The present and the future of the good. "Beloved, now are we children of God," etc. Here is— I. A GLORIOUS FACT OF PRESENT EXPERIENCE . "Beloved, now are we children of God." 1 . As sharing in his life . £ 2 . As morally resembling him 3 . As possessing the filial spirit . II. A GRACIOUS MYSTERY AS TO OUR FUTURE CONDITION . "And it is not yet made manifest what we shall be." Ebrard: "While we are already God's children, we are... read more
Beloved, now are we the sons of God - We now in fact sustain this rank and dignity, and on that we may reflect with pleasure and gratitude. It is in itself an exalted honor, and may be contemplated as such, whatever may be true in regard to what is to come. In the dignity and the privileges which we now enjoy, we may find a grateful subject of reflection, and a cause of thankfulness, even if we should look to nothing beyond, or when we contemplate the fact by itself.And it doth not yet appear... read more
1 John 3:2. Beloved It is a most certain and joyful truth, that now are we, who believe on God’s Son with our heart unto righteousness; the children of God And, persevering in that faith, we shall be acknowledged as such before men and angels in the day of final accounts; a truth which draws after it a long train of glorious consequences. For the happy condition we shall be in hereafter exceeds all that we can now conceive; and it doth not yet appear Even to ourselves, though... read more
3:1-5:5 THE LIFE OF LOVERight behaviour for God’s children (3:1-10)John cannot find words to express his feelings when he considers the great love God has shown in making sinful people his children. They now think and act according to the nature of their heavenly Father, with the result that unbelievers, who think and act according to the world’s standards, cannot understand them (3:1). God’s children know little about the nature of life in the world to come, but they know at least that in some... read more
Beloved . App-135 . the . Omit. not yet . Greek. oupo . but . The texts omit. know . App-132 . see . App-133 . as = even as. Compare 1 John 2:6 . read more
Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.It is not yet made manifest what we shall be ... Sinclair thought that John made this statement in response to questions which Christians had raised regarding their future state; and it may well be true. People have always been curious regarding such things; "But we cannot say. It is not good for us to know."[9]... read more
1 John 3:2. Now are we the sons of God, &c.— In 1Jn 3:1 the apostle says, the world knew them not. Here he intimates, that they themselves did not fully comprehend what glory and felicity was implied in their being sons of God, and heirs of his eternal inheritance. It is observable, that these are the words of John; of him who had not only so familiarly conversed with Christ on this sublime and delightful subject, but had seen his transfigurationwhen Moses and Elias appeared in such... read more
2. Beloved—by the Father, and therefore by me. now—in contrast to "not yet." We now already are really sons, though not recognized as such by the world, and (as the consequence) we look for the visible manifestation of our sonship, which not yet has taken place. doth not yet appear—Greek, "it hath not yet ('at any time,' Greek aorist) been visibly manifested what we shall be"—what further glory we shall attain by virtue of this our sonship. The "what" suggests a something inconceivably... read more
Even though we are presently God’s children we do not yet fully reflect His image as we shall. However when (not "if," another third class condition) Jesus Christ appears and we see Him, we shall experience full transformation (i.e., glorification). Evidently seeing Jesus Christ will fully transform us physically and spiritually (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:12)."A child of God is here and now, indeed, like a diamond that is crystal white within but is still uncut and shows no brilliant flashes from... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - 1 John 3:2
Beloved, now are we children of God, and it is not yet made manifest (or, it never yet was manifested ) what we shall be. The emphatic νῦν is in opposition to οὔπω : our present state is known; our future remains still unrevealed. Again ( 1 John 2:27 , 1 John 2:29 ), we are in doubt about the construction. What is the nominative to "shall be manifested" φανερωθῇ , "he" or "it"? The context is strongly in favour of "it," i.e., "if it shall be manifested what we shall... read more