1 See *ch. 4:10;John 3:16what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called *John 1:12children of God; and so we are. The reason why *[ch. 4:17] the world does not know us is that *John 16:3;17:25it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are *[See ver. 1above] God’s children *Rom. 8:15;Gal. 3:26;Eph. 1:5now, and what we will be *[Rom. 8:18;2 Cor. 4:17] has not yet appeared; but we know that *ch. 2:28when he appears*3:2 Or when it appears*Rom. 8:29;2 Cor. 3:18;4:11;Phil. 3:21;2 Pet. 1:4we shall be like him, because *John 17:24;1 Cor. 13:12;Rev. 22:4we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who *Rom. 15:12thus hopes in him *2 Cor. 7:1purifies himself as he is pure.

4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; *[ch. 5:17;Rom. 4:15]sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that *Heb. 9:26;See ch. 1:2he appeared in order to *[Isa. 53:11,12] take away sins, and *See 1 Pet. 2:22in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; *ch. 2:4;4:8;3 John 11no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, *ch. 2:26let no one deceive you. *ch. 2:29Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 *Matt. 13:38;John 8:44Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was *Heb. 2:14;[Gen. 3:15;Luke 10:18;John 16:11]to destroy the works of the devil. 9 *ch. 5:18No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s*3:9 Greek his seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, *ch. 4:8nor is the one who *ch. 4:20,21does not love his brother.

11 For *ch. 1:5;2:24this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, *See John 13:34that we should love one another. 12 We should not be like *Gen. 4:4,8;Heb. 11:4;Jude 11Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? *Ps. 38:20;Prov. 29:10Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, brothers,*3:13 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated "brothers") may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters; also verses 14, 16*John 15:18;17:14that the world hates you. 14 We know that *John 5:24we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 *Matt. 5:21,22Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that *Gal. 5:21;Rev. 21:8no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

16 By this we know love, that *See John 15:13he laid down his life for us, and *[Phil. 2:17]we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But *James 2:15,16if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet *Deut. 15:7closes his heart against him, *[ch. 4:20]how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not *Ezek. 33:31;Eph. 4:15love in word or talk but in deed and *2 John 1;3 John 1in truth.

19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21 Beloved, *[1 Cor. 4:4] if our heart does not condemn us, *ch. 5:14;[Job 11:15;22:26;Rom. 14:22]we have confidence before God; 22 and *See Matt. 7:7whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and *John 8:29do what pleases him. 23 And this is his commandment, *John 6:29;[Acts 18:8] that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and *ver. 11love one another, *[ch. 2:8]just as he has commanded us. 24 *[John 6:56;14:20;15:4,5;17:21] Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God,*3:24 Greek him and God*3:24 Greek he in him. And *ch. 4:13;Rom. 8:9by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.