1, 2 and 3 John

I. Introduction

Different places and cultures have unique social environments. Their special characteristics can be explained by a diversity of geography, language and ethnicity. To make sense of their social settings, local inhabitants sometimes create terminology that communicate the unique experiences of being part of their special group in their special place. So it was with the Johannine community. Believers described their assembly as followers of the enfleshed Christ who loved one another. Outsiders might not have understood their creed or lifestyle but insiders drew strength from the Risen One and those he gathered together.

The letters of John communicated the spirit of an exclusive faith community.

Overview

II. Dating: 90-110 CE

Like some of the other Catholic letters, dating the Johannine epistles can be tricky. They gave no direct details that one could use to pinpoint a famous historical figure or event. Indeed, we only have themes of creed and lifestyle that can give us a general historical range of dates. These themes include terms that help describe the religious experiences of the community, the tactile nature of those experiences, assertions about the lifestyle of believers and the divine will, then a discussion of those who violated the creed and the social spirit of the assembly. With those in mind, we consider questions about the author and his audience.

A. Themes

1. Divine Intimacy

Both the gospel of John and the letters from John spoke to religious experience. It had two dimensions: a vertical (a sense of transcendence) and a horizontal (social or communal). People described the vertical in terms of deep peace and care, even being swept up to an "out of the body" plane. They talked of a power greater than themselves addressing them personally. Notice they described such experiences in emotive language. Such talk not only attempted to communicate feelings of ecstasy, it also expressed expectations for future events. It pointed adherents in a direction. They experienced their God in a certain, hopefully repeatable, way.

While people might have transcendent encounters on an individual basis, inevitably they would tell others about such events (on a horizontal level). They might even experience them in a group setting. Either way, these events could have a communal significance. Indeed, a faith community might collectively judge these experiences as legitimate or not. The early Church developed credal statements for such determinations.

The author(s) of the Johannine literature employed such words as "love, abide and fathered" to describe the Christian religious experience. So, let's consider these phrases to gain insight into the sometimes dense and confusing language of John.

a. "Love" (Agape)

There were several Greek words we translate as "love." The most popular of these was the "agape" which had noun and verb forms. As a noun, it meant feelings of mutual affection and accompanying behavior on the one hand, a "love feast" on the other. New Testament authors employed the former 86 times for feelings ("love") and 28 times for behavior ("charity"). The author of John's gospel used agape six times. The author of First through Third John used it 17 times.

The verb form of agape ("agapeo") meant feelings of affection and behaviors of hospitality. New Testament writers employed the verb 135 times, 27 times in John's gospel and 20 times in First through Third John.

Clearly, the notion of "agape" had a great influence on the thinking of the early Church. It described the relationship between believers as well as relations between Christ and his disciples. Consider the following verses:

I give you a new command: love one another. Just as I loved you, love each other also. In this (way), all will know that you are my disciples if you might have love for each other.

John 13:34-35

This is the message you heard from the beginning that we should love each other.

1 John 3:11

Note in John's gospel and First John that the author(s) emphasized mutual affection and the appropriate behavior. But they took the concept further:

If someone loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him. We will come to him and we will make a dwelling with him. The one not loving me does not keep my words. The word that you hear is not mine, but the Father's, the one who sent me.

John 14:23-24

Love is in this, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son (as) an expiation for our sins. Loved ones, if God loved us in this way, then we ought to love each other.

1 John 4:10-11

Agape became a matter of divine initiative and intimacy. The Father loved first by sending his Son for the good of humanity ("the expiation of sins;" see Jn 3:16). Those who responded by living out that love with others would realize the divine presence.

Agape, then, extended beyond good feelings. On the horizontal plane, it meant care for others. On the vertical, it meant spiritual experience, both individual and communal.

b. "Abide in" (Meno)

The Greek word for "remain" was "meno." The word meant to "stay or reside in" and had two aspects: place and time. In the former sense, it denoted a continual presence. In the latter sense, it indicated endurance and survival, even unchanging. The author of John's gospel used it 42 times; the author of First and Second John employed 22 times in his first epistle and 3 times in his second.

In translating the Farewell Discourse of John's gospel (Jn 14:10, Jn 14:16-17, Jn 15:4-7, Jn 15:9-11, Jn 15:16), scholars have used "abide" (ESV, NRSVUE) or "remain" (NIV, NABRE, WEB). As an intransitive verb, "abide" implied the same meaning at "remain" ("staying in a place"). But it could also mean conformity to and acting in accord with authority. In other words, "meno" didn't mean a passive lack of movement; it had a dynamic sense of continuing allegiance and engagement. It pointed to an ongoing relationship.

Consider the following verses from John' gospel and First John.

I am the vine, you are the branches. The one abiding in ME and I in him, this one bears much fruit. Since, without ME, you are not able to do anything.

John 15:5

What you heard from the beginning, keep (it) abiding in you. If (it) should abide in you, what you heard from the beginning, then you in the Son and in the Father will abide.

1 John 2:24

These verses described "abide" in terms of dependence. Believers "abide" in Christ and through him with the Father if they remain faithful to the Christian message and lifestyle.

If you abide in ME and my words abide in you, what (things) you might want, ask for (them), and they will happen for you.

John 15:7

This is the confidence that we have before him, that whatever we might ask according to his will, he will hear us.

1 John 5:14

While the passage from First John did not include the verb "abide," both verses encourage a healthy prayer life for those who remain faithful.

Just as the Father loved me and I loved you, abide in my love. If you keep my commands, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's command and I abide in his love.

John 15:9-10

No one has ever seen God. If we should love each other, God abides in us and his love is made complete in us.

1 John 4:12

Again, the author(s) emphasized faithfulness ("abiding") to the message and the lifestyle. These were the means to a close and certain spiritual relationship.

So, the verb "meno" indicated more than the presence of two parties in a relationship. It expressed the ongoing commitment to that relationship and its responsibilities. Disciples held Christ dwelt among them as long as they declared he was the Christ enfleshed and they treated each other the way their Master dealt with them, with love.

c. "Father...children" (Gennao...Teknion)

The author(s) described the relationship between God and believers in familial terms, as Father and his children. But the writer(s) did not simply give these names to members of the relationship. They employed language that implied divine initiative. God "fathered" believers as his children. The word for "fathered" in Greek was "gennao."

Ancient people assumed the male was the active participant in procreation; the female was purely passive. They appealed to an agricultural analogy. Semen was like the plant seed and the womb was like the soil. To this way of thinking, the male contributed almost everything to the offspring, the mother contributed little. By extension, "gennao" also meant "to be born" but it emphasized the role of the male primarily, the female secondarily.

New Testament authors also employed the term metaphorically. It meant "to engender" and "to beget." When the author(s) used this language to describe the spiritual relationship, they implied it depended solely upon God. They used it 65 times in the Christian Scriptures, 15 times in John's gospel and 6 times in First John.

The results of "gennao" were offspring (usually sons), "teknon" in Greek. "Teknon" implied a favored relationship unlike the Greek word "paidion" which meant "a child under training." The former had a special relationship with his family; the latter was used generically and could be applied to an apprentice or slave. Because of the favor implied, "teknon," it could be employed metaphorically between older and younger males, teachers and students, even owners and beloved slaves. While it could be used generically ("children of the city" and "children of the Evil One"), it implied favor with God in the context of believers. New Testament writers employed it 91 times, three times in John's gospel and eight times in First through Third John.

We're concerned with the spiritual relationship between God and believers, expressed by the phrases "born by God" and "children of God." Consider the following verses:

But, as many as received HIM, (HE) gave to them the right to become children of God (tekna theou), the (ones) trusting in his name, who, not out of blood or the desire of the flesh or the desire of men but by God they were born (theou egennathasan).

John 1:12-13

Loved (ones), we should love each other because love is from God and everyone loving has been born by God (theou gegennatai) and knows God.

1 John 4:7

In this, we know that we love the children of God (tekna theou) whenever we love God and perform his commands.

1 John 5:2

Notice the emphasis on faith ("trusting in his name") and communal behavior ("love" and "commands"). Both together defined believers as "born by God" and "children of God." The former phrase implied divine initiative; only God could bring forth faith and love. The latter defined the place of those who believed and acted with charity.

d. Conclusion

For the author(s) of John's gospel and letters, love ("agape") described the experience of the believers. It pointed to an ecstatic experience of and the behavior between the faithful. Agape expressed itself in many different ways, from liturgical gatherings, to hospitality shown to traveling missionaries to communal outreach to the poor.

Believers faced the challenge of steadfast faithfulness. They were to abide ("meno") in the community, both in its message and its lifestyle. But, faithfulness was not static. It demanded determination to face what temptations awaited them. When they lived with discipline, they were convinced God "abided" with them.

The author(s) described the relationship between God and believers in familial terms. He was the Father; they were his children. But, they stepped beyond mere titles. God engendered that relationship through gifts of faith and love. Believers had the responsibility to live out those gifts in order to have any claim to divine intimacy.

2. "from the beginning"

The author of the Johannine letters used the phrase "from the beginning" eight times. He cited it with reference to 1) the eternal nature of the Christ (1 Jn 1:1; 1 Jn 1:13; 1 Jn 1:14; see Jn 1:1-2, Jn 1:14), 2) the command to love (1 Jn 1:7; 1 Jn 3:11; 2 Jn 1:5-6; see Jn 15:12) and 3) the temptation to sin (1 Jn 3:8). The phrase itself meant more than the first time believers heard the Good News or the starting point of Christ's ministry. It harkened back to the moment of creation. The Logos was with God the Father in the making of the cosmos (1). But it meant more. Within the Logos lay the will of God for humanity, to "love one another" (2). In other words, Christ came to fulfill the original intent of God in the act of creation. The Father made the cosmos to work in harmony; the Son called upon his followers to live in that harmony.

What should we make of constant temptation from the beginning of time (3)? First century believers held angels rebelled against God (Rev 12:7-10; see Isa 14:4-17; 1 Enoch 6:1-3a). Their revolt led to the temptation of Adam and Eve in Eden (Gen 3:1-20). Ancient Jews held to a linear and symmetrical view of time; what happened at the beginning of time would occur at the end. Since early Christians adopted this outlook, they held the activity of the Son at creation would appear again at the end (1 Jn 2:18; 1 Jn 2:28; the will of God for harmony ("love") in his creation would be manifest at the end (1 Jn 3:2; 1 Jn 3:17). So, they assumed the battle between good and evil that happened at the beginning would also happen in the end times.

3. Tactile Witness and its Effects

The author of First John began his letter with a declaration of witness.

1 What was from the beginning, what (we) have heard, what (we) have seen with our eyes, what (we) saw and our hands touched – 2 and the life made manifest, and (we) have seen it, and (we) testify (about it) and we tell you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us – 3 what (we) have seen and have heard, we also tell you, so that you might have fellowship with us.

1 John 1:1-3a

The commentary addressed the structure of the long sentence above. Here, we're concerned with the physicality of the witness. Compare this with a passage from John's gospel:

(JESUS) said to Thomas, "Take your finger here and inspect my hands; take your hand and thrust (it) into my side. Do not become unbelieving but believing."

John 20:27

Both passages emphasized Christ in the flesh. This core assertion of the Church had two implications: measure of orthodoxy and spiritual experience in liturgical settings. First, let's consider the faith in the physical presence of Christ, a doctrine found in both the gospel of John (Jn 1:14) and the letters of John (2 Jn 1:7). It spoke to the apostolic witness in the Incarnation and the corporeal Resurrection.

"Christ became flesh" and rose from the dead "in the flesh." This concept flew in the face of a culture influenced by Platonic thought which, taken to its extreme, held the spirit was good but fleshy matter was evil. The concept of Christ enfleshed created tension within local churches among those who were influenced by popular thought. Such soon left the communities to join with Gnostics and Docetists who claimed Christ was a spirit who simply appeared to have a body (see Irenaeus, Against the Heresies 1:19). For the author of the Johannine letters, these apostates were Antichrists (1 Jn 2:18-23, 1 Jn 4:3, 2 Jn 1:7).

The belief that Christ came and rose in the flesh had a secondary effect. It guided the worship of the faith community. Consider the following verses:

JESUS answered, "Amen, amen I say to you, unless someone is not born of water and the Spirit, (they) will not be able to enter the Kingdom of God."

John 3:5

Having come to JESUS, as they saw HIM already having died, they did not break HIS legs, but one of the soldiers pierced a spear into his side, and immediately blood and water came out.

John 19:33-34

This is the (ONE) having come through water and blood, JESUS CHRIST, not in water alone, but in water and blood. The Spirit is the (one) testifying, because the Spirit is Truth. So, three are the (ones) testifying, 8 the Spirit, water, and blood, and the three are as one.

1 John 5:6-7

"...come through water and blood..." alluded to the two events that marked the beginning (John's baptism) and end (Passion) of Christ's public ministry (1 Jn 5:6). These two summed up the mission of Jesus; they also pointed to the sacramental life of the community. "...born of water and the Spirit…" referred to the baptism of the neophyte (Jn 3:5). In the same way, the piercing of Jesus on the cross allowed blood and water to flow out of him (Jn 19:33-24); this acted as a metaphorical source for baptism and Eucharist (John 19:34; see 1 Cor 11:25, Mk 14:23-24, Mt 26:27-28, Lk 14:20). In a very tactile sense, believers mimicked the life of their Lord from its beginning to its end through their worship and, by extension, through their lifestyle. The witness passed on to the faithful was hands-on; so was the way they realized that witness in their lives.

4. Sin

The author of the Johannine letters defined sin in primarily communal terms. Those who broke the sense of community sinned. They challenged the cohesiveness of the local church through narcissism and heterodoxy.

The author criticized those who claimed a relationship with God by simply asserting it. Their self-centered nature blinded them to divine initiative. God was the active agent in salvation; he forgave sin. Those who said they had no sin were, indeed, sinners (1 Jn 1:6; 1 Jn 1:8). The same was true for those who professed a relationship with Christ yet treated fellow believers with contempt (1 Jn 2:4; 1 Jn 2:11; 1 Jn 3:15; 1 Jn 4:20). The author implied sinners fell prey to cultural allurements (1 Jn 2:16; 1 Jn 3:16-17). They even denied fellow believers simple hospitality because of their hard hearts (3 Jn 1:9-10).

The author also wrote his missives to address an underlying concern, the problem of perceived heterodoxy. He saw such teachings as a denial of Christ and his mission (1 Jn 2:22-23; 1 Jn 4:2-3; 2 Jn 1:7-10). As stated above, some in the community adopted Gnostic views of salvation. For them, salvation didn't depend upon the actions of the Savior on the cross; they equated salvation with self-realization. The Christ was not a deliverer but a spiritual teacher who imparted secret knowledge leading adherents to enlightenment (see the discussion on Gnosticism). Of course, disagreements on such a fundamental level would lead to fractures in the community itself.

When local leaders opposed the selfish and the heterodox, the latter left the community (2 Jn 1:7; implied in 1 Jn 2:19)

Later in First John, the author divided sin into that "which leads to death" and that which doesn't (1 Jn 5:16-17). Previously, he painted a scenario in stark contrasts between those who presumed a relationship with God or taught salvation without the cross and those who struggled to remain humble and faithful. In other words, he described the ideal. Now, he acknowledged the pitfalls of the struggle. Believers strove to build up the community and hold on to faith in Christ but they occasionally fell short. In these circumstances, the author called for prayer as a means to reach out to these fellow faithful.

B. Author and Audience

1. Author

There is a solid consensus among scholars that the same author wrote all three letters. The themes and language were consistent. In Second and Third John, the author identified himself as an "elder" ("presbuteros" in Greek; 2 Jn 1:1; 3 Jn 1:1), indicating he either had a church office or he was an known older figure with great influence in the region. In either case, he wrote with authority.

Was the author of the Johannine letters the same as the one who penned the gospel of John? Scholars are split on the subject; Felix Just SJ provided a good overview of the subject. Arguing for the same authorship, the opening of First John (1 Jn 1:1-4) paralleled that of the gospel (Jn 1:1-18). The closing passages also struck a similar tone (1 Jn 5:13; Jn 20:30-31). They also shared the imperative to "love one another" (1 Jn 3:11; 1 Jn 3:23; 1 Jn 4:7-12; Jn 13:34-35; Jn 15:12, Jn 15:17) which had the result of becoming "children of God" (1 Jn 3:1-2; 1 Jn .3:10; 1 Jn 5:2; Jn 1:12) and receiving eternal life (1 Jn 1:2; 1 Jn 2:25; Jn 3:15-16; Jn 17:2-3). The letters and the gospel shared the same dualistic worldview (light vs darkness, good vs. evil, etc.), the same vocabulary and the same concepts.

There were differences between the letters and the gospel. First John referred to the "Parachete" as Jesus (1 Jn 2:1) while the gospel pointed to the Spirit (Jn 14:16; Jn 14:26; Jn 15:26; Jn 16:7). The letters referred the word "walk" as a metaphor for the spiritual life while the gospel used it most of the time in its literal context. As we saw above, the concept of sin in First John meant heterodoxy or actions to weaken the community; in the gospel of John, it referred activity that opposed Jesus and his ministry. Finally, some subtle differences in grammar and style between the letters and the gospel.

So, did the same author write the letters and the gospel? It remains an open question. We can surmise the author who wrote the letters either penned the gospel or was deeply influenced by the community which produced John.

2. Audience

The author wrote each of the letters with a different purpose in mind. First John lacked a salutation and a farewell; it could have been a homily or treatise. Second John had both; it appeared to be addressed to a particular community ("lady" in 2 Jn 1:1) with best wishes to a neighboring church ("sister" in 2 Jn 1:13; see the commentary for details). It warned its readers against the heterodox. Third John had both greeting and farewell; it was penned with a specific purpose in mind, to warn a certain "Gaius" about an opposing leader in another community, "Diotrephes."

C. Dating

Dating of the letters depended upon three factors: what they contained, what they lacked and their relationship with John's gospel. First, the Johannine letters emphasized spiritual experience ("divine intimacy") that the author described in credal terms and relationships within the community. That experience was emotive and tactile. It occurred in a communal setting and, if it did happen in a solitary moment, the local church ruled over the latter's legitimacy. It acted as the glue that bound the community together. Those who threatened the faith and the group faced expulsion as sinners.

Second, what was missing? The threat of outsiders. In all the letters, opposition was internal not external. The social environment allowed for the churches to flourish and relax any bunker mentality they might have had. This allowed members to have good relations with pagan neighbors and, thus, being open to ideas within the general culture that were diametrically opposed to the teachings of the Church. The deviant Christian, not the pagan, posed the greatest threat to the community.

As we have seen above, either the author of the letters also wrote the gospel of John or was heavily influenced by it. These factors placed the composition of the letters into the post-apostolic era and within the time frame of John's gospel: 90-110 CE.