¹Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, if they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

¹Wapenzi wangu, msimsadiki kila mtu asemaye kwamba ana Roho wa Mungu, bali chunguzeni kwa makini kama huyo mtu anaongozwa na Roho wa Mungu au la, Maana manabii wengi wa uongo wamezuka ulimwenguni.

²Hereby ye know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses Jesus Christ come in flesh is of God;

²Hii ndiyo njia ya kujua kama mtu anaongozwa na Roho wa Mungu: Kila anayekiri kwamba Kristo alikuja, akawa binadamu, mtu huyo anaye Roho wa Mungu.

³and every spirit which does not confess Jesus Christ come in flesh is not of God: and this is that [power] of the antichrist, [of] which ye have heard that it comes, and now it is already in the world.

³Lakini mtu yeyote asiyemkiri Kristo hivyo, hana huyo Roho atokaye kwa Mungu. Mtu huyo ana roho ambaye ni wa Adui wa Kristo; nanyi mlikwisha sikia kwamba anakuja, na sasa tayari amekwisha wasili ulimwenguni!

⁴*Ye* are of God, children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that [is] in you than he that [is] in the world.

⁴Lakini ninyi, watoto, ni wake Mungu na mmekwisha washinda hao manabii wa uongo; maana Roho aliye ndani yenu ana nguvu zaidi kuliko roho aliye ndani ya hao walio wa ulimwengu.

⁵*They* are of the world; for this reason they speak [as] of the world, and the world hears them.

⁵Wao husema mambo ya ulimwengu, nao ulimwengu huwasikiliza kwani wao ni wa ulimwengu.

⁶*We* are of God; he that knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. From this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

⁶Lakini sisi ni wake Mungu. Mtu anayemjua Mungu hutusikiliza, mtu asiye wa Mungu hatusikilizi. Basi, kwa njia hiyo tunaweza kutambua tofauti kati ya Roho wa ukweli na roho wa uongo.

⁷Beloved, let us love one another; because love is of God, and every one that loves has been begotten of God, and knows God.

⁷Wapenzi wangu, tupendane, maana upendo hutoka kwa Mungu. Kila mtu aliye na upendo ni mtoto wa Mungu, na anamjua Mungu.

⁸He that loves not has not known God; for God is love.

⁸Mtu asiye na upendo hamjui Mungu, maana Mungu ni upendo.

⁹Herein as to us has been manifested the love of God, that God has sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

⁹Na Mungu alionyesha upendo wake kwetu kwa kumtuma Mwanae wa pekee ulimwenguni, ili tuwe na uzima kwa njia yake.

¹⁰Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son a propitiation for our sins.

¹⁰Hivi ndivyo upendo ulivyo: si kwamba sisi tulikuwa tumempenda Mungu kwanza, bali kwamba yeye alitupenda hata akamtuma Mwanae awe sadaka ya kutuondolea dhambi zetu.

¹¹Beloved, if God has so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

¹¹Wapenzi wangu, ikiwa Mungu alitupenda hivyo, basi, nasi tunapaswa kupendana.

¹²No one has seen God at any time: if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.

¹²Hakuna mtu aliyekwisha mwona Mungu kamwe; lakini kama tukipendana Mungu anaishi katika muungano nasi, na upendo wake unakamilika ndani yetu.

¹³Hereby we know that we abide in him and he in us, that he has given to us of his Spirit.

¹³Tunajua kwamba tunaishi katika umoja na Mungu, naye Mungu anaishi katika umoja nasi, kwani yeye ametupa Roho wake.

¹⁴And *we* have seen, and testify, that the Father has sent the Son [as] Saviour of the world.

¹⁴Sisi tumeona na kuwaambia wengine kwamba Baba alimtuma Mwanae awe Mwokozi wa ulimwengu.

¹⁵Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

¹⁵Kila mtu anayekiri kwamba Yesu ni Mwana wa Mungu, Mungu anaishi katika muungano na mtu huyo, naye anaishi katika muungano na Mungu.

¹⁶And *we* have known and have believed the love which God has to us. God is love, and he that abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

¹⁶Basi, sisi tunajua na tunaamini upendo alio nao Mungu kwetu sisi. Mungu ni upendo, na kila mtu aishiye katika upendo, anaishi katika muungano na Mungu, na Mungu anaishi katika muungano naye.

¹⁷Herein has love been perfected with us that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, that even as *he* is, *we* also are in this world.

¹⁷Upendo umekamilika ndani yetu kusudi tuweze kuwa na ujasiri Siku ile ya Hukumu; kwani maisha yetu hapa duniani ni kama yale ya Kristo.

¹⁸There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has torment, and he that fears has not been made perfect in love.

¹⁸Palipo na upendo hapana uoga; naam, upendo kamili hufukuza uoga wote. Basi, mtu mwenye uoga hajakamilika bado katika upendo, kwani uoga huhusikana na adhabu.

¹⁹*We* love because *he* has first loved us.

¹⁹Sisi tuna upendo kwa sababu Mungu alitupenda kwanza.

²⁰If any one say, I love God, and hate his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

²⁰Mtu akisema kwamba anampenda Mungu, hali anamchukia ndugu yake, huyo ni mwongo. Maana mtu asiyempenda ndugu yake ambaye anamwona, hawezi kumpenda Mungu ambaye hamwoni.

²¹And this commandment have we from him, That he that loves God love also his brother.

²¹Basi, hii ndiyo amri aliyotupa Kristo: Anayempenda Mungu anapaswa pia kumpenda ndugu yake.