That 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

(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);

We 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:

If we say that we have no sin, we are false to ourselves and there is nothing true in us.

If 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.

If we say that we have no sin, we make him false and his word is not in us.

My 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:

And by this we may be certain that we have knowledge of him, if we keep his laws.

The man who says, I have knowledge of him, and does not keep his laws, is false, and there is nothing true in him:

I am writing to you, my children, because you have forgiveness of sins through his name.

I 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.

I 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.

Have 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.

Little 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.

And you have the Spirit from the Holy One and you all have knowledge.

I 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.

As 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.

And 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.

If you have knowledge that he is upright, it is clear to you that everyone who does righteousness is his offspring.

And you have knowledge that he came to take away sin: and in him there is no sin.

Because this is the word which was given to you from the first, that we are to have love for one another;

We 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.

When our heart says that we have done wrong; because God is greater than our heart, and has knowledge of all things.

My loved ones, if our heart does not say that we have done wrong, we have no fear before him;

And 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.

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.

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:

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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:

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

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.

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

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?

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.

In this way, we are certain that we have love for the children of God, when we have love for God and keep his laws.

Anything which comes from God is able to overcome the world: and the power by which we have overcome the world is our faith.

I 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.