1 John 4:20 (YLT)

Passage

if any one may say--`I love God,' and his brother he may hate, a liar he is; for he who is not loving his brother whom he hath seen, God--whom he hath not seen--how is he able to love?

Nearby Context

1 John 4:18 fear is not in the love, but the perfect love doth cast out the fear, because the fear hath punishment, and he who is fearing hath not been made perfect in the love;

1 John 4:19 we--we love him, because He--He first loved us;

1 John 4:20 if any one may say--`I love God,' and his brother he may hate, a liar he is; for he who is not loving his brother whom he hath seen, God--whom he hath not seen--how is he able to love?

1 John 4:21 and this <FI>is<Fi> the command we have from Him, that he who is loving God, may also love his brother.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "love God", "say--", "brother", "hate", "liar", "loving", and "hath". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "love God" and "say--", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "we--we love him because He--He first loved..." into verse 21's "and this FI is Fi the command...", so "love God" and "say--" 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 "love God" and "say--" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.