1 John 1 (GNV)

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Chapter Text

1:1 That which was from the beginning, which wee haue heard, which wee haue seene with these our eyes, which wee haue looked vpon, and these handes of ours haue handled of that Word of life,

1:2 (For that life was made manifest, and wee haue seene it, and beare witnes, and shewe vnto you that eternall life, which was with the Father, and was made manifest vnto vs)

1:3 That, I say, which wee haue seene and heard, declare wee vnto you, that yee may also haue fellowship with vs, and that our fellowship also may be with the Father, and with his Sonne Iesvs Christ.

1:4 And these thinges write we vnto you, that that your ioy may be full.

1:5 This then is the message which wee haue heard of him, and declare vnto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkenes.

1:6 If wee say that wee haue fellowship with him, and walke in darkenesse, we lie, and doe not truely:

1:7 But if we walke in the light as he is in the light, we haue fellowship one with another, and the blood of Iesus Christ his Sonne clenseth vs from all sinne.

1:8 If we say that we haue no sinne, we deceiue our selues, and trueth is not in vs.

1:9 If we acknowledge our sinnes, he is faithfull and iust, to forgiue vs our sinnes, and to clense vs from all vnrighteousnes.

1:10 If wee say we haue not sinned, wee make him a liar, and his word is not in vs.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "faith", "beginning", "haue", "heard", "seene", "eyes", and "looked". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "light" and "faith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local GNV text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "light" and "faith" carries the first interpretive weight. In 1 John context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

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