{"id":9882,"date":"2026-07-14T14:31:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T20:31:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/?p=9882"},"modified":"2026-07-14T14:32:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T20:32:31","slug":"1-john-21-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/?p=9882","title":{"rendered":"1 John 2:1-4"},"content":{"rendered":"

1 <\/span>My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.<\/span><\/em><\/h3>\n

2\u00a0<\/sup>And\u00a0He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but\u00a0also for the whole world.<\/span><\/em><\/h3>\n

3\u00a0<\/sup>Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.<\/span><\/em><\/h3>\n

4\u00a0<\/sup>He who says, \u201cI know Him,\u201d and does not keep His commandments, is a\u00a0liar, and the truth is not in him.<\/span><\/em><\/h3>\n

My little children (v.1) \u2014 expressive of endearment, not immaturity. This indicates that John was now writing to believers.<\/h3>\n

The word rendered “little children” in vs.1, 12, and 28 is different from that so rendered in vs. 13 and 18. The latter represents the young converts, and is set in contrast to the fathers and young men. In the former the address is not to one branch of the family of God but all the readers, i.e., to believers in general. \u2014 Vine, page 19.<\/span><\/h3>\n

these things (v.1) \u2014 the remainder of the letter<\/h3>\n

may not sin (v.1) \u2014 This refers to what he has just been saying [1 John 1:8-10<\/span><\/a>]. His insistence on the facts of sinfulness and sins, and the remedy provided, is not to be taken as conveying any intimation of the inevitableness of sin. On the contrary, his teaching is to be preventative against sinning. \u2014 Vine, page 20.<\/span><\/h3>\n

__________<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

if anyone sins, we (v.1) \u2014 The Apostle does not say “If any man sin, he has an Advocate,” but “we have,” putting himself on the same level with his readers, all alike being in need. \u2014 Vine, page 21.<\/span><\/h3>\n

Advocate (v.1) \u2014 Lit. “one who pleads another’s cause, an intercessor,” with the idea of consoling or supporting.<\/h3>\n

In English advocate means lawyer<\/em> or counselor<\/em>, and Christ is the One Who intercedes before the Father to represent us before His holiness. God’s Word has given us the knowledge to prevent sin, and His Spirit enables us to do His will. But when we do sin and the enemy accuses, Jesus Christ the Righteous steps in to defend God’s children, pleading the merits of the cross. He has never lost a case. See Romans 8:26-27<\/span><\/a> and 34<\/span><\/a> for the glorious truth of the intercession of Christ and the Spirit. \u2014 Grace, page 2218.<\/span><\/h3>\n

__________<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

with the Father (v.1) \u2014 The preposition “with” is the same as in 1 John 1:2<\/span><\/a>, and signifies one who not only is in the Father’s presence but whose attitude is directed towards Him on our behalf. \u2014 Vine, page 21.<\/span><\/h3>\n

__________<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Jesus Christ the righteous (v.1) \u2014 The order of the titles suggest that the one Who came to us through His death (Jesus) is in the presence of the Father as the Anointed One (Christ) in all the efficacy of His finished work and in the perfection of His character. The efficacy of His ministry is guaranteed by the righteousness of His Person. His righteousness is set in contrast to our sin. \u2014 Vine, page 21.<\/span><\/h3>\n

propitiation (v.2) = the means of appeasing God’s wrath.<\/h3>\n

This very important biblical word “propitiation” denotes the price which must be paid to avoid the divine punishment upon sin. It is, therefore, the “fine” we must pay in court to avoid going to jail. In the Bible, there are other synonyms for this concept of the “fine,” such as the “atonement” or “ransom” or “sin offering.” Here, Christ is not only the Righteous Lawyer who is on very familiar terms with the Father (Judge), but he pays our “fine,” or, more properly, according to the text, He is<\/em> the “fine” or “atonement” for our sins. \u2014 KJV Commentary, pages 1755-1756.<\/span><\/h3>\n

__________<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Propitiation … denotes the ground upon which God shows mercy to the guilty. Christ Himself, and He alone, is this, through His death, in the shedding of His blood in sacrifice. Two things are therefore indicated (1) the finished work of the Cross, (2) the value of the Living Person. Not only was He the Propitiator by offering Himself, He is in His own Person the Propitiation. … That He is the propitiation is what gives perfect effect to His advocacy. \u2014 Vine, page 21.<\/span><\/h3>\n

our\/ours (v.2) \u2014 the Jews<\/h3>\n

for the whole world (v.2) \u2014 The provision made by the sacrifice of Christ extends to the whole world, yet the actual effect is not universal. The whole world lies within the scope of the propitiation, no one being necessarily excluded from its benefits. The only exclusion is on the part of those who will not avail themselves of it. \u2014 Vine, page 22.<\/span><\/h3>\n

Now by this we know that we know him (v.3) \u2014 In other words, “hereby we constantly have the experience of knowing that we have come to know Him. Know = know by experience. Specifically, know Him in a saving way<\/h3>\n

These commandments (v.3) would include (1) Confessing faith in Christ; (2) Loving one another; (3) Obeying\/following Christ’s instructions; an d(4) Enduring steadfast\/faithful unto the end. Believers under the Dispensation of Grace should<\/em> also fulfill all of these but often fall far short and yet are recognized as genuine believers. \u2014 Grace, page 2219.<\/span><\/h3>\n

__________<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

He who says (v.4) \u2014 Although John was now addressing Jewish kingdom believers, he continued to point out the characteristics of false professions of faith so that they can recognize them in others. \u2014 Grace, page 2219.<\/span><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2\u00a0And\u00a0He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1-john"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9882"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9882\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9884,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9882\/revisions\/9884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/versebyverse.carpelibra.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}