1 John 1:5

WEB KJV BSB ESV NKJV NASB NLT

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5 · King James Version

Parallel translations

WEB This is the message which we have heard from him and announce to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
BSB And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
NKJV This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.
NASB This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
NLT This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The core message is that God is light, perfectly holy and pure, with no darkness in him. His character sets the standard for fellowship with him.

Overview

John summarizes the apostolic message: 'God is light.' Light signifies God's holiness, truth, and moral purity, utterly free of sin or evil ('darkness'). This declaration grounds the moral tests that follow: those who claim fellowship with a holy God must walk in holiness. It points to Christ, the true light who reveals God.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 15

John 8:12Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Jas 1:17Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
Isa 60:19The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.
Ps 27:1The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
John 1:9That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
John 1:4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
Rev 22:5And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
Rev 21:23And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
John 12:35–36Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.
John 9:5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
1 Tim 6:16Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.
Ps 36:9For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.
Ps 84:11For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
1 Jn 3:11For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
1 Cor 11:23For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

DARKNESS FELLOWSHIP LIGHT REPROBACY UNBELIEF

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — 1 John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on 1 John 1:5YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Jesus is the Word of life made manifest, the propitiation for our sins, the Son in whom is eternal life — 'that you may know that you have eternal life.'

How 1 John 1:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.

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