Koine Foundations

Walking in the Darkness vs. Walking in the Light

^2:9 The one who says, “I am in the light,” and yet hates his fellow believer, is still in the darkness. ^2:10 The one who loves his fellow believer abides in the light and there is nothing in him to cause others to stumble. ^2:11 But the one who hates his fellow believer is in the darkness and is walking in the darkness. He does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Translation by the author from the SBL Greek New Testament.

Structure of Verses 2:9-11

Verses 2:9-11 are the closing inclusio of the unit that runs from 1:6 to 2:11. The opening inclusio was verses 1:6-7. An inclusio is a literary device where similar material is placed at the beginning and ending of a section to frame the contents.

Verses 2:9-11 are in the unit that runs from 1:6 to 2:11. Click here to open a PDF document that explains and illustrates the structure of verses 1:6-2:11.

Click here for a full outline of First John.

Verse 2:9

The one who says, “I am in the light,” and yet hates his fellow believer, is still in the darkness.

In verses 2:9-11, John introduces the duality of love and hate towards fellow believers which act as parallel concepts to light and darkness. Those who claim to be in the light (i.e., in fellowship with God) but hate other believers actually remain in the darkness. Being “in the light” means having fellowship with both God and fellow believers.

The duality of love and hate is a stark contrast with no middle ground. It will become clearer throughout the rest of the letter that for John, love must be expressed in actions. Love is not an internal sentimental feeling, but outward visible actions. Love that is not expressed is not really love. Hate is the absence of love actions. Love is not what one feels, but what one does.

Those who express love live in the light. Anything less than that is hate, and those who hate live in the darkness.

Verse 2:10

The one who loves his fellow believer abides in the light…

For John, love is not an internal feeling but external actions. Since the light is already shining (see verse 2:8), it is a proper response to God’s loving actions for believers to love fellow believers through their actions. Their lives should reflect the character of God who is the light. The one who loves their fellow believer abides in the light.

Remember that ultimately, God is the light (see verses 1:5 and 1:7), and Jesus Christ revealed the light in what He did and taught.

Greek Note: fellow believer

“fellow believer” is a translation of the Greek word ἀδελφόν / adelphon which has a basic meaning of “brother”. But just as in English, depending on the context “brother” can also mean someone who has common interests, or is related by social or ethnic interests. Obviously, John is not referring to only showing love to genetically related male believers. In this context of First John, ἀδελφόν refers to anyone who is a believer, male or female. Their commonality is belief in Christ. So, I have translated it as “fellow believer” rather than “brother” which better communicates what is meant by John.

…and there is nothing in him to cause others to stumble.

Because the one who loves lives in the light, he or she does not put obstacles in the path of another believer that causes that other believer to fail or fall. In contrast, the disruptors were creating obstacles for stumbling through their false teachings.

Greek Note: there is nothing in him to cause others to stumble

There is some ambiguity in the Greek that affects how this phrase can be translated. The Greek phrase is σκάνδαλον ἐν αὐτῷ οὐκ ἔστιν / skandalon en autō ouk estin. The word-for-word translation is “these is not a stumbling block in him / in it“.

The first issue is whether αὐτῷ / autō at the end of the phrase means “in him” or “in it”. English has separate pronouns for the third person singular – him, her, or it. In Greek, the third person masculine (“him”) and neuter (“it”) singular pronouns are spelled the same – αὐτῷ /autō. So, the question is, does ἐν αὐτῷ / en autō mean “in him” or “in it”?

The answer determines the antecedent of the pronoun αὐτῷ. In grammar, an antecedent is the noun to which a pronoun refers. For example, in the sentence, “John feeds his cat,” the pronoun “his” refers back to “John”. “John” is the antecedent of “his”. In verse 2:10, if αὐτῷ means “him”, the antecedent is “the one who loves”. If αὐτῷ means “it”, the antecedent is “the light”. This presents two options for translating this phrase:

1. αὐτῷ means “him” and the antecedent is “the one who loves”. In this case, the translation would be:

…and there is nothing in the one who loves to cause stumbling.

2. αὐτῷ means “it” and the antecedent is “the light”. In this case the translations would be:

…and there is nothing in the light to cause stumbling.

The final decision rests in understanding John’s purpose and arguments so far in his letter. Most commentators and English translations go with option 1 and I have followed this in my translation. For example, the New American Standard Bible (NASB20) reads:

The one who loves his brother and sister remains in the Light, and there is nothing in him to cause stumbling.

Where “him” refers to “the one who loves”.

An exception is the Revised Standard Version (RSV) which follows option 2. It reads:

He who loves his brother abides in the light, and in it there is no cause for stumbling.

Where “it” refers to “the light”.

Several English translations have a footnote that alerts the reader to the alternate translation.

The second issue is who is affected by the σκάνδαλον / skandalon? A σκάνδαλον is a cause for stumbling, an obstacle, a trap or snare. Is the result of abiding in the light that there is nothing in the one who loves to cause his own stumbling, or nothing in the one who loves to cause his fellow believer to stumble?

Commentators are divided on which meaning John intended. I have chosen the latter based on the evidence that when the word σκάνδαλον is used in the New Testament (15 times) it usually refers to something that is detrimental to another person. For example, see Matthew 16:23; Matthew 18:7; Luke 17:1; Romans 14:13; Romans 16:17. Also, an obstacle or snare is set for others, not for oneself.

Verse 2:11

But the one who hates his fellow believer is in the darkness and is walking in the darkness.

John now contrasts the one who hates with the one who loves (2:10). The one who hates is not simply in the darkness, but walks (i.e., lives) in the darkness. The darkness is the lifestyle where sinful deeds are allowed to hold sway and dominate the person’s life.

He does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

Because of the natural sinful nature of the human heart, people prefer the darkness (see John 3:19). They do not want light shed on their evil deeds. In fact, they justify the darkness by calling it light (see Isaiah 5:20).

As David Smith notes in his commentary: “The penalty of living in the darkness is not merely that one does not see, but that one goes blind.” [SMITH p. 176]

Go back to Verses 2:7-8
Go forward to Verses 2:12-14

Your Personal Study

Read First John 2:12-14 below and answer the questions.

^2:12 I am writing to you, little children, to affirm that your sins are forgiven you on account of ˹Jesus’˺ name.
^2:13a I am writing to you, fathers, to affirm that you know the One who is from the beginning.
^2:13b I am writing to you, young men, to affirm that you have overcome the Evil One.

^2:13c Indeed, I wrote to you, children, to affirm that you know the Father.
^2:14a Indeed, I wrote to you, fathers, to affirm that you know the One who is from the beginning.
^2:14b Indeed, I wrote to you, young men, to affirm that you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the Evil One.

1. There verses are highly structured by John. See if you can chart the structure.

2. Who do you think the terms “children,” “fathers,” and “young men” refer to?

3. Why do you thinks John repeats the statements to the children, fathers, and young men? What are the differences between the first and second set of statements?

4. What are the three main points that John affirms about the readers?

5. Who is the “Evil One” in verse 13b and 14b? What is his role in the trouble caused by the false teaching of the disruptors?

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First John Translation.

First John Translation with Outline and Notes.

Bibliography of source information used for this series of posts.

Title Slide Image Credit: First John in Codex Alexandrinus, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Unless otherwise noted, English translations of Bible verses are by the author from the Greek text and are not quotations from any copyrighted Bible version or translation.

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