^1:5But now¹² I ask you, lady (not as if I were¹³ writing a new commandment¹⁴ to you, but the one¹⁵ we have had from the beginning),¹⁶ that¹⁷ we love one another.

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Footnotes

9 “Some” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied because the prepositional phrase beginning with ἐκ (ek) has partitive force. The partitive force of the prepositional phrase here has been taken by some interpreters to mean that the author has found some of the elect lady’s children who are living according to the truth and some who are not. This is grammatically possible, but the author has merely stated that he knows of some Christians in the church addressed who are “walking in the truth.” He does not know for certain that all of them are, and concern over this is probably part of the motivation for writing the letter.
10 Living according to the truth (Grk “walking in [the] truth”). The use of the Greek verb περιπατέω (peripateō) to refer to conduct or lifestyle is common in the NT (see 1 John 1:6, 3 John 3–4, as well as numerous times in Paul. Here the phrase refers to conduct that results when a person has “truth” residing within, and possibly alludes to the indwelling Spirit of Truth (see 2 John 2). In the specific context of 2 John the phrase refers to true Christians who are holding fast to an apostolic Christology in the face of the secessionist opponents’ challenge to orthodoxy.
11 Grk “just as we received commandment from the Father.” The idiom “we received commandment from the Father” means the Father gave (a) commandment to them (the author plus the recipients).
12 The introductory καὶ νῦν (kai nun) has some adversative (contrastive) force: The addressees are already “living according to the truth” (v. 4) but in the face of the threat posed by the opponents, the author has to stress obedience all the more.
13 The words “if I were” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied for clarity in English.
14 An allusion to John 13:34–35, 1 John 2:7–8.
15 “The one” is not in the Greek text. It is supplied for clarity in English.
17 The ἵνα (hina) clause indicates content.

Cross references

16 See 1 John 2:7.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 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.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, in keeping with a command we have received from the Father. So now I ask you, dear lady—not as if I were writing you a new command, but one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another.

NLTNew Living Translation

How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded.

I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

I was very glad because I found some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us.

And now I ask you, lady (not as if I were writing a new commandment to you, but one that we have had from the beginning), that we should love one another.

KJV 1900King James Version

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.

Public Domain