2 John — Chapter 1

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1The elder, To the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I alone, but also all who know the truth—

2because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:

3Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, will be with us in truth and love.

4I was overjoyed to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father has commanded us.

5And now I urge you, dear lady—not as a new commandment to you, but one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another.

6And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the very commandment you have heard from the beginning, that you must walk in love.

7For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.

8Watch yourselves, so that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be fully rewarded.

9Anyone who runs ahead without remaining in the teaching of Christ does not have God. Whoever remains in His teaching has both the Father and the Son.

10If anyone comes to you but does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home or even greet him.

11Whoever greets such a person shares in his evil deeds.

12I have many things to write to you, but I would prefer not to do so with paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come and speak with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

13The children of your elect sister send you greetings.

1The 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;

2For the truth’s sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever.

3Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

4I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father.

5And 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.

6And 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.

7For 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.

8Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.

9Whosoever 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.

10If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:

11For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

12Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you, and speak face to face, that our joy may be full.

13The children of thy elect sister greet thee. Amen.

1The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth; and not I only, but also all they that know the truth;

2for the truth`s sake which abideth in us, and it shall be with us for ever:

3Grace, mercy, peace shall be with us, from God the Father, and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

4I rejoice greatly that I have found [certain] of thy children walking in truth, even as we received commandment from the Father.

5And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote to thee a new commandment, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.

6And this is love, that we should walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, even as ye heard from the beginning, that ye should walk in it.

7For many deceivers are gone forth into the world, [even] they that confess not that Jesus Christ cometh in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.

8Look to yourselves, that ye lose not the things which we have wrought, but that ye receive a full reward.

9Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God: he that abideth in the teaching, the same hath both the Father and the Son.

10If any one cometh unto you, and bringeth not this teaching, receive him not into [your] house, and give him no greeting:

11for he that giveth him greeting partaketh in his evil works.

12Having many things to write unto you, I would not [write them] with paper and ink: but I hope to come unto you, and to speak face to face, that your joy may be made full.

13The children of thine elect sister salute thee.

1From the elder, to an elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth (and not I alone, but also all those who know the truth),

2because of the truth that resides in us and will be with us forever.

3Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

4I rejoiced greatly because I have found some of your children living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded us.

5But now I ask you, lady (not as if I were writing a new commandment to you, but the one we have had from the beginning), that we love one another.

6(Now this is love: that we walk according to his commandments.) This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning; thus you should walk in it.

7For many deceivers have gone out into the world, people who do not confess Jesus as Christ coming in the flesh. This person is the deceiver and the antichrist!

8Watch out, so that you do not lose the things we have worked for, but receive a full reward.

9Everyone who goes on ahead and does not remain in the teaching of Christ does not have God. The one who remains in this teaching has both the Father and the Son.

10If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house and do not give him any greeting

11because the person who gives him a greeting shares in his evil deeds.

12Though I have many other things to write to you, I do not want to do so with paper and ink, but I hope to come visit you and speak face to face so that our joy may be complete.

13The children of your elect sister greet you.

1The elder, to the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in truth; and not I only, but also all those who know the truth;

2for the truth’s sake, which remains in us, and it will be with us forever:

3Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

4I rejoice greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, even as we have been commanded by the Father.

5Now I beg you, dear lady, not as though I wrote to you a new commandment, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.

6This is love, that we should walk according to his commandments. This is the commandment, even as you heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.

7For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who don’t confess that Jesus Christ came in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the Antichrist.

8Watch yourselves, that we don’t lose the things which we have accomplished, but that we receive a full reward.

9Whoever transgresses and doesn’t remain in the teaching of Christ, doesn’t have God. He who remains in the teaching, the same has both the Father and the Son.

10If anyone comes to you, and doesn’t bring this teaching, don’t receive him into your house, and don’t welcome him,

11for he who welcomes him participates in his evil deeds.

12Having many things to write to you, I don’t want to do so with paper and ink, but I hope to come to you, and to speak face to face, that our joy may be made full.

13The children of your chosen sister greet you. Amen.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

John, writing as "the elder," greets the elect lady and her children, expressing joy that some of them are walking in the truth and reminding them of the command to love one another that they have had from the beginning (vv. 1-6). He warns that many deceivers have gone out into the world who deny that Jesus Christ came in the flesh, and he urges watchfulness so that the believers do not lose what they have worked for but receive a full reward (vv. 7-8). Anyone who does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God, and John instructs that such false teachers should not be welcomed into the home or even greeted, since doing so makes one a participant in their evil deeds (vv. 9-11). He closes by expressing hope to visit in person rather than write further, and he sends greetings from the children of the addressee's elect sister (vv. 12-13).

Authorship & Background

Author: "The elder" (v.1) — the Apostle John. Written approximately AD 85-95. The shortest book in the NT by word count (in Greek).
Recipient: "The elect lady and her children" (v.1) — either a specific woman and her family, or (more likely) a local church personified as a lady with her members as children. "Her elect sister" (v.13) would be another church.
Purpose: To encourage walking in truth and love (vv.4-6) while warning against receiving false teachers who deny Christ's incarnation (vv.7-11). A brief, urgent letter balancing truth and love — you need both.
Theme: Truth and love together. Walk in truth (v.4), walk in love (v.6), but don't extend hospitality to those who deny Christ (vv.10-11).
Classification: Epistle — Personal Letter
Key Themes: Truth and love held together, walking in the commandments, the test of confessing Christ come in the flesh, and hospitality withheld from those who carry a false gospel
Greeting: The Elder to the Elect Lady (vv.1-3): The writer calls himself simply “the elder”, and the vocabulary throughout — truth, love, commandment, abiding — matches 1 John and the Fourth Gospel closely enough that the traditional attribution to the apostle John has strong support. The addressee, “the elect lady and her children”, is read either as an individual woman and her household or as a local congregation addressed figuratively; both readings have a long history and the letter works either way. “Truth” appears five times in the first four verses, which signals the concern before the argument begins.
Walking in Truth and Love (vv.4-6): John is glad to find her children “walking in truth”, then restates the commandment that runs through all his writing: that we love one another, which is not new but was there “from the beginning”. Verse 6 closes the loop tightly — love is defined as walking in His commandments, and the commandment is that we walk in love. The two cannot be separated into rival priorities, which matters because the rest of the letter is about refusing someone, and John wants that refusal understood as an act of love rather than an exception to it.
The Deceivers: Christ Come in the Flesh (vv.7-9): The problem is named: many deceivers who do not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. This is the early docetic denial, holding that the Son only appeared to be human, and John treats it as disqualifying rather than as a difference of opinion. His test is Christological and specific. Verse 9 draws the line: whoever goes beyond the doctrine of Christ does not have the Father, and whoever abides in it has both. Innovation past the apostolic teaching is presented as loss, not progress.
Do Not Receive Them (vv.10-11): “If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed.” In a movement whose teachers traveled and depended on household hospitality, this is not social rudeness but the withdrawal of logistical support. Offering a bed and a blessing would have made the host a partner in the teaching being carried on to the next town, which is exactly what v.11 says. The command is narrow — it concerns those propagating a denial of the incarnation, not anyone with whom one disagrees.
Closing: Face to Face (vv.12-13): John has more to say and declines to write it, preferring to come and speak “face to face, that our joy may be full”. The same preference appears at the end of 3 John. It is a reminder that these letters were stopgaps between visits rather than treatises, which is part of why they are so short and so pointed. Greetings from the children of her elect sister close the letter.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik covers the balance of truth and love, the incarnation test, and the prohibition against supporting false teachers.
  • Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
  • Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.

Videos

Books of 1-3 John Summary: A Complete Animated Overview
BibleProject

2 John: The Elect Lady
Spoken Gospel

2 John | False Teachers | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

2 John – Walking The Truth
David Guzik

Articles

  • GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of 2 John -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.

Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.

Reflection

  • Walking in Truth (v.4) — John rejoices to see the elect lady's children actually walking in truth, not merely professing it. Is your life consistent with what you claim to believe?
  • Love Defined as Obedience (v.6) — John defines love not primarily as a feeling but as walking according to God's commandments. Do you measure your love for God by emotion, or by obedience?
  • Remaining in the Teaching of Christ (v.9) — John says only those who remain in Christ's teaching truly have both the Father and the Son. Is your understanding of Christ shaped by Scripture, or by whatever sounds appealing?
  • Not Partnering With False Teachers (vv.10-11) — John instructs believers not to welcome or support anyone who denies sound teaching about Christ, since doing so makes them a partner in that error. Are you discerning about who you support, platform, or endorse?