I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, little children, because you know the Father.
John strengthened the sense of progress in these verses. He used present tense verbs in the first set of sentences (1 John 2:12-13 b) that emphasize ongoing action. Then he used aorist tense verbs in the second set (1 John 2:13-14) that point to the end product, spiritual maturity.