Free Bible Commentary
“Second John 1:4-6”
Categories: Second John“I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we have received commandment to do from the Father. Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.”
---End of Scripture verses---
As one commentator summarized, verses 4-6 reveal the inner life of the local fellowship while verses 7-11 reveal the doctrinal danger from without. It is no wonder that the elder John takes a significant portion of his thirteen-verse epistle to first commend the faithfulness of some of the children of the “elect lady”. In his ripe old age, John’s fiery demeanor (remember the nickname for him and his brother – Boanerges – “sons of thunder”) has tempered through decades of service to the Lord. “The one whom Jesus loved” has now grown into a softer, kindhearted encourager. And what a transformation! That gives hope for all of us doesn’t it?
While struck by this awarding of spiritual accolades, there are two more things to reflect on. First, verse 4 wraps out the five “truths” of the letter. This fifth mention of “truth” is again complemented by its perfect holy counterpart, love. The elect lady’s children are walking in the truth. This fact causes the Apostle tremendous joy at the end of his life after seeing countless souls depart from the faith. In a world where moral relativism abounded, these brethren were remaining steadfast and John rejoiced. In John’s third letter he writes, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.” (3 John 1:4) God’s people at this local congregation were abiding in Him and put their love into action. Recall that Christ emphasized repeatedly on the night He was betrayed that claims of love and loyalty were all for naught if that claim was used to exempt one from service to God (e.g. John 14:15, 21; 15:10, 14; 1 John 5:2-3; et al).
The second point of emphasis comes in the word “some.” Understood from one perspective, it appears that not all of the brethren at this congregation were walking as they should. This select group was unlike “the rest”, an idea found in parallel in Asia Minor churches in another of John’s writings (Revelation 2-3). What the exact numbers and elements may have been we cannot know, but John’s joy may have been pulled on by sorrow for “the rest.” However, the construction could also be understood differently and more positively. If “some” simply refers to those whom John has been blessed to meet, it would say nothing of the “rest” whom he has not met. This is the rendering preferred by F.F. Bruce in his commentary “The Epistles of John” after a brief grammatical examination of the use of the partitive preposition “ek” in verse 4. Either option is possible and conclusions must be made in sound judgment and not bound upon others.
Exemplified by this contingency of faithful believers would be the foremost commandments to love God and to love others. John beseeches them that this continues by using the language of a personal request (Greek: eroto se) as opposed to the more general style of making request (Greek: parakaleo). Daniel H. King in his Truth Commentary on 1-3 John suggests that this verbiage choice may reflect personal relationship. Of course, to love is not new in the sense of novelty for it was long and fairly universally recognized as the pinnacle of God’s law (Matthew 22:40; Romans 13:8). The newness came in the standard laid down by God’s Son – “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: as I have loved you, that you also love one another” (John 8:31). His love is the greatest that could be shown. To His example they were striving and so must we! And this love must not be an involuntary, uncontrollable passion. It must be unselfish service undertaken by deliberate choice. These things are elementary (notice the emphasis on hearing these things “from the beginning”). Love was written upon the first grain of sand in the hourglass of time, and upon every grain that fell after. For all those who would be akin to the “some”, the faithful remnant of God’s people, love must guide our walk. Love. Truth. Light. To these we hold highest esteem and in these is found highest honor. Let us follow the example of these, our brethren, codified in holy writ. In so doing, we shall find our joy, and God’s, made full.
Please read 2 John 1:7-8 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
-Eric Parker
