ACC ~ 2 John 1 v1

TO THE ELECT CHURCH. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: John’s second letter, which is written to virgins, is extremely straightforward. It was written to a certain Babylonian woman called Electa, whose name stands for the election of the holy church. ADUMBRATIONS.

TO THE ELECT LADY. HILARY OF ARLES: The elect lady is clearly a church to which the letter is written. It is elect in faith and mistress of all virtues. INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 JOHN.

THE ELDER. JEROME: Originally “presbyters” and “bishops” were the same. When later on one was chosen to preside over the rest, this was done to avoid schism. For apart from ordination, what function is there which belongs to a bishop which does not also belong to a presbyter? LETTERS 146.

TO A PARTICULAR LADY. ANDREAS: John is either writing to a church, or else to a particular woman who has ordered her household spiritually, according to the commandments of God. He writes this letter to one of the women who has accepted the proclamation and exhorts her to do two things. The first of these is to walk in love, and the second is to avoid welcoming false teachers. John also tells us that the overall purpose of his letter is to keep her informed until he is able to come to her in person. CATENA.

TO ALL WHO KNOW THE TRUTH. BEDE: John is writing against the heretics who have departed from the truth. He rightly recalls that there is a love in the Holy Spirit which is common to all who know the truth. By mentioning the unanimity and the large number of catholic Christians he frightens those few who have separated themselves from their number. Look how all catholic Christians everywhere follow a single rule of truth, whereas heretics and unbelievers do not all agree on what they reject and attack each other just as much as they attack the truth. ON 2 JOHN.

JOHN THE ELDER. OECUMENIUS: There are some people who think that this and the following letter are not by John the beloved disciple but by someone else of the same name. The reasons they give for this are that in both letters he describes himself as the elder and addresses a single correspondent (either the elect lady as here, or Gaius), which is not the case in the Catholic Epistle (1 John). Moreover, he starts with a personal introduction in both these letters, which is missing from 1 John. In answer to these points we would say that he did not put an introduction in his first letter because he was writing neither to a particular church nor to a specific individual. The fact that he calls himself an elder rather than an apostle may be due to the fact that he was not the first missionary to preach the gospel in Asia Minor. There he followed Paul, but unlike his predecessor, who merely passed through, John remained in the province and ministered directly to the local people. Nor did he refer to himself as a slave of Christ because as the beloved disciple he had the confidence that he had gone beyond the fear of slavery. COMMENTARY ON 2 JOHN.

THE AUTHOR. THEOPHYLACT: The most convincing argument in favor of the belief that John wrote this and the following letter is that the themes found in the first letter recur whenever the opportunity presents itself. COMMENTARY ON 2 JOHN.

2 Jn