1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, y we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 z He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but a also for the sins of the whole world. 3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we b keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments c is a liar, and c the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever d keeps his word, in him truly e the love of God is perfected. f By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he g abides in him h ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
7 Beloved, I am writing you i no new commandment, but j an old commandment k that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is l a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because 1 m the darkness is passing away and n the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever says he is in the light and o hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him 2 there is no p cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and q walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
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I am writing to you, little children,
because r your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.
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I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know s him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because t you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, children,
because u you know the Father.
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I write to you, fathers,
because you know s him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because t you are strong,
and the word of God abides in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
15 v Do not love the world or the things in the world. w If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world - x the desires of the flesh and y the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions - is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And z the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
18 Children, a it is the last hour, and as you have heard that b antichrist is coming, so now c many antichrists have come. d Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 19 e They went out from us, but they were not of us; for f if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, g that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 20 But you have been h anointed by i the Holy One, and j you all have knowledge. 3 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is the liar but k he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is b the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23 l No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 24 Let m what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then n you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is the promise that he made to us 4 - o eternal life.
26 I write these things to you about p those who are trying to deceive you. 27 But q the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and r you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and s is true, and is no lie - just as it has taught you, abide in him.
28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that t when he appears u we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his v coming. 29 If you know that w he is righteous, you may be sure that x everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.