King James Version

What Does 2 John 1:5 Mean?

“And 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.”

Context

Grace 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. be: Gr. shall be

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

And 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.

And 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.

For 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.

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Topics in This Verse

Love

Commentary

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**4. coming--**drawing near (same Greek as here, He 10:22) by faith continually; present tense: not having come once for all at conversion. **stone--**Peter (that is, a stone, named so by Christ) desires that all similarly should be living stones BUILT ON Christ, the true foundation-stone; compare his speech in Ac 4:11. An undesigned coincidence and mark of genuineness. The Spirit foreseeing the Romanist perversion of Mt 16:18 (compare Mt 16:16, "Son of the Living God," which coincides with his language here, "the LIVING stone"), presciently makes Peter himself to refuse it. He herein confirms Paul's teaching. Omit the as unto of English Version. Christ is positively termed the "living stone"; living, as having life in Himself from the beginning, and as raised from the dead to live evermore (Re 1:18) after His rejection by men, and so the source of life to us. Like no earthly rock, He lives and gives life. Compare 1Co 10:4, and the type, Ex 17:6; Nu 20:11. **disallowed--**rejected, reprobated; referred to also by Christ Himself: also by Paul; compare the kindred prophecies, Is 8:14; Lu 2:34. **chosen of God--**literally, "with (or 'in the presence and judgment of') God elect," or, "chosen out" (1Pe 2:6). Many are alienated from the Gospel, because it is not everywhere in favor, but is on the contrary rejected by most men. Peter answers that, though rejected by men, Christ is peculiarly the stone of salvation honored by God, first so designated by Jacob in his deathbed prophecy.

Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset, David Brown. Public Domain.

Historical Context

This verse is found in the book of 2 John. Understanding the historical and cultural background helps illuminate its meaning for the original audience and for us today.

Theological Significance

2 John 1:5 contributes to our understanding of God's character and His relationship with humanity. Consider how this verse connects to the broader themes of Scripture.