And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

And now, my little children, abide in him; that, if he shall be manifested, we may have boldness, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

And now, little children, abide in him, that when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be confounded by him at his coming.

And now, children, abide in him, that if he be manifested we may have boldness, and not be put to shame from before him at his coming.

And now, little children, remain in him, that when he may be manifested, we may have boldness, and may not be ashamed before him, in his presence;

And now, dear children, continue in union with Him; so that, if He re-appears, we may have perfect confidence, and may not shrink away in shame from His presence at His Coming.

And now, my children, keep your hearts in him; so that at his revelation, we may have no fear or shame before him at his coming.

And now, little sons, abide in him, so that when he appears, we may have faith, and we may not be confounded by him at his advent.

Yes, my children, remain in him, so that when he appears our confidence doesn't fail us, and we are not ashamed to meet him at his coming.

And now, little children - See the notes at 1-John 2:1.
Abide in him; that, when he shall appear - In the end of the world, to receive his people to himself. See the notes at John 14:2-3.
We may have confidence - Greek, boldness - παῤῥησίαν parrēsian. This word is commonly used to denote openness, plainness, or boldness in speaking, Mark 8:32; John 7:4, John 7:13, John 7:26; Acts 2:29; Acts 4:13, Acts 4:29; 2-Corinthians 3:12; 2-Corinthians 7:4. Here it means the kind of boldness, or calm assurance, which arises from evidence of piety, and of preparation for heaven. It means that they would not be overwhelmed and confounded at the coming of the Saviour, by its being then found that all their hopes were fallacious.
And not be ashamed before him at his coming - By having all our hopes taken away; by being held up to the universe as guilty and condemned. We feel ashamed when our hopes are disappointed; when it is shown that we have a character different from what we professed to have; when our pretensions to goodness are stripped off, and the heart is made bare. Many will thus be ashamed in the last day, Matthew 7:21-23; but it is one of the promises made to those who truly believe on the Saviour, that they shall never be ashamed or confounded. See the notes at 1-Peter 2:6. Compare Isaiah 45:17; Romans 5:5; 1-Peter 4:16; Mark 8:38.

And now, little children - Τεκνια, Beloved children, abide in him - in Christ Jesus. Let his word and spirit continually abide in you, and have communion with the Father and the Son.
That when he shall appear - To judge the world, we may have confidence, παρῥησιαν, freedom of speech, liberty of access, boldness, from a conviction that our cause is good, and that we have had proper ground for exultation; and not be ashamed - confounded, when it appears that those who were brought to Christ Jesus, have apostatized, and are no longer found in the congregation of the saints, and consequently are not our crown of rejoicing in the day of the Lord Jesus. Abide in him, that this may not be the case.

(26) And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
(26) The conclusion both of the whole exhortation, and also of the former treatise.

And now, little children, abide in him,.... The apostle having finished his separate instructions exhortations to the fathers, young men and children, returns to the whole body of the saints in general, whom he addresses, as in 1Jo_2:1; under the name of little children; See Gill on 1-John 2:1; and whom he exhorts to abide in Christ, that is, in the exercise of faith on him, of hope in him, and love to him; and to hold to him the head, and to hold fast his word and Gospel, and abide by his truth and ordinances, and adhere to his cause and interest, and not to be moved away on any consideration; to which the following encouragement is given:
that when he shall appear; that is, Christ, who is now hid, and out of the sight of bodily eyes, is in heaven, at the right hand of God; but ere long he will appear a second time, and not only to those that look for him, but even every eye shall see him; and his appearance will be a glorious one, and his saints shall appear in glory with him, and shall be like him, and see him as he is:
we may have confidence; boldness or freedom, as now at the throne of grace, so then at the throne of judgment; where the saints will stand with courage and intrepidity, when the wicked will flee to the rocks and mountains, being filled with amazement, terror, and trembling:
and not be ashamed before him at his coming; they will not be put to shame by him; nor will they be ashamed of their confidence, faith, hope, and expectation; their hope will not make them ashamed, for they will now enjoy what they hoped for; and, notwithstanding all their sins and infirmities, they will not be ashamed, for they will have on the wedding garment, the righteousness of Christ, and will stand before the throne without fault, spot, or blemish; nor will Christ be ashamed of them who have not been ashamed of him and his words, but have confessed him, and have been faithful unto death, and have cleaved to him and his cause with full purpose of heart to the end. Some think ministers of the Gospel are here meant, who, when those that are under their care abide faithful, and persevere to the end, will give up their account with joy; and will have what they have expressed confidence in, and will have their expectations answered, and not disappointed, by having such souls as their joy and crown of rejoicing.

little children--Greek, "little sons," as in 1-John 2:12; believers of every stage and age.
abide in him--Christ. John repeats his monition with a loving appellation, as a father addressing dear children.
when--literally, "if"; the uncertainty is not as to the fact, but the time.
appear--Greek, "be manifested."
we--both writer and readers.
ashamed before him--literally, "from Him"; shrink back from Him ashamed. Contrast "boldness in the day of judgment," 1-John 4:17; compare 1-John 3:21; 1-John 5:14. In the Apocalypse (written, therefore, BENGEL thinks, subsequently), Christ's coming is represented as put off to a greater distance.

And now, beloved children - Having finished his address to each, he now returns to all in general. Abide in him, that we - A modest expression. May not be ashamed before him at his coming - O how will ye, Jews, Socinians, nominal Christians, be ashamed in that day!