Paragraph 2:22–25
Read 2:22–25 in both Berean Standard Bible and Good News Translation. Compare the two versions.
Paragraph Theme: On the basis of the reassurance he has just given in 2:18–21, John here urges his readers to reject false teaching and to live according to God’s truth.
2:22a
Who is the liar: (Rhetorical Question) This is a rhetorical question used for emphasis. John is stating emphatically that the worst possible lie is that Jesus was not the Christ. This is what those people who had left the church were teaching. In your translation you may need to turn this into an emphatic statement, as The Jerusalem Bible has done.
the one who: (Meaning) This is not referring to a particular man but rather to anyone or everyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ.
the Christ: (Biblical Term) Here Christ is not just a name. It is the title or description of the one who God would send from heaven to save and rule his people. It is the same as the title “Messiah.”
2:22b
This is the antichrist: (Logical Relationship) John is saying that if someone denies that Jesus is the Christ, he is making himself an enemy of Christ just like that enemy of Christ who will come at the end of the world.
who denies the Father…: (Logical Relationship) This shows how we know that such a person is the enemy of Christ. When he denies that Jesus is the Christ he is also denying that Jesus is God’s son, and so he is rejecting God the Father also.
denies: (Multiple Senses) In the first use of denies in this verse (“denies that Jesus is the Christ”), it means he “says that it is not true that Jesus is the Christ.” In 2:22b (“he denies the Father and the Son”), it means he “refuses to accept the Father and the Son.” It is used again in this sense in the next verse.
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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.