{Hereby know ye} (en tout(9369) gin(9373)kete). Either present
active indicative or imperative. The test of "the Spirit of God"
(	o pneuma tou theou) here alone in this Epistle, save verse
 13 . With the clamour of voices then and now this is important.
The test (en tout(9369), as in  3:19 ) follows. {That Jesus Christ
is come in the flesh} (I(8873)oun Christon en sarki el(886c)uthota).
The correct text (perfect active participle predicate
accusative), not the infinitive (el(886c)uthenai, B Vg). The
predicate participle (see  Joh 9:22  for predicate accusative
with homologe(935c)) describes Jesus as already come in the flesh
(his actual humanity, not a phantom body as the Docetic Gnostics
held). See this same idiom in  2Jo 1:7  with erchomenon
(coming). A like test is proposed by Paul for confessing the
deity of Jesus Christ in  1Co 12:3  and for the Incarnation and
Resurrection of Jesus in  Ro 10:6-10 .