The Pulpit Commentary — 1 John — Section 108

c-ovc>rs both thc> q unllty Rnd the quantity of verse, A.II of eh. l. 1, 8, would be etrnincd the Jove. Kai belongs solely to ;,µ,'is: "we and rather unroal in one who ha,l not seen nlso on our pnrt ought to love one another." the Christ in the flesh. Noto that .,...,-rijpa "'e should have expe<.•ted e.s the npodosis, he.s no article, and is not in more apposition, •· we nlsn ought to love God." But this link but is a second predicate: "The Father hath in the thought the apostle omits ns self- sent [see on ver. 10] the Son as Saviour," i.e. <'\·i<lent, Rnd passes on to stnte what neces- to be euch. "The world," as commonly in sarily follows from it. In rnr. 12 he shows St. John's writings, is specially the unre- how ·1ovingGod involves loving one's fellow- generate among tho hum1m rnce. men (oomp. oh. ii. 5 for a similar pRSsage Ver. 15.- Whosoever oonfesseth (fis a,, over an interrne<liRte link). ~µoAorf11Tf1). This rendering seems prefer- Yer. 12.-No one hath ever yet beheld Rblo to" whosoever Bhall coufess" or "shall God. 8•&v stands first for emphasis, and have confessed." The exo.ot meaning is, without the article, e.s meaning the Divine "Whosoever has once for all taken up the Being rnther than the Father in particular : position of confessing." Ver. 14 go.ve the "'With regard to God-no one bath ever case of the npostlee; this gives that of those yet beheld him" (n8,a:ra1, stronger thnn who accept their witness. In the next verse ,r:ipa1«v). Why does St. John introduce we have that of both together. this statement here? Not, of course, as Ver. 16.-And we have come to know and implying that to love an invisible Being is believe. Both perfects are virtuo.lly presents, impos.~il.ile; but that the only security for expressing the present continuance of a genuine and lasting love in such a case is condition begun in the past : " We know to love that which visibly represents him. and continue to believe." Experience and Seeing tho.t God is invisible, his a.biding in faith are inLimately connected; and some- us co.n he shown only by his essentie.l cha- times the one precedes, sometimes the other racteristic being cxhi bited in us, i.e. by our (John vi. 69). As in ver. 9, lv 11uiv should showing similar self-sacrificing love. 'H be rendered in us, not "t.o us" or " toward izycfTr'TI a/,,-oii can scarcely mean God's love us;" and here also the interpretation, "in for us ; for how can our loving one another our case," is certainly possible, and perhaps make his Jove perfect? Nor yet vagnely, safer. But the meaning may be that the "the relation of love between us and God;" object of our knowledge and faith is that but, as in eh. iL 5, our love for him. Our portion of his own love which God has in love towards God is perfected and brought m.. It is "in us," and is exercised towards to maturity by the exercise of love towards him and our brethren, but in reality it is our brethren in him. his-it is himself abiding in us. In either Yer. 13.-Alrnost identical with eh. iii. case love is the object of our faith. Thus 2-1. In vcrs. 1-7 tl,e apostle says that love is not only the true note of the Church confession of the Incarnation proves pos- (John xiii. 35), it is also the Churoh's creed. Hession of the Spirit; and in ver. 12 that 1'he second half of the verse restates the love of the brethren proves the indwelling main proposition of this section with a view of God. He now (rnr. 13) goes on to say to further development. that poesell&ion of the Spirit proves the Ver. 17.-Thie verse raises various ques- indwelling of God; aud (ver. 15) that con- tions which oan scarcely be answered with fession of the Inca.rnation proves the same. certainty. Does "herein" ( lv -ro6-rq,) look So that these four fac~nfeesion of the back to ver. 16? or forwards to "that" Incarnation. possession of the Spirit, love (t'va.)? or forwards to "because" (8n)? of our fellow-men, and indwelling of God- Again, does "with us" (µe8' 11µwv) belong mutually involve one another. St. John to "is made perfect" (-r•nA,lw-r,u)? or to does not say, "He has given us hie Spirit," "love" (11 l.y&1r11)? John xv. 8 inclines but "of his Spirit (iK -rov nvd,µa-ros a/,,-ov)." DB to refer "herein" to "that" (Yva); and It is impossili!e for us to receive more than ·• with us" or '' among us'' goes better with a portion ; the fulness of the Spirit is pos- the verb than with the subject: "Herein sessed by Christ alone. In John i. 16 we has Jove reached its perfection among us have a similar use of <K (comp. John xii 3). Christians, i.e. in the Church, that we ho.vo Yer. 14.-And we have beheld, and do confi<lence in the day of judgment." 'l'his bear witness. The emphatic 11µ••• clearly is the perfection of love, to have no fro.r. means "we apostles;" and ''beheld" ( -r•8•a.· The 3n introduces the reason for this confi- µe8a) implies contemplation with bodily dence: its bnsis is our likeness i,o Christ, eyes, e.s in ver. 12. The invisible God can especially in being united to the Fo.ther be only "invisibly seen" by the pure bee.rt. (John xvii. 21, 23, 26). Compo.re "even a, But the incarnate Son has been visibly he is pure" ( eh. iii. 3), and '' even as he is contemplated; and to bear witness of thiA righteous" (oh. iii. 7): 1<a.6ws <K•ivos in o.11 fe.ct we.a the very office of an apostle tJohn three cases. :u. 27; Acui i. B). The language of this Ver. 18.-Love implies attraction, fear (l)t, IV'. 1-21.J THE Fms·r EPISTLE GENERAL OF JOHN. 10-i