Reading from the Young's Literal Translation.
Fri 20200522
1 John 3: 21-24 YLT "The commands of God - to believe, to love one another"
21 Beloved, if our heart may not condemn us, we have boldness toward God,
22 and whatever we may ask, we receive from Him, because His commands we keep, and the things pleasing before Him we do,
23 and this is His command, that we may believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and may love one another, even as He did give command to us,
24 and he who is keeping His commands, in Him he doth remain, and He in him; and in this we know that He doth remain in us, from the Spirit that He gave us.
The above, especially verse 23, sheds light on an earlier passage about keeping "an old command" in 1 John 2: 3-11 YLT
3 and in this we know that we have known him, if his commands we may keep;
4 he who is saying, `I have known him,` and his command is not keeping, a liar he is, and in him the truth is not;
5 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.
6 He who is saying in him he doth remain, ought according as he walked also himself so to walk.
7 Brethren, a new command I write not to you, but an old command, that ye had from the beginning -- the old command is the word that ye heard from the beginning;
8 again, a new command I write to you, which thing is true in him and in you, because the darkness doth pass away, and the true light doth now shine;
9 he who is saying, in the light he is, and his brother is hating, in the darkness he is till now;
10 he who is loving his brother, in the light he doth remain, and a stumbling-block in him there is not;
11 and he who is hating his brother, in the darkness he is, and in the darkness he doth walk, and he hath not known whither he doth go, because the darkness did blind his eyes.
Notes:
(1) The "old command" that the disciples had from the beginning was reiterated in the "new command" that John wrote about in 1 John 2: 8 - 11, that is, to love your brethren in the Lord.
(2) Later, John sums it up in 1 John 3: 23 by saying that this is the command from God our Father, "and this is His command, that we may believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and may love one another, even as He did give command to us,"
(3) It is by obeying this God given command, both to believe in the Name of Iesou the Anointed One, and to love one another, that makes us pleasing to him (1 John 3: 22) and that gives us boldness towards God our Father in Heaven, who answers our prayers and supplications (1 John 3:21 - 22).
