2
Jesus Christ is our Advocate
1 Τεκνία μου, ταῦτα γράφω ὑμῖν ἵνα μὴ ἁμάρτητε· καὶ ἐάν τις ἁμάρτῃ, Παράκλητον ἔχομεν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν δίκαιον 2 —καὶ αὐτὸς ἱλασμός ἐστιν περὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν· οὐ περὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων δὲ μόνον* ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου.
We must keep His commandments
3 Καὶ ἐν τούτῳ γινώσκομεν ὅτι ἐγνώκαμεν αὐτόν, ἐὰν τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ τηρῶμεν. 4 Ὁ λέγων,† «Ἔγνωκα αὐτόν,» καὶ τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ μὴ τηρῶν, ψεύστης ἐστίν, καὶ ἐν τούτῳ ἡ ἀλήθεια οὐκ ἔστιν. 5 Ὃς δ᾿ ἂν τηρῇ αὐτοῦ τὸν λόγον, ἀληθῶς ἐν τούτῳ ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ Θεοῦ τετελείωται· ἐν τούτῳ γινώσκομεν ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐσμεν. 6 Ὁ λέγων ἐν αὐτῷ μένειν ὀφείλει καθὼς ἐκεῖνος περιεπάτησεν καὶ αὐτὸς οὕτως‡ περιπατεῖν.
An old/new commandment
7 Ἀδελφοί,§ οὐκ ἐντολὴν καινὴν γράφω ὑμῖν, ἀλλ᾿ ἐντολὴν παλαιὰν ἣν εἴχετε ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς· ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ παλαιά ἐστιν ὁ λόγος ὃν ἠκούσατε ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς.* 8 Πάλιν, ἐντολὴν καινὴν γράφω ὑμῖν, ὅ ἐστιν ἀληθὲς ἐν αὐτῷ καὶ ἐν ὑμῖν, ὅτι ἡ σκοτία παράγεται καὶ τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινὸν ἤδη φαίνει. 9 Ὁ λέγων ἐν τῷ φωτὶ εἶναι καὶ τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ μισῶν ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ ἐστὶν ἕως ἄρτι. 10 Ὁ ἀγαπῶν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ φωτὶ μένει, καὶ σκάνδαλον ἐν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν. 11 Ὁ δὲ μισῶν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ ἐστὶν καὶ ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ περιπατεῖ· καὶ οὐκ οἶδεν† ποῦ ὑπάγει ὅτι ἡ σκοτία ἐτύφλωσεν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ.
Look out for the enemy!
A bit of poetry
12 Γράφω ὑμῖν τεκνία, ὅτι ἀφέωνται ὑμῖν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι διὰ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ 13 —γράφω ὑμῖν πατέρες, ὅτι ἐγνώκατε τὸν ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς· γράφω ὑμῖν νεανίσκοι, ὅτι νενικήκατε τὸν πονηρόν· γράφω‡ ὑμῖν παιδία, ὅτι ἐγνώκατε τὸν Πατέρα— 14 ἔγραψα ὑμῖν πατέρες, ὅτι ἐγνώκατε τὸν ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς· ἔγραψα ὑμῖν νεανίσκοι, ὅτι ἰσχυροί ἐστε, καὶ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐν ὑμῖν μένει καὶ νενικήκατε τὸν πονηρόν.
We must not love the ‘world’
15 Μὴ ἀγαπᾶτε τὸν κόσμον, μηδὲ τὰ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ· ἐάν τις ἀγαπᾷ τὸν κόσμον, οὐκ ἔστιν ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ Πατρὸς ἐν αὐτῷ. 16 Ὅτι πᾶν τὸ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ—ἡ ἐπιθυμία τῆς σαρκὸς καὶ ἡ ἐπιθυμία τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν καὶ ἡ ἀλαζονεία§ τοῦ βίου—οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἀλλ᾿ ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου ἐστίν. 17 Καὶ ὁ κόσμος παράγεται, καὶ ἡ ἐπιθυμία αὐτοῦ, ὁ δὲ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Θεοῦ μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.
A bunch of little antichrists
18 Παιδία, ἐσχάτη ὥρα ἐστίν, καὶ καθὼς ἠκούσατε ὅτι ὁ * Ἀντίχριστος ἔρχεται, καὶ νῦν ἀντίχριστοι πολλοὶ γεγόνασιν, ὅθεν γινώσκομεν ὅτι ἐσχάτη ὥρα ἐστίν. 19 Ἐξ ἡμῶν ἐξῆλθον† ἀλλ᾿ οὐκ ἦσαν ἐξ ἡμῶν, εἰ γὰρ ἦσαν ἐξ ἡμῶν,‡ μεμενήκεισαν ἂν μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν—ἀλλ᾿ ἵνα φανερωθῶσιν, ὅτι οὐκ εἰσὶν πάντες ἐξ ἡμῶν.
20 Καὶ ὑμεῖς Χρῖσμα ἔχετε ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἁγίου καὶ οἴδατε πάντα.§ 21 Οὐκ ἔγραψα ὑμῖν ὅτι οὐκ οἴδατε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, ἀλλ᾿ ὅτι οἴδατε αὐτήν, καὶ ὅτι πᾶν ψεῦδος ἐκ τῆς Ἀληθείας οὐκ ἔστιν.
We must abide in the Truth
22 Τίς ἐστιν ὁ ψεύστης εἰ μὴ ὁ ἀρνούμενος ὅτι Ἰησοῦς οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ Χριστός; Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Ἀντίχριστος, ὁ ἀρνούμενος τὸν Πατέρα καὶ τὸν Υἱόν. 23 Πᾶς ὁ ἀρνούμενος τὸν Υἱὸν οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα ἔχει.* 24 Ὑμεῖς οὖν,† ὃ ἠκούσατε ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς ἐν ὑμῖν μενέτω· ἐὰν ἐν ὑμῖν μείνῃ ὃ ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς ἠκούσατε, καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ καὶ ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ‡ μενεῖτε.
25 Καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ἐπαγγελία ἣν αὐτὸς ἐπηγγείλατο ἡμῖν· τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον. 26 Ταῦτα ἔγραψα ὑμῖν περὶ τῶν πλανώντων ὑμᾶς· 27 καὶ ὑμεῖς, τὸ Χρῖσμα ὃ ἐλάβετε ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ ἐν ὑμῖν μένει,§ καὶ οὐ χρείαν ἔχετε ἵνα τις διδάσκῃ* ὑμᾶς· ἀλλ᾿ ὡς τὸ αὐτὸ† Χρῖσμα διδάσκει ὑμᾶς περὶ πάντων, καὶ ἀληθές ἐστιν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ψεῦδος—καὶ καθὼς ἐδίδαξεν ὑμᾶς, μενεῖτε‡ ἐν αὐτῷ.
Remember the accounting at our Lord’s return
28 Καὶ νῦν, τεκνία, μένετε ἐν αὐτῷ,§ ἵνα ὅταν* φανερωθῇ ἔχωμεν† παρρησίαν καὶ μὴ αἰσχυνθῶμεν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ αὐτοῦ. 29 Ἐὰν εἰδῆτε‡ ὅτι δίκαιός ἐστιν, γινώσκετε ὅτι§ πᾶς ὁ ποιῶν τὴν δικαιοσύνην ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγέννηται.*
* 2:2 μονον rell ¦ μονων B [13%] † 2:4 λεγων f35 C [80%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ 1 οτι ℵA,B [20%] NU ‡ 2:6 ουτως f35 ℵC [95%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP[NU]ECM ¦ — A,B [5%] § 2:7 αδελφοι f35 (83.7%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ 1 μου (1%) ¦ αγαπητοι ℵA,B,C (14.9%) NU ¦ two other variants (0.4%) * 2:7 απ αρχης f35 (87.5%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ — ℵA,B,C (8.1%) NU ¦ omit whole sentence (4.3%) [homoioteleuton] † 2:11 οιδεν rell ¦ ειδεν [12%] ‡ 2:13 γραφω f35 (80.8%) RP,HF,TR,CP ¦ εγραψα ℵA,B,C (18.2%) OC,NU ¦ omit whole verse (1%) [homoioteleuton] (Verse 12 is an introductory cover statement; in verse 13 John divides the cover group into three sub-categories; in verse 14 he returns to the first two categories.) § 2:16 αλαζονεια rell ¦ αλαζονια ℵA,B [28%] * 2:18 ο f35 (A) [97%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ — ℵB,C [3%] NU † 2:19 εξηλθον f35 ℵ [97.4%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ ηλθον [2%] ¦ εξηλθαν A,B,C [alone] NU ‡ 2:19 ησαν εξ ημων f35 ℵA (92.7%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ ~ 231 B,C (5.3%) NU ¦ — (2%) [homoioteleuton] § 2:20 παντα f35 A,C (97.2%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ παντες ℵB (2.4%) NU ¦ — (0.4%) [homoioteleuton] * 2:23 εχει f35 (79.2%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ 1 ο ομολογων τον υιον και τον πατερα 1 ℵA,B,C (20.8%) NU (Some TRs have the addition. John is making the point that to deny either the Father or the Son is to deny them both—the addition is unnecessary, if not distracting.) † 2:24 υμεις ουν f35 [92.4%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ 1 ℵA,B,C [7%] NU ¦ ~ και 1 [0.6%] ‡ 2:24 πατρι και εν τω υιω f35 ℵ [35%] CP ¦ ~ 52341 A(B)C [65%] RP,HF,OC,TR,NU (John returns to the order in verse 22, a ‘sandwich’.) § 2:27 εν υμιν μενει f35 [87.2%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ ~ 312 ℵA,B,C [1.2%] NU ¦ ~ μενετω 12 [8.4%] ¦ 12 μενετω [3.2%] * 2:27 διδασκη f35 ℵA,B [71%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP,NU ¦ διδασκει C [28%] ¦ two other variants [1%] † 2:27 αυτο f35 A [82%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ αυτου ℵB,C [18%] NU ‡ 2:27 μενειτε f35 [87.4%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ μενετε ℵA,B,C [12%] NU ¦ μεινατε [0.6%] § 2:28 και νυν τεκνια μενετε εν αυτω f35 A,B,C [85%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP,NU ¦ — ℵ [15%] * 2:28 οταν f35 (92.6%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ εαν ℵA,B,C (6.2%) NU ¦ οτε (1.2%) † 2:28 εχωμεν f35 ℵ (80.4%) RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ σχωμεν A,B,C (8.5%) NU ¦ εχομεν (11.1%) ‡ 2:29 ειδητε f35 ℵB,C [37%] RP,HF,OC,TR,NU ¦ ιδητε A [59%] CP ¦ οιδατε [4%] (An itacism? The trouble is, it changes the verb. The third variant is based on οιδα, so it’s 41:59. There appears to be a consensus that the minority reading is correct.) § 2:29 οτι f35 B [90.5%] RP,HF,OC,TR,CP ¦ 1 και ℵA,C [9.5%] NU * 2:29 γεγεννηται rell ¦ γεγενηται [30%]