This brief letter is traditionally attributed to Saint John, although the author identifies himself simply as “the Presbyter.” Its date and original destination are uncertain, but it was probably written toward the end of the first century. The letter is addressed to “the elect lady and her children,” language most likely referring to a local church and its members. The author calls the faithful to live in truth and love while guarding against teachers who deny that Jesus Christ came in the flesh—teachers sometimes understood as representing an early form of the thought that would later characterize Gnosticism. The letter also addresses the limits of Christian hospitality when providing welcome and support would assist those spreading false teaching.
Greeting
1 From the Presbyter to the elect lady
and her children, whom I sincerely love. Everyone who knows the truth loves you
as well, 2 because that truth lives in us and will be with
us forever. 3 May God the Father and Jesus Christ his Son
grant us grace, mercy, and peace as we live in truth and love.
Live in Truth and Love
4 I was overjoyed to find some of your
children living by the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now I ask this of you, dear lady: let us
love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the
beginning. 6 Love means living according to his commandments,
and the commandment you heard from the beginning is this: live in love.
Deceivers and Antichrists
7 Many deceivers have gone out into the
world, refusing to confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. Such a
person is both a deceiver and an antichrist. 8 Be on your
guard, so that none of the work we have accomplished is lost and we may receive
our full reward.
9 Anyone who abandons the teaching of
Christ does not live in communion with God. Whoever remains faithful to that
teaching lives in communion with both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you without this teaching,
do not receive them into your house or greet them as a fellow believer, 11 because anyone who gives them such a welcome
shares in their evil work.
Conclusion
12 I have much more to tell you, but I
would rather not do it with paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and
speak face to face, so that our joy may be complete.
13 The children of your elect sister send
you their greetings.
Editor's Notes
1 - Although “elect lady” can
grammatically refer to an individual woman, the plural forms of address used
throughout the letter, together with the greeting from “the children of your
elect sister” in verse 13, strongly suggest that the Elder is addressing a
local church and its members. The translation retains his metaphorical language
while allowing this corporate understanding to govern the letter’s pronouns and
context.
3 - The
Greek presents this as an assurance that grace, mercy, and peace will be with
“us.” It has been expressed here as a blessing in natural liturgical English.
6 - The
final clause reads literally, “that you walk in it.” The pronoun may refer to
the commandment, but the surrounding context identifies that commandment with
love. It is therefore rendered, “live in love.”
7 - The
Greek describes those who do not confess Jesus Christ “coming in the flesh.”
The present participle may emphasize the enduring truth and significance of the
Incarnation. Although the Greek calls such a person “the deceiver and the
antichrist,” the term antichrist is used elsewhere in the Johannine writings
for a broader category of opponents: “even now many antichrists have appeared”
(1 John 2:18). It is therefore rendered here as “a deceiver and an antichrist.”
8 - The
Majority Text uses “we” with each of the three verbs: what “we have
accomplished,” what “we might lose,” and what “we may receive.” Other ancient
witnesses use “you” in one or more of these places. The Majority Text reading
has been followed. This reading emphasizes the close pastoral relationship
between the author and the recipients, suggesting that the Elder had played a
formative role in communicating and establishing their faith—whether the
addressees are understood as a local church and her members or as a woman and
her children.
9 - Literally,
“does not have God.” This does not deny God’s universal presence as Creator and
sustainer of all things; it describes a rupture in one’s communion with God
through the abandonment of the teaching of Christ. “The teaching of Christ” may
refer both to the teaching given by Christ and to the apostolic teaching
concerning him. The Church has consistently held that following Christ’s moral
and ethical teachings and faithfully confessing the essential truths of the
faith belong together, as reflected in the historic creeds. Both doctrine and
conduct, however, must be understood in the light of God’s controlling nature:
“God is love” (see 1 John 4:8, 16).
10–11 - Literally, the Elder instructs the
church not to receive such a teacher “into the house” or to offer that person a
greeting. In the context of itinerant teachers, receiving someone into a house
could provide lodging, material support, and public recognition. “Greet them as
a fellow believer” clarifies that the prohibition concerns affirming or
assisting the teacher’s work rather than withholding ordinary civility.
13 - The “elect
sister” most likely refers to another local church and her “children” to its
members. The Majority Text concludes with “Amen,” but this is absent from
important early Greek witnesses and the critical Vulgate and has therefore been
omitted.
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