1 John 4:4 (ASV)

Passage

Ye are of God, [my] little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.

Nearby Context

1 John 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:

1 John 4:3 and every spirit that confesseth not Jesus is not of God: and this is the [spirit] of the antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it cometh; and now it is in the world already.

1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, [my] little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.

1 John 4:5 They are of the world: therefore speak they [as] of the world, and the world heareth them.

1 John 4:6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he who is not of God heareth us not. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "world", "little", "children", "overcome", "greater", and "than". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "world" and "little", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "and every spirit that confesseth not Jesus..." into verse 5's "They are of the world therefore speak...", so "world" and "little" 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 "world" and "little" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.