1 John 4

1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, if they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

My loved ones, do not put your faith in every spirit, but put them to the test, to see if they are from God: because a great number of false prophets have gone out into the world.

2 Hereby ye know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses Jesus Christ come in flesh is of God;

By this you may have knowledge of the Spirit of God: every spirit which says that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God:

3 and every spirit which does not confess Jesus Christ come in flesh is not of God: and this is that [power] of the antichrist, [of] which ye have heard that it comes, and now it is already in the world.

And every spirit which does not say this is not from God: this is the spirit of Antichrist, of which you have had word; and it is in the world even now.

4 Ye are of God, children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that [is] in you than he that [is] in the world.

You are of God, my little children, and you have overcome them because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

5 They are of the world; for this reason they speak [as] of the world, and the world hears them.

They are of the world, so their talk is the world's talk, and the world gives ear to them.

6 We are of God; he that knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

We are of God: he who has the knowledge of God gives ear to us; he who is not of God does not give ear to us. By this we may see which is the true spirit, and which is the spirit of error.

7 Beloved, let us love one another; because love is of God, and every one that loves has been begotten of God, and knows God.

My loved ones, let us have love for one another: because love is of God, and everyone who has love is a child of God and has knowledge of God.

8 He that loves not has not known God; for God is love.

He who has no love has no knowledge of God, because God is love.

9 Herein as to us has been manifested the love of God, that God has sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

And the love of God was made clear to us when he sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him.

10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son a propitiation for our sins.

And this is love, not that we had love for God, but that he had love for us, and sent his Son to be an offering for our sins.

11 Beloved, if God has so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

My loved ones, if God had such love for us, it is right for us to have love for one another.

12 No one has seen God at any time: if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.

No man has ever seen God: if we have love for one another, God is in us and his love is made complete in us:

13 Hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, that he has given to us of his Spirit.

And his Spirit which he has given us is the witness that we are in him and he is in us.

14 And we have seen, and testify, that the Father has sent the Son [as] Saviour of the world.

And we have seen and give witness that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.

15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

Everyone who says openly that Jesus is the Son of God, has God in him and is in God.

16 And we have known and have believed the love which God has to us. God is love, and he that abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

And we have seen and had faith in the love which God has for us. God is love, and everyone who has love is in God, and God is in him.

17 Herein has love been perfected with us that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, that even as he is, we also are in this world.

In this way love is made complete in us, so that we may be without fear on the day of judging, because as he is, so are we in this world.

18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has torment, and he that fears has not been made perfect in love.

There is no fear in love: true love has no room for fear, because where fear is, there is pain; and he who is not free from fear is not complete in love.

19 We love because he has first loved us.

We have the power of loving, because he first had love for us.

20 If any one say, I love God, and hate his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

If a man says, I have love for God, and has hate for his brother, his words are false: for how is the man who has no love for his brother whom he has seen, able to have love for God whom he has not seen?

21 And this commandment have we from him, That he that loves God love also his brother.

And this is the word which we have from him, that he who has love for God is to have the same love for his brother.