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There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has punishment. He who fears is not made perfect in love.
Verse Takeaways
1
Two Kinds of Fear
Multiple commentators, including Spurgeon and Matthew Henry, emphasize a crucial distinction: the 'fear' cast out by love is not reverential awe of God. Instead, it is a 'slavish dread' or 'tormenting' fear of punishment and judgment. Perfect love does not eliminate our holy respect for God; in fact, it deepens it. What it expels is the anxious terror that comes from seeing God as a punishing master rather than a loving Father.
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Book Overview
1 John
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16
18th Century
Presbyterian
There is no fear in love. Love is not an affection that produces fear. In the love we have for a parent, a child, or a friend, there is no…
Fear (φοβος). Like a bond-slave (Romans 8:15), not the reverence of a son (ευλαβεια, Hebrews 5:7f.) or the …
19th Century
Anglican
THE PERFECT LOVE THE SUREST TEST (1 John 4:7–21).
Fraternal love the necessary product of the true knowledge of God…
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Baptist
Because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him because he first loved us. If a man says, I love God, and h…
The other side of confidence is “fear” (GK 5832). If we truly abide in the Father’s love, we will be without fear. That “perfect love drives out fe…
16th Century
Protestant
There is no fear. He now commends the excellence of this blessing by stating the contrary effect, for he says that we are continually torm…
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17th Century
Reformed Baptist
There is no fear in love In the love of the brethren; where that is, there is no fear: so far as that prevails and g…
The Father sent the Son; He willed His coming into this world. The apostle attests to this. And whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son o…
