1 John5:5

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Translation

And who is the one who is victorious over the world, if not the one who believes that JESUS is the SON OF GOD?

Paraphrase

And who is the one who is victorious over the world, if not the one who believes that THE SAVIOR is GOD?

Context

This epistle centers largely on the questions “Who is Jesus?” and “How can we identify a true follower of Jesus?” In the first 5 verses of chapter 5 Jesus is identified as the Christ (Messiah), and as the Son of God, which means God. In the ancient world, the son of a god was also one of the gods. For example, the Babylonian god Marduk was considered the son of El, but Marduk surpassed El in power and popularity. Being the son of a god did not make him lesser than god, it made him fully god just like his “father.” That was always the accepted understanding of the term “son of god” or “son of God.”