2 John: A Walk worth taking
continue to walk in the truth, love one another, and be on guard against false teachers
Background
Second John is the second shortest book in the New Testament. It has only 245 words in the Greek text and would have easily fit on a single piece of papyri. Today we might call it (and 3 John) a “postcard epistle.” It is an excellent example of hortatory (or exhortation) discourse, for the author’s intent is to motivate his audience to action. The recipients must continue to walk in the truth, love one another, and be on guard against false teachers (e.g., the deceiver and the antichrist of v. 7).
The letter follows the normal epistolary pattern of the New Testament period with opening (salutation), body, and closing. The body of the epistle (vv. 4–11) consists of three sections that comprise the heart of the correspondence. Verse 4 introduces a commendation similar to that in other letters of the Greco-Roman culture. The two constituents that follow (vv. 5–6 and 7–11) contain three commands; one is located in vv. 5–6, and the other p 218 two are in vv. 7–11. Although there are only two imperatives in the epistle: “watch out” (blepete) in v. 8 and “do not take” (lambanete) in v. 10, “Love one another” in v. 5 virtually bears an imperatival force, in part because of the close proximity of the word “command,” which occurs four times in vv. 4–6.
John also builds this epistle around unifying key words. In these thirteen verses John repeatedly uses “truth” (five times), “love” (four times), “commandment” (four times), “walk” (three times), “teaching” (three times), and “children” (three times). He also utilizes a rare word, “antichrist,” which appears in Scripture only in 1 and 2 John (see 1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7).
In essence, John tells his children to (1) walk in the truth, (2) obey the commandments, (3) love one another, and (4) guard the teachings of Christ so that they will not be deceived by antichrist. The spiritual safety of the believing community is confidently affirmed, being further heightened by the fact that John begins and ends his letter with a reference to their election or chosen position (vv. 1, 13).
A first century letter, whether Christian or non-Christian, was different in form and structure from modern correspondence. Actually, the ancient pattern makes more sense because it identified the author at the outset. Jewish or Greek, an ancient epistle began with a salutation or word of introduction that followed a threefold formula of: (1) the name of the sender, (2) the name of the recipient, and (3) a word of greeting. The salutation was by no means merely perfunctory or insignificant. It would often establish the mood of the epistle and contain in “seed form” major themes or concerns the author wished to address.
Greeting
1 The elder,
To the lady chosen by God and to her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth—2 because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever:
3 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.
Walking in Truth and Love
4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
There are also several significant contrasts that unite the body of the letter. Sherman and Tuggy suggest five:
1. Those who walk in truth (v. 4a) vs. those who reject the truth (v. 7) and fail to continue in the teaching of Christ (v. 9);
2. The command received in the beginning (vv. 5c, 6b) vs. the teaching which has gone beyond Christ (v. 9);
3. Work to be rewarded (v. 8) vs. wicked works (v. 11);
4. Those who continue in Christ vs. those who do not (v. 9);
5. Those who refuse to welcome a false teacher vs. those (at least hypothetically) who welcome a false teacher (vv. 10–11).
John’s letter is both a message of exhortation and a message of warning.
4 ⌊I was very glad⌋ because I found some of your children walking in the truth, just as ⌊the Father commanded us⌋.
4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us
7 I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.
“Walking in the truth” indicates that truth is both what we believe and how we live. It is doctrine and duty, creed and conduct. The wonderful Baptist preacher Vance Havner used to say: “What we live is what we believe. Everything else is just religious talk.”
Agapē means to love the undeserving, despite disappointment and rejection;
John will go on to explain that love walks in obedience to God’s commands and is expressed in relation to one another (in this context note Paul’s magnificent description of love in 1 Cor 13:4–8). Truth, interestingly, is related to both belief and behavior. John’s interest in truth is not so much philosophical as it is spiritual and personal. Truth is that which is embodied in Jesus Christ (John 14:6), who he is and what he has done. John is especially concerned with the person of Christ in this letter (v. 7).
Truth mattered to John. If deception and error slip into a fellowship, the results are always tragic and devastating. The reason for this commitment to the truth is that the truth has seized them as a permanent and abiding reality.
Agapē means to love the undeserving, despite disappointment and rejection;
On the night of his betrayal he admonished the disciples saying, “A new commandment I give: Love one another” (John 13:34). “Love” (agapōmen) is a present tense verb, so John calls for consistent expression of the “love ethic” toward one another. Seeing that these words were voiced by our Savior the night before he died adds special weight to them. In using the word “ask,” John appeals to their heart. Genuine affection undergirds the request.
Verses 4 and 5 should be linked closely together. Walking in the truth (obedience) and love for one another go hand in hand. The absence of one will ensure the absence of the other. In addressing the issue of love Marshall notes: “Christians must love one another. This is the basis of Christian living to which all believers constantly need to be recalled. For the elder it meant practical, costly caring [emphasis mine] for the needy, even readiness to sacrifice oneself for the sake of others (1 John 3:16–18), but at the same time it included real affection for one’s fellow-believers.”
“Walking in the truth” indicates that truth is both what we believe and how we live. It is doctrine and duty, creed and conduct. The wonderful Baptist preacher Vance Havner used to say: “What we live is what we believe. Everything else is just religious talk.”