1 John 2:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.

NIV: Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist--denying the Father and the Son.

NASB: Who is the liar except the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.

CSB: Who is the liar, if not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This one is the antichrist: the one who denies the Father and the Son.

NLT: And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist.

KJV: Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

NKJV: Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.

John next defines the kind of liar he has in mind: someone who denies that Jesus is the Christ, meaning the Messiah. The concept of a liar is mentioned four other times in this letter (1 John 1:10; 2:4; 4:20; 5:10). A liar denies Jesus is the Savior. A liar may acknowledge some aspects of who Jesus is, but does not accept the true message of Jesus as both fully human and fully divine.

After mentioning "antichrists" in verse 18, John adds that an antichrist denies the Father and Son. One noted aspect of an antichrist, or false teacher, in this verse, is that the false teacher denies the triune God. Many religious groups accept God the Father or Jesus or the Holy Spirit, but not all three persons as the one triune God. Any religion that accepts Jesus as something less than eternal God, fully human and divine, is a false religion and fits the description of false teachers called antichrists in this passage.

First John 2:18–27 warns against those who oppose Christ in their teachings. These ''anti-Christs'' deny that Jesus is God. They reject Him as part of the Trinity, or claim He did not appear in the flesh. John again makes reference to truth ''abiding'' in someone, encouraging his readers to hold to the gospel that saved them.

Chapter 2 explains the fellowship Christians have with God. Christ is our advocate, even when we sin. Christians are not to love things of the world, or to love the world. Instead, we are to live, love, and act like Christ. False teachers, and those who deny Jesus are called ''liars.'' Those who demonstrate a Christ-like behavior are ''born of'' God.

Chapter 1 introduced the primary themes of John’s letter. Chapters 2 and 3 lay out a detailed description of how Christian conduct is meant to be marked by obedience to the truth. Christians are called to live like Christ. Therefore, those who do not (live that way) do not have ''the truth'' in them. Later chapters of this letter will fill in how Christian love and conduct give us confidence in our daily lives.

First John seems to assume that the reader is familiar with the gospel. Rather than re-state these facts, John is concerned with building confidence in Christian believers. At the same time, his words encourage believers to examine their own lives for signs of their relationship with Christ. This letter also challenges false teachers and their incorrect claims about Jesus. Many themes are shared with the Gospel of John.

Accessed 5/2/2024 4:31:51 PM