1 John 4:12

1 John 4:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
• New International Version (NIV)No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
• New King James Version (NKJV)No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.
• New Living Translation (NLT)No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.

Context of 1 John 4:12

10In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

1 John 4:12 word by word

θεὸν οὐδεὶς πώποτε τεθέαται· ἐὰν ἀγαπῶμεν ἀλλήλους, ὁ θεὸς ἐν ἡμῖν μένει καὶ ἡ ἀγάπη αὐτοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν τετελειωμένη ἐστίν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• No manοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762
• hath seenθεάομαιtheaomai · to look atG2300
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• at any timeπώποτεpōpote · everG4455
• Ifἐάνean · ifG1437
• we loveἀγαπάωagapaō · to loveG25
• one anotherἀλλήλωνallēlōn · one anotherG240
• Godὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• dwellethμένωmenō · to stayG3306
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• usἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• loveἀγάπηagapē · loveG26
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• perfectedτελειόωteleioō · to perfectG5048

Cross-references for 1 John 4:12

• 1 John 4:20If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
• Genesis 32:30So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered."
• Exodus 33:20But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live."
• Numbers 12:8With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?"
• John 1:18No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
• 1 Timothy 1:17To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
• 1 Timothy 6:16who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
• Hebrews 11:27By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.
• 1 John 4:6We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
• 1 John 3:24Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
• 1 John 4:17By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.
• 1 John 2:5but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:
• 1 Corinthians 13:13So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Commentaries on 1 John 4:12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12No man hath seen God at any time - The very words, with the change of ̔ for , of this apostle in his gospel, John 1:18. We may feel him, though we cannot see him; and if we love one another he dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us - it has then its full accomplishment, having moulded us according to its own nature.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12No man hath seen God at any time - See the notes at John 1:18, where the same declaration occurs. The statement seems to be made here in order to introduce a remark to show in what way we may know that we have any true knowledge of God. The idea is, “He has never indeed been seen by mortal eyes. We are not, then, to expect to become acquainted with what he is in that way. But there is a method by which we may be assured that we have a true knowledge of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-13Verses 7-13 The Spirit of God is the Spirit of love. He that does not love the image of God in his people, has no saving knowledge of God. For it is God's nature to be kind, and to give happiness. The law of God is love; and all would have been perfectly happy, had all obeyed it. The provision of the gospel, for the forgiveness of sin, and the salvation of sinners, consistently with God's glory and justice, shows that God is love. Mystery and darkness…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11-12Those who have received God’s love will also love others who belong to God. When we show love to one another, it becomes clear that we truly love God.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. God, whom no man hath seen at any time, hath appointed His children as the visible recipients of our outward kindness which flows from love to Himself, "whom not having seen, we love," compare Notes, 1Jo 4:11, 1Jo 4:19, 20. Thus 1Jo 4:12 explains why, instead (in 1Jo 4:11) of saying, "If God so loved us, we ought also to love God," he said, "We ought also to love one another." If we love one another, God dwelleth in us--for God is love; and it must…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 John 4:12

• Commandments
• Fellowship
• God Continued...
• Love
• Perfection
• Righteousness

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Benevolence
• Dwell
• Fear
• Love
• Perfect
• Brotherly Kindness; Brotherly Love
• Johannine Theology
• John, the Epistles of

Commentaries on 1 John 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings