2 John; an Introduction, 18 June 2020

Thursday, 18 June 2020

The Book of 2 John; an Introduction.

The book of 2 John is the 63rd book of the Bible, and it is comprised of 1 chapter of 13 verses. A verse-per-day evaluation of 2 John will take less than two weeks to complete!

John is the Apostle John who was personally called by Jesus. Matthew 4:21, 22 reveals his formal calling by the Lord –

“Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.”

John is held to be the author of the Gospel of John; 1, 2, and 3 John; and the book of Revelation. He is highlighted in the gospels as being one of an inner circle who most closely associated with Jesus. This also included Peter and John’s brother, James. In the gospel which bears his name, he refers to himself as the disciple “whom Jesus loved” (for example, see John 13:23).

Based on the terminology of some verses in the gospels, it is speculated by some that John may actually be a first cousin of Jesus. However, this cannot be determined without a measure of speculation.

Like the book of 1 John, no writer is specifically identified as being the author of 2 John. Rather, only the title, “The Elder,” is given in the first verse. However, the obvious similarities in writing style give a strong hint that he is, in fact, the same author of both epistles.

The letter is addressed to “the elect lady and her children.” The meaning of that will be evaluated when that verse is analyzed.

The dating of the letter is reasonably assumed to be around the same time as for that of 2 John – from the mid-80s to the mid-90s.

The main theme of 2 John is “Abiding in the truth.” Thus, the main purpose of the epistle is “To warn believers about false teachers.”

The main presentation of Christ in the epistle is “Jesus Christ, the Truth.”

A short review of the book includes the following –

Author – The Apostle John
Date – Mid 80s to mid 90s
Theme – Abiding in the truth.
Purpose – To warn believers about false teachers.
Presentation of Christ – The Truth

A limited outline of the book would be –

The Book of 2 John – Knowing the Truth

Book Superstructure 
* Truth – Knowing it.

Book Structure
* Personal letter.

Book Outline
* Walking in Christ and His commandments; rejecting deceivers.

Life application: We hope that you will spend the next 13 days of your life learning the book of 2 John, one verse at a time. From there, we hope you will apply its truths to your life, molding yourself more each day into being a faithful and wholehearted follower of Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father.

Lord God, may it be our great and burning desire to be faithful in studying Your word each day. May we accept its truths as they are revealed to us, keeping them in proper context. And, may we then apply those truths to our walk before You. May we, each day of our lives, pursue Jesus Christ who is our Life, Light, and Truth. Be with us as we pursue the knowledge of Your Son, our Lord and Savior, who is so clearly presented in Your precious word. To Your glory we pray. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leave a Reply