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William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 5:11-13

5:11-13 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life and that that life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son has not life. I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. With this paragraph the letter proper comes to an end. What follows is in the nature of a postscript. The end is a statement that the essence of the Christian life is eternal life. The word for eternal is... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 5:14-15

5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have towards him, that, if we ask anything which is in accordance with his will, he hears us; and, if we know that he hears anything that we ask, we know that we possess the requests that we have made from him. Here are set down both the basis and the principle of prayer. (i) The basis of prayer is the simple fact that God listens to our prayers. The word which John uses for confidence is interesting. It is parrhesia ( Greek #3954 ).... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 5:16-17

5:16-17 If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which is not a sin whose end is death, he will ask life for him and he will give it to him, that is, to those whose sin is not a sin whose end is death. There is a sin whose end is death. It is not about that that I mean he should ask. All wrongdoing is sin; but there is a sin whose end is not death. There is no doubt that this is a most difficult and disturbing passage. Before we approach its problems, let us look at its certainties. John... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 5:16-17

This passage speaks of the sin whose end is death and the sin whose end is not death. The Revised Standard Version translates "mortal" sin. There have been many suggestions in regard to this. The Jews distinguished two kinds of sins. There were the sins which a man committed unwittingly or, at least, not deliberately. These were sins which a man might commit in ignorance, or when he was swept away by some over-mastering impulse, or in some moment of strong emotion when his passions were... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 5:16-17

First of all, let us try to fix more closely the meaning of the mortal sin. In the Greek it is the sin pros ( Greek #4314 ) thanaton ( Greek #2288 ). That means the sin which is going towards death, the sin whose end is death, the sin which, if continued in, must finish in death. The terrible thing about it is not so much what it is in itself, as where it will end, if a man persists in it. It is a fact of experience that there are two kinds of sinners. On the one hand, there is the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 5:1

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ ,.... Or the Messiah that was prophesied of old, was long promised to the Jews, and whom they expected; there was a person spoken of in the writings of the Old Testament under this character, Psalm 2:2 ; and the Jews looked for him; and Jesus of Nazareth is he, as appears by all the characteristics of the Messiah in prophecy being found upon him: this the Jews deny, but is the grand article of faith embraced by the apostles and followers of... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 5:2

By this we know that we are the children God ,.... The Ethiopic version reads, "by this know that we love God"; which, in connection with what follows, makes a tautology, and is a proving "idem per idem": whereas the apostle's view is to show when love to the saints is right; and that is, when we love God, and keep his commandments : love to the brethren may arise from such a cause, as may show that it is not brotherly love, or of a spiritual kind; it may arise from natural relation, or... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 5:3

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments ,.... Keeping of the commandments of God is an evidence of love to God; this shows that love is not in word and tongue, in profession only, but in deed and in truth; and that such persons have a sense of the love of God upon their souls, under the influence of which they act; and such shall have, and may expect to have, greater manifestations of the love of God unto them: and his commandments are not grievous ; heavy, burdensome,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 5:4

For whatsoever is born of God ,.... Which may be understood either of persons born; of God; or of the new creature, or principle of grace wrought in them, particularly faith hereafter mentioned, which is an heaven born grace, the gift of God, and the operation of his Spirit: this overcometh the world ; the god of the world, Satan; the lusts which are in the world; false prophets gone forth into the world; and the wicked men of the world, who by temptations, snares, evil doctrines,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 5:5

Who is he that overcometh the world ,.... This question carries in it a strong affirmation, that no other person is the conqueror of the world: but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God ? and this points out what that faith is which obtains the victory over the world; and shows that it is not that trust and confidence which has a man's self, or any mere creature, thing, or person, for its object, but only Jesus Christ, and that as he is the Son of God; and which is not a mere... read more

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