Verse by Verse

¹¹ For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another,

¹² not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.

¹³ Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you.

¹⁴ We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.

¹⁵ Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

For this is the message (v.11) — More literally, “Because the message is this …,” cp. 1:5. The message there spoke of the nature of God and its bearing on the Christian life. The message here instructs us as to our duty to one another. The reader heard it from the beginning, since it was among the first things inculcated in their hearts as believers, and not only so but it had been constantly repeated. — Vine, pages 58-59.

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Cain (v.12) showed his spiritual connection with the evil one by the slaughter of his brother. Sin, which passed into the human heart through man’s willful yielding to the suggestion of him who “sinneth from the beginning,” took this form in Cain’s case in spite of the Divine warning (Genesis 4:7), and gave evidence of his moral relationship with the evil one (see John 8:44). — Vine, page 59.

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Because his works were evil (v.12) — This expresses not so much the motive in Cain’s heart as the nature within him; it was exhibited in his works in contrast to those of Abel, which revealed that he was righteous. The murder itself, with its immediate motive, was the outcome of that nature by which Cain “was of the evil one.” The righteousness of Abel (Hebrews 11:4) incited Cain’s jealousy. — Vine, page 59.

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Since the spirit of Cain still characterizes his moral descendants, believers are not to be surprised if the hatred that was exhibited in the murder of Abel is still manifested. The “if” (v.15) does not introduce a suggestion as to what might possibly be the case, but implies the existence of the hatred as a fact. Cp. the Lord’s own words in John 15:18 and 17:14. — Vine, page 60.

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We know (v.14) — The stress is on “we” — as opposed to non-believers.

we have passed (v.14) — tense indicates a permanent result of a past act.

The change signified by the preposition “out of” (v.14), is not one of place but of state. To pass out of death into life is a matter of resurrection. — Vine, page 61.

death (v.14) — spiritual death

Remember that John was writing to Jews saved under the Kingdom Gospel (Galatians 2:9), not to believers today saved by grace. There is always application for us, but we need to understand that, while John’s writings are for us, they aren’t to us or about us.

⁸ He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.

⁹ Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

¹⁰ In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.

The Devil is the source of sin, and therefore the one who leads a sinful life is spiritually connected with him. … There is stress upon the phrase “from the beginning” (v.8).” Sin began when Satan first sinned. … By his misrepresentation of God, which is implied in the title “Devil,” he has ever sought to attack the soul of man, endeavoring to instill reasons for doubt and distrust of God. — Vine, page 56.

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The word [destroy] is used of that method of destruction by which a thing is broken and nullified, and this is the effect of Christ’s work on the Cross upon the works of the Devil. … The whole tenor of the passage stresses the fact that man by continuing in sin may refuse to avail himself of the effects of the work of Christ. — Vine, pages 56-57.

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works of the devil (v.8) — The works of the Devil are to deceive men to rebel against their Creator and to hate each other. The work of Christ is to restore fellowship with man through His sacrifice and the gift of the Spirit resulting in love for one another. — Grace, page 2222.

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Whoever has been born of God (v.9) — The phrase rendered “is begotten” is in the perfect tense, “Has been begotten”; in other words, “Has become and therefore remains a child of God.” … The statement here again conveys the thought of sinning as a practice, a habit. — Vine, page 57.

seed (v.9) — The divine nature of God’s Spirit.

he cannot sin (v.9) — Here again, not the committal of an act is in view, but continuance in sin. — Vine, page 57.

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While the phrase “the children of the Devil” (v.10) dos not occur elsewhere in the New Testament, yet the Lord interpreted the tares in the parable as “the sons of the evil one,” the word “sons” conveying the thought of likeness to parentage. In John 8:44 the Lord says to the Jews who were intent upon murdering Him, “ye are of your father the Devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do.” — Vine, page 58.

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To fulfill the Law is to be right with God and so to do righteousness. A proof of the existence of Divine relationship, then, consists in the manifestation of love to others. One who is born of God will love those whom God loves. — Vine, page 58.

⁴ Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.

⁵ And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.

⁶ Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.

⁷ Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.

We who are living in the age of grace can apply a lot of this passage to our lives, but it must be remembered that John was writing to those in the early Acts period who had a taste of the Kingdom, and to those who will, during the Tribulation, have the law written on their hearts. To sin habitually under those circumstances was, and will be, very serious indeed.

Some commentaries read the old and new natures into this passage, but that wasn’t what John was talking about.

Paul, in 1 Corinthians, wrote to believers (saints) who were definitely sinning habitually, but who were still saved. Believers under grace have all kept the law in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21; Colossians 2:10).

whoever commits sin (v.4) — The tense is the present continuous and expresses a practice and not an act. [The word “commit”] is misleading. Neither here nor anywhere in this passage is the committal of an act in view. The Apostle is dealing with that which characterizes the life. — Vine, page 52.

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commits lawlessness (v.4) — The manner of life which is marked by continuing to do sin is described by the phrase “doeth lawlessness,” which is constant disregard of the Law of God. As, then, doing righteousness [as a practice] is an evidence of the new birth, so doing lawlessness [as a practice] is an evidence of not being born of God. — Vine, page 53.

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sin is lawlessness (v.4) — Sin and lawlessness are different aspects of the same thing. A section of the Gnostic teachers taught that a certain attainment of knowledge placed a person above moral law, in which case one was rendered neither better for keeping it nor worse for breaking it. The teaching of this passage therefore strikes a blow against such error. The practice of sin is shown to be entirely incompatible with being a child of God. — Vine, page 53.

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you know (v.5) = “you know as a fact” essential to the Christian faith. the Apostle’s constant appeal to the knowledge possessed by believers is set off against the knowledge in which the Gnostics boasted. — Vine, page 53.

manifested (v.5) — Christ’s incarnation, which demonstrated His pre-existence.

take away our sins (v.5) — Lit. “remove by lifting,” cp. 1 Peter 2:24. … The point of the present passage is not the mode in which Christ took away sins but the fact that His having become incarnate in order to take them away shows that sin is incompatible with the Divine relationship of being children of God; in other words, not the nature of the atonement is here in view but the effect of it in the life. — Vine, pages 53-54.

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in Him there is no sin (v.5) — Lit., “and in Him sin is not.” He is essentially and eternally the sinless One, and this has bee proved in the days of His flesh. …  The members of the heavenly family, so far from continuing in sin, as before they became children of God, are united to One who Himself both was the Bearer of sins and is essentially sinless. There is this also, that the approved sinlessness of Christ showed that He, and He alone, was fit and competent to take away sin.

The way in which the writers of the New Testament state the sinlessness of Christ is appropriate respectively to their characteristics. Peter, the man of action, says, “He did no sin” (1 Peter 2:22); Paul, the man of knowledge, says, “He knew no sin” (2 Corinthians 5:21); John, the man of intimate personal acquaintance with Christ in the days of His flesh, says, “In Him is no sin.” Thus completely does the Spirit of God safeguard, in the testimony of the New Testament, the character of Christ. — Vine, page 54.

Verse 5 is one of many passages in Scripture that prove the fallacy of those who claim that Christ could have sinned but didn’t — a view they base entirely on Hebrews 4:15, claiming that He couldn’t have been tempted as we are unless He could have failed. But even that verse states clearly that He is “without sin.” Christ never stopped being wholly God, so He never could have sinned. He is also wholly human since His incarnation, but it is possible to be human and not sin — as will be the case with all of us in our glorified bodies after the resurrection.

whoever abide in Him does not sin (v.6) — Both verbs “abideth” and “sinneth” are in the present continuous tense and express the normal state. Abiding in Christ and continuance in sin are incongruous. It is true that even an act of sin is inconsistent with abiding in Christ, but, as elsewhere in this passage, the Apostle is dealing with characteristics and habits and not acts. … To abide in Christ involves the habit of communion with God and the habitual fulfilment of His will. — Vine, page 54.

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Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him (v.6) — Every believer does sin. ye the believer is one who has seen Christ, by faith, and knows Him. What is implied here, then, is a ruling principle of life. — Vine, page 54-55.

He who practices righteousness (v.7) — habitually

1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

² Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

³ And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

Behold what manner (v.1) — The word “Behold” is in the plural. It is not an exclamation but a command to all believers. The word [translated] “what-manner-of” always indicates astonishment and usually admiration also. — Vine, page 49.

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called (v.1) — The Apostle speaks of the relationship as a calling, rather than saying that we have become children of God; he thus suggests the dignity of the relationship. — Vine, page 49.

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know (v.1, 2x) — Suggests that the world has not even begun to gain by experience a knowledge of the children of God. — Vine, page 50.

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The “now” (v.2) is set in contrast to the future. That we are children suggests that, blessed as the relationship is, this is not the final state. — Vine, page 50.

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“not yet” (v.2) is set in contrast to “now.” … That we are now children of God is a foretaste of what we are going to be. The present state is the guarantee of future glories. — Vine, page 50.

when He is revealed (v.2) — Since John was writing to Jewish kingdom believers, this cannot be referring to the Rapture. However, Paul wrote several times about our future glorification (see quote below).

know (v.2) — This is a different word than that translated “know in v.1. This is “an absolute certainty intuitively realized.”

To be like Christ (v.2) will involve many things including an immortal, glorified body. … Christlikeness or conformity to His moral image is God’s final goal for His children (Romans 8:29-30; 1 Corinthians 15:49; Philippians 3:21). — Grace, page 2221.

Everyone who has this hope (v.3) — all believers.

The hope (v.3) is not described as being in the believer. It is a hope set on Christ, a hope that rests upon Him. — Vine, page 52.

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purifies (v.3) — The purification is from everything that is inconsistent with the character and will of the Lord. This truth is directed against the Gnostic teaching that sin does not pollute the enlightened person. The tense is the continuous present and thus indicates the habit of resisting every defiling influence and keeping oneself free from it. — Vine, page 52.

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Though the Apostle has been referring to God the Father, yet he passes characteristically, without direct indication, to the Person of Christ, and is speaking here of His moral perfections as manifested in the days of His flesh. The word hagmos betokens the purity of one who, having been subjected to temptation, overcomes it. This is true of Christ, and His pureness is the standard for the believer. The Apostle does not say that, “He purified Himself,” but that “He is pure.” It is the believer who has to purify himself. What was an inherent quality in Him is a quality which the believer is to set before himself as an attainment. — Vine, page 52.

²⁴ Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

²⁵ And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.

²⁶ These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you.

 ²⁷ But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

²⁸ And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.

²⁹ If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.

Note the difference of the order here (v.24) from that in 1:1, “That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard.” Their hearing the truth from the beginning, that is, when the testimony was first given to them, was one thing; that the Person who formed the subject of the testimony was “from the beginning,” pre-existent, unoriginated, was another. — Vine, page 40.

you also will abide (v.24) = remain and continue, salvation/eternal life

“These things” (v.26) would seem to point to what is contained in verses 18-25. The participial construction, rendered “those who try to deceive you,” is practically a noun, “your deceivers.” The true character of the false teachers is, then, to be discerned. — Vine, page 41.

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These two divine safeguards — the Holy Spirit and the Holy Scriptures (vs.20 and 27) — preserve from error, and teach young converts to recognize and reject false teaching. — Williams, page 1013.

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As Christ the Son of God is the Truth, and as the Word of God which is taught is the truth, to abide in the truth is to abide in Him who is the Son of the Father, and therefore in the Father too, for the Son and the Father are one. — Vine, page 40.

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you do not need that anyone teach you (v.27) — This does not suggest that they were without the need of teaching, but rather that with the Divine power given to them to detect false teachers they were able to refuse their teachings. … The Apostle’s point here is that believers are able by the Spirit’s power to be secure against all deceits of the enemy. — Vine, page 41.

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is not a lie (v.27) — That the anointing “is no lie” is not a mere repetition of the statement that it is true. It sets in more vivid contrast the falsehoods of the errorists. They are not mere promulgators of speculative theories, they are liars (see v.22); they are directly antagonistic to the truth. On the contrary, an essential feature of the anointing is the impartation of truth. The effect of the work of the Spirit is consistent with His character; He imparts truth because His is true. — Vine, page 42.

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In verse 28 the Apostle resumes his address to all the children [all believers], as in verse 12. … Righteousness is not natural to man (v.29). If, therefore, anyone manifested the righteousness which appeared in Christ — and knowledge of Him as “The Righteous One” provided such discernment — such a person was born of god, for similar fruit demonstrates similarity of nature. — Williams, page 1013.

when He appears (v.28) — the Second Coming, not the Rapture

know (v.29 first use) = intuitive knowledge. (v.29 second use) = knowledge gained by experience. So … “If you are aware that He is righteous, you recognize by experience that …”

practices (v.29) — The kingdom emphasis is on doing right as the necessary evidence of being born of God. — Grace, page 2221.

²⁰ But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things.

²¹ I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

²² Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.

²³ Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

anointing (v.20) — signifies that which is carried out by the act of anointing, and thus stands here for the effect of the act itself, the impartation of the Holy Spirit, who was symbolically set forth by the material oil with which the act was carried out in the former age in the nation of Israel in the case of kings, priests, and prophets. For the figurative use of the anointing see, e.g., Isaiah 61:1; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22. While Christ Himself was anointed by the Holy Spirit in the day s of His flesh (Acts 10:38), here He, as the Holy One, is the Anointer. For the title “Holy One” see Psalm 16:10. — Vine, page 37.

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This anointing was an inner witness of the Holy Spirit bearing testimony that the kingdom saints were born of God. It also involved supernatural abilities and knowledge during the Acts era and will be manifested again in the future Tribulation, better equipping those kingdom saints for ministry and to endure persecution. It fulfilled Christ’s promise in John 16:13-14. With the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4), the anointing for Jewish believers happened at conversion. — Grace, page 2220.

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you know all things (v.20) — What the Apostle is pointing out is, that it is his readers, and not the false and antichristian teachers, who possess the true knowledge, and that it is possessed in virtue of the anointing, which the false teachers lack. — Vine, page 38.

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They knew all things in relation to Christ, their salvation, and their experience with the Holy Spirit who baptized them, regenerated them, and enlightened them. However, “all things” must be qualified by the context. They needed further instruction in other areas. Otherwise, this letter from John would have been unnecessary. — Grace, page 2220.

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The Apostle is not suggesting (v.21) that his readers are ignorant of the truth, but rather that, considering that they actually possess it, they are thereby enabled to distinguish between truth and error. The truth springs from God “who cannot lie” (Titus 1:2): lying springs from the Devil (John 8:44). There is no neutral ground between truth and error, just as, as the Apostle has pointed out, there is no neutral ground between the mere professor and the actual possessor. Truth is truth, and error is error. Their source and their practice are entirely removed one from the other. — Vine, page 38.

he who denies (v.22) — literally, “the one denying,” suggesting  habitual denial.

antichrist (v.22) — While the great future Antichrist is in view, he is not the single person particularized. Just as with “the liar,” in the earlier part of the verse, so any teacher who denies the Father and the Son is a representative of the sort of person that the Antichrist will be. — Vine, page 39.

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More is taught here (v.23) than the essential unity between the Father and the Son. It is true that to deny the One is to deny the Other, but, more than this, to deny the Son is to deprive oneself of relationship to, and communion with, the Father. …Not only does confession of the Son, that is, confession that Jesus is the Christ and all that is involved therein, carry with it the confession of the Father, it involves, too, Divine relationship and communion with the Father … Confession of Christ goes with possession of Christ, and those who receive Him become children of God (John 1:12). To acknowledge the Fatherhood of God and deny the Deity of Christ is utterly incompatible. — Vine, page 39.

¹⁸ Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.

¹⁹ They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

last hour (v.18) — Only one last hour was in view, namely the closing period previous to the return of the Lord Jesus. There is a connection of thought between this statement and that of the preceding verse, that “the world passeth away and the lust thereof.” “Hour” suggests the brevity and the critical character of the time. — Vine, pages 35-36.

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The term “antichrist” (v.18) is used in the New Testament only by John, and only in this and the next Epistle; it signifies not only one who takes the place of Christ, but one who is antagonistic to Him. The Antichrist will both seek to usurp the authority of Christ and oppose Him, as did the already existent antichrists by their false teachings (v.22), cp. 2 Thessalonians 2:3. — Vine, page 36.

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[The antichrists] had evidently sought to identify themselves with the saints. They were not actually united to Christ as real members o His body; professing identification with the saints they partook of their spiritual privileges, but in reality they were traitors to the truth, as their false teachings showed. — Vine, page 36. 

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The Apostle is not teaching here that a Christian cannot fall away and backslide. That is not the subject with which he is now dealing. He is making clear the distinction between the genuine and the false in matters of doctrine, as he does in the next chapter in regard to matters of practice. — Vine, page 37.

¹⁵ Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

¹⁶ For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.

¹⁷ And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

That the Apostle passes at once to a warning against love of the world, after mentioning the Evil One, is suggestive of his power in and over the world. “The whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one” (1 John 5:19). He therefore uses this system of humanity, in its alienation from God as a means of enticing the believer from his attachment to Christ. … What the believer is not to love is the world as viewed in its antagonism to what is of God. … To love the world, which lies [under the sway of] the Evil One and yet to overcome the Evil One himself is impossible.— Vine, page 33.

Do not love (v.15) — present tense

This (v.15) is not the world of humanity for that would contradict John 3:16. This is the evil world system headed up by the prince of this world, the Devil. We are warned that this evil system tries to force believers into its mold. But conformity to it is a form of adultery toward God (Romans 12:2; Galatians 1:4; James 4:4). It does not condemn amusements of wholesome entertainment but anything that robs Christ of His due worship, service, and devotion. God calls His children to be separate from the world (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) and wholly dedicated to do His will. — Grace, page 2219.

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By “the things in the world” (v.15) is meant, not material objects, though these themselves may be the means of allurement, but rather those evil elements in it as a system of humanity in its opposition to God and His Christ, and its rejection of His claims. — Vine, pages 33-34.

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The primary significance [in “if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him”] is not that such a person does not love the Father, but that the love of the Father is not the controlling principle of His life. The love of the Father is that which, being in the believer, produces in him a responding love, a devoted recognition of His grace and His claims. — Vine, page 34.

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the lust of the flesh (v.16) — [temptation from within] signifies a strong desire. The flesh stands for the carnal nature of fallen man, which uses the body as its instrument. “The flesh” is thus “the seat of sin in man.” “The lust of the flesh” stands, therefore, for the temptation which proceeds from our corrupt nature, a nature which, owing to sin, stands opposed to the will and commandments of God. — Vine, page 34.

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the lust of the eyes (v.16) — temptation from without. The eyes are the chief means of communication between external things and the flesh. The lust of the eyes, then, is a special form of physical gratification. — Vine, page 34.

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the pride of life (v.16) — The word rendered “vainglory” [pride] is used elsewhere in the New Testament only in James 4:16, and there in the plural, “vauntings.” It signifies either empty display, or haughty reliance on one’s own resources. The pride of life is that ostentatious pride which characterizes the present life of the world in its alienation from God. — Vine, page 35. 

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not of the Father (v.16) — These things do not spring from the Father nor have they any connection with Him, but find their source in the world, and its spiritual ruler. The three evils mentioned were the elements in Satan’s temptation of both Eve (Genesis 3) and of our Lord (Luke 4). — Vine, page 35.

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passing away (v.17) — Note that “passeth away” is the same word used of the darkness in 1 John 2:8, and that “world” is the same in meaning as darkness. — KJV Commentary, page 1757.

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does (v.17) — Doing the will of God and not merely talking about it is a characteristic of the person who enters the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 7:21-23). This is consistent with the Gospel of the Kingdom, which requires works as the necessary evidence of faith (James 2:19-26). — Grace, page 2220.

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It is difficult to overestimate the importance of abiding in John’s writings. … Although the word “abide” may not imply eternal live in itself, there are numerous accompanying terms showing that abiding in Christ was the necessary condition and evidence of kingdom believers being born of God and having eternal life. … There were commands for them to abide in Christ, abide in the light, abide in His love, abide in the doctrine of Christ, etc. the genuine kingdom believer would do so because he was born of God [and because the Law of God will be written on their hearts (Hebrews 8:10)]. … In today’s Dispensation of Grace, believers are sealed by the Holy Spirit, and eternally secure at the moment of trusting in Christ alone for eternal life (Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; Romans 8:31-39). However, for those who believed the Gospel of the Kingdom and have the promise of eternal life on earth, abiding in Christ was absolutely necessary in the salvation equation. This will be true also in the coming Tribulation when the Gospel of the Kingdom is once again preached in all the world for a witness to all nations (Matthew 24:14). Members of the present-day Body of Christ will then be in Heaven by means of the Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18). — Grace, page 2220.

¹² I write to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.

¹³ I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one.
I write to you, little children, because you have known the Father.

¹⁴ I have written to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one.

Verse 12, which is sometimes taken as part of the next section, is to be regarded rather as a link between the two. The next section really begins with v.13, and contains distinct addresses to three parts of the heavenly family, whereas v.12 addresses all the children of God. … It forms a fitting close to what has immediately preceded, and points out what is especially true of those who are really children of God, in contrast to those who make a profession, but do not keep His commandments of love and therefore walk in darkness, and whose sins are not forgiven. — Vine, page 30.

your sins are forgiven (v.12) — Contrast this with 1 John 1:9. A believer’s sins are forgiven completely and forever, proving that the earlier verse had to have been written to unbelievers.

for His name’s sake (v.12) — Throughout the Scripture the Divine names are indicative of the attributes, character and ways of God. That anything should be done for His Name’s sake signifies that the doing is consistent with His character and counsels. These have been embodied and revealed in the Lord Jesus Christ. This, then, is true in regard to God’s forgiveness of our sins. The Name is to be associated both with the Father and with the Son. — Vine, page 30.

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In regard to the three parts of the family of God, whom the Apostle twice addresses in vs.13-27, it is necessary to observe the distinction between the word paidia, rendered “little children,” the youngest members of the family (vs. 13 and 18), and the word teknis, similarly rendered in vs. 12 and 28, but denoting the whole family of God to whom the Apostle is writing his Epistle in general. Teknia is the word, for instance, in the fist verse of chapter 2. — Vine, page 30.

fathers (v.13) — suggestive of maturity and authority, older men with experience, those who are looked to for advice and assistance.

known (v.13) — from experience

Him who is from the beginning (v.13) — Christ, as in 1 John 1:1.

young men (v.13) — those who have some experience of spiritual conflict, those near or in the prime of life.

overcome (v.13) — Overcoming is a prominent subject in John’s writings, especially in this Epistle (6 times) and in Revelation (17 times). The perfect tense indicates the abiding results of past victories. There is of course no suggestion that there are not further conflicts in store. — Vine, page 31.

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The wicked one (v.13) — is Satan, who is thus described five times in this Epistle. … The word rendered “evil” [wicked] is poneros, and differs from the more frequent and general word, kakos, “bad,” in this, that, while kakos may simply mean what is evil in itself, poneros carries with it the idea of what is pernicious and acts detrimentally to others, no only evil (passively bad), but evilly disposed (actively harmful), whether in matters of false doctrine, or temptations in the moral sphere. The young men who are addressed have so far proved faithful, and have not yielded themselves to the corrupting influences around them. — Vine, page 31.

little children (v.13) — babes in Christ

A couple of my commentaries point out the switch in tense from “I write” (v.12-13) to “I have written” (v.14). They say that “I write” is the tense John used for the writing he was doing at that moment, and “I have written” is the tense he used for when the recipients would be reading it.

There is nothing additional in the second address to the fathers. Yet it is not mere repetition. There is … a suggestion of finality in regard to the subject of their knowledge, and … an indication of satisfaction in the heart of the Apostle with the spiritual condition of the fathers. — Vine, page 32.

known Him (v.14) — known Him as Savior

In the case of the fathers the appeal was to their maturity and authority; with the young men it is to their energy and victory of temptation. The means of their victory is their strength, and the secret of their strength is the Word of God … an indwelling power, giving strength for victory over the evil one. As in the introduction, in v.13, which is here expanded, victory in the past leaves its permanent effects, but it is not in itself sufficient to ensure victory in the future; hence the Apostle has fresh injunctions to give. — Vine, page 32-33.

⁹ He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.

¹⁰ He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.

¹¹ But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Note the three phrases, “walking in the light” (1:7); “being in the light” (2:9); “abiding in the light” (2:10). Walking speaks of conduct, abiding speaks of the condition which determines the conduct. — Vine, page 28.

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The word “brother” in 1 John does not always indicate a believing brother for the genuine kingdom believer does not hate another brother (v.11, 3:15; 4:20). Rather, the racial relationship of the Jewish brotherhood is described in Romans 9:3. A Jew who believes in Jesus Christ must be prepared to endure the hatred of his unbelieving brothers in Israel (Matthew 24:9-13; Revelation 2:7). Walking in darkness here was a spiritual darkness apart from saving faith (1 John 4:20). — Grace, page 2219.

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As to whether the reference (v.10) is to causing others to stumble, or stumbling oneself, while it is quite true that he who hates his brother sets a bad example, and might cause others to sin, yet there is nothing in the passage to indicate that this is the meaning. On the contrary, what is under consideration is the direct spiritual condition of the person himself. This is, moreover, confirmed by the parallel phrase in v.4, “the truth is not in him.” and, as to walking in the light, cp. John 11:9-10, “If a man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because the light is not in him.” Cp. Psalm 119:165. — Vine, page 29. 

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[Verse 11] explains v.9, and enforces its teaching by describing in a three-fold way the condition of the mere professor, who hates his brother. The three statements as as to: (1) his existence — he is in the darkness, (2) His activity — he walks in the darkness, (3) His blindness — he knows not whither he is going. 

(1) Since he is in the darkness he is actually in separation from the children of light. (2) His course of conduct is in the darkness, however varied his circumstances may be. (3) Just as animals that are kept in the dark become blind, so the darkness of one who hates his brother blinds his eyes and prevents him from seeing where he is going — not merely his eventual destiny, but the very course he is pursing. — Vine, page 29.

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The contrast between the true believer who is in the light and walks in the light, and the false professor who is in the darkness and walks in hatred, is now complete, so far as this passage goes. There is no neutral position. The distinction is important and bears upon a later passage in the Epistle, where the contrast between those who are children of God and those who are not is again set out. … There is direct opposition. Where there is not love there is hatred. It may be latent but it is there. — Vine, page 29.

It is important to remember that John was writing to Jewish believers in the past (during the Transition Period between Law and Grace) and in the future (during the Tribulation Period after the Church is raptured) who have the Law written on their hearts by the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 8:10-11). While believers today are urged to love, we also have an ongoing battle between our old and new natures. When the old nature gains ascendency, it often results in hate, but that does not mean the new nature no longer dwells in the believer (Romans 7:15-25).