1 Beloved, every spirit believe not, but prove the spirits, if of God they are, because many false prophets have gone forth to the world; 2 in this know ye the Spirit of God; every spirit that doth confess Jesus Christ in the flesh having come, of God it is, 3 and every spirit that doth not confess Jesus Christ in the flesh having come, of God it is not; and this is that of the antichrist, which ye heard that it doth come, and now in the world it is already. 4 Ye -- of God ye are, little children, and ye have overcome them; because greater is He who [is] in you, than he who is in the world. 5 They -- of the world they are; because of this from the world they speak, and the world doth hear them; 6 we -- of God we are; he who is knowing God doth hear us; he who is not of God, doth not hear us; from this we know the spirit of the truth, and the spirit of the error.