1 John 2:7

WEB KJV BSB ESV NKJV NASB NLT

Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
1 John 2:7 · King James Version

Parallel translations

WEB Brothers, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.
BSB Beloved, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old one, which you have had from the beginning. This commandment is the message you have heard.
NKJV Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.
NASB Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.
NLT Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before.

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 command to love is not new but the old commandment they had from the beginning. It is the long-standing heart of God's word.

Overview

John reassures readers he is not introducing novelty; the call to love has been theirs from the start of their Christian instruction (and is rooted in the Old Testament). By calling it 'old,' he grounds it in the established gospel message. This sets up the paradox of the next verse, where the same command is also 'new.'

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 14

1 Jn 3:11For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
Lev 19:18Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Mark 12:29–34And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
2 Jn 1:5–6And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
Rom 13:8–10Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Gal 5:13–14For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Matt 22:37–40Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
1 Jn 3:23And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
Lev 19:34But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
Deut 6:5And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
1 Jn 2:24Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.
Jas 2:8–12If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:
Matt 5:43Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
Acts 17:19And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?

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 2:7YouTube · 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 2:7 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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