1 John 4:15 (ASV)

Passage

Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God.

Nearby Context

1 John 4:13 hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.

1 John 4:14 And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father hath sent the Son [to be] the Saviour of the world.

1 John 4:15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God.

1 John 4:16 And we know and have believed the love which God hath in us. God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him.

1 John 4:17 Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, even so are we in this world.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "whosoever", "shall", "confess", "jesus", and "abideth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "whosoever" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "And we have beheld and bear witness..." into verse 16's "And we know and have believed the...", so "whosoever" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In 1 John context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "whosoever" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.