יוחנן א 5:3
For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
הערת לימוד
Study Note
John's definition — 'this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not grievous' — resolves what might seem to be a tension in the letter between commandment-keeping and love: commandment-keeping is not the basis of love but its expression. The claim that the commandments are 'not grievous' (ou bareia, not burdensome) counters any legalistic reading of Torah and anticipates the 'easy yoke' of Matthew 11:30, suggesting that the Spirit-empowered community experiences the commandments as enabling rather than oppressive. The immediately following verse (5:4) grounds this freedom from burden in the victory of faith that 'overcomes the world,' situating commandment-keeping within the context of eschatological triumph rather than anxious compliance. The verse contributed to debates about law and grace in both Reformation theology and contemporary discussions of Christian ethics.
תרגומים נוספים
For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
for this is the love of God, that His commands we may keep, and His commands are not burdensome;
For loving God is keeping his laws: and his laws are not hard.
הפניות צולבות
And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.
Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them …
And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to …
To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?
The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the …
Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.
And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts.
And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved.
My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy …