In the 1st century A.D., the early church enjoyed remarkable growth and spread throughout the world at that time (Act 8:5; Rom 10:14-18; Col 1:5-6,23). What accounted for this spread of the gospel?
There were likely several factors, but one was the hospitality of the early Christians...
Showing such hospitality was not without its potential for supporting the spread of false teachers and their doctrines. It would be easy for teachers of error to take advantage of the Christiansâ natural propensity to be hospitable to strangers. Thus it was necessary to counsel Christians to use proper discernment in sending traveling teachers on their way.
The Second Epistle of John, consisting of just one chapter, addresses this very problem.
The author identifies himself as "The Elder", believed by most conservative scholars to be the apostle John. The internal evidence that supports this conclusion:
As for external evidence, Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp (who in turn was an associate of John), quotes from it and mentions the apostle John by name. Both Clement of Alexandria and Dionysius, living in the third century A.D., credit John with being the author.
The epistle is addressed to "the elect lady and her children." Taken literally, the epistle is written to a particular woman and her children. Many scholars understand this to be the case (e.g., Plummer, Ross, Ryrie). Some have even supposed the Greek words for "elect lady" may refer to given names, such as: Electa the Lady, The chosen Kyria, Electa Kyria.
Taken figuratively, it could refer to a local church. Scholars who hold to this view include Brooke, Bruce, Marshall, Stott, and Westcott. They understand that "elect lady and her children" (2Jo 1:1) and "children of your elect sister" (2Jo 1:13) refer to two particular congregations.
Desiring to allow the most obvious meaning of Scripture to be the most correct meaning, I am willing to accept the literal view.
Ephesus is usually suggested as the location from which John wrote this epistle, as he was known to live there in the later years of his life. Estimation of the date of writing varies widely, some placing it before the destruction of Jerusalem (70 A.D.). Most however place it around 90-95 A.D.
In such a short letter, the purpose is rather straightforward and twofold:
Based on 2Jo 1:7, the false teachers were likely precursors of the Gnostics (see introduction to 1st John). As for the theme, I would suggest:
Walking in truth and love
Here is a simple outline of the book, from the ESV Study Bible...
The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical, conservative Christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of Scripture. Since the text and audio content provided by BLB represent a range of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyed in the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry.
Loading
Loading
Interlinear |
Bibles |
Cross-Refs |
Commentaries |
Dictionaries |
Miscellaneous |