No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
Parallel translations
- WEB No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God remains in us, and his love has been perfected in us.
- BSB No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us.
- NKJV No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.
- NASB No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us.
- NLT No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.
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
No one has ever seen God, but when believers love one another, God lives in them and his love reaches its goal. Our love makes the unseen God visible.
Overview
Echoing John 1:18, this verse notes that God is invisible, yet his presence is made evident through the mutual love of his people. 'His love has been perfected' means God's love attains its intended purpose as it works itself out in the community of believers. Christian love thus becomes a tangible witness to a watching world of the God it cannot see.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- John 1:18No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
- 1 Jn 2:5But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
- 1 Jn 4:17–18Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this 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.
- 1 Jn 4:20If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
- 1 Jn 3:24And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
- Exod 33:20And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
- 1 Jn 4:6We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
- Heb 11:27By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
- Num 12:8With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?
- Gen 32:30And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
- 1 Tim 1:17Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
- 1 Cor 13:13And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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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 4:12 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.