1 John 2:5 in 8 translations
7 distinct wordings, grouped by what each translation is trying to do. Differences from the King James text are marked below.
Early modern English
Seventeenth-century wording and sentence shape. Familiar, rhythmic, and the version most quotations you have heard are taken from.
But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
1611 / 1769 · Public domain · The Authorised Version, revised to the 1769 Blayney text. Includes the Apocrypha as printed in 1611.
Literal, word-for-word
Follows Hebrew and Greek word order and grammar closely, even where the English becomes stiff. Useful for seeing what the underlying sentence is doing.
but whoso keepeth his word, in him verily hath the love of God been perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
but whoever keeps his word, in him verily the love of God is perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
and whoever may keep his word, truly in him the love of God hath been perfected; in this we know that in him we are.
1898 · Public domain · The most extreme word-for-word rendering here, keeping Hebrew and Greek tense and word order at the cost of natural English.
Modern English
Contemporary vocabulary and punctuation, aiming for the sentence a present-day reader would write while staying close to the source.
But whoever keeps his word, God’s love has most certainly been perfected in him. This is how we know that we are in him:
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
These 2 editions word this verse identically.
But the person who keeps God’s word, in them the love of God has indeed reached its perfection. This is how we can be sure we are in him:
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
Simplified English
Built from a deliberately small vocabulary so the sense stays reachable for new readers and non-native speakers. Trades nuance for clarity.
But in every man who keeps his word, the love of God is made complete. By this we may be certain that we are in him:
1949 · Public domain · Written with roughly a thousand basic English words plus a small Bible vocabulary. The plainest reading available here.
What changes between the King James and modern wording
The modern rendering is printed below with every word that differs from the King James text marked, so the actual divergence is visible rather than left for you to spot.
But whoever keeps his word, God’s love has most certainly been perfected in him This is how we know that we are in him.
Word-for-word swaps
- keepeth→whoever
- verily→This
- know→how
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.