Passage

1 John 4.6

Book: 1 John · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"4. Ye are of God, my little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. 5. They are of the world: therefore speak they as of the world, and the world heareth them."

"6. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he who is not of God heareth us not. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error."

"7. Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is begotten of God, and knoweth God. 8. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (1 John 4:4-8, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"4. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world. 5. They are of the world. Therefore they speak of the world, and the world hears them."

"6. We are of God. He who knows God listens to us. He who is not of God doesn’t listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error."

"7. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God. 8. He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love." (1 John 4:4-8, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"4. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. 5. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them."

"6. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error."

"7. Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (1 John 4:4-8, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"4. Ye, of God ye are, little children, and ye have overcome them; because greater is He who [is] in you, than he who is in the world. 5. They, of the world they are; because of this from the world they speak, and the world doth hear them;"

"6. we, of God we are; he who is knowing God doth hear us; he who is not of God, doth not hear us; from this we know the spirit of the truth, and the spirit of the error."

"7. Beloved, may we love one another, because the love is of God, and every one who is loving, of God he hath been begotten, and doth know God; 8. he who is not loving did not know God, because God is love." (1 John 4:4-8, YLT)

Setting

• Speaker: John the Apostle (traditionally)
• Audience: Christian believers (countering proto-gnostic influences)
• Location: Ephesus (composition)
• Time period: composed c. AD 85-95

Theological reading

Key words

• G0225 - aletheia, aletheia (Strong's G225). Also appears in: Mark 12, Luke 22.54-62, John 1.14.
• G1097 - ginosko, ginosko (Strong's G1097). Also appears in: Matthew 1, Mark 4.11-12, Mark 6.
• G2316 - theos, theos (Strong's G2316). Also appears in: Matthew 1.23, Matthew 3.16, Matthew 5.9.
• G4151 - pneuma, pneuma (Strong's G4151). Also appears in: Matthew 1.18, Matthew 1.20, Matthew 3.16.

Quoted in

• Spirit of Error
• Spiritual Warfare

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

• ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
• WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
• KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
• YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.