2:17a

(Revised Standard Version) And: (Logical Relationship) 2:17 gives a second reason for the appeal in 2:15 not to love the world. It is therefore connected in meaning to 2:15b. It does not follow in meaning from 2:16.

is passing away: (Meaning) John is telling his readers that this world will not last much longer. When Jesus returns to judge the world everything that is evil will be destroyed. The verb is in the present tense here because Jesus is already at work in the world, so the evil is already being destroyed.

its desires: (Meaning) This refers to all the evil ways of the world, such as the wrong attitudes mentioned in 2:16.

2:17b

whoever: (Meaning) As in 2:4, this means “anyone who.” It could also be translated “if anyone,” or “if you.”

does: (Tense) The tense here indicates continuous action, not just doing God’s will once.

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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.