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1 John 4:1
New Catholic Bible
1 John 4:1
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 4
The Spirit of the Antichrist in the World[a]
1 Beloved,
do not trust every spirit,
but test the spirits
to see whether they are from God.
For many false prophets
have gone out into the world.
Footnotes
- 1 John 4:1 We must learn to discern the thoughts of human beings—the “spirits.” Among the teachers and theorists that had appeared at this time there were those who did not acknowledge Jesus as the Lord and Savior and wished to impose their views on the Christian communities. John says that this is perversion, the appearance of false christs of the end times (see 1 Jn 2:18-22). He strengthens believers by telling them that they do not belong to the world, i.e., this universe that delights in its limitations and its own insignificances. They must believe in the Gospel of God proclaimed by the witnesses who have been sent, among whom he places himself by saying “We are from God” (v. 6).
