Bible Strands
1 John 3:6
No one who remains in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has seen Him or known Him.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The apostle John addresses his readers immediately after stating that Christ appeared to remove sin and possesses no sin Himself. He writes to believers to define the observable boundary between those who remain in Christ and those who do not.
The words — μένων (menōn) translates literally as "abiding" or "remaining," and ἁμαρτάνει (hamartanei) means "sins" or "practices sin." These terms establish a direct contrast between continuous fellowship with Christ and an ongoing pattern of wrongdoing.
The thread — The same link between claimed knowledge of God and actual conduct runs through 1 John 2:4 and 1 John 3:9, while 3 John 1:11 reinforces that consistent action reveals spiritual origin.
Why it lands — The text states that anyone who remains in Christ does not keep on sinning, and anyone who continues in sin has neither seen nor known Him. It requires readers to align their habitual conduct with their professed relationship to Christ rather than relying on verbal claims.
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
Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
Cross-references
- 3 John 1:11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.
- 1 John 2:4 If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
- 1 John 3:9 Anyone 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.
- 1 John 4:8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
- John 15:4 Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
- 1 John 5:18 We know that anyone born of God does not keep on sinning; the One who was born of God protects him, and the evil one cannot touch him.
- 1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.
- 2 Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
- 1 John 2:28 And now, little children, remain in Christ, so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.
- 2 Corinthians 3:18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.