1 John 3:10
New International Version
This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.

New Living Translation
So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.

English Standard Version
By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

Berean Standard Bible
By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother.

Berean Literal Bible
Through this, the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: anyone not practicing righteousness is not of God, and also the one not loving his brother.

King James Bible
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

New King James Version
In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.

New American Standard Bible
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother and sister.

NASB 1995
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

NASB 1977
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

Legacy Standard Bible
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifested: everyone who does not do righteousness is not of God, as well as the one who does not love his brother.

Amplified Bible
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are clearly identified: anyone who does not practice righteousness [who does not seek God’s will in thought, action, and purpose] is not of God, nor is the one who does not [unselfishly] love his [believing] brother.

Christian Standard Bible
This is how God’s children and the devil’s children become obvious. Whoever does not do what is right is not of God, especially the one who does not love his brother or sister.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
This is how God’s children—and the Devil’s children—are made evident. Whoever does not do what is right is not of God, especially the one who does not love his brother.

American Standard Version
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

Contemporary English Version
You can tell God's children from the devil's children, because those who belong to the devil refuse to do right or to love each other.

English Revised Version
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
This is the way God's children are distinguished from the devil's children. Everyone who doesn't do what is right or love other believers isn't God's child.

Good News Translation
Here is the clear difference between God's children and the Devil's children: those who do not do what is right or do not love others are not God's children.

International Standard Version
This is how God's children and the devil's children are distinguished. No person who fails to practice righteousness and to love his brother is from God.

Majority Standard Bible
By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother.

NET Bible
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed: Everyone who does not practice righteousness--the one who does not love his fellow Christian--is not of God.

New Heart English Bible
In this the children of God are revealed, and the children of the devil. Whoever does not do righteousness is not of God, neither is he who does not love his brother.

Webster's Bible Translation
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

Weymouth New Testament
By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.

World English Bible
In this the children of God are revealed, and the children of the devil. Whoever doesn’t do righteousness is not of God, neither is he who doesn’t love his brother.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
In this are revealed the children of God, and the children of the Devil; everyone who is not doing righteousness, is not of God, and he who is not loving his brother,

Berean Literal Bible
Through this, the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: anyone not practicing righteousness is not of God, and also the one not loving his brother.

Young's Literal Translation
In this manifest are the children of God, and the children of the devil; every one who is not doing righteousness, is not of God, and he who is not loving his brother,

Smith's Literal Translation
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the accuser: every one not doing justice is not of God, and he not loving his brother.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whosoever is not just, is not of God, nor he that loveth not his brother.

Catholic Public Domain Version
In this way, the sons of God are made manifest, and also the sons of the devil. Everyone who is not just, is not of God, as also anyone who does not love his brother.

New American Bible
In this way, the children of God and the children of the devil are made plain; no one who fails to act in righteousness belongs to God, nor anyone who does not love his brother.

New Revised Standard Version
The children of God and the children of the devil are revealed in this way: all who do not do what is right are not from God, nor are those who do not love their brothers and sisters.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
In this the children of God can be distinguished from the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness and does not love his brother, does not belong to God.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of Satan: No one who does not do righteousness, neither loves his brother, is from God.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
By this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil. Whoever does not work righteousness is not of God; neither is he that loves not his brother.

Godbey New Testament
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: every one not doing righteousness is not of God, and the one not loving his brother with divine love.

Haweis New Testament
By this the children of God are manifestly seen, and the children of the devil. Every one that doth not practise righteousness, is not of God, and he that loveth not his brother.

Mace New Testament
In this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: he that does not practise virtue, and fraternal benevolence, is not of God.

Weymouth New Testament
By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.

Worrell New Testament
In this are manifest the children of God and the children of the Devil: every one that does not righteousness is not of God, neither he that does not love his brother;

Worsley New Testament
In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doth not practise righteousness, and he who loveth not his brother, is not of God:

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Children of God
9Anyone born of God refuses to practice sin, because God’s seed abides in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother. 11This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.…

Cross References
John 8:44
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

Matthew 13:38
The field is the world, and the good seed represents the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,

John 13:35
By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”

1 John 2:29
If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.

1 John 4:7-8
Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. / Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

1 John 5:2-3
By this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep His commandments. / For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome,

Galatians 5:19-21
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; / idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, / and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

James 2:14-17
What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith, but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? / Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. / If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that? ...

Romans 8:14-16
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. / For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption to sonship, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” / The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.

Ephesians 5:1-2
Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children, / and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.

2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? / What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? / What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.” ...

Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

John 1:12-13
But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God— / children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.

Romans 9:8
So it is not the children of the flesh who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as offspring.

Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”


Treasury of Scripture

In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whoever does not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loves not his brother.

the children of God.

1 John 5:2
By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.

Luke 6:35
But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

Romans 8:16,17
The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: …

and.

Matthew 13:38
The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

John 8:44
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Acts 13:10
And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?

whosoever.

1 John 3:7,8
Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous…

1 John 2:29
If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.

is.

1 John 4:3,4,6
And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world…

1 John 5:19
And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

John 8:47
He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

neither.

1 John 3:14,15
We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death…

1 John 2:9,10
He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now…

1 John 4:8,21
He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love…

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1 John 3
1. He declares the singular love of God toward us, in making us his sons;
3. who therefore ought obediently to keep his commandments;
11. as also to love one another as brothers.














By this
This phrase serves as a pivotal transition, indicating a clear criterion or evidence for distinguishing between two groups. In the Greek, "ἐν τούτῳ" (en toutō) suggests a definitive marker or sign. The Apostle John often uses such phrases to emphasize the clarity and certainty of spiritual truths. This introduction sets the stage for a profound spiritual dichotomy.

the children of God
The term "children" (τέκνα, tekna) implies a familial relationship, emphasizing intimacy and identity. In the context of the New Testament, being a "child of God" signifies a rebirth through faith in Jesus Christ, as seen in John 1:12-13. This identity is not merely a title but a transformative reality, reflecting God's nature and character in the believer's life.

and the children of the devil
This stark contrast highlights the spiritual reality of two opposing lineages. The phrase "children of the devil" is a sobering reminder of the spiritual warfare and the influence of sin. In John 8:44, Jesus refers to those who reject Him as having the devil as their father, emphasizing the moral and spiritual implications of one's allegiance.

are distinguished
The Greek word "φανερά ἐστιν" (phanera estin) means "are made manifest" or "are evident." This suggests that the distinction between the two groups is not hidden but visible and recognizable. The lives of individuals reveal their spiritual parentage through their actions and attitudes.

Anyone who does not practice righteousness
The phrase "practice righteousness" (ποιῶν δικαιοσύνην, poiōn dikaiosynēn) implies ongoing, habitual action. Righteousness, in a biblical sense, is living in accordance with God's standards and commands. This is not about occasional acts but a lifestyle that reflects God's holiness and justice.

is not of God
This phrase underscores the seriousness of the matter. To be "of God" means to belong to Him, to be part of His family. The absence of righteousness in one's life is a clear indicator of not being aligned with God's nature. This echoes Jesus' teaching in Matthew 7:16-20, where He speaks of recognizing people by their fruits.

nor is anyone who does not love his brother
Love is a central theme in John's writings, and here it is presented as a non-negotiable evidence of being God's child. The Greek word for love, "ἀγαπῶν" (agapōn), refers to selfless, sacrificial love, the kind that Jesus demonstrated. Loving one's brother is not just an emotional feeling but an active commitment to the well-being of others, reflecting the love of Christ.

Verse 10. - The question whether "in this" ἐν τούτῳ refers to what precedes or to what follows is here unimportant, for both are similar in meaning; and "in this" may refer to both. "By their fruits ye shall know them." The children of God do righteousness, and not sin; the children of the devil do sin, and not righteousness. Of course, moral parentage is meant in both cases. Nothing here lends any countenance to the view that the writer is a dualist and inculcates two principles of existence - God and the devil. All, whether good or bad, are God's creatures (John 1:3); but while all are his children by creation, some become his children spiritually also, while others become the children of Satan. St. John's "teaching about the devil is not at all agreeable to those who dwell exclusively on the sunny aspects of the world and of life, and would shut their eyes to what is dark and terrible. They like to hear of a Being who is all-gracious and loving; the vision of one who is the enemy of all that is gracious and loving shocks them - they wish to suppose that it belongs to the world's infancy, and that it disappears as we know more" (Maurice). The expression, "the children of the devil," must not be confounded with the Hebraistic expressions, "children of perdition, children of darkness," "children of light, son of death," "son of perdition," etc. As so often, St. John not only restates the case in a new form, but adds a new thought to it - he that loveth not his brother. This forms the link with the next section (verses 13-24), on brotherly love. Of all failures in doing righteousness this is the most conspicuous - failing to love one's brother. And who is my brother? The answer is the same as to the question, "And who is my neighbour?" Mankind at large. The meaning cannot be limited to the children of God. Even τοὺς ἀδελφούς (verses 14, 16) does not exclude unbelievers, still less does τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ. This is confirmed:

(1) By the fact that the opposite case (verse 13) is the children of the world hating Christians; the true opposite of Christians loving Christians would be the children of the world hating one another.

(2) By the cited example of Christ (verse 16), who died for us when we were aliens from God. Of course, if the Christian must love all men, a fortiori he must love Christians.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
By
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

this
τούτῳ (toutō)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

the
τὰ (ta)
Article - Nominative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

children
τέκνα (tekna)
Noun - Nominative Neuter Plural
Strong's 5043: A child, descendent, inhabitant. From the base of timoria; a child.

of God
Θεοῦ (Theou)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

are
ἐστιν (estin)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

distinguished
φανερά (phanera)
Adjective - Nominative Neuter Plural
Strong's 5318: Apparent, clear, visible, manifest; adv: clearly. From phaino; shining, i.e. Apparent; neuter publicly, externally.

[from] the
τὰ (ta)
Article - Nominative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

children
τέκνα (tekna)
Noun - Nominative Neuter Plural
Strong's 5043: A child, descendent, inhabitant. From the base of timoria; a child.

of the
τοῦ (tou)
Article - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

devil:
διαβόλου (diabolou)
Adjective - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 1228: From diaballo; a traducer; specially, Satan.

Anyone
πᾶς (pas)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3956: All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.

who
(ho)
Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

does not practice
ποιῶν (poiōn)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 4160: (a) I make, manufacture, construct, (b) I do, act, cause. Apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do.

righteousness
δικαιοσύνην (dikaiosynēn)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1343: From dikaios; equity; specially justification.

is
ἔστιν (estin)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

not
οὐκ (ouk)
Adverb
Strong's 3756: No, not. Also ouk, and ouch a primary word; the absolute negative adverb; no or not.

of
ἐκ (ek)
Preposition
Strong's 1537: From out, out from among, from, suggesting from the interior outwards. A primary preposition denoting origin, from, out.

God,
Θεοῦ (Theou)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

[nor is]
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

anyone who
(ho)
Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

does not love
ἀγαπῶν (agapōn)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 25: To love, wish well to, take pleasure in, long for; denotes the love of reason, esteem. Perhaps from agan; to love.

his
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

brother.
ἀδελφὸν (adelphon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 80: A brother, member of the same religious community, especially a fellow-Christian. A brother near or remote.


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NT Letters: 1 John 3:10 In this the children of God (1J iJ 1Jn i jn 1 jo)
1 John 3:9
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