There is no fear in love, or ‘fear does not go with love,’ ‘where there is love there is no fear.’ When verb forms are required, one may say ‘one who is loved (or one whom God loves) does not fear,’ ‘if we are loved (or if God loves us), we do not fear,’ taking God as the implied agent; or ‘one who loves does not fear,’ taking the believer who is inspired by God’s love as the implied agent (compare the remarks on “love for God” in 2.5). The former interpretation seems to be the more probable one.
Fear refers here to man’s fear of the judgment, or of God as judge. In some languages the concept is rendered by an idiomatic phrase; for example, ‘to shiver in the liver,’ ‘to feel him creep,’ ‘to have a little (or a light, or a trembling) heart.’
But here indicates climax rather than contrast; hence renderings like ‘yes,’ ‘indeed,’ ‘even,’ ‘rather.’ In some cases the required meaning can best be expressed by the omission of a connective between the two sentences.
Perfect love casts out fear: as in verse 17a this clause is preferably interpreted as referring to God’s love, which is truly and fully working in man’s heart. If love and fear are to be rendered by verb forms, it may be possible to say ‘one who is loved perfectly cannot fear,’ ‘the fact that God loves us perfectly makes it impossible for us to fear (or be afraid).’
For perfect compare the related verb in 2.5. Some renderings used here are ‘complete,’ “fully-developed” (Phillips), ‘real,’ ‘true,’ ‘having full measure,’ ‘with all the heart.’ “To cast out,” or ‘to chase away,’ ‘to get rid of’ expresses complete, radical removal.
For indicates expansion of the argument rather than the reason for what precedes. In some versions it is not expressly translated.
Fear has to do with punishment, literally “fear has/holds punishment”: the sentence may mean “fear includes punishment,” “fear in itself is punishment,” which implies a reference to punishment beginning in the present. Or it may be interpreted as “fear anticipates punishment,” namely, the punishment to be assigned at the day of judgment. The two do not exclude each other, since anticipating future punishment naturally affects the present feelings of the person concerned. Where verb forms are to be used, one may say something like ‘when a person fears, it is as though he is being punished already.’
Punishment, or “chastisement,” renders a Greek noun that is found in the New Testament only here and in Matt 25.46. The two passages speak of the Last Judgment. Compare also 2 Peter 2.9, where the related verb is used.
To render the concept “to punish,” one should employ a noun or verb referring to official, legal sanctions, and avoid terms implying personal retaliation or revenge. If the rendering to be used is more generic, for example, ‘to cause to suffer,’ ‘to make feel pain,’ one should make explicit the connection with the Last Judgment; compare New English Bible‘s “the pains of judgement.”
He who fears is not perfected in love: the clause need not be dependent upon “for.” It forms the counterpart of verse 17a and should be translated in accordance with it; for example, ‘if a person fears, God’s love does not come to perfection in him,’ or ‘when a person is afraid, it does not come to perfection in him that God loves him.’
The main theme of verses 19-21 is that love for God always means love for the brothers at the same time. In 5.1a the discussion of another theme seems to start; the verse is therefore often taken as the beginning of a new paragraph ( 5.1-4 or 5). But since in 5.1b and 2 the theme of 4.19-21 is continued again, the present authors prefer to take them with what precedes.
Quoted with permission from Haas, C., de Jonge, M. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on The First Letter of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .