² tn The phrase “God resides in us” (ὁ θεὸς ἐν ἡμῖν μένει, Jo qeo" en Jhmin menei) in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">4:12 is a reference to the permanent relationship which God has with the believer. Here it refers specifically to God’s indwelling of the believer in the person of the Holy Spirit, as indicated by Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">4:13b. Since it refers to state and not to change of status it is here translated “resides” (see Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6).

³ tn The verb μένω (menw) in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:15 refers to a spiritual reality (eternal life) which in this case does not reside in the person in question. To speak in terms of eternal life not “residing” in such an individual is not to imply that at some time in the past this person did possess eternal life and subsequently lost it, however. The previous verse (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:14) makes it clear that the individual under discussion here has “remained” in death (the realm of spiritual death) and so has never possessed eternal life to begin with, no matter what he may have claimed. Taken together with the use of μένω in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:14, the use here implies that the opponents have “remained” in death all along, and have not ever been genuine believers. Thus “residing” rather than “remaining” is used as the translation for μένουσαν (menousan) here.

⁴ tn Grk “that one.” Context indicates a reference to Jesus here. It is clear that ἐκεῖνος (ekeinos) here does not refer to the same person as αὐτῷ (autw) in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6a. The switch to ἐκεῖνος indicates a change in the referent, and a reference to Jesus Christ is confirmed by the verb περιεπάτησεν (periepathsen), an activity which can only describe Jesus’ earthly life and ministry, the significance of which is one of the points of contention the author has with the opponents. In fact, ἐκεῖνος occurs 6 times in 1 John (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6; 3:3, 5, 7, 16; and 4:17), and each one refers to Jesus Christ.

² tn The problem of the present tense of ποιεῖ (poiei) here is exactly that of the present tense of ἁμαρτάνει (Jamartanei) in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:6. Here in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:9 the distinction is sharply drawn between “the one who practices sin” in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:8, who is of the devil, and “the one who is fathered by God” in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:9, who “does not practice sin.” See S. Kubo (“I John 3:9: Absolute or Habitual?” AUSS 7 [1969]: 47-56) for a fuller discussion of the author’s argument as based on a sharp antithesis between the recipients (true Christians) and the opponents (heretics).

² sn In John 13:1 the same Greek verb translated crossed over here is used to refer to Jesus’ departure from this world as he returns to the Father. Here it is used figuratively to refer to the believer’s transfer from the state of (spiritual) death to the state of (spiritual) life. This use is paralleled in John 5:24, where Jesus states, “the person who hears my message and believes the one who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, but has crossed over (same verb) from death to life.”

² tn The masculine might have been expected here rather than the neuter πᾶν τὸ γεγεννημένον ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ (pan to gegennhmenon ek tou qeou) to refer to the person who is fathered by God. However, BDF §138.1 explains that “the neuter is sometimes used with respect to persons if it is not the individuals but a generic quality that is to be emphasized”; this seems to be the case here, where a collective aspect is in view: As a group, all those who have been begotten by God, that is, all true believers, overcome the world.

¹ tn The meaning of ἀδικία (adikia) here is “unrighteousness” (BDAG 20 s.v. Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2). It refers to the opposite of that which is δίκαιος (dikaios, “right, just, righteous”) which is used by the author to describe both God and Jesus Christ (1 John 1:9; 2:2, 29). Here, having implied that sins committed by believers (sins “not to death”) may be prayed for and forgiven, the author does not want to leave the impression that such sin is insignificant, because this could be viewed as a concession to the views of the opponents (who as moral indifferentists have downplayed the significance of sin in the Christian’s life).

² tn The ἵνα (Jina) followed by the subjunctive is here equivalent to the infinitive of result, an “ecbatic” or consecutive use of ἵνα according to BDAG 477 s.v. Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3 where 1 John 1:9 is listed as a specific example. The translation with participles (“forgiving, …cleansing”) conveys this idea of result.

¹ tn The translation of καί (kai) at the beginning of Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:3 is important for understanding the argument, because a similar καί occurs at the beginning of Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">1:5. The use here is not just a simple continuative or connective use, but has more of a resumptive force, pointing back to the previous use in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">1:5.

³ sn The phrase the evil one is used in John 17:15 as a reference to Satan. Satan is also the referent here and in the four other occurrences in 1 John (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:14; 3:12; 5:18, 19).

¹ tn See note on the translation of the Greek verb μένω (menw) in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6. The translation “remain” is used for μένω (menw) here because the context contrasts the transience of the world and its desires with the permanence of the person who does God’s will.

⁷ tn The verb may be read as either (1) indicative or (2) imperative mood. The same verb is found in the following verse, Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:28, but the address to the readers there seems clearly to indicate an imperative. On analogy some have called for an imperative here, but others have seen this as suggesting an indicative here, so that the author is not repeating himself. An indicative is slightly more likely here. Up to this point the thrust of the author has been reassurance rather than exhortation, and an indicative here (“…you reside in him”) balances the indicative in the first part of Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:27 (“the anointing which you received from him resides in you…”). With the following verse the author switches from reassurance (the readers at the time he is writing still ‘remain’; they have not yet adopted the teaching of the opponents) to exhortation (he is writing so that they will ‘remain’ and not succumb to the deception of the opponents).

¹ sn What we will be. The opponents have been revealed as antichrists now (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:19). What believers will be is to be revealed later. In light of the mention of the parousia in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:28, it seems likely that an eschatological revelation of the true character of believers is in view here.

³ tn Grk “that one.” Context indicates a reference to Jesus here. The switch from αὐτός (autos) to ἐκείνος (ekeinos) parallels 1 John 2:6 (see note there). Since purity of life is mentioned in the context, this almost certainly refers to Jesus in his earthly life and ministry as the example believers should imitate (a major theme of the author throughout 1 John).

¹ tn Here the verb μένω (menw) refers to the permanence of relationship between Jesus and the believer, as in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:27 and 2:28. It is clear that Jesus is the referent of the phrase ἐν αὐτῷ (en autw) because he is the subject of the discussion in v. Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">5.

² tn Grk “that one.” Context indicates a reference to Jesus here. As with the previous uses of ἐκεῖνος (ekeinos) by the author of 1 John (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6; 3:3, 5), this one refers to Jesus, as the reference to “the Son of God” in the following verse (Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:8) makes clear.

² tn Grk “that one.” Context indicates a reference to Jesus. The mention of the sacrificial death in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:16 (ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἔθηκεν, Juper hmwn thn yuchn autou eqhken) points to Jesus as the referent here. (This provides further confirmation that ἐκεῖνος [ekeinos] in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6; 3:3, 5, and 7 refers to Jesus.)

¹ sn The verb resides (μένω, menw) here and again in the second clause of Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">3:24 refers to the permanence of relationship between God and the believer, as also in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:6; 4:12, 13, 15, and 16 (3x).

² tn The verb γεννάω (gennaw) here means to be fathered by God and thus a child of God. The imagery in 1 John is that of the male parent who fathers children. See the note on “fathered” in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A62&tab=notes" ver="">2:29 for further discussion of this imagery.

² tn Once again the genitive could be understood as (1) objective, (2) subjective, or (3) both. Here an objective sense is more likely (believers’ love for God) because in the previous verse it is clear that God is the object of believers’ love.