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.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The author of 1 John writes to believers to clarify how divine birth affects their relationship to sin and the evil one. He places this declaration between the note about sins that do not lead to death and the statement that the world lies under the evil one's power.

The words — οἴδαμεν (oidamen) means "we know" and functions as a firm assurance, while γεγεννημένος (gegennēmenos) translates literally as "having been born." These terms ground the verse in the factual reality of spiritual rebirth rather than moral achievement.

The thread — The connection between new birth and resistance to sin runs through 1 John 3:9 and 1 John 5:4, where the same origin produces victory over the world. The author reinforces this protective boundary in 1 John 5:19 by contrasting the believer's origin with the world's subjection to the evil one.

Why it lands — The text states that being born of God halts a continuous pattern of sin and places the individual under divine protection rather than Satan's reach. It requires the reader to acknowledge that spiritual origin, not personal striving, determines who the evil one can touch.

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

We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.

Cross-references

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 5:4 because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.
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.
Jude 1:21 keep yourselves in the love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.
Jude 1:24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you unblemished in His glorious presence, with great joy—
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.
1 John 3:3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as Christ is pure.
James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.
Psalms 119:101 I have kept my feet from every evil path, that I may keep Your word.