Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God,
Parallel translations
- WEB Beloved, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have boldness toward God;
- KJV Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
- NKJV Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.
- NASB Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God;
- NLT Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence.
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
When our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God. A clear conscience brings boldness in his presence.
Overview
The flip side of the previous verses: when our conscience is at peace, we can approach God with boldness. This confidence is not self-righteousness but assurance born of genuine faith and love. It opens the way to confident prayer, described in the following verse.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 1 Jn 2:28And now, little children, remain in Christ, so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.
- Heb 4:16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
- 2 Cor 1:12And this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in relation to you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God—not in worldly wisdom, but in the grace of God.
- Ps 101:2I will ponder the way that is blameless—when will You come to me? I will walk in my house with integrity of heart.
- Ps 7:3–5O LORD my God, if I have done this, if injustice is on my hands,
- 1 Jn 5:14And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
- Heb 10:22let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
- Job 22:26Surely then you will delight in the Almighty and lift up your face to God.
- 1 Jn 4:17In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
- 1 Cor 4:4My conscience is clear, but that does not vindicate me. It is the Lord who judges me.
- Job 27:6I will cling to my righteousness and never let go. As long as I live, my conscience will not accuse me.
- 1 Tim 2:8Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or dissension.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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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 3:21 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.