Book of 1 John Chapter 4 Vs. 5

Test the Spirits

Verses 5-6: “Therefore speak they of the world … the world hear John gives the second test of a true teacher; they speak God's word, following apostolic doctrine.



1 John 4:5 "They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them."

They are of... See 1Jhn. 2:15-17; Jas. 4:4; John 15:18-19.

The they spoken of here, are those who follow after the flesh. They are caught up in the world. They have no hope, because they base everything, they believe on what they can see with their eyes. They have eyes to see, and they do not see, and ears to hear, and they hear not. They place their faith in this world and its trappings.

of the world (ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου)

Proceeding from, as their source ἐκ. Different from ἐκ τῆς γῆς from the earth (John 3:31), as marking the whole worldly economy morally considered.

speak they of the world (ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου λαλοῦσιν)

An ambiguous rendering, which might readily be interpreted “they speak concerning the world.” Literally it is: “they speak out of the world; i.e., the character of their utterances corresponds to their origin. Rev., “speak they as of the world.” The position of the world in the sentence is emphatic: “it is out of the world that they speak.”

The world listens to them. True then, and true now. Any number of false prophets, basing their pronouncements on their own imaginations (since they are from the world), on demonic influences (Acts 13:6-12, 16:16-18) and on what people want to hear (2Tim. 4:3-4) are available to distract and miss-educate the public. You can find them in the media, on the streets, in the schools and universities, in many homes, and, yes, in the pulpits.

Among the false prophets whom the world will listen to will be some who have gone out from us, (1Jhn. 2:19), who have at one time, or another claimed to be Messianic but have renounced their faith. It is useful to see that Yochanan recognized such a category of people. His advice is to beware of their errors, but not to become preoccupied with trying to win them back (compare 1Tim. 1:20).

The antichrists are from the world and… speak from the viewpoint of the world. For this reason they get a good hearing from the world. It is always true that satanically inspired thought has a special appeal to worldly minds. But people who are from God ek tou theou, of God; cf. 1Jhn. 4:4, from God; 1Jhn. 4:5, from the world; and 1Jhn. 3:12, belonged to the evil one, listen to the apostles. The pronouns which begin 1Jhn. 4:4-6 You… They, and We are emphatic in the original and evidently mark off three groups: the readers, the antichrists, and the apostles.