| New Living Translation | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too. | 1Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves the one born of Him. |
| 2We know we love God’s children if we love God and obey his commandments. | 2This is how we know that we love God's children when we love God and obey His commands. |
| 3Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome. | 3For this is what love for God is: to keep His commands. Now His commands are not a burden, |
| 4For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. | 4because whatever has been born of God conquers the world. This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith. |
| 5And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. | 5And who is the one who conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? |
| 6And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross —not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. | 6Jesus Christ--He is the One who came by water and blood, not by water only, but by water and by blood. And the Spirit is the One who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. |
| 7So we have these three witnesses — | 7For there are three that testify: |
| 8the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree. | 8the Spirit, the water, and the blood--and these three are in agreement. |
| 9Since we believe human testimony, surely we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about his Son. | 9If we accept the testimony of men, God's testimony is greater, because it is God's testimony that He has given about His Son. |
| 10All who believe in the Son of God know in their hearts that this testimony is true. Those who don’t believe this are actually calling God a liar because they don’t believe what God has testified about his Son. | 10(The one who believes in the Son of God has this testimony within him. The one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony God has given about His Son.) |
| 11And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. | 11And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. |
| 12Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life. Conclusion | 12The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn't have the Son of God does not have life. |
| 13I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. | 13I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. |
| 14And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. | 14Now this is the confidence we have before Him: Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. |
| 15And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for. | 15And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked Him for. |
| 16If you see a fellow believer sinning in a way that does not lead to death, you should pray, and God will give that person life. But there is a sin that leads to death, and I am not saying you should pray for those who commit it. | 16If anyone sees his brother committing a sin that does not bring death, he should ask, and God will give life to him--to those who commit sin that doesn't bring death. There is sin that brings death. I am not saying he should pray about that. |
| 17All wicked actions are sin, but not every sin leads to death. | 17All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin that does not bring death. |
| 18We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them. | 18We know that everyone who has been born of God does not sin, but the One who is born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. |
| 19We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one. | 19We know that we are of God, and the whole world is under the sway of the evil one. |
| 20And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life. | 20And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know the true One. We are in the true One--that is, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. |
| 21Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. | 21Little children, guard yourselves from idols. |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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