1 John 4

1 Dear friends, many people [who have a false message] are teaching it to people [MTY]. So do not trust every [message that someone claims/says that God’s] Spirit [MTY] [gave to him]. Instead, (test/think carefully about) the teachings that [you hear] in order to know whether they are from God or not.

αγαπητοι μη παντι πνευματι πιστευετε αλλα δοκιμαζετε τα πνευματα ει εκ του θεου εστιν οτι πολλοι ψευδοπροφηται εξεληλυθασιν εις τον κοσμον

2 [I will tell] you how to recognize [teachings that come from] the Spirit of God: Those who affirm/say that Jesus Christ came [from God] to become a human [like us] are [teaching a message] that is from God.

εν τουτω γινωσκεται το πνευμα του θεου παν πνευμα ο ομολογει ιησουν χριστον εν σαρκι εληλυθοτα εκ του θεου εστιν

3 But those who do not affirm/say [that about] Jesus are not [teaching a message] from God. [They are teachers who] oppose Christ. You have heard that people like that are coming [to be among us]. Even now they are already here!

και παν πνευμα ο μη ομολογει ιησουν χριστον εν σαρκι εληλυθοτα εκ του θεου ουκ εστιν και τουτο εστιν το του αντιχριστου ο ακηκοατε οτι ερχεται και νυν εν τω κοσμω εστιν ηδη

4 As for you who are very dear to me, you belong to God, and you have refused [the false messages] that those people [teach], because [God], who enables you [to do what he wants], is (greater/more powerful) than ([Satan/the devil]), who enables (godless people/people who conduct their lives in a way that displeases God) [MTY].

υμεις εκ του θεου εστε τεκνια και νενικηκατε αυτους οτι μειζων εστιν ο εν υμιν η ο εν τω κοσμω

5 As for [those who are teaching what is false], they are (godless people/people whose lives are displeasing to God) [MTY]. Because of that, they teach what (godless people/people whose lives are displeasing to God) [MTY] want to hear. That is why the (godless people/people whose lives displease God) [MTY] listen to them.

αυτοι εκ του κοσμου εισιν δια τουτο εκ του κοσμου λαλουσιν και ο κοσμος αυτων ακουει

6 As for us [(exc)], [because] we belong to God, whoever (knows/has a close relationship with) God listens to us. [But] those who do not belong to God do not listen to us. That is how we can know whether [the things that people are teaching] [MTY] are true or whether they are false, and deceiving [people].

ημεις εκ του θεου εσμεν ο γινωσκων τον θεον ακουει ημων ος ουκ εστιν εκ του θεου ουκ ακουει ημων εκ τουτου γινωσκομεν το πνευμα της αληθειας και το πνευμα της πλανης

7 Dear friends, we must love each other, because God [enables us] to love [each other], and because those who love [their fellow believers] have become God’s children and (know/have a close relationship with) him.

αγαπητοι αγαπωμεν αλληλους οτι η αγαπη εκ του θεου εστιν και πας ο αγαπων εκ του θεου γεγεννηται και γινωσκει τον θεον

8 God’s [nature] is to love [all people]. So those who do not love [their fellow believers] do not (know/have a relationship with) God.

ο μη αγαπων ουκ εγνω τον θεον οτι ο θεος αγαπη εστιν

9 I will tell you how God has shown us [that he] loves us: He sent (his only Son/the only one who was also God) [to live] on the earth to enable us to live [eternally] as a result of [our trusting in what] he [accomplished for us by dying for us].

εν τουτω εφανερωθη η αγαπη του θεου εν ημιν οτι τον υιον αυτου τον μονογενη απεσταλκεν ο θεος εις τον κοσμον ινα ζησωμεν δι αυτου

10 [And God] has shown [us what it means to] love [another person]: [It does] not [mean] that we loved God, but [it means] that God loved us and sent (his Son/the one who was also God) to sacrifice [his life] in order that [our sins might be forgiven] {[he might forgive] our sins}.

εν τουτω εστιν η αγαπη ουχ οτι ημεις ηγαπησαμεν τον θεον αλλ οτι αυτος ηγαπησεν ημας και απεστειλεν τον υιον αυτου ιλασμον περι των αμαρτιων ημων

11 Dear friends, since God loves us like that, we certainly ought to love each other!

αγαπητοι ει ουτως ο θεος ηγαπησεν ημας και ημεις οφειλομεν αλληλους αγαπαν

12 No one has ever seen God. [Nevertheless], if we love each other, [it is evident that] God lives within us and that we love others just like he [intends/wants us to do].

θεον ουδεις πωποτε τεθεαται εαν αγαπωμεν αλληλους ο θεος εν ημιν μενει και η αγαπη αυτου τετελειωμενη εστιν εν ημιν

13 [I will tell you] how we can be sure that we have a close relationship with God and that God is within us: He has put his Spirit within us.

εν τουτω γινωσκομεν οτι εν αυτω μενομεν και αυτος εν ημιν οτι εκ του πνευματος αυτου δεδωκεν ημιν

14 We [apostles] have seen (God’s Son/the one who is also God), and [we tell people] that the Father sent him to save [the people in] the world [MTY] [from being punished for their sins].

και ημεις τεθεαμεθα και μαρτυρουμεν οτι ο πατηρ απεσταλκεν τον υιον σωτηρα του κοσμου

15 [So] those who affirm/say that Jesus is the (Son of/one who is also) God, God is within them, and they have a close relationship with God.

ος αν ομολογηση οτι ιησους εστιν ο υιος του θεου ο θεος εν αυτω μενει και αυτος εν τω θεω

16 We have experienced how God loves us and we believe that he loves us. [As a result, we love others. Because] God’s [nature] is to love people, those who continue to love [others] have a close relationship with God, and God has a close relationship with them.

και ημεις εγνωκαμεν και πεπιστευκαμεν την αγαπην ην εχει ο θεος εν ημιν ο θεος αγαπη εστιν και ο μενων εν τη αγαπη εν τω θεω μενει και ο θεος εν αυτω

17 We [should] love others completely. And if we do that, when the time comes for [him to] judge us, we will be confident [that he will not condemn us] (OR, [that we have a close relationship with him]). [We will be confident of that] because of our [conducting our lives] in this world as Christ did.

εν τουτω τετελειωται η αγαπη μεθ ημων ινα παρρησιαν εχωμεν εν τη ημερα της κρισεως οτι καθως εκεινος εστιν και ημεις εσμεν εν τω κοσμω τουτω

18 We will not be afraid [of God] if we [truly] love [him], because those who love [God] completely cannot possibly be afraid [of him]. [We would be] afraid only [if we thought that he would] punish us. So those who are afraid [of God certainly] are not loving [God] completely.

φοβος ουκ εστιν εν τη αγαπη αλλ η τελεια αγαπη εξω βαλλει τον φοβον οτι ο φοβος κολασιν εχει ο δε φοβουμενος ου τετελειωται εν τη αγαπη

19 We love [God and our fellow believers] because God loved us first.

ημεις αγαπωμεν αυτον οτι αυτος πρωτος ηγαπησεν ημας

20 [So] those who say “I love God” but hate a fellow believer are lying. Those who do not love one of their fellow believers, whom they have seen, certainly cannot be loving God, whom they have not seen.

εαν τις ειπη οτι αγαπω τον θεον και τον αδελφον αυτου μισει ψευστης εστιν ο γαρ μη αγαπων τον αδελφον αυτου ον εωρακεν τον θεον ον ουχ εωρακεν πως δυναται αγαπαν

21 Keep in mind that this is what God has commanded us: If we love him, we must also love our fellow believers.

και ταυτην την εντολην εχομεν απ αυτου ινα ο αγαπων τον θεον αγαπα και τον αδελφον αυτου