Free Bible Version with Notes of the book of 1 John in simple English

How Christians Should Love Each Other

An EasyEnglish Bible Version with Notes (1200 word vocabulary) on the first Letter of John
www.easyenglish.info
Shirley Chapman and Cynthia Green
This translated Bible text has been through our Advanced Checking process.
Words in boxes are comments on the text.
A word list at the end explains words with a *star by them.

About this letter

Most students believe that John wrote this letter. He was the *apostle John, who also wrote the *Gospel of John.
And John also wrote the letters called 2 John and 3 John.
These three letters contain ideas very like those in John’s *Gospel. They have the same kinds of words. The
*Gospel tells people about Jesus, and how to know God. These letters are for people who know God. They
tell those people how he wants them to live. The *Gospel and these letters all speak about God’s love and
light. John wrote the *Gospel to say that Jesus is the Son of God. He wanted them to know, and to believe
that Jesus had died for them. He wanted them to become Christians. But these letters were for people who
were already Christians. John wrote this letter against false teaching that some Christians had heard.

Chapter 1
v1 We want to tell you about the person who is God’s message to people. He is the person who gives people
proper life. He was before the beginning of the world. We heard him speak. We saw him with our own eyes. We
watched him and we touched him.
v2 He showed himself on this earth. We saw him and we are telling you about it. We are telling you that he is the person
who gives *eternal life. From long ago he was together with God the Father, and he has shown himself to us. v3 We
ourselves are *united with God the Father, and Jesus Christ his Son. And we want you to be of the same mind as us, as you
*trust him. That is why we are telling you about the person whom we have seen and heard.
v4 We are writing so that together we may be completely happy.
John is writing with authority. He is saying that he was with Jesus, the Word of God (God’s message). He
knows Jesus. And he knows what Jesus taught.
v5 Jesus Christ gave us a message and this is the message: God is good and *clean like light. There is nothing
dark about him. v6 Now, someone may say that he is *united to God. But he may still do things that do not
*please God. Then what he says is not true. He is living as if he were in the dark. What he does shows that he
does not want to obey God’s rules. v7 But when we do right things, it is like living in the light. God is always in the
light. (He always does what is good and right.) When we live like this we are really *united together. The death of
Jesus, the Son of God makes us *clean. He removes *sin from us and he makes us *clean in front of God. v8 We
may say that we never do wrong things. But then, we are making a mistake. We may really believe that we never
*sin. Then we do not understand that God’s words are true. v9 But if we tell God about our *sins then he will
*forgive us. He will take away from us all our *sins. God is true and fair. So, he will do what he promised. And he
will do what is right. v10 God says that all people have *sinned. But we may say that we have never *sinned.
Then we are saying that God is not telling the *truth. We have not accepted his word at all.

Chapter 2
v1 I am writing to you who are like *dear children to me. I am writing this because I do not want you to *sin. But if

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you do *sin, tell him. Then God will *forgive you. God our Father *forgives us. He does this because a completely
good person asks him to do it. That person is Jesus Christ. v2 He died to take the *punishment for our *sin. He
not only died to take the *punishment for our *sins. He died to take the *punishment for the *sins of all people
everywhere.
v3 We can be sure that we have become people who know Christ. And I want to tell you how we can be sure. It is
when we obey his rules. v4 Someone may say, ‘I know Christ.’ If he does not obey Christ’s rules, that person is
*lying. He does not know him. He has not obeyed the *truth which he tells us in his rules. v5 But we should do the
things that Christ said. Then we will show that we love God. By this we know that we *live in him. v6 A person
may say that he *lives in God. Then he must live as Jesus did.
v7 *Dear Christian *brothers, love each other. When I say this, I am not giving you a new rule. It is the old rule that
you had for a long time. We gave it to you when you began to obey Christ. You have already heard this message.
v8 But there is something new about it. The life of Christ shows us that this rule is new. Your lives also show that
it is new. The life of Christ shows us the *truth about God. And this *truth is already shining in your lives. It is like a
light that people can see. You did bad things before. They are like the dark, which is becoming less and less. v9 A
person may say that he is in the light. He says that he obeys God. But, he may *hate another Christian. Then he
is still living as if he were in the dark. v10 Whoever loves other Christians is living in the light. He never causes
other Christians to *sin. v11 But a person may not love other Christians. He is like someone who is living in the
dark. He does wrong things and he does not know God’s rules. Because he does not know God’s rules, he is like
a *blind person. He cannot see where he is going.
v12 *Dear *children, I am writing to you because God has *forgiven all your *sins. God did this because of Christ.
v13 I am writing to you who are like *fathers. I am writing to you because you have known Christ for a long time.
He was before the world began. I am writing to you who are like young men because you have beaten *Satan. I
write to you, my *children. I am writing to you because you have become people who know God, our Father. v14 I
write to you, *fathers, because you know Jesus Christ. He was before the world began. I write to you young men
because you are *trusting Christ well. God’s word is always in your minds and you have beaten *Satan.
v15 Whoever loves the wrong *values of this *world cannot also love God our Father. So I tell all of you, do not
love the wrong *values of this *world. v16 When people only want to *please themselves, this is wrong.
Sometimes people want to have all the things that they see. This is wrong. Sometimes people want to tell other
people what great things they have done. Sometimes they want to tell them how rich they are. This is also wrong.
None of these ideas comes from the Father. They come from loving the wrong things in this world. v17 God has
begun to destroy the wrong things in this world. Those who want bad things will die. But those who do what God
wants will live for ever.
v18 *Dear *children, the world will soon end. You have heard that the *enemy of Christ will appear. You now see
that many *enemies of Christ have already appeared. This shows us that the world really will soon end. v19
These *enemies of Christ who used to be in our group no longer meet with us. They never really were Christians.
If they had really been Christians, they would have remained with us. But they left. And so they showed that they
were never really Christians. v20 But Christ has given you the *Holy Spirit. Because of this, you all know what is
true. v21 You do know that it is true. That is why I am writing this letter to you. Yes, you can be sure that the *truth
does not include anything false.
v22 I will tell you who is the worst *liar. It is the person who says that Jesus is not the *Christ. When a person
says that, he is refusing to believe in the Father of Jesus. He also refuses to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Anyone who talks like this is the *enemy of Christ. v23 Whoever believes that Jesus is the Son of God is *united
to God the Father. Whoever refuses to believe this is not *united to the Father. v24 Always remember what you
first heard about Christ. If you always remember that message you will remain *united to God the Son and his
Father. v25 Then he promises that we will receive *eternal life.
v26 Some people are trying to lead you away from what is true. I am writing these things to you about those
people. v27 But the *Holy Spirit, whom Christ gave, is still in you. So, you do not need anyone else to teach you
what is true. The same *Holy Spirit shows you all the things that are true. There is nothing false in what he shows
you. So, I say to you, remain *united to Christ. Remain *united to Christ as the *Holy Spirit has told you to do.
v28 *Dear *children, remain *united to Christ. Then, when he comes back to this world, we will be brave. We will
not be afraid to meet him. v29 Christ does what *pleases God. You know that. So you should know that everyone
who *pleases God is his child.

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John tells Christians that they must live “in the light”. He means that they should do everything that God
wants. They must love each other. If they live like this, they will be like Jesus. People will see Jesus shining
through them, like a light. The *Devil (Satan) is trying to make them do bad things. Then they would be like a
person who is living in the dark. But believers in Jesus can do what God wants. God’s word shows them how
to live. Then they can win the fight with Satan. The light of Jesus beats the dark of Satan. Satan rules “the
*world” (the world of people who do not know God. They do not obey what Jesus Christ taught). People who
are *united with Christ are God’s children. They do not believe what the false teachers say.
Some people say that they are Christians. But they do not believe in Jesus. They do not believe that he is the
*Christ, the Son of God. They do not know God. They do not know what is true. They do not have the life of
Jesus in them. They do not have *eternal life.

Chapter 3
v1 Think about how much God the Father loves us. He calls us his children. And we really have become children
of God. The people of this world do not know God as Father. So they do not understand that we are his children.
v2 *Dear friends, we are already children of God. We do not know yet what we will become in the future. We do
know that Christ will return to this world. Then we will see what he really is. And then we will become like him. v3
Christ does not *sin. So everyone of you who hopes to become like Christ ought to keep himself clean from *sin.
v4 If a person continues to *sin, he is choosing not to obey God’s rules. *Sin is when we choose not to obey God.
v5 You know that Jesus came into the world so that he might take away our *sins. You know that he has never
*sinned. v6 A person who is *united to Christ does not go on *sinning. But if a person goes on *sinning, he really
does not know Christ at all. He does not understand who Christ is.
v7 *Dear *children, be careful not to make this mistake. Do not let anyone lead you away from the *truth. God sees as good
only those people who do good things. People like that *please God as Jesus Christ *pleases God. v8 But some people go
on doing what is wrong. Those people belong to the *Devil. The *Devil has been doing wrong things from the start. This is
why the Son of God came. He came to destroy everything that the *Devil had done.
v9 No person who is a child of God should continue to *sin. This is because God has given him a new life. He
cannot continue to *sin, because he is a child of God. v10 This is how we know who are the children of God. And
this is how we know who are the children of the *Devil. Some people do not do what is right. They are not his
children. And people who do not love other Christians are not God’s children.
v11 Since you began to obey Christ, you have heard God’s message. He says that we should love each other.
v12 We should not be like Cain. He belonged to the *Devil. He did things that were wrong. He even killed his
brother. His brother did things that *pleased God. That is why Cain killed him.
v13 So, my Christian *brothers, do not be surprised when people of this *world *hate you.
v14 We know that we are no longer like dead people. We have become people who have life from God. We know
this because we are now loving our Christian *brothers. If someone does not love other Christians, he is still like a
dead person. v15 Some people *hate other people. Anyone like that is like someone who kills people. You know
that a person like that does not have the *eternal life.
v16 This is how we know what love is. Christ gave his own life and he died for us. This shows us how we should
really love other people. We ought to give our lives for other Christians. v17 Think about someone who has
enough to buy all that he needs. That person knows another Christian. The other Christian does not have enough
to buy all that he needs. He may refuse to help that poor Christian. Then he cannot say that he has God’s love for
that other Christian. v18 *Dear *children, let us not only show love for each other by what we say. Let us show
love by really helping each other.
v19 Then we will know that we really belong to God. We will be doing what is true. This will make us not afraid to
come to God. v20 Our thoughts may say that we are bad. But God knows much more than we know in our
thoughts. God knows everything.
v21 *Dear friends, our thoughts may not say that we are bad. Then we are not afraid to come to God. v22 And God gives us
everything that we ask. He does this because we obey his rules. And we do what *pleases him. v23 He said that we must do
this. We must believe that Jesus Christ is his Son. And we should love each other, as he said. v24 Anyone who obeys God’s
rules is *united to God. And God is *united to him. God sent his Spirit to live in us. So

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we know that God is *united to us.

Christians should love their Christian *brothers and *sisters. They should even be ready to die to save them.
Their love will show the *world that God lives in them. They have his Spirit. His Spirit helps us to do what God
wants us to do. This *pleases God.

Chapter 4
v1 *Dear friends, many people are travelling about who say that they have the *Holy Spirit. But they are saying
what is false. The messages that they give do not come from God. So, find out if the *Holy Spirit gave them the
message. If not, do not believe their message.
v2 You can know that a person has the Spirit of God in him. This is how you can know it. Ask him if Jesus Christ
came into the world as a human baby. If he says ‘Yes’, he has the Spirit of God. He belongs to God. v3 But some
people say that Jesus did not come as a human baby. And anyone who says that does not have the Spirit of God.
That person has a false *spirit from the *enemy of Christ. You have heard that this false *spirit was coming to this
world. And it is already in the world.
v4 But, *dear *children, God has sent you. You have shown that these people are wrong. You have been able to
do this because the *Holy Spirit in you is powerful. He is more powerful than the *spirit who rules the *world. v5
Those wrong people do not know God. They are people of this *world. So, they teach like other people who do not
know God. So the people of this *world believe what they teach. v6 But God has sent us. Everyone who knows
God believes our message. But anyone whom God has not sent will not believe it. By this, we know if a person
has the Spirit of God. A person may teach the *truth that the *Holy Spirit teaches. Then he believes our message.
There is a different *spirit, which teaches false things. Anyone with that *spirit does not believe our message.
v7 *Dear friends, we should all continue to love each other. God makes us able to love other people. So,
everyone who loves other people is a child of God. And he knows God. v8 Anyone who does not love other
people does not know God. We know this because God shows his love in everything that he does. v9 This is how
God showed his love for us. He sent his only Son into the world, so that we could have *eternal life because of
him. v10 We did not love God first. Rather, he loved us first. He sent his Son to die, to take away our *sins. v11
This shows how much he loved us. So, *dear friends, we should all love each other.
v12 Nobody has ever seen God. But, if we love each other, he really lives in us. And he can love people
completely in us. v13 God has given us his *Holy Spirit. Because of this, we know that we are *united to God. And
we know that he is *united to us. v14 We have seen that God the Father sent his Son to this world. Jesus saves
the people of the world. We tell everybody that this is true. v15 Anyone who tells people that Jesus is the Son of
God is *united to God. God is also *united to that person. v16 And we know well that God loves us. We also *trust
him to love us all the time. God always shows love. If a person continues to love God and people, he is *united to
God. And God is *united to him.
v17 This is how God loves people completely in us. Then, we will be safe on the day when God will *judge all
people. We can be sure about this. We have remained *united to God, as Jesus did. So, we will not be afraid on
that day. v18 Any person who knows that God loves him will not be afraid of God. This love causes us not to be
afraid. Some people are afraid of God. They think that he will *punish them. So, if someone is afraid of God, he is
not completely *trusting God. He is not completely *trusting that God loves him.
v19 We are able to love God and people because God first loved us. v20 Think about someone who *hates other
Christians. That person may say that he loves God. If he says that, he is telling a *lie. He does not love the
Christian that he can see. So, he cannot love God that he has not seen. v21 So this is what God has told us to do.
He has told us that anyone who loves God should also love other Christians.
It is very important to know the difference between true *spirits and false *spirits. Some teachers say that
Jesus was not really a man. They do not have God’s Spirit. What they teach is false. The love of God is not in
them. God gives us his love, so that we can love him. He gives us love for other Christians, too.

Chapter 5
v1 Whoever believes that Jesus is the *Christ is a child of God. We may love someone who is a father. If we do, we

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will also love the child of that person. v2 This is how we know that we really love the children of God. We know it
when we love God and obey his words. v3 Because, if we really love God, we will obey his words. And, it is not
difficult for us to obey his words. v4 This is how we can refuse to live like people of this *world. It is by believing in
Jesus Christ. v5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God can refuse to live like the people of this
*world. Nobody else can.
v6 Jesus Christ is the person who came to this world from God's home. John *baptised him in water. When Jesus
died, his blood flowed out. He showed that he was human not only by his *baptism in water. He showed it also
when his blood flowed out. The *Holy Spirit shows us that these things are true. He always says what is true. v7
So there are three *signs. By these three *signs, we know that Jesus was really human. v8 These *signs are the
*Holy Spirit, the water and the blood. These *signs all show us the same thing. v9 People tell us about things that
they know. And we believe them. God is more important than man. And he has told us about things that he
knows. He has told us about his Son. So we should believe his word.
v10 Someone will believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Then he really will know that these things are true. But
someone may not believe what God has said. So he is saying that God does not tell the *truth. God is telling us
about his own Son. But, this man still does not believe God. v11 God has given us life that never ends. He has
given it by his Son. v12 So if anyone is *united to the Son of God, he has this *eternal life. But anyone who is not
*united to the Son of God does not have *eternal life.
v13 I have written these things to you who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. I wanted you to know that you have *eternal
life. v14 Also, we can be sure of this. We may ask God for something. Then we can be sure that he hears us. Yes, if we ask
for something that he wants us to have, he will never refuse us. We can be sure about this. v15 We know that he hears us
when we ask him. So, he will give us whatever we ask. We can be sure about that.
v16 One Christian may know that another Christian is *sinning. So he should *pray to God about it. That person
may not be doing something wrong that would cause him to die. Then God will answer your *prayer. God will
cause that person to live. I am only talking about a person who has done something that will not cause him to die.
There is a *sin that will cause a person to die. I am not saying that you should *pray about that. v17 Any wrong
thing that a person does is *sin against God. But there are *sins which do not cause people to die.
v18 We know that no child of God continues to *sin. Instead, the Son of God keeps him safe. The *Devil cannot
do something bad to a child of God. v19 We know that we are God’s children. And we know that the *Devil rules
all those of this *world. v20 We also know that the Son of God has come into the world. He gives us
understanding so that we know the only true God. We are *united to this true God, and to his Son, Jesus Christ.
There is no other true God. He is the only person who can give people *eternal life. v21 *Dear *children, be
careful not to have anything to do with false gods.
John is writing this letter to help Christians to know God better. John wants them to be sure that they have
*eternal life. God will give them the good things that he chooses for them. They can ask him, and he will
listen. God will save them from the *Devil. God will help them to do what is good.

Word List
apostle ~ a man that God chose to lead other Christians and to teach about Jesus.
baptise/baptism ~ to put a person into water to show that he wants to obey God.
blind ~ a blind man cannot see with his eyes.
brothers ~ part of the family of God.
children ~ John was an old man. He wrote to his readers as if they were his children.
Christ ~ Jesus Christ, God’s special servant. God chose him to save people from the results of *sin.
clean ~ to do good things and to think good thoughts.
dear ~ what we call someone that we love.
dear children ~ John was an old man. He wrote to his readers as if they were his children.
Devil ~ God’s enemy. He is also called Satan.
enemy of Christ ~ false Christ; someone who is completely against Christ.
eternal life ~ a special and new life when a person accepts Jesus. This new life will be with Jesus for ever.

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evil ~ very bad. There is nothing good in it.

faith ~ to believe what God teaches.
fathers ~ what John calls people who have been Christians for a long time.
forgive ~ show love and *mercy and not remember bad things against someone.
Gospel ~ a book about the good news; the message that Jesus came to save us from the results of *sin.
hate ~ not to like a person at all; not to love someone.
Holy Spirit ~ one person of the three persons who are God. We cannot see him. He comes to give people the
power to do what God wants.
judge ~ person with authority to decide and say what is good or bad.
liar ~ person who says something that is false.
lie ~ to say something that is false.
live (in God) ~ have God’s life in you; be *united with God.
mercy ~ be kind and help a person who does wrong, to show that you love them.
please ~ make someone happy.
pray/prayer ~ talk with God; the words that we use to talk with God.
punish/punishment ~ hurt someone who has done wrong things to teach them not to do wrong things again.
Satan ~ God’s enemy. He is also called the devil.
signs ~ these point to what is right. They show the right things to do.
sin ~ not to obey God’s rules.
sinner ~ person who does not obey God.
sister ~ a Christian lady.
Spirit (of God) ~ The *Holy Spirit.
spirit ~ the part of a person that will always be alive, even after their body is dead; someone that is always alive,
even without a body. There are good spirits, like God’s Spirit and God’s servants. And there are bad spirits, like
*Satan and his servants.
trust ~ to have *faith.
truth ~ what is true.
unite ~ be joined to; be of one mind with another person.
values ~ things that are good or important.
world ~ people who do not believe in Christ.

Book List
Andrew Persson ~ Translator’s helps on 1, 2 & 3 John

Bibles
English and Greek Interlinear text, Paumari New Testament, A.V., T.E.V. & N.I.V.

© 1997-2005, Wycliffe Associates (UK)

This publication is written in EasyEnglish Level A (1200 words).
March 2005
Visit our website: www.easyenglish.info

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