1 John 4:4 (DRB)

Passage

You are of God, little children, and have overcome him. Because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Nearby Context

1 John 4:2 By this is the spirit of God known. Every spirit which confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:

1 John 4:3 And every spirit that dissolveth Jesus is not of God. And this is Antichrist, of whom you have heard that he cometh: and he is now already in the world.

1 John 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome him. 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 of the world they speak: and the world heareth them.

1 John 4:6 We are of God. He that knoweth God heareth us. He that 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 dissolveth Jesus is..." into verse 5's "They are of the world Therefore of...", 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.