1 John 3:1

Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — John writes to a community of believers under pressure from false teachers, asserting their identity before the next verse moves to their future glorification.

The words — ἴδετε (idete) is an imperative: "see" or "look," not a gentle suggestion but a command to fix attention on what follows. ἀγάπην (agapēn) is the object of that gaze — the love itself is what has been given, not merely the status it produces.

The thread — John 1:12 grants the right to become children of God to those who believe; Galatians 3:26 states the fact flatly ("you are all sons of God"); 2 Corinthians 6:18 quotes the Father's own pledge.

Why it lands — The verse does not ask the reader to feel chosen; it asks them to see that their identity is already fixed and that the world's failure to recognize them is the world's defect, not theirs.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

Cross-references

John 1:12 But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—
Galatians 3:26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 6:18 And: “I will be a Father to you, and you will be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
Galatians 4:5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 17:25 Righteous Father, although the world has not known You, I know You, and they know that You sent Me.
Psalms 36:7 How precious is Your loving devotion, O God, that the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings!
1 John 4:9 This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.
John 15:18 If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first.
Revelation 21:7 The one who overcomes will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son.