He declares what he has seen and heard of Christ who is the life eternal, to the end that we may have fellowship with God and all good through him. Yet so if we confess our sins.

¹ He who was from the beginning, whom we have heard, whom we have seen with our eyes, upon whom we have gazed, and whom our hands have certainly touched: He is the Word of Life.¹

1. 1:1The prefix ‘con’ in the verb ‘contrectaverunt’ intensifies the meaning of the verb, so that it is not merely ‘touched,’ but emphasizing the certainty that they have touched the Word of God Incarnate.(Conte)

² And that Life has been made manifest. And we have seen, and we testify, and we announce to you: the Eternal Life, who was with the Father, and who appeared to us.

³ He whom we have seen and heard, we announce to you, so that you, too, may have fellowship with us, and so that our fellowship may be with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

⁴ And this we write to you, so that you may rejoice, and so that your joy may be full.

⁵ And this is the announcement which we have heard from him, and which we announce to you: that God is light, and in him there is no darkness.

⁶ If we claim that we have fellowship with him, and yet we walk in darkness, then we are lying and not telling the truth.

⁷ But if we walk in the light, just as he also is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

⁸ If we claim that we have no sin, then we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.

⁹ If we confess our sins, then he is faithful and just, so as to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all iniquity.

¹⁰ If we claim that we have not sinned, then we make him a liar, and his Word is not in us.