purpose for the letter (see Introduction: Occasion and Purpose; see also 5:13 and note).

2:27 anointing. See note on v. 20. do not need anyone to teach you. Since the Bible constantly advocates teaching (Mt 28:20; 1Co 12:28; Eph 4:11; Col 3:16; 1Ti 4:11; 2Ti 2:2,24), and since John in his writings is himself teaching truth, he is not ruling out human teachers. At the time when he wrote, however, Gnostic teachers were insisting that the teaching of the apostles was to be supplemented with the “higher knowledge” that the Gnostics claimed to possess. John’s response was that what the readers were taught under the Spirit’s ministry through the apostles was not only adequate but the only reliable spiritual truth. See the promise of the new covenant in Jer 31:34 (see also note there). teaches you. The teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit (what is commonly called illumination) does not involve revelation of new truth or the explanation of all difficult passages of Scripture to our satisfaction. Rather, it is the development of the capacity to appreciate and appropriate God’s truth already revealed—making the Bible meaningful in thought and daily living. all things. All things necessary to know for salvation and Christian living.

2:28 continue in him. See “remains in” (vv. 24,27). confident. See 3:21; 4:17; 5:14.

2:29 he . . . him. God the Father. does what is right. Those who are born again are marked by righteous conduct.

3:1 children of God. See note on Jn 1:12.

3:2 we shall be like him. Cf. Ro 8:29; 1Co 15:49; Php 3:21.

3:3 hope. Not a mere wish, but unshakable confidence concerning the future (see Ro 5:5 and note). purify themselves. By turning from sin.

3:5 take away our sins. See Jn 1:29 and note. in him is no sin. Amply confirmed elsewhere in the NT (see 2Co 5:21; Heb 4:15 and notes; 1Pe 3:18).

3:6 No one . . . keeps on sinning. John is not asserting sinless perfection (see 1:8–10; 2:1) but explaining that the believer’s life is characterized not by sin but by doing what is right.

3:8 devil. In this short letter John says much about the devil: (1) He is called “the devil” (here) and “the evil one” (v. 12; 2:13–14; 5:18–19). (2) He “has been sinning from the beginning” (here), i.e., from the time he first rebelled against God, before the fall of Adam and Eve (see Jn 8:44 and note). (3) He is the instigator of human sin, and those who continue to sin belong to him (vv. 8,12) and are his children (v. 10). (4) He is in the world (4:3) and has “the whole world” of unbelievers under his control (5:19). (5) But he cannot lay hold of believers to harm them (5:18). (6) On the contrary, Christians will overcome him (2:13–14; 4:4), and Christ will destroy his work (cf. Ro 16:20 and note; Heb 2:14).

3:9 God’s seed. The picture is of human reproduction, in which the sperm (the Greek for “seed” is sperma) bears the life principle and transfers the paternal characteristics. cannot go on sinning. Not a complete cessation of sin, but a life that is not characterized by sin.

3:11 from the beginning. See note on 2:7. love one another. See note on 4:7—5:3.

3:12 Cain. See Heb 11:4 and note.

3:13 brothers and sisters. See NIV text note.

3:15 hates. See note on 2:9–10. murderer. See Jas 4:2 and note.

3:17–18 See Jas 2:14–17 and note on 2:15–16.

3:17 love of God. God’s kind of love, which he pours out in the believer’s heart (see Ro 5:5 and note) and which in turn enables the Christian to love fellow believers. Or it may speak of the believer’s love for God.

3:20 God is greater than our hearts. An oversensitive conscience can be quieted by the knowledge that God himself has declared active love to be an evidence of salvation. He knows the hearts of all—whether, in spite of shortcomings, they have been born of him.

3:23 This command has two parts: (1) Believe in Christ (see Jn 6:29 and note), and (2) love each other (see Jn 13:34–35 and notes). The first part is developed in 4:1–6 and the second part in 4:7–12.

3:24 We know it by the Spirit. See Ro 8:16 and note.

4:1 spirit. A person moved by a spirit, whether by the Holy Spirit or an evil one. test the spirits. Cf. 1Th 5:21 and note. (Mt 7:1 does not refer to such testing or judgment; it speaks of self-righteous moral judgment of others.) false prophets. A true prophet speaks from God, being “carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2Pe 1:21; see note there). False prophets, such as the Gnostics of John’s day, speak under the influence of spirits alienated from God. Christ warned against false prophets (see Mt 7:15 and note; Mk 13:22), as did Paul (see 1Ti 4:1 and note) and Peter (see 2Pe 2:1 and note).

4:2 acknowledges. Not only knows intellectually—for demons know, and shudder (Jas 2:19; cf. Mk 1:24)—but also confesses publicly (cf. Ro 10:9–10 and notes). Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. See note on 1:1. Thus John excludes the Gnostics, especially the Cerinthians, who taught that the divine Christ came upon the human Jesus at his baptism and then left him at the cross, so that it was only the man Jesus who died (see Introduction: Gnosticism).

4:3 does not acknowledge Jesus. The incarnate Jesus Christ of 1:2 (see note on 2:18).

4:4 from God. An abbreviated form of the expression “born of God” (2:29; 3:9–10). them. The false prophets (v. 1), who were inspired by the spirit of the antichrist (v. 3). the one who is in the world. The devil (see Jn 12:31 and note). In v. 3 “world” means the inhabited earth; in vv. 4–5 it means the community, or system, of those not born of God—including the antichrists (see note on Jn 1:9).

4:6 Spirit of truth. Cf. 5:6 and note; see note on Jn 14:17.

4:7—5:3 The word “love” in its various forms is used 46 times in the letter, 32 times in this short section alone.

4:8 does not know God. Only those who are to some degree like him truly know him. God is love. In his essential nature and in all his actions, God is loving (see also v. 16). John similarly affirms that God is spirit (see Jn 4:24 and note) and light (see 1:5 and note), as well as righteous (2:29; 3:7), holy (2:20), powerful or great (4:4), faithful (see 1:9 and note), true (5:20) and just (1:9).

4:9 one and only Son. See Jn 1:18; 3:16 and notes.

4:10 atoning sacrifice for our sins. See note on 2:2.

4:12 No one has ever seen God. See note on Jn 1:18. Since our love has its source in God’s love, his love reaches full expression (is made complete) when we love fellow Christians. Thus the God whom “no one has ever seen” is seen in those who love, because God lives in them.

4:13–14 Spirit . . . Father . . . Son. See note on Mt 28:19.

4:13 has given us of his Spirit. See 3:24 and note.

4:16 God is love. See note on v. 8.

4:17 like Jesus. The fact that we are like Christ in love is a sign that God, who is love, lives in us; therefore we may have confidence on the day of judgment that we are saved.

4:18 no fear in love. There is no fear of God’s judgment because genuine love confirms salvation.

4:19 All love comes ultimately from God; genuine love is never self-generated by his creatures.

4:21 this command. See Jn 13:34 and note. Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. See 3:16–18; Jas 2:14–17.

5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Faith in Jesus as the Messiah is a sign of being born again, just as love is (4:7). the Christ. See note on 2:22. everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. John wrote at a time when members of a family were closely associated as a unit under the headship of the father. He could therefore use the family as an illustration to show that anyone who loves God the Father will naturally love God’s children.

5:3 this is love for God: to keep his commands. Cf. Jn 14:15,21 and notes. his commands are not burdensome. Not because the commands themselves are light or easy to obey but, as John explains in v. 4, because of the new birth. The one born of God by faith is enabled by the Holy Spirit to obey.

5:4 overcomes . . . has overcome. To overcome the world is to gain victory over its sinful pattern of life, which is another way of describing obedience to God (v. 3). Such obedience is not impossible for believers because they have been born again and the Holy Spirit dwells within them and gives them strength. John speaks of two aspects of victory: (1) the initial victory of turning in faith from the world to God (“has overcome”); (2) the continuing, day-by-day victory of Christian living (“overcomes”). world. See note on 2:15.

5:5 Son of God. For parallel confessions, see 2:22; 4:2; 5:1 and notes.

5:6 water and blood. Water symbolizes Jesus’ baptism, and blood symbolizes his death. These are mentioned because Jesus’ public ministry on earth began at his baptism and ended at his death. John may be reacting to the Gnostic heretics of his day (see Introduction: Gnosticism) who said that Jesus was born only a man and remained so until his baptism. At that time, they maintained, the Messiah (the Son of God) descended on the human Jesus but left him before his suffering on the cross—so that it was only the man Jesus who died. Throughout this letter John has been insisting that Jesus Christ is God as well as man (1:1–4; 4:2; 5:5). He now asserts that it was this God-man Jesus Christ who came into our world, was baptized and died. Jesus was the Son of God not only at his baptism but also at his death (v. 6b). This truth is extremely important, because, if Jesus died only as a man, his sacrificial atonement (2:2; 4:10) would not have been sufficient to take away the guilt of human sin. the Spirit who testifies. The Holy Spirit testifies that Jesus is the Son of God in two ways: (1) The Spirit descended on Jesus at his baptism (Jn 1:32–34), and (2) he continues to confirm in the hearts of believers the apostolic testimony that Jesus’ baptism and death verify that he is the Messiah, the Son of God (see 2:27; 1Co 12:3 and notes; cf. Ro 8:16 and note).

5:7 three. The OT law required “two or three witnesses” (Dt 17:6; see note there). At the end of this verse, some older English versions add the words found in the NIV text note. But the addition is not found in any Greek manuscript prior to the fourteenth century and only in very late copies of the Latin Vulgate at any earlier point.

5:9 God’s testimony. The Holy Spirit’s testimony, mentioned in vv. 6–8.

5:11 has given us eternal life. As a present possession (see notes on Jn 3:15,36).

5:13 Another statement of the letter’s purpose (see 2:26 and note). See Introduction: Occasion and Purpose.

5:14 if we ask anything according to his will. Cf. Lk 22:42. For another condition for prayer, see 3:21–22.

5:15 we have what we asked. Believers can be confident that God will hear and grant their requests “according to his will” (v. 14), although that response may not occur in the manner or timing they desire (see article).

5:16 Verses 16–17 illustrate the kind of petition we can be sure God will answer (vv. 14–15). sin that leads to death. In the context of this letter directed against Gnostic teaching, which denied the incarnation and threw off all moral restraints, it is probable that the “sin that leads to death” refers to the Gnostics’ adamant and persistent denial of the truth and to their shameless immorality. This kind of unrepentant sin leads to spiritual death. Another view is that this is sin that results in physical death. It is held that because a believer continues to sin, God in judgment takes his or her life (cf. 1Co 11:30).

5:18–20 We know. The letter ends with three striking statements affirming the truths that “we know” and summarizing some of the letter’s major themes.

5:18 the One who was born of God. Jesus, the Son of God.

5:20 him who is true. God the Father. He is the true God. Could refer to either God the Father or God the Son. eternal life. The letter began with this theme (1:1–2) and now ends with it.

5:21 idols. False gods, as opposed to the one true God (v. 20).