1 John 4:6 (WEB)

Passage

We are of God. He who knows God listens to us. He who is not of God doesn’t listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Nearby Context

1 John 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world.

1 John 4:5 They are of the world. Therefore they speak of the world, and the world hears them.

1 John 4:6 We are of God. He who knows God listens to us. He who is not of God doesn’t listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God.

1 John 4:8 He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "Spirit", "knows", "listens", "doesn", "truth", and "error". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "Spirit" and "knows", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "They are of the world Therefore they..." into verse 7's "Beloved let us love one another for...", so "Spirit" and "knows" 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 "Spirit" and "knows" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.