1 John 2:7

Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
Brethren	ἀδελφός adelphós	G80	a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (m…
write	γράφω graphō	G1125	to "grave" · verb — present active indicative, 1st person singular
no	οὐκ ouk	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
new	καινὴν kainēn	G2537	new · adjective — accusative singular feminine
commandment	ἐντολὴν entolēn	G1785	injunction · noun — accusative singular feminine
you	ὑμῖν hymîn	G5213	to (with or by) you
but	ἀλλ᾽ all᾽	G235	properly · conjunction
an	ἐντολὴν entolēn	G1785	injunction · noun — accusative singular feminine
old	παλαιὰν palaian	G3820	antique · adjective — accusative singular feminine
commandment	ἐντολὴ entolē	G1785	injunction · noun — nominative singular feminine
which	ἣν hēn	G3739	the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun · relative pronoun — accusative singular feminine
had	εἴχετε eichete	G2192	to hold (used in very various applications · verb — imperfect active indicative, 2nd person plural
from	ἀπ᾽ ap᾽	G575	"off · preposition
beginning	ἀρχῆς· archēs	G746	(properly abstract) a commencement · noun — genitive singular feminine
The	ἐντολή entolḗ	G1785	injunction
old	παλαιά palaia	G3820	antique · adjective — nominative singular feminine
commandment	ἐντολή entolḗ	G1785	injunction
is	ἐστί estí	G2076	he (she or it) is
word	λόγος logos	G3056	something said (including the thought) · noun — nominative singular masculine
which	ὃν hon	G3739	the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun · relative pronoun — accusative singular masculine
heard	ἠκούσατε ēkousate	G191	to hear (in various senses) · verb — aorist active indicative, 2nd person plural
from	ἀπ᾽ ap᾽	G575	"off · preposition
beginning	ἀρχῆς. archēs	G746	(properly abstract) a commencement · noun — genitive singular feminine

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

1 John 3:11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
Leviticus 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Mark 12:29-34 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
2 John 1:5-6 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one…
Romans 13:8-10 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Galatians 5:13-14 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Leviticus 19:34 But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers i…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 John 2:7-11

The seventh verse may be supposed either to look backward to what immediately preceded (and then it is walking as Christ walked that is here represented as no new, but an old commandment; it is that which the apostles would certainly inculcate wherever they brought Christ's gospel), or to look forward to what the apostle is now going to recommend, and that is the law of fraternal love; this is the message heard from the beginning (Jo1 3:11), and the old commandment, Jo2 1:5. Now, while the apostle addresses himself to the recommendation of such a practice, he is ready to give an instance thereof in his affectionate appellation: "Brethren, you who are dear to me in the bond of that love to wh…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 John 2:7

Brethren--The oldest manuscripts and versions read instead, "Beloved," appropriate to the subject here, love. no new commandment--namely, love, the main principle of walking as Christ walked (Jo1 2:6), and that commandment, of which one exemplification is presently given, Jo1 2:9-10, the love of brethren. ye had from the beginning--from the time that ye first heard the Gospel word preached.

Adam Clarke on 1 John 2:7

Brethren, I write no new commandment - There seems a contradiction between this and the next verse. But the apostle appears to speak, not so much of any difference in the essence of the precept itself, as in reference to the degrees of light and grace belonging to the Mosaic and Christian dispensations. It was ever the command of God that men should receive his light, walk by that light, and love him and one another. But this commandment was renewed by Christ with much latitude and spirituality of meaning; and also with much additional light to see its extent, and grace to observe it. It may therefore be called the Old commandment, which was from the beginning; and also a New commandment rev…

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John Gill on 1 John 2:7

The Church Fathers

John is talking here about love. The commandment was not new, because long before that time it had been proclaimed by the prophets.
— Cyril of Alexandria, CATENA

Some people were apparently objecting that the Evangelist's teaching was a new thing, and so he had to insist that this was not so.
— Didymus the Blind, COMMENTARY ON 1 JOHN

"I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment, which ye had from the beginning,"-through the Law, that is, and the prophets; where it is said, God is one. Accordingly, also, he infers, "For the old commandment is the word which ye have heard."
— Clement of Alexandria ((as quoted by Cassiodorus)), From the Latin Translation of Cassiodorus

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

John, The First Epistle General Of — There can be no doubt that the apostle John was the author of this epistle. It was probably written from Ephesus, and most likely at the close of the first century. In the introduction, ch. (1 John…

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 John 2:7

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 John 2:7-11

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 John 2:7

Adam Clarke on 1 John 2:7

John Gill on 1 John 2:7

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 John 2:7

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 John 2:7-11

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 John 2:7

Adam Clarke on 1 John 2:7

John Gill on 1 John 2:7

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on 1 John 2:7-11

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 John 2:7-11