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We are children of God
1 Behold what manner of charity the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called, and should be the sons of God. Therefore the world knows not us, because it knew not him. 2 Dearly beloved, we are now the sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. We know, that, when he shall appear, we shall be like to him: because we shall see him as he is. 3 And every one that has this hope in him, sanctifies himself, as he also is holy.
To abide with Christ we must be sinless
4 Whosoever committeth sin commmitteth also iniquity; and sin is iniquity. 5 And you know that he appeared to take away our sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not; and whosoever sinneth, hath not seen him, nor known him.
Children of the devil
7 Little children, let no man deceive you. He that doth justice is just, even as he is just. 8 He that commmitteth sin is of the devil: for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose, the Son of God appeared, that he might destroy the works of the devil. 9 Whosoever is born of God, commmits not sin: for his seed abideth in him, and he can not sin, because he is born of God. 10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whosoever is not just, is not of God, nor he that loveth not his brother.
Brotherly love
11 For this is the declaration, which you have heard from the beginning, that you should love one another. 12 Not as Cain, who was of the wicked one, and killed his brother. And wherefore did he kill him? Because his own works were wicked: and his brother's just. 13 Wonder not, brethren, if the world hate you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not, abideth in death. 15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in himself.
True charity
16 In this we have known the charity of God, because he hath laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 He that hath the substance of this world, and shall see his brother in need, and shall shut up his bowels from him: how doth the charity of God abide in him? 18 My little children, let us not love in word, nor in tongue, but in deed, and in truth.
A good conscience
19 In this we know that we are of the truth: and in his sight shall persuade our hearts. 20 For if our heart reprehend us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 21 Dearly beloved, if our heart do not reprehend us, we have confidence towards God: 22 And whatsoever we shall ask, we shall receive of him: because we keep his commandments, and do those things which are pleasing in his sight.
God's commandment is of faith and love
23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ: and love one another, as he hath given commandment unto us. 24 And he that keepeth his commandments, abideth in him, and he in him. And in this we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. ____________________________________________________________
3:1 sons of God: It is customary in Scripture for those who are justified by divine grace to be called sons of God, — John 1:12, Rom. 8:1, 1 John and begotten of God, James 1:1, 1 John 3:9; and, what is more wonderful, even the name of Godhead is ascribed to them, Exod. 7:1, Ps. 81:6, John 10:35. (St. Thomas Aquinas On God and His Creatures 4.18) the world knows us not, does not recognize, or love us as his sons; on the contrary, it contemns and persecutes us, because it knew not him, it is because the world, that is to say, worldly, carnal men, neither knew nor loved him, that, therefore, they prize not your exalted privilege of divine filiation, through sanctifying grace. (Bishop John McEvilly)
3:2 we shall be like to him: As Dionysius says (Div. Nom. ix) "the same things are both like and unlike God. They are like by reason of a variable imitation of the Inimitable"---that is, because, so far as they can, they imitate God Who cannot be imitated perfectly---"they are unlike because they are the effects of a Cause of Whom they fall short infinitely and immeasurably." (St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica 2.19.11.r2)
3:3 sanctifies himself: See how he has not taken away free-will, in that he says,
purifies himself.Who purifies us but God? But God does not purify you if you be unwilling. Therefore, in that you join your will to God, in that you purify yourself. You purify yourself, not by yourself, but by Him who comes to inhabit you. Still, because you do somewhat therein by the will, therefore is somewhat attributed to you. (St. Augustine) 3:4 sin is iniquity: The interpretation of the verse depends on the meaning of the words "sin" and "iniquity“. St. Ambrose and St. Augustine think that "sin" is more grievous than "iniquity." Others, among whom is St. Gregory, understand them to mean the same thing, although there may be some difference in the signification of both words. It is, however, more probable, that "sin," is employed to denote every grievous departure from the rule of right reason, or the dictates of the moral law, although not punishable with penalties by human law, sins of uncleanness and impurity (Bishop John McEvilly)
3:6 sins not: This means that any one who is adopted as a son, or born again as a son of God, receives gifts of the Holy Spirit, which of themselves are powerful enough to keep the man from sin, nor can he sin so long as he lives according to them: he may however act contrary to them, and by sinning depart from them. He that is born of God, cannot sin, in the same way that ‘warm water cannot chill one,’ or ‘the just man never acts unjustly,’ to wit, in so far as he is just.” (St. Thomas Aquinas On God and His Creatures 4.70) And he abides in Christ who constantly exercises his powers, and never ceases from exercising them. (Oecumenius)
3:7 let no man deceive you: as the heretics of the day were attempting to do, such as, the Nicolaites and Simonians, whose fundamental error, as is also the case with modern heretics, was, that faith, without good works, confers justification. (Bishop John McEvilly)
3:8 is of the devil: by imitating the devil. For the devil made no man, begot no man, created no man: but whoso imitates the devil, that person, as if begotten of him, becomes a child of the devil; by imitating him, not literally by being begotten of him. (St. Augustine) the devil sinned from the beginning: not from the first moment of his creation, but shortly after it. And this was the beginning of sin. (Cornelius a Lapide) A governor does not always suggest to his subjects to obey his will; but proposes to all the sign of his will, in consequence of which some are incited by inducement, and some of their own free-will, as is plain in the leader of an army, whose standard all the soldiers follow, though no one persuades them. Therefore in the same way, the first sin of the devil, who "sinned from the beginning", is held out to all to be followed, and some imitate at his suggestion, and some of their own will without any suggestion. And hence the devil is the head of all the wicked, inasmuch as they imitate Him, according to Wis. 2:24,25: "By the envy of the devil, death came into the world. And they follow him that are of his side." (St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica 3.8.7.r2) that he might destroy the works of the devil: Christ came to destroy the works of the devil, not by powerful deeds, but rather by suffering from him and his members, so as to conquer the devil by righteousness, not by power; thus Augustine says (De Trin. xiii) that "the devil was to be overcome, not by the power of God, but by righteousness." (St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica 3.41.1.r2)
3:9 Commits not sin: That is, as long as he keepeth in himself this seed of grace, and this divine generation, by which he is born of God. But then he may fall from this happy state, by the abuse of his free will, as appears from Rom. 11:20-22; Cor. 9:27; and 10:12; Phil. 2:12; Apoc. 3:11. (Bishop Richard Challoner) The words "cannot sin" are to be understood, as logicians say, in the sense, that he cannot continue in mortal sin, and be at the same time, a son of God, both being as incompatible as "the association of light with darkness, or of Christ with Belial."— 2 Cor. 6:14(Bishop John McEvilly)
3:10 Love alone distinguishes between the children of God and the children of the devil. (St. Augustine)
3:12 of the wicked one: Cain was not of God, but of the devil, by imitating him, and listening to his suggestions. (Cornelius a Lapide) his own works were wicked: Cain was not condemned because the kind of offering he made was worthless, for he offered to God from by which he was himself was accustomed to live. But because of the unrighteous mind of the offerer, he was cast down together with his gifts by the one who looks into the heart. (St. Bede Commentary on Gen 4:12)
3:13 The hatred of the good, by the wicked, is almost as old as creation, as is seen in the foregoing example. (Bishop John McEvilly) For religion is abomination to the sinner, as Scripture bears witness. (St. Bede)
3:14 We know: The love of our brethren is the sign whereby we may know that we are in this happy state of spiritual translation. Of course, it can be no more than a probable sign or conjecture in any individual case; for, as no one can know with an absolute certainty that he has this love of his brethren in the required degree, so, neither can he be absolutely certain that he is in the state of grace. He cannot have a greater certainty of the existence of the thing signified, than he has of the existence of the sign itself. abides in death: That is, remains in the state of mortal sin and spiritual death, which involves a liability to eternal death. (Bishop John McEvilly)
3:15 The hatred of which he speaks is a grievous hatred, containing a wish for the death and destruction of our neighbor; the man who entertains such a hatred is a murderer in heart and wish; the internal act derives its species and malignity from the external act to which it extends. (Bishop John McEvilly)
3:16 Are we bound to risk our own lives for the sake of the lives of others? In ordinary cases, No, but in extraordinary cases, Yes. As when bound by oath or promise, or in defence of our country. But a friend is not bound to risk his own life for that of his friend, since that would be to love his neighbour even more than himself, which, St. Augustine says (de Mend. cap. 10), goes beyond the rule laid down. But yet to do so would be laudable, for a man would risk his life for the sake of honour, and for the virtue of friendship. And this is a spiritual good, higher than life itself. (Cornelius a Lapide)
3:17 Our laying down our lives for the brethren is a case which seldom happens, the duty of relieving the needy frequently occurs. (Oecumenius)
3:18 Now the love of our neighbor requires that not only should we be our neighbor's well-wishers, but also his well-doers. And in order to be a person's well-wisher and well-doer, we ought to succor his needs: this is done by almsgiving. (St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica 2.32.5.a)
3:20 Thomas Anglicus merely applies the passage thus, If the sin of the heart is great, greater is God’s compassion in forgiving. And God too is greater than our heart, because He alone satisfies the desires of our heart, and even overflows and surpasses them. (Cornelius a Lapide)
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