Bible Strands
1 John 5:2
By this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep His commandments.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The author addresses believers who have already been identified as born of God, closing his immediate argument on familial love before turning to the nature of divine obedience.
The words — ἐν (en) translates literally as "by" or "through," and γινώσκομεν (ginōskomen) means "we know," framing the verse as an evidential statement rather than a definition.
The thread — The connection between love and obedience runs through John 13:34 on mutual love, 1 John 2:5 on keeping His word, and 1 John 3:22 on obedience pleasing God and securing requests.
Why it lands — The text states that loving God and keeping His commandments directly identifies love for God’s children, requiring readers to treat obedience as the concrete proof of their affection rather than an internal feeling.
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
By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
Cross-references
- John 13:34 A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.
- 1 John 2:5 But if anyone keeps His word, the love of God has been truly perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him:
- 1 John 3:22 and we will receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight.
- John 15:17 This is My command to you: Love one another.
- 1 John 4:21 And we have this commandment from Him: Whoever loves God must love his brother as well.