1 Peter
1:1Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, to the saints who are living in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 1:2Who, through the purpose of God, have been made holy by the Spirit, disciples of Jesus, made clean by his blood: May you have grace and peace in full measure. 1:3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who through his great mercy has given us a new birth and a living hope by the coming again of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1:4And a heritage fair, holy and for ever new, waiting in heaven for you, 1:5Who, by the power of God are kept, through faith, for that salvation, which will be seen at the last day. 1:6You have cause for great joy in this, though it may have been necessary for you to be troubled for a little time, being tested in all sorts of ways, 1:7So that the true metal of your faith, being of much greater value than gold (which, though it comes to an end, is tested by fire), may come to light in praise and glory and honour, at the revelation of Jesus Christ: 1:8To whom your love is given, though you have not seen him; and the faith which you have in him, though you do not see him now, gives you joy greater than words and full of glory: 1:9For so you have the true end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. 1:10For the prophets who gave the news of the grace which would come to you, made search with all care for knowledge of this salvation; 1:11Attempting to see what sort of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them was pointing to, when it gave witness to the pains which Christ would undergo and the glories which would come after them. 1:12And it was made clear to those prophets that they were God's servants not for themselves but for you, to give you word of the things which have now come to your ears from the preachers of the good news through the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven; things which even angels have a desire to see. 1:13So make your minds ready, and keep on the watch, hoping with all your power for the grace which is to come to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 1:14Like children ruled by God, do not go back to the old desires of the time when you were without knowledge: 1:15But be holy in every detail of your lives, as he, whose servants you are, is holy; 1:16Because it has been said in the Writings, You are to be holy, for I am holy. 1:17And if you give the name of Father to him who, judging every man by his acts, has no respect for a man's position, then go in fear while you are on this earth: 1:18Being conscious that you have been made free from that foolish way of life which was your heritage from your fathers, not through a payment of things like silver or gold which come to destruction, 1:19But through holy blood, like that of a clean and unmarked lamb, even the blood of Christ: 1:20Who was marked out by God before the making of the world, but was caused to be seen in these last times for you, 1:21Who through him have faith in God who took him up again from the dead into glory; so that your faith and hope might be in God. 1:22And as you have made your souls clean, being ruled by what is true, and loving one another without deceit, see that your love is warm and from the heart: 1:23Because you have had a new birth, not from the seed of man, but from eternal seed, through the word of a living and unchanging God. 1:24For it is said, All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flower of the grass. The grass becomes dry and the flower dead: 1:25But the word of the Lord is eternal. And this is the word of the good news which was given to you.
2:1So putting away all wrongdoing, and all tricks and deceits and envies and evil talk, 2:2Be full of desire for the true milk of the word, as babies at their mothers' breasts, so that you may go on to salvation; 2:3If you have had a taste of the grace of the Lord: 2:4To whom you come, as to a living stone, not honoured by men, but of great and special value to God; 2:5You, as living stones, are being made into a house of the spirit, a holy order of priests, making those offerings of the spirit which are pleasing to God through Jesus Christ. 2:6Because it is said in the Writings, See, I am placing a keystone in Zion, of great and special value; and the man who has faith in him will not be put to shame. 2:7And the value is for you who have faith; but it is said for those without faith, The very stone which the builders put on one side, was made the chief stone of the building; 2:8And, A stone of falling, a rock of trouble; the word is the cause of their fall, because they go against it, and this was the purpose of God. 2:9But you are a special people, a holy nation, priests and kings, a people given up completely to God, so that you may make clear the virtues of him who took you out of the dark into the light of heaven. 2:10In the past you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; then there was no mercy for you, but now mercy has been given to you. 2:11My loved ones, I make this request with all my heart, that, as those for whom this world is a strange country, you will keep yourselves from the desires of the flesh which make war against the soul; 2:12Being of good behaviour among the Gentiles; so that though they say now that you are evil-doers, they may see your good works and give glory to God when he comes to be their judge. 2:13Keep all the laws of men because of the Lord; those of the king, who is over all, 2:14And those of the rulers who are sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers and for the praise of those who do well. 2:15Because it is God's pleasure that foolish and narrow-minded men may be put to shame by your good behaviour: 2:16As those who are free, not using your free position as a cover for wrongdoing, but living as the servants of God; 2:17Have respect for all, loving the brothers, fearing God, honouring the king. 2:18Servants, take orders from your masters with all respect; not only if they are good and gentle, but even if they are bad-humoured. 2:19For it is a sign of grace if a man, desiring to do right in the eyes of God, undergoes pain as punishment for something which he has not done. 2:20What credit is it if, when you have done evil, you take your punishment quietly? but if you are given punishment for doing right, and take it quietly, this is pleasing to God. 2:21This is God's purpose for you: because Jesus himself underwent punishment for you, giving you an example, so that you might go in his footsteps: 2:22Who did no evil, and there was no deceit in his mouth: 2:23To sharp words he gave no sharp answer; when he was undergoing pain, no angry word came from his lips; but he put himself into the hands of the judge of righteousness: 2:24He took our sins on himself, giving his body to be nailed on the tree, so that we, being dead to sin, might have a new life in righteousness, and by his wounds we have been made well. 2:25Because, like sheep, you had gone out of the way; but now you have come back to him who keeps watch over your souls.
3:1Wives, be ruled by your husbands; so that even if some of them give no attention to the word, their hearts may be changed by the behaviour of their wives, 3:2When they see your holy behaviour in the fear of God. 3:3Do not let your ornaments be those of the body such as dressing of the hair, or putting on of jewels of gold or fair clothing; 3:4But let them be those of the unseen man of the heart, the ever-shining ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great price in the eyes of God. 3:5And these were the ornaments of the holy women of the past, whose hope was in God, being ruled by their husbands: 3:6As Sarah was ruled by Abraham, naming him lord; whose children you are if you do well, and are not put in fear by any danger. 3:7And you husbands, give thought to your way of life with your wives, giving honour to the woman who is the feebler vessel, but who has an equal part in the heritage of the grace of life; so that you may not be kept from prayer. 3:8Last of all, see that you are all in agreement; feeling for one another, loving one another like brothers, full of pity, without pride: 3:9Not giving back evil for evil, or curse for curse, but in place of cursing, blessing; because this is the purpose of God for you that you may have a heritage of blessing. 3:10For it is said, Let the man who has a love of life, desiring to see good days, keep his tongue from evil and his lips from words of deceit: 3:11And let him be turned from evil and do good; searching for peace and going after it with all his heart. 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are on the upright, and his ears are open to their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. 3:13Who will do you any damage if you keep your minds fixed on what is good? 3:14But you are happy if you undergo pain because of righteousness; have no part in their fear and do not be troubled; 3:15But give honour to Christ in your hearts as your Lord; and be ready at any time when you are questioned about the hope which is in you, to give an answer in the fear of the Lord and without pride; 3:16Being conscious that you have done no wrong; so that those who say evil things about your good way of life as Christians may be put to shame. 3:17Because if it is God's purpose for you to undergo pain, it is better to do so for well-doing than for evil-doing. 3:18Because Christ once went through pain for sins, the upright one taking the place of sinners, so that through him we might come back to God; being put to death in the flesh, but given life in the Spirit; 3:19By whom he went to the spirits in prison, preaching to those 3:20Who, in the days of Noah, went against God's orders; but God in his mercy kept back the punishment, while Noah got ready the ark, in which a small number, that is to say eight persons, got salvation through water: 3:21And baptism, of which this is an image, now gives you salvation, not by washing clean the flesh, but by making you free from the sense of sin before God, through the coming again of Jesus Christ from the dead; 3:22Who has gone into heaven, and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been put under his rule.
4:1So that as Jesus was put to death in the flesh, do you yourselves be of the same mind; for the death of the flesh puts an end to sin; 4:2So that you may give the rest of your lives in the flesh, not to the desires of men, but to the purpose of God. 4:3Because for long enough, in times past, we have been living after the way of the Gentiles, given up to the desires of the flesh, to drinking and feasting and loose behaviour and unclean worship of images; 4:4And they are wondering that you no longer go with them in this violent wasting of life, and are saying evil things of you: 4:5But they will have to give an account of themselves to him who is ready to be the judge of the living and the dead. 4:6For this was the reason why the good news of Jesus was given even to the dead, so that they might be judged as men in the flesh, but might be living before God in the spirit. 4:7But the end of all things is near: so be serious in your behaviour and keep on the watch with prayer; 4:8And most of all be warm in your love for one another; because in love there is forgiveness for sins without number: 4:9Keep open house for all with a glad heart; 4:10Making distribution among one another of whatever has been given to you, like true servants of the unmeasured grace of God; 4:11If anyone has anything to say, let it be as the words of God; if anyone has the desire to be the servant of others, let him do it in the strength which is given by God; so that in all things God may have the glory through Jesus Christ, whose are the glory and the power for ever. 4:12Dear brothers, do not be surprised, as if it was something strange, if your faith is tested as by fire: 4:13But be glad that you are given a part in the pains of Christ; so that at the revelation of his glory you may have great joy. 4:14If men say evil things of you because of the name of Christ, happy are you; for the Spirit of glory and of God is resting on you. 4:15Let no one among you undergo punishment as a taker of life, or as a thief, or as an evil-doer, or as one who is over-interested in other men's business; 4:16But if he undergoes punishment as a Christian, that is no shame to him; let him give glory to God in this name. 4:17For the time has come for the judging, starting with the church of God; but if it makes a start with us, what will be the end of those who are not under the rule of God? 4:18And if it is hard for even the good man to get salvation, what chance has the man without religion or the sinner? 4:19For this reason let those who by the purpose of God undergo punishment, keep on in well-doing and put their souls into the safe hands of their Maker.
5:1I who am myself one of the rulers of the church, and a witness of the death of Christ, having my part in the coming glory, send this serious request to the chief men among you: 5:2Keep watch over the flock of God which is in your care, using your authority, not as forced to do so, but gladly; and not for unclean profit but with a ready mind; 5:3Not as lords over God's heritage, but making yourselves examples to the flock. 5:4And at the coming of the chief Keeper of the sheep, you will be given the eternal crown of glory. 5:5And in the same way, let the younger men be ruled by the older ones. Let all of you put away pride and make yourselves ready to be servants: for God is a hater of pride, but he gives grace to those who make themselves low. 5:6For this cause make yourselves low under the strong hand of God, so that when the time comes you may be lifted up; 5:7Putting all your troubles on him, for he takes care of you. 5:8Be serious and keep watch; the Evil One, who is against you, goes about like a lion with open mouth in search of food; 5:9Do not give way to him but be strong in your faith, in the knowledge that your brothers who are in the world undergo the same troubles. 5:10And after you have undergone pain for a little time, the God of all grace who has given you a part in his eternal glory through Christ Jesus, will himself give you strength and support, and make you complete in every good thing; 5:11His is the power for ever. So be it. 5:12I have sent you this short letter by Silvanus, a true brother, in my opinion; comforting you and witnessing that this is the true grace of God; keep to it. 5:13She who is in Babylon, who has a part with you in the purpose of God, sends you her love; and so does my son Mark. 5:14Give one another the kiss of love. Peace be to you all in Christ.
2 Peter
1:1Simon Peter, a servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who with us have a part in the same holy faith in the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ: 1:2May grace and peace ever be increasing in you, in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 1:3Because by his power he has given us everything necessary for life and righteousness, through the knowledge of him who has been our guide by his glory and virtue; 1:4And through this he has given us the hope of great rewards highly to be valued; so that by them we might have our part in God's being, and be made free from the destruction which is in the world through the desires of the flesh. 1:5So, for this very cause, take every care; joining virtue to faith, and knowledge to virtue, 1:6And self-control to knowledge, and a quiet mind to self-control, and fear of God to a quiet mind, 1:7And love of the brothers to fear of God, and to love of the brothers, love itself. 1:8For if you have these things in good measure, they will make you fertile and full of fruit in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1:9For the man who has not these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having no memory of how he was made clean from his old sins. 1:10For this reason, my brothers, take all the more care to make your selection and approval certain; for if you do these things you will never have a fall: 1:11For so the way will be open to you into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 1:12For this reason I will be ready at all times to keep your memory of these things awake, though you have the knowledge of them now and are well based in your present faith. 1:13And it seems right to me, as long as I am in this tent of flesh, to keep your minds awake by working on your memory; 1:14For I am conscious that in a short time I will have to put off this tent of flesh, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 1:15And I will take every care so that you may have a clear memory of these things after my death. 1:16For when we gave you news of the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, our teaching was not based on stories put together by art, but we were eye-witnesses of his glory. 1:17For God the Father gave him honour and glory, when such a voice came to him out of the great glory, saying, This is my dearly loved Son, with whom I am well pleased. 1:18And this voice came from heaven even to our ears, when we were with him on the holy mountain. 1:19And so the words of the prophets are made more certain; and it is well for you to give attention to them as to a light shining in a dark place, till the dawn comes and the morning star is seen in your hearts; 1:20Being conscious in the first place that no man by himself may give a special sense to the words of the prophets. 1:21For these words did not ever come through the impulse of men: but the prophets had them from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit.
2:1But there were false prophets among the people, as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly put forward wrong teachings for your destruction, even turning away from the Lord who gave himself for them; whose destruction will come quickly, and they themselves will be the cause of it. 2:2And a great number will go with them in their evil ways, through whom the true way will have a bad name. 2:3And in their desire for profit they will come to you with words of deceit, like traders doing business in souls: whose punishment has been ready for a long time and their destruction is watching for them. 2:4For if God did not have pity for the angels who did evil, but sent them down into hell, to be kept in chains of eternal night till they were judged; 2:5And did not have mercy on the world which then was, but only kept safe Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when he let loose the waters over the world of the evil-doers; 2:6And sent destruction on Sodom and Gomorrah, burning them up with fire as an example to those whose way of life might in the future be unpleasing to him; 2:7And kept safe Lot, the upright man, who was deeply troubled by the unclean life of the evil-doers 2:8(Because the soul of that upright man living among them was pained from day to day by seeing and hearing their crimes): 2:9The Lord is able to keep the upright safe in the time of testing, and to keep evil-doers under punishment till the day of judging; 2:10But specially those who go after the unclean desires of the flesh, and make sport of authority. Ready to take chances, uncontrolled, they have no fear of saying evil of those in high places: 2:11Though the angels, who are greater in strength and power, do not make use of violent language against them before the Lord. 2:12But these men, like beasts without reason, whose natural use is to be taken and put to death, crying out against things of which they have no knowledge, will undergo that same destruction which they are designing for others; 2:13For the evil which overtakes them is the reward of their evil-doing: such men take their pleasure in the delights of the flesh even in the daytime; they are like the marks of a disease, like poisoned wounds among you, feasting together with you in joy; 2:14Having eyes full of evil desire, never having enough of sin; turning feeble souls out of the true way; they are children of cursing, whose hearts are well used to bitter envy; 2:15Turning out of the true way, they have gone wandering in error, after the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who was pleased to take payment for wrongdoing; 2:16But his wrongdoing was pointed out to him: an ass, talking with a man's voice, put a stop to the error of the prophet. 2:17These are fountains without water, and mists before a driving storm; for whom the eternal night is kept in store. 2:18For with high-sounding false words, making use of the attraction of unclean desires of the flesh, they get into their power those newly made free from those who are living in error; 2:19Saying that they will be free, while they themselves are the servants of destruction; because whatever gets the better of a man makes a servant of him. 2:20For if, after they have got free from the unclean things of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again taken in the net and overcome, their last condition is worse than their first. 2:21For it would have been better for them to have had no knowledge of the way of righteousness, than to go back again from the holy law which was given to them, after having knowledge of it. 2:22They are an example of that true saying, The dog has gone back to the food it had put out, and the pig which had been washed to its rolling in the dirty earth.
3:1My loved ones, this is now my second letter to you, and in this as in the first, I am attempting to keep your true minds awake; 3:2So that you may keep in mind the words of the holy prophets in the past, and the law of the Lord and Saviour which was given to you by his Apostles. 3:3Having first of all the knowledge that in the last days there will be men who, ruled by their evil desires, will make sport of holy things, 3:4Saying, Where is the hope of his coming? From the death of the fathers till now everything has gone on as it was from the making of the world. 3:5But in taking this view they put out of their minds the memory that in the old days there was a heaven, and an earth lifted out of the water and circled by water, by the word of God; 3:6And that the world which then was came to an end through the overflowing of the waters. 3:7But the present heaven and the present earth have been kept for destruction by fire, which is waiting for them on the day of the judging and destruction of evil men. 3:8But, my loved ones, keep in mind this one thing, that with the Lord one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years are no more than one day. 3:9The Lord is not slow in keeping his word, as he seems to some, but he is waiting in mercy for you, not desiring the destruction of any, but that all may be turned from their evil ways. 3:10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; and in that day the heavens will be rolled up with a great noise, and the substance of the earth will be changed by violent heat, and the world and everything in it will be burned up. 3:11Seeing then that all these things are coming to such an end, what sort of persons is it right for you to be, in all holy behaviour and righteousness, 3:12Looking for and truly desiring the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will come to an end through fire, and the substance of the earth will be changed by the great heat? 3:13But having faith in his word, we are looking for a new heaven and a new earth, which will be the resting-place of righteousness. 3:14For this reason, my loved ones, as you are looking for these things, take great care that when he comes you may be in peace before him, free from sin and every evil thing. 3:15And be certain that the long waiting of the Lord is for salvation; even as our brother Paul has said in his letters to you, from the wisdom which was given to him; 3:16And as he said in all his letters, which had to do with these things; in which are some hard sayings, so that, like the rest of the holy Writings, they are twisted by those who are uncertain and without knowledge, to the destruction of their souls. 3:17For this reason, my loved ones, having knowledge of these things before they take place, take care that you are not turned away by the error of the uncontrolled, so falling from your true faith. 3:18But be increased in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. May he have glory now and for ever. So be it.
1 John
1:1That which was from the first, which has come to our ears, and which we have seen with our eyes, looking on it and touching it with our hands, about the Word of life 1:2(And the life was made clear to us, and we have seen it and are witnessing to it and giving you word of that eternal life which was with the Father and was seen by us); 1:3We give you word of all we have seen and everything which has come to our ears, so that you may be united with us; and we are united with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ: 1:4And we are writing these things to you so that our joy may be made complete. 1:5This is the word which came to us from him and which we give to you, that God is light and in him there is nothing dark. 1:6If we say we are joined to him, and are walking still in the dark, our words are false and our acts are untrue: 1:7But if we are walking in the light, as he is in the light, we are all united with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son makes us clean from all sin. 1:8If we say that we have no sin, we are false to ourselves and there is nothing true in us. 1:9If we say openly that we have done wrong, he is upright and true to his word, giving us forgiveness of sins and making us clean from all evil. 1:10If we say that we have no sin, we make him false and his word is not in us.
2:1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may be without sin. And if any man is a sinner, we have a friend and helper with the Father, Jesus Christ, the upright one: 2:2He is the offering for our sins; and not for ours only, but for all the world. 2:3And by this we may be certain that we have knowledge of him, if we keep his laws. 2:4The man who says, I have knowledge of him, and does not keep his laws, is false, and there is nothing true in him: 2:5But in every man who keeps his word, the love of God is made complete. By this we may be certain that we are in him: 2:6He who says that he is living in him, will do as he did. 2:7My loved ones, I do not give you a new law, but an old law which you had from the first; this old law is the word which came to your ears. 2:8Again, I give you a new law, which is true in him and in you; for the night is near its end and the true light is even now shining out. 2:9He who says that he is in the light, and has hate in his heart for his brother, is still in the dark. 2:10He who has love for his brother is in the light, and there is no cause of error in him. 2:11But he who has hate for his brother is in the dark, walking in the dark with no knowledge of where he is going, unable to see because of the dark. 2:12I am writing to you, my children, because you have forgiveness of sins through his name. 2:13I am writing to you, fathers, because you have knowledge of him who was from the first. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the Evil One. I have sent a letter to you, children, because you have knowledge of the Father. 2:14I have sent a letter to you, fathers, because you have knowledge of him who was from the first. I have sent a letter to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God is in you, and because you have overcome the Evil One. 2:15Have no love for the world or for the things which are in the world. If any man has love for the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 2:16Because everything in the world, the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father but of the world. 2:17And the world and its desires is coming to an end: but he who does God's pleasure is living for ever. 2:18Little children, it is the last hour; and as you were given word that the Antichrist would come, so now a number of Antichrists have come to you; and by this we are certain that it is the last hour. 2:19They went out from us but they were not of us; if they had been of us they would still be with us: but they went out from us so that it might be made clear that they were not of us. 2:20And you have the Spirit from the Holy One and you all have knowledge. 2:21I have not sent you this letter because you have no knowledge of what is true, but because you have knowledge, and because that which is false has nothing in common with that which is true. 2:22Who is false but he who says that Jesus is not the Christ? He is the Antichrist who has no belief in the Father or the Son. 2:23He who has no belief in the Son has not the Father: he who makes clear his belief in the Son has the Father. 2:24But as for you, keep in your hearts the things which were made clear to you from the first. If you keep these things in your hearts you will be kept in the Father and the Son. 2:25And this is the hope which he gave you, even eternal life. 2:26I am writing these things to you about those whose purpose is that you may be turned out of the true way. 2:27As for you, the Spirit which he gave you is still in you, and you have no need of any teacher; but as his Spirit gives you teaching about all things, and is true and not false, so keep your hearts in him, through the teaching which he has given you. 2:28And now, my children, keep your hearts in him; so that at his revelation, we may have no fear or shame before him at his coming. 2:29If you have knowledge that he is upright, it is clear to you that everyone who does righteousness is his offspring.
3:1See what great love the Father has given us in naming us the children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not see who we are, because it did not see who he was. 3:2My loved ones, now we are children of God, and at present it is not clear what we are to be. We are certain that at his revelation we will be like him; for we will see him as he is. 3:3And everyone who has this hope in him makes himself holy, even as he is holy. 3:4Everyone who is a sinner goes against the law, for sin is going against the law. 3:5And you have knowledge that he came to take away sin: and in him there is no sin. 3:6Anyone who is in him does no sin; anyone who is a sinner has not seen him and has no knowledge of him. 3:7My little children, let no man take you out of the true way: he who does righteousness is upright, even as he is upright; 3:8The sinner is a child of the Evil One; for the Evil One has been a sinner from the first. And the Son of God was seen on earth so that he might put an end to the works of the Evil One. 3:9Anyone who is a child of God does no sin, because he still has God's seed in him; he is not able to be a sinner, because God is his Father. 3:10In this way it is clear who are the children of God and who are the children of the Evil One; anyone who does not do righteousness or who has no love for his brother, is not a child of God. 3:11Because this is the word which was given to you from the first, that we are to have love for one another; 3:12Not being of the Evil One like Cain, who put his brother to death. And why did he put him to death? Because his works were evil and his brother's works were good. 3:13Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world has no love for you. 3:14We are conscious that we have come out of death into life because of our love for the brothers. He who has no love is still in death. 3:15Anyone who has hate for his brother is a taker of life, and you may be certain that no taker of life has eternal life in him. 3:16In this we see what love is, because he gave his life for us; and it is right for us to give our lives for the brothers. 3:17But if a man has this world's goods, and sees that his brother is in need, and keeps his heart shut against his brother, how is it possible for the love of God to be in him? 3:18My little children, do not let our love be in word and in tongue, but let it be in act and in good faith. 3:19In this way we may be certain that we are true, and may give our heart comfort before him, 3:20When our heart says that we have done wrong; because God is greater than our heart, and has knowledge of all things. 3:21My loved ones, if our heart does not say that we have done wrong, we have no fear before him; 3:22And he gives us all our requests, because we keep his laws and do the things which are pleasing in his eyes. 3:23And this is his law, that we have faith in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love for one another, even as he said to us. 3:24He who keeps his laws is in God and God is in him. And the Spirit which he gave us is our witness that he is in us.
4:1My 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. 4:2By 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: 4:3And 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. 4:4You 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. 4:5They are of the world, so their talk is the world's talk, and the world gives ear to them. 4:6We 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. 4:7My 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. 4:8He who has no love has no knowledge of God, because God is love. 4:9And 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. 4:10And 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. 4:11My loved ones, if God had such love for us, it is right for us to have love for one another. 4:12No man has ever seen God: if we have love for one another, God is in us and his love is made complete in us: 4:13And his Spirit which he has given us is the witness that we are in him and he is in us. 4:14And we have seen and give witness that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. 4:15Everyone who says openly that Jesus is the Son of God, has God in him and is in God. 4:16And 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. 4:17In 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. 4:18There 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. 4:19We have the power of loving, because he first had love for us. 4:20If 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? 4:21And 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.
5:1Everyone who has faith that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God: and everyone who has love for the Father has love for his child. 5:2In this way, we are certain that we have love for the children of God, when we have love for God and keep his laws. 5:3For loving God is keeping his laws: and his laws are not hard. 5:4Anything which comes from God is able to overcome the world: and the power by which we have overcome the world is our faith. 5:5Who is able to overcome the world but the man who has faith that Jesus is the Son of God? 5:6This is he who came by water and by blood, Jesus Christ; not by water only but by water and by blood. 5:7And the Spirit is the witness, because the Spirit is true. 5:8There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood: and all three are in agreement. 5:9If we take the witness of men to be true, the witness of God is greater: because this is the witness which God has given about his Son. 5:10He who has faith in the Son of God has the witness in himself: he who has not faith in God makes him false, because he has not faith in the witness which God has given about his Son. 5:11And his witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 5:12He who has the Son has the life; he who has not the Son of God has not the life. 5:13I have put these things in writing for you who have faith in the name of the Son of God, so that you may be certain that you have eternal life. 5:14And we are certain that if we make any request to him which is right in his eyes, he will give ear to us: 5:15And if we are certain that he gives ear to all our requests, we are equally certain that we will get our requests. 5:16If a man sees his brother doing a sin which is not bad enough for death, let him make a prayer to God, and God will give life to him whose sin was not bad enough for death. There is a sin whose punishment is death: I do not say that he may make such a request then. 5:17All evil-doing is sin: but death is not the punishment for every sort of sin. 5:18We are certain that one who is a child of God will do no sin, but the Son of God keeps him so that he is not touched by the Evil One. 5:19We are certain that we are of God, but all the world is in the power of the Evil One. 5:20And we are certain that the Son of God has come, and has given us a clear vision, so that we may see him who is true, and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 5:21My little children, keep yourselves from false gods.
2 John
1:1I, a ruler in the church, send word to the noble sister who is of God's selection, and to her children, for whom I have true love; and not only I, but all who have knowledge of what is true;
3 John
1:1I, a ruler in the church, send word to the well loved Gaius, for whom I have true love.