New King James Version

New Living Translation

The Test of Knowing Christ

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

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My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous.

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And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.

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He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins — and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.

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The Test of Knowing Him

Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.

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And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments.

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He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

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If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.

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But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God [a]is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.

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But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him.

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He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

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Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.

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[b]Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard [c]from the beginning.

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A New Commandment

Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment — to love one another — is the same message you heard before.

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Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.

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Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.

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He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.

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If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer,a that person is still living in darkness.

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He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.

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Anyone who loves a fellow believerb is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble.

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But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

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But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.

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Their Spiritual State

I write to you, little children,
Because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.

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I am writing to you who are God’s children
because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.c

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I write to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
Because you have overcome the wicked one.
I write to you, little children,
Because you have known the Father.

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I am writing to you who are mature in the faithd
because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young in the faith
because you have won your battle with the evil one.

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I have written to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men,
Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,
And you have overcome the wicked one.

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I have written to you who are God’s children
because you know the Father.
I have written to you who are mature in the faith
because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young in the faith
because you are strong.
God’s word lives in your hearts,
and you have won your battle with the evil one.

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Do Not Love the World

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

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Do Not Love This World

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.

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For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world.

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For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

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And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

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And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.

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Deceptions of the Last Hour

Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the[d] Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.

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Warning about Antichrists

Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come.

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They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

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These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.

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But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you[e] know all things.

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But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit,e and all of you know the truth.

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I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

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So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies.

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Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.

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And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ.f Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist.g

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Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

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Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

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Let Truth Abide in You

Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

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So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father.

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And this is the promise that He has promised us — eternal life.

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And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.

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These things I have written to you concerning those who try to [f]deceive you.

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I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray.

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But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you [g]will abide in Him.

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But you have received the Holy Spirit,h and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spiriti teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true — it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.

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The Children of God

And now, little children, abide in Him, that [h]when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.

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Living as Children of God

And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

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If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.

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Since we know that Christ is righteous, we also know that all who do what is right are God’s children.

Parallel

New King James Version

New Living Translation

1 John 2

1 John 2