Introduction
The second and third epistles of John are generally viewed as appendices to the first epistle. They bear the marks of the larger letter in style, phrasing, and terminology. It leaves little doubt that the Apostle John is the author of both of them, even though his name is not mentioned. Being pastoral epistles (letters written to individuals rather than to an assembly, or to a group of people) these epistles give counsel regarding those who went about preaching and teaching. In many ways they complement each other:
• The second epistle enjoins us to refuse teachers who are not sound in doctrine concerning the Person of Christ.
• The third epistle encourages us to receive those who teach the truth faithfully, and to help them on in their work.
As is the case with all “second” epistles—which view the Christian testimony in a state of ruin and disarray, and consequently, give a call for separation from what is not according to the truth—this 2nd epistle follows that theme. It may very well have been the Apostle’s answer to an enquiry that “the elect lady” had made to him concerning those who travelled about preaching and teaching. Or, he may have heard from someone (perhaps her sister – vs. 13) that she was in danger of being preyed upon by certain antichristian teachers, and that drew forth this response from John. Regardless of what gave rise to the writing of the letter, the practical truth contained in it was pertinent for that day, and it is even more so for our day because there are more false teachers in the Christian profession than ever before. Since the epistle is written to an individual, the instructions therein are to be applied individually. Hence, both brothers and sisters have a personal responsibility to put these things into practice in their lives.
The Elect Lady and Her Children
There is only one epistle written to a woman, and there is no epistle written by a woman. In fact, no book in the Bible is written by a woman—although two books of the Bible bear women’s names—Ruth and Esther. A woman not having been called to write an epistle is in keeping with the instructions of the Apostle Paul regarding the role of Christian women in the Church. In his epistle to Timothy, he shows that Christian women do not have a public place of taking the lead in the house of God, in teaching (1 Tim. 2:9-159In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 10But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 11Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 13For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 15Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety. (1 Timothy 2:9‑15)) or in administration (1 Tim. 3:22A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach; (1 Timothy 3:2); Acts 15:66And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter. (Acts 15:6)).
(Vss. 1-2)
John opens with a salutation: “The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not I only but also all who have known the truth, for the truth’s sake which abides in us and shall be with us to eternity.” The name of the elect lady to whom John writes is not stated. All we know about her is that she was a reputable Christian woman, having children who were walking in the truth. Her husband is not mentioned.
It is instructive in how John speaks to her. It is a model of how a brother ought to treat a sister in the Lord. He refrains from familiarity, using no terms of endearment. He does not call her “beloved,” as he does when he addresses the children of God in general (1 John 2:7; 3:2, 21; 4:1, 7, 117Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. (1 John 2:7)
2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)
21Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. (1 John 3:21)
1Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1)
7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. (1 John 4:7)
11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. (1 John 4:11)), or when he addresses Gaius, a brother in the Lord (3 John 1-2, 5, 111The elder unto the wellbeloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth. 2Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. (3 John 1‑2)
5Beloved, thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren, and to strangers; (3 John 5)
11Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God. (3 John 11)). This was not because she wasn’t beloved, but that all such expressions are inappropriate for brothers to use when interacting with sisters on a personal level. He does say, “Whom I love,” but quickly qualifies it by adding, “in the truth,” and this was in the context of “all they that have known the truth; for the truth’s sake.” This shows us that it is unseemly for a brother to single out a sister in the Lord and to speak of his love for her; it could be taken wrongly. This shows how careful we have to be in our natural relationships to avoid the appearance of evil. In like manner, the Apostle Paul told Timothy that he was to treat the younger sisters “with all purity” (1 Tim. 5:22The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity. (1 Timothy 5:2)).
(Vs. 3)
John wishes upon her “grace” and “mercy” and “peace” from the Father and the Son. Drawing on this, she would be well able to act on the practical injunctions that he was about to give her.
(Vs. 4)
John rejoiced greatly to know that the children of the elect lady were going on in the Christian path and were walking in the truth. He says: “I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father.” Note: he didn’t say, “knowing the truth,” but “walking in truth.” This shows that the truth is not merely something we believe in our minds, but something that is to be practiced and lived out in everyday life. In saying that he found those “of” her children walking in truth, it indicates that not all of the elect lady’s children were going on in that path. John doesn’t focus on that, but he rejoiced in those of her children who were going on faithfully. This, too, is an example for us. In a day of ruin, when many things are out of order, the tendency is to become occupied with the failures of the saints and all the things that we see that are wrong. But this is not a healthy occupation. Let us remember the old adage: “Those who are occupied with failure become a failure!” The Christian’s normal occupation is with Christ (Phil. 3:13-1413Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13‑14); Heb. 12:22Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2)).
(Vss. 5-6)
John beseeches her to carry on in the great commandment that the Christian company had received from the Father. He says: “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. 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.” She was to continue in the old, yet new, commandment, which, as John says, is to “love one another.” It is “old” because it was first manifested in the Lord’s life when He was here on earth (1 John 2:77Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. (1 John 2:7)). It is also “new” because it can be seen in the children of God, since the Holy Spirit has been given (1 John 2:88Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. (1 John 2:8)). Being that love manifests itself practically in obedience (John 14:1515If ye love me, keep my commandments. (John 14:15); 1 John 5:33For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. (1 John 5:3)), this injunction would be a happy thing for her. Essentially, what he was saying is that she needed to take care of the state of her own soul, first and foremost, and thus be found walking in the Spirit with the Lord.
The Presence and Activity of Antichristian Teachers
(Vs. 7)
John then gives the reason why walking in truth and love are so important—there were many false teachers moving about who were leading unestablished believers astray. He says, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, they who do not confess Jesus Christ coming in flesh—this is the deceiver and the antichrist.” Thus, John apprises the elect lady of the presence and activity of these antichristian teachers. He knew that the only way she would be able to resist the efforts of the enemy to turn her aside after falsehood was to be grounded in the truth and by walking in love and obedience.
These men had “gone out” (or went abroad) “into the world” posing as Christian missionaries, but sadly, they were peddling false doctrine. Being under the influence of the powers of darkness, they were really heralds of evil doctrine that undermined the foundations of the Christian faith—especially in connection with the Person of Christ. They claimed to have new and greater light than what the apostles had delivered to the saints, but in fact they denied the light. John said that they “do not confess Jesus Christ coming in flesh.” As we have seen in 1 John 4:2-32Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. (1 John 4:2‑3), to deny Jesus Christ “come in flesh” means that they denied His Deity and His Manhood. The fact that He came “in flesh” shows that He was indeed a real Man, and the fact that He did “come” shows that He pre-existed His Manhood; thus, He is a divine and eternal Person.
(Vs. 8)
Since there was this very present danger lurking, John says: “Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.” He would have the elect lady and her children to stand firm in the truth so that she—and John and those who laboured with Him—would not lose their reward. To turn aside after those blasphemies would mean the loss of our crown in the coming day (Rev. 3:1111Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. (Revelation 3:11)). This is a good word for all who labour in word and doctrine. If the saints to whom we have ministered the Word don’t go on in the truth, we cannot expect to have a “full” reward in that day.
(Vs. 9)
In John’s typical abstract style, he states matter-of-factly: “Whosoever transgresseth [goes forward] and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God.” If a person does not hold the truth concerning Christ’s Person, he exposes himself as having no relationship with God. A false teacher may profess to know God, but John says that if he holds heterodox doctrine as to the Person of Christ, he “hath not God.” In other words, he is not a real believer at all. (John is not taking into consideration the fact that there might be a true believer out there somewhere who is ignorant on some point of doctrine and needs correction.)
To transgress in the way in which John speaks here is to go beyond the bounds of Christian revelation into novel and mystical notions that deny the truth. This is what marks the cults in Christendom. They may claim to have new and clearer light beyond what orthodox Christianity has brought to us, but what it really is, is error dressed up to appear as truth. Accordingly, John calls them “deceivers.” Transgressing in this way is one of two snares that merely professing believers fall into because they don’t have divine life. These are:
These two dangers are like ditches on either side of the road that merely professing believers, sooner or later, fall into. In the sense in which John views these things, true believers will not do either. But they may get swept “along with” the current of apostasy and begin giving up certain principles and practices that they once held (2 Peter 3:1717Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. (2 Peter 3:17)). They also might allow their minds to run unchecked into a mystical line of thinking, and speculate on divine subjects, but they will never go so far as to deny the doctrine of Christ.
Conversely, John says: “He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.” Thus, if a man is sound on the Person of Christ, it is a tell-tail sign that he is real.
The Refusal of Antichristian Teachers
(Vss. 10-11)
John anticipated that this dear sister was going to be tested on these things, and accordingly, he gave her his apostolic counsel: “If any one come to you and bring not this doctrine, do not receive him into the house, and greet him not.” It couldn’t be clearer what she was to do if one of these charlatans came to her door; she was to refuse him entry into her house and have no fellowship with him.
Note: John did not tell her to familiarize herself with all the false ideas that were being propagated in that day, but simply to continue in what she had heard “from the beginning.” She needed to be acquainted with truth that was given to the Church through the apostles and to abide in Christ, whereby the unction of the Spirit would guide her when tested by the coming of false teachers to her door. John does not tell her to judge their sincerity. Being deluded, they might very well believe that what they were teaching was the truth. Their motives may have been well and good (in their eyes), but that was not the criterion she was to use to judge them—it was their doctrine concerning Christ’s Person. Thus, false teachers may be sincere, but they are sincerely wrong if they hold error as to the Person of Christ.
Note also: John does not tell her to set the man straight as to his doctrine. This would be a dangerous undertaking; she could get drawn into those very errors! She would be out of her place attempting to do so (1 Tim. 2:1212But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. (1 Timothy 2:12)). John makes it perfectly clear what she was to do; she was not to engage with him on any level—not even to give him a common greeting! She was to have nothing to do with him.
John warns, “He who greets him partakes in his wicked works.” If she received such a person into her house, it was a sign of having fellowship with him. This would make her a partaker of his evil doctrines—even if she personally didn’t hold those doctrinal errors! Thus, to receive such a person is to put one’s sanction on him and on what he teaches, and that would be disloyalty to Christ. This shows that doctrines that falsify Christ cannot in any way be tolerated. The problem with these serious errors is that they eat like “gangrene” (2 Tim. 2:16-1716But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 17And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymeneus and Philetus; (2 Timothy 2:16‑17)) and spread like “leaven” (Gal. 5:99A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. (Galatians 5:9)); if tolerated, others will be corrupted. All such persons are not to be welcomed into our homes or into the assembly.
Closing Salutations
(Vss. 12-13)
John closes the letter by telling the elect lady that he desired to come and speak to her “face to face” and increase her “joy” in the Lord. He also passed on greetings from her “elect sister” who was evidently in the same area as John (likely Ephesus). As with the elect lady, her elect sister’s name is not given.