1 John 4:12

No man hath seen God. Compare on John 1:18. In the Greek the word for God appears without the article, as in John 1:18, which fact indicates that John is thinking of the nature and character of Deity rather than of His personality. The word for “seen” is different in the two passages. In the Gospel, John uses horao, a general word for seeing; in the epistle he uses theaomai, “to view attentively,” “to contemplate” (see on 1 John 1:1).

If we love. In the Gospel, John explains that only the Son could reveal the Father, because He alone among men had ever seen Deity. Here the apostle tells us that although we cannot behold God, by exercising brotherly love we can have the invisible God dwelling in our hearts.

Dwelleth. Gr. menō (see on 1 John 2:6). In the heart that truly loves, God has a permanent home — and what better way can there be to gain a personal knowledge of the Lord than by having Him as a permanent guest in our hearts? The desire for a physical sight of Deity assumes a secondary place when the Lord actually dwells with the believer.

His love. That is, the love of God. This may refer either to the love of man for God or the love of God for man (see on 1 John 2:5). Commentators are divided as to the meaning here (see below under “perfected”).

Perfected. See on 1 John 2:5. The complete clause, “his love is perfected in us,” is open to more than one interpretation. It may be taken as meaning (1) the operation of God’s redemptive love is perfectly demonstrated in the transformed life of the believer, or (2) the same love that God showed to man is exemplified in the lives of those who love their brethren, or (3) our love for God is perfected as we love our brethren.

This is the second of the two perfectings discussed by John. The first occurs in 1 John 2:5, and refers to those who keep Christ’s word.