1 John 1:8

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 John 1:8-10

Here, I. The apostle, having supposed that even those of this heavenly communion have yet their sin, proceeds here to justify that supposition, and this he does by showing the dreadful consequences of denying it, and that in two particulars:?1. If we say, We have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us, 1 John 1:8. We must beware of deceiving ourselves in denying or excusing our sins. The more we see them the more we shall esteem and value the remedy. If we deny them, the... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 John 1:8-10

1:8-10 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, we can rely on him in his righteousness to forgive us our sins and to make us clean from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. In this passage John describes and condemns two further mistaken ways of thought. (i) There is the man who says that he has no sin. That may mean either of two things. It may... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 John 1:8

If we say that we have no sin ,.... Notwithstanding believers are cleansed from their sins by the blood of Christ, yet they are not without sin; no man is without sin: this is not only true of all men, as they come into the world, being conceived in sin, and shapen in iniquity, and of all that are in a state of unregeneracy, and of God's elect, while in such a state, but even of all regenerated and sanctified persons in this life; as appears by the ingenuous confessions of sin made by the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 John 1:8

If we say that we have no sin - This is tantamount to 1 John 1:10 ; : If we say that we have not sinned. All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; and therefore every man needs a Savior, such as Christ is. It is very likely that the heretics, against whose evil doctrines the apostle writes, denied that they had any sin, or needed any Savior. In deed, the Gnostics even denied that Christ suffered: the Aeon, or Divine Being that dwelt in the man Christ Jesus, according to them,... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - 1 John 1:8

Verse 8 8.If we say. He now commends grace from its necessity; for as no one is free from sin, he intimates that we are all lost and undone, except the Lord comes to our aid with the remedy of pardon. The reason why he so much dwells on the fact, that no one is innocent, is, that all may now fully know that they stand in need of mercy, to deliver them from punishment, and that they may thus be more roused to seek the necessary blessing. By the word sin, is meant here not only corrupt and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 John 1:5-10

Message from Christ brought to bear on fellowship with God. I. NATURE OF GOD , "And this is the message which we have heard from him, and announce unto you, that God is Light, and in him is no darkness at all." Christ's message is supported by the conviction that he has a message to deliver. The apostolic message, which has still to be delivered, was received directly from the lips of Christ. It has particular reference to the nature of God, viz. his being Light, with which we are to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 John 1:8

After the great message," God is Light" ( 1 John 1:5 ) and its application to ourselves ( 1 John 1:6 , 1 John 1:7 ), we are now told what walking in the light involves: (1) consciousness of sin and confession of sin ( 1 John 1:8-10 ); If we say that we have not sin. The present ἔχομεν again shows that the daily falls of those who are walking in the light are meant, not the sins committed in the days of darkness before conversion. The Lord's Prayer implies that we must... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 John 1:8-10

Man's attitude towards his own sins. "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves," etc. It is implied that man is a sinner, that even Christian men "have sin." The renewed nature is not, in our present condition, an altogether sinless nature. The saintly apostle includes himself in the "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves," etc. But this is not the same moral condition as "walking in the darkness" ( 1 John 1:6 ). In that condition the man "is in the... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 John 1:8

If we say that we have no sin - It is not improbable that the apostle here makes allusion to some error which was then beginning to prevail in the church. Some have supposed that the allusion is to the sect of the Nicolaitanes, and to the views which they maintained, particularly that nothing was forbidden to the children of God under the gospel, and that in the freedom conferred on Christians they were at liberty to do what they pleased, Revelation 2:6, Revelation 2:15. It is not certain,... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 1 John 1:8-10

1 John 1:8-10. If we say Before Christ’s blood has cleansed us; that we have no sin To be cleansed from; or if, even after we have experienced the cleansing virtue of his blood, and are acquitted through the merit of it from all past guilt, and saved from all evil tempers, words, and works; if, even after this, after we are both justified, regenerated, and sanctified, we say we have no sin, but are perfectly sinless, and that our spirit and conduct can bear the scrutiny of God’s... read more

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