2 John 1:1-13
1 The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth;
2 For the truth's sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever.
3 Grace bea with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
4 I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father.
5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.
7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought,b but that we receive a full reward.
9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
12 Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you, and speak face toc face, that our joy may be full.
13 The children of thy elect sister greet thee. Amen.
1 It is a striking fact that John never appeals to his apostleship in his epistles. In this short note, as well as in the next one, he is simply an elder. This accords with the private character of this missive, yet it undoubtedly reflects the waning authority of the twelve apostles as the apostasy of the chosen nation developed. They are not given any place in Jerusalem in the latter part of the book of Acts.
4 The main characteristics of the Circumcision epistles reappear in this brief letter. There is the emphasis on conduct and the physical aspect of truth. The very brevity of the letter tells us that the elder much preferred to convey his message in person. Even if we should take the lady as a type of Israel, the tie which is recognized is a physical one. In all this there is a great contrast with the latest ministry of Paul.
6 The difference in viewpoint between John and Paul is seen in their attitude toward the law. In one case "he who is loving another has fulfilled law" (Rom_13:8). In the other love is the motive that they may be walking according to His precepts. In one case there is emancipation from law. In the other there is ability to fulfill law. God will write the law on their hearts, under the new covenant (Heb_8:10). We are not under law, but under grace (Rom_6:15). We were exempted from the law... so that it is for us to be slaving in newness of spirit and not in oldness of letter (Rom_7:6).
7 The principal object of this letter seems to be a warning against those who spiritualize the coming of Christ, and deny His physical appearance in the future. In the first epistle it is "having come" (Joh_4:2). Here the present participle is used-"coming"-and can refer only to His manifestation in the day of the Lord. (See Mat_16:28; Mat_24:30; Mat_26:64; Mar_13:26; Mar_14:62; Luk_21:27.) This involves the great truth of His physical resurrection and ascension, and confirms the literal understanding of the prophecy that" And His feet stand in that day on the mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem from the east" (Zec_14:4). Truth is emphasized in this as love is emphasized in the third epistle. The many deceivers cause grave concern. Truth is imperiled and is now to be made a test of fellowship and a condition of offering hospitality (10). It will not be a time of recovery of truth but of its perversion. The test of fellowship in the present is conduct and not doctrine.