Limitless Word
And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.
1 John 3:19 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB And by this we know that we are of the truth, and persuade our hearts before him,
  • KJV And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
  • BSB And by this we will know that we belong to the truth, and will assure our hearts in His presence:
  • NASB We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will set our heart at ease before Him,
  • NLT Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

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

By loving in deed and truth we know we belong to the truth and can reassure our hearts before God. Active love quiets a troubled conscience.

Overview

Genuine love is evidence that we are 'of the truth,' giving us confidence before God. When our hearts are uneasy, the presence of real love assures us of our standing. This pastoral encouragement helps believers find peace of conscience grounded in the fruit of God's work in them.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 12

  • Heb 10:22let’s draw near with a true heart in fullness of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and having our body washed with pure water,
  • 1 Jn 3:21Beloved, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have boldness toward God;
  • Heb 6:10–11For God is not unrighteous, so as to forget your work and the labor of love which you showed toward his name, in that you served the saints, and still do serve them.
  • Isa 32:17The work of righteousness will be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
  • John 18:37Pilate therefore said to him, “Are you a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this reason I have been born, and for this reason I have come into the world, that I should testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”
  • John 13:35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
  • 1 Jn 1:8If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
  • 2 Tim 1:12For this cause I also suffer these things. Yet I am not ashamed, for I know him whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to guard that which I have committed to him against that day.
  • Rom 4:21and being fully assured that what he had promised, he was also able to perform.
  • 1 Jn 3:14We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. He who doesn’t love his brother remains in death.
  • Heb 11:13These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them and embraced them from afar, and having confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
  • Rom 8:38For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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 3:19YouTube · 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 3:19 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.