1 John 5:13. St. John returns now to his one great design, the fulfilling of the Joy of those who believe. These things have I written to you the whole Epistle, that is, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, unto you that believe in the name of the Son of God. It was not his purpose to establish their assurance, and on that to superinduce a challenge to faith, or to a higher faith, as the reading of our present translation might suggest. Assurance is the final point, and all the blessedness that assurance brings. ‘That ye may know:' this is one of the watchwords of the Epistle; and it is here finally introduced in such a way as to show that, while it is the gift of God's Spirit, it is the bounden duty and privilege of every Christian to live in the enjoyment of it.

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Old Testament