Regard our Lord's forbearance as your one hope of Salvation. This is what our dear Brother Paul wrote to you, with the wisdom that God gave him.

That is what he says in all his letters, when speaking in them of these things. In those letters there are some statements hard to understand, which ill-taught and unprincipled people pervert, just as they do the rest of the Scriptures, to their own ruin.

What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and our hands have touched, concerning the word of life--

(the Life has appeared; we saw it, we testify to it, we bring you word of that eternal Life which existed with the Father and was disclosed to us) ??3 it is of what we heard and saw that we bring you word, so that you may share our fellowship; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

what we have seen and heard we also proclaim to you, so that you too may have fellowship [as partners] with us. And indeed our fellowship [which is a distinguishing mark of born-again believers] is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.

This, then, is the message that we have heard from him, and are announcing to you, that God is light, and no darkness what ever is in him.

And here is how we can be assured that we know Jesus [i.e., that we are saved]: [It is] by obeying what He commands us.

The person who says, "I have come to know Him," but does not obey what He commands, is lying [by such a profession], and the truth [about the matter] is not in his heart.

But the person who obeys what His teaching requires, truly in this person love for God has been made complete. This is [another way] to be sure that we are in [fellowship with] Him:

Do not love the world or what the world can offer. When any one loves the world, there is no love for the Father in him;

For all that makes up the world, namely, the improper desires of the physical body, the improper desires for what is seen, and the [boastful] pride over life's possessions; these are not from the Father, but from the [godless] world.

And the world, with its [physical and material] desires, is passing away, but the person who does what God wants will continue to live forever.

I have not sent you this letter because you have no knowledge of what is true, but because you have knowledge, and because that which is false has nothing in common with that which is true.

Whoever denies the Son, the same has not the Father; but he who confesses the Son has the Father also. As for you, let what you have heard from the beginning abide in you.

As for you let that which ye have heard from the beginning abide in you: if what ye have heard from the beginning abides in you, ye also shall abide in the Son and in the Father.

This is the promise which He Himself promised us—eternal life.

And this is important to you: The "special gift," which you received from God [See verse 20], continues to live in your hearts, [so that] you do not need anyone to teach you [anything different]. But, since this same "special gift" teaches you concerning everything that is true, and [what it teaches] is not false, you should continue to live in [fellowship with] Christ.

If you know that He is righteous, you know this as well: Everyone who does what is right has been born of Him.

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Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness [ignoring God’s law by action or neglect or by tolerating wrongdoing—being unrestrained by His commands and His will].

Little children, let no one deceive you! The one who does what is right is righteous, just as He is righteous.

The person who practices sin belongs to the evil one, because the Devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason that the Son of God was revealed was to destroy what the Devil has been doing.

This is how God’s children—and the Devil’s children—are made evident.

Whoever does not do what is right is not of God, especially the one who does not love his brother.

not as Cain was of the wicked one, and slew his brother; and on account of what slew he him? because his works were wicked, and those of his brother righteous.

We know what love is--through Christ's having laid down His life on our behalf; and in the same way we ought to lay down our lives for our brother men.

Little children [i.e., dear ones], we should not [merely] claim to love [people], or [even just] talk about it, but [we should love] by what we do [for them] in a genuine way.

and we receive from Him whatever we ask because we [carefully and consistently] keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight [habitually seeking to follow His plan for us].

Now this is what he commands, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another as he has commanded us to do;

They are from the world. Therefore what they say is from the world, and the world listens to them.

We are God's children. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not a child of God will not listen to us. In this way we can tell what is inspired by truth from what is inspired by error.

and what heightens his love, was this, that it was not we who first loved God, but it was he that first loved us, and sent his son to expiate our sins.

Our love will be manifested in all its perfection by our having complete confidence on the day of the Judgement; because just what He is, we also are in the world.

This is [one] way we know that we love God's [spiritually reborn] children: [It is] when we love God and obey what He commands us to do.

For this is what love for God is: to keep His commands. Now His commands are not a burden,

The person who [sincerely] believes in God's Son has the evidence [of it] within his heart, [confirming God's testimony]. The person who does not believe God [i.e., what He says about Jesus], accuses Him of lying, because he has not accepted the [irrefutable] testimony of God concerning [the identity and mission of] His Son.

Now what is testified, is this, that God has given to us eternal life: and this life is by his son.

And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked Him for.

I, a ruler in the church, send word to the noble sister who is of God's selection, and to her children, for whom I have true love; and not only I, but all who have knowledge of what is true;

and now, my lady, I beg our love may be mutual, since what I write, is no new prescription, but what was originally enjoin'd.

And this is love: that we walk in accordance with His commandments and are guided continually by His precepts. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should [always] walk in love.

See to yourselves, that we may not lose what we have wrought, but may receive full wages.

Anyone who runs on ahead and does not remain in the doctrine of Christ [that is, one who is not content with what He taught], does not have God; but the one who continues to remain in the teaching [of Christ does have God], he has both the Father and the Son.

If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching [but diminishes or adds to the doctrine of Christ], do not receive or welcome him into your house, and do not give him a greeting or any encouragement;

I wish, my beloved, you may be as prosperous with regard to your health and other circumstances, as in what concerns your soul.

Beloved, you do faithfully what you perform for the brethren, and for the strangers.

I wrote to the assembly, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, doesn't accept what we say.

For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, unjustly accusing us with wicked words and unjustified charges. And not satisfied with this, he refuses to receive the [missionary] brothers himself, and also forbids those who want to [welcome them] and puts them out of the church.

Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He that does good is of God. He that does evil has not seen God.

Demetrius has the approval of all men and of what is true: and we give the same witness, and you are certain that our witness is true.

Now I want to remind you of what you are perfectly aware, that though the Lord once brought the People safe out of Egypt, he subsequently destroyed the unbelieving,

Now the very archangel Michael, when he disputed the body of Moses with Satan, did not dare to condemn him with scoffs; what he said was, The Lord rebuke you!

But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.

Woe to them! they go the road of Cain, rush into Balaam's error for what it brings them, and perish in Korah's rebellion.

These men are always murmuring, and complaining of their lot; they follow where their passions lead them; they have arrogant words upon their lips; and they flatter men for the sake of what they can get from them.

But do you, dear friends, recall what was foretold by the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him, to shew to his bondmen what must shortly take place; and he signified it, sending by his angel, to his bondman John,

This is the John who taught the truth concerning the Word of God and the truth told us by Jesus Christ-- a faithful account of what he had seen.

The one who reads this is blessed, and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it are blessed, because the time is near!

Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

I turned to see what voice it was that spoke to me; and when I turned, I saw seven golden lamps,

Write therefore what thou hast seen, and the things that are, and the things that are about to be after these.

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: "This is what the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand says, the one who walks in the midst of the seven gold lampstands:

"I know what you've been doing, your toil, and your endurance. I also know that you cannot tolerate evil people. You have tested those who call themselves apostles, but are not, and have found them to be false.

"But, this is what I have against you, that you have forsaken your first love [i.e., love for Christ and His church].

So remember the heights from which you have fallen, and repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God’s will] and do the works you did at first [when you first knew Me]; otherwise, I will visit you and remove your lampstand (the church, its impact) from its place—unless you repent.

Yet you have this [to your credit], that you hate the works and corrupt teachings of the Nicolaitans [that mislead and delude the people], which I also hate.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

"And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: "This is what the first and the last says, who was dead and came to life:

Fear nothing of what thou art about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give to thee the crown of life.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

"And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: "This is what the one who has the sharp double-edged sword says:

Yet I have a few things against you, because you have with you some that cling to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling-block in the way of the descendants of Israel--to eat what had been sacrificed to idols, and commit fornication.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

"And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: "This is what the Son of God says, the one who has his eyes like a fiery flame and his feet like fine bronze:

‘I know your deeds, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your last deeds are more numerous and greater than the first.

Yet I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and by her teaching leads astray My servants, so that they commit fornication and eat what has been sacrificed to idols.

And I will kill her children (followers) with pestilence [thoroughly annihilating them], and all the churches will know [without any doubt] that I am He who searches the minds and hearts [the innermost thoughts, purposes]; and I will give to each one of you [a reward or punishment] according to your deeds.

But to you I say, to the rest who are in Thyatira, as many as don't have this teaching, who don't know what some call 'the deep things of Satan,' to you I say, I am not putting any other burden on you.

but what ye have hold fast till I shall come.

To the person who conquers and continues to do what I've commanded to the end, I will give authority over the nations.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

“To the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Sardis write:

“These are the words of Him who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: ‘I know your deeds; you have a name (reputation) that you are alive, but [in reality] you are dead.

Wake up, and strengthen and reaffirm what remains [of your faithful commitment to Me], which is about to die; for I have not found [any of] your deeds completed in the sight of My God or meeting His requirements.

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

"And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: "This is what the holy one, the true one, the one who has the key of David, the one who opens and no one can shut, and who shuts and no one can open, says:

‘I know your deeds. See, I have set before you an open door which no one is able to shut, for you have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not renounced or denied My name.

See, I will make those of the Synagogue of Satan who say they are Jews, and are not, but say what is false; I will make them come and give worship before your feet, and see my love for you.

Because you have kept in mind the message of what I endured, I also will keep you safe in the time of testing that is going to come upon the whole world, to test the inhabitants of the earth.

I come quickly: hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

"And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: "This is what the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the originator of God's creation, says:

‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold (invigorating, refreshing) nor hot (healing, therapeutic); I wish that you were cold or hot.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

After these things I saw, and lo, a door opened in the heaven, and the first voice that I heard is as of a trumpet speaking with me, saying, 'Come up hither, and I will shew thee what it behoveth to come to pass after these things;'

and in front of the throne there was something like a sea or large expanse of glass, like [the clearest] crystal. In the center and around the throne were four living creatures who were full of eyes in front and behind [seeing everything and knowing everything that is around them].

And no one in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, was able to get the book open, or to see what was in it.

And I was very sad, because there was no one able to get the book open or to see what was in it.

And I looked, and heard what seemed to be the voices of countless angels on every side of the throne, and of the living creatures and the Elders. Their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands,