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.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — John writes to a community where some members have begun to separate, claiming a spiritual identity while continuing in sin. The letter draws a hard diagnostic line between genuine regeneration and false profession.

The words — γεγεννημένος (gegennēmenos), a perfect passive participle, means "having been born" — a completed event whose effect persists in the present. This is the grammatical hinge of the argument: the birth is done, and its result is ongoing.

The thread — 1 John 5:18 restates the same claim with added emphasis on divine protection. The "born of God" language appears in John 1:13 and 1 Peter 1:23, where it is tied to the Word and to imperishable seed.

Why it lands — The verse forces a reader to check whether their claimed identity matches their actual trajectory. It is not a test of sinlessness but of direction: a life that keeps on sinning has not been born of God.

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 is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

Cross-references

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 Peter 1:23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
John 1:13 children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.
1 John 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves those born of Him.
1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.
Matthew 7:18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
John 3:3 Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
Galatians 5:17 For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want.
1 John 5:4 because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.
Romans 6:2 Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer?