SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 John 2000 – Page 11

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:7

Paragraph 3:7–10

Read 3:7–10 in both Berean Standard Bible and Good News Translation. Compare the two versions.

Paragraph Theme: John explains that our behavior shows whether we belong to God or to Satan.

3:7a

deceive you: (Logical Relationship) This is not a general warning about being deceived. John is specifically warning his readers not to be deceived about the question (in the next part of the verse) of who is really righteous. The two parts of the verse may therefore need to be linked together.

3:7b

The one who practices righteousness is righteous: (Emphasis) John is contradicting the false teachers who claimed that anyone could become righteous just by accepting their teaching. They claimed that it did not matter if a person continued to live an evil life. It is therefore important in translation to keep the emphasis on the fact that the only people who are righteous in God’s sight are those who do right (and no one else). See New English Bible.

righteous: (Meaning) This means that God accepts him as being good and right, and God approves of what he does.

3:7c

just as Christ is righteous: (Alternative Interpretations) In Greek, this phrase is literally “just as he is righteous.” There are different views about who this refers to:

(1) It refers to Christ. (Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

(2) Some think it refers to God. (New English Bible)

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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:6

3:6 (Logical Relationship)

This verse is the conclusion which John draws from what he has said in 3:4–5. This connection may need to be made clear by a joining word such as “so/therefore” (Good News Translation, New English Bible, Living Bible).

3:6a

No one…keeps on sinning: (Emotive Impact) John is not just making a statement here. He is giving an indirect command to his readers, who he knows are in Christ, that they should not sin.

keeps on sinning: (Alternative Interpretations) There are different interpretations of the tense of the Greek verb used here:

(1) It probably means “should not be continually/habitually sinning.” (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), Good News Translation, Living Bible, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

(2) Some think it means “should not commit any sin.” (The Jerusalem Bible, Revised Standard Version, King James Version)

in Him: (Collocation) As in 2:5, this is John’s way of talking about a close personal relationship and union with God. See the note on 2:5c.

3:6b

continues to sin: (Meaning) This means the same as “keeps on sinning” in 3:6a.

3:6c

seen: (Metaphor) This does not refer to literal “seeing,” since most Christians have never seen Christ with their eyes. It is a metaphor for understanding or recognizing Christ for who he is, the Son of God.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:5

3:5a

Christ appeared: (Meaning) The meaning here is similar to that of “He appears” in 2:28, but here in 3:5a it refers to when Christ first came into the world.

take away sins: (Meaning) This has the same meaning as in John 1:29, “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” It is saying that Jesus died so that God would forgive our sins and no guilt for them would remain.

3:5b

in Him there is no sin: (Collocation) If it is not possible in your translation to refer to sin being “in” someone, this can be rephrased, “he/Jesus cannot do any sin.”

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:4

Paragraph 3:4–6

Read 3:4–6 in both Berean Standard Bible and Good News Translation. Compare the two versions.

Paragraph Theme: These verses show that it is impossible to continue sinning and at the same time remain in union with Christ.

3:4a

who practices sin: (Tense) The tense shows that John is here referring to continual or habitual sinning.

lawlessness: (Alternative Interpretations) The Greek word used here is the same as that for “lawlessness” in the second part of this verse. (See the next note.) There are two views of its meaning here:

(1) It probably means “rejects the authority of God’s law, rebels against God.” (Revised Standard Version, Living Bible)

(2) Some think it means “disobeys God’s law.” (Good News Translation, The Jerusalem Bible, King James Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

3:4b

lawlessness: (Emotive Impact) The Greek word here is a very strong word. It indicates the sort of terrible rebellion against God that no one would want to be accused of. This effect should be kept in your translation.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:3

3:3a

this hope in Him: (Pronoun Reference) This refers to the expectation of becoming like Christ as mentioned in the last verse.

hope: (Biblical Term) In the New Testament this means “to look forward eagerly to something which you are certain will happen.” This is different from the common use of “hope” in modern English, where it means “to be unsure about whether something will happen which you are looking forward to.”

3:3b

purifies himself: (Logical Relationship) Because of the way John connects his statements here, this has the force of an exhortation, “he should purify himself.” See The Jerusalem Bible, Living Bible.

purifies: (Tense) The Greek tense here indicates a continuous process of keeping oneself free from sin, rather than a single act of purification.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:2

3:2a

Beloved: (Meaning) As in 2:7, this indicates John’s loving attitude towards his readers. See the note on 2:7a.

3:2b

what we will be: (Meaning) John is not saying that we will stop being children of God and become something else. He is expecting that as God gives us his glory we will be changed, although John does not fully know what our changed state will be.

3:2c

when Christ appears: (Alternative Interpretations) In the Greek the subject of the verb is not expressed explicitly. This phrase in Greek is literally “when he appears.” There are two views about what the subject is and what the verb means:

(1) The subject is probably Christ, so the verb means “he appears.” As in 2:28, it refers to Christ returning to earth from heaven at some time in the future. (Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, King James Version, Living Bible, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

(2) Some think the subject is “what we will be,” so the verb means “it is made known.” (The Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible)

3:2d

for we will see…: (Alternative Interpretations) There are two views about how this clause is linked to the rest of the sentence:

(1) It is probably giving the reason for our being like Christ. See Living Bible. As Paul teaches in 2 Corinthians 3:18, the more we see Christ and know him the more the Holy Spirit is able to change us to be like him.

(2) Some think it is showing how we know that we will be like him.

as He is: (Emphasis) This is emphasizing that we will see Christ not unclearly or partially, but fully and truly. (See Good News Translation, The Jerusalem Bible, Living Bible)

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 1:1

Section 1:1–4

John explains his authority and his reasons for writing this letter

Read 1:1–4 carefully in both Berean Standard Bible and Good News Translation. Compare the two versions.

Section Theme: These verses form an introduction to the whole letter. In them John states the authority which he has for giving instructions to his readers. He also explains what his purpose is in writing the letter. His authority is the fact that he had personally been with Jesus Christ, the eternal Word of God. His purpose in writing the letter is that the people he is writing to may truly share the fellowship he has with God.

1:1–3 (Sentence Breaks)

These verses are all one long and complicated sentence in the Greek and in some English versions such as Revised Standard Version. The subject and main verb of this sentence come in verse 3, “We proclaim,” but its topic is at the end of verse 1, “the Word of life.” So in translation these verses may need to be split into shorter sentences and the parts may need to be reordered to make the meaning clear. See 1:1–3 in the Display.

1:1

(Good News Translation) We write to you: (Discourse Feature) The fact that this is a letter is obvious from the way John writes. In the Greek, however, there is no formal beginning to the letter, naming the writer and the people he is writing to, as there is in Paul’s letters. In your translation it may be necessary to add some simple introduction such as “We write to you,” so that readers are not confused about whether they are reading a letter or a history or some other sort of literature.

(Good News Translation) We: (Pronoun System) This letter was written by only one person, John, but throughout chapter 1 he uses the plural, We, because he is associating himself in what he is saying with the other apostles who also lived with Jesus. If this meaning will not be conveyed by We in your translation, it would be better to say “I write…,” and then “the other apostles and I have heard…,” etc. As an alternative the book introduction could contain an explanation of who John means by We.

That which was: (Pronoun Reference) This refers to the “Word of life” (see the note below). Since the “Word of life” is really Jesus, it may be better to refer to it as “he/him” in your translation.

from the beginning: (Meaning) This refers to the beginning of the world. John is saying that the Word existed even before the creation of the world. He does not mean that the Word came into existence when the world was created.

with our own eyes: (Focus) All the four statements, “we heard…,” “we saw…,” “we looked at…,” “we touched…,” are emphasizing the fact that although the Word had existed from before creation, John and the other apostles had actually been with Jesus, who was the Word, when he was in this world. None of the four statements is more prominent than the others, so if phrases such as with our eyes are unnatural in translation they can be left implicit. But make sure that the emphasis on John’s personal experience is being clearly communicated.

gazed upon: (Meaning) What is meant here is deliberate, continual, detailed observing, rather than the simple “seeing” of the previous clause.

our own hands: (Focus) See note on “with our eyes” above.

Word of life: (Meaning) This means the word which is life, the word which is the source of life, as in John 14:6. It refers to Jesus, but it would be wrong to make his name explicit as John is not here emphasizing Jesus as a person. He is emphasizing the fact that Jesus is the one who causes us to be truly alive by showing us what God is really like.

Word: (Special Biblical Term) This is a Biblical technical term as in John 1:1. It refers to God’s words or message to people in which he shows them what he is really like. In translation it may be necessary to make it clear that this is the “Word of God.”

(The Jerusalem Bible) who is life: (Pronoun Reference) If you need to make “God” explicit in the phrase “the Word of life” (or, “the Word, who is life”), make sure that this phrase who is life refers to the Word and not to God. See Display.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 2:28

Paragraph 2:28–29

Read 2:28–29 in both Berean Standard Bible and Good News Translation. Compare the two versions.

Paragraph Theme: These verses give the main theme of Section 2:28–4:6. John says that in order not to be ashamed when Christ returns we must remain in union with him and do what is right.

2:28a

now: (Multiple Senses) The Greek word here is not being used in the sense of “at this time.” It means “therefore/so.” John is repeating his instruction from the previous verse, “continue in Christ,” and going on to state one purpose for doing this.

2:28b

when He appears: (Background Information) This refers to Christ returning to earth from heaven at some time in the future.

2:28c

confident and unashamed before Him: (Meaning) John means that he and his readers could meet Jesus face to face without being ashamed or afraid. They would have this confidence if they have been living righteous lives in fellowship with Jesus by the help of the Holy Spirit.

confident and unashamed: (Emphasis) Here again John uses a positive-negative repetition for emphasis.

at His coming: (Meaning) This means the same as “when He appears” in 2:28b. If it is not natural in your language to repeat the meaning like this, it can be omitted.

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Source: SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 2000

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:7

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:6

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:5

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:4

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:3

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 3:2

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 1:1

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 John 2:28

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