1 John 2:4

2:4 The one who says “I have come to know God” ¹  and yet does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.

1 John 3:22

3:22 and ²  whatever we ask we receive from him, because ³  we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him.

1 John 4:21

4:21 And the commandment we have from him is this: that ⁴  the one who loves God should love his fellow Christian ⁵  too.

1 John 5:2

5:2 By this ⁶  we know that we love the children of God: whenever we love God and obey his commandments.

[2:4]  ¹ tn Grk “know him.” See the note on the phrase “know God” in 1 John 2:3 for explanation.

[3:22]  ² tn The conjunction καί (kai) which begins 3:22 is epexegetical (explanatory), relating a further implication of the “confidence” (παρρησίαν, parrhsian) which believers have before God when their heart (conscience) does not condemn them. They can ask things of God with the expectation of receiving their requests.

[3:22]  ³ tn The ὅτι (Joti) is clearly causal, giving the reason why believers receive what they ask.

[4:21]  ³ tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause in 4:21 could be giving (1) the purpose or (2) the result of the commandment mentioned in the first half of the verse, but if it does, the author nowhere specifies what the commandment consists of. It makes better sense to understand this ἵνα clause as (3) epexegetical to the pronoun ταύτην (tauthn) at the beginning of 4:21 and thus explaining what the commandment consists of: “that the one who loves God should love his brother also.”

[4:21]  ⁴ tn See note on the phrase “fellow Christian” in 2:9.

[5:2]  ⁴ tn Once more there is the familiar difficulty of determining whether the phrase refers (1) to what precedes or (2) to what follows. Here, because ἐν τούτῳ (en toutw) is followed by a clause introduced by ὅταν (Jotan) which appears to be related, it is best to understand ἐν τούτῳ as referring to what follows. The following ὅταν clause is epexegetical to ἐν τούτῳ, explaining how we know that we love God’s children: “by this we know that we love God’s children, whenever we love God and keep his commandments.”