Who are the Characters Mentioned in the Epistle of 2 John?

WHO ARE THE CHARACTERS MENTIONED IN THE EPISTLE OF 2 JOHN?

By Ezekiel Kimosop

There are two approaches to interpreting the characters and symbolism in this Johannine epistle.

LITERAL VIEW

The first theory assumes that the Lady was a physical person, a Christian woman leader whose name was not disclosed by the apostle but whose family loved the Lord and at whose home a church community regularly gathered.

Was this a literal person? Is there any evidence to the contrary from Scripture?

John is fond of concealing names. You may recall the reference to "the disciple whom Jesus loved" who is mentioned five times in the Gospel of John.

The "disciple whom Jesus loved" was is a common Johannine phrase which has been understood to refer to apostle John himself! (cf.  John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7; 21:20).

I do not find sufficient evidence from the passage to support the literal interpretation of the Biblical characters in 2 John. My view is that it is inconceivable that John, whose identity is not revealed in the letter, would be referring to a literal person in this case.

SYMBOLIC VIEW

Critics of the literal interpretation on the identity of the Elect Lady and the Chosen Sister, however raise legitimate questions.

If this Lady is truly a female Christian leader and her children, who were these children and were they members of the lady's household? How is it that a feminine leadership model that is hardly mentioned in the New Testament Scripture  can be implied by John?

Notice also that John does not mention his name anywhere in this letter but simply identifies himself as "The Elder",  a title of honor in Hebrew thought.

In fact none of the Johannine writings other than the book of Revelation identifies the author! John is mentioned five times in the Book of Revelation.

My view is that the exhortation given by John was obviously intended for a specific Christian community and not members of a physical family and that this exhortation is consistent with an apostolic address to a group of New Testament believers.

This then brings into the picture the second theory of interpretation which holds that the words "Elect Lady", "Chosen Sister" and their children are metaphorical references to Christian communities under the oversight of apostle John.

This interpretation holds that John was writing to commend believers in an unidentified Christian community, possibly in Macedonia, and that John was writing from a distant place possibly Ephesus, where scholars say he had taken over the oversight of the Gentile ministry after the martyrdom of Paul in 67 AD.

In many instances in Scripture, the church is commonly identified in the feminine gender as the "bride of Christ". Several symbolism in the gospel portray the church as a bride waiting for her groom to come (cf. the parables of the Ten bridesmaids of whom five were foolish (Matthew 25).

The parable of the Wedding Banquet in Matthew 22 also mirrors on the marriage supper of the Lamb which is described in Revelation 19.

BIBLICAL CONCEPT OF CHILDREN OF GOD

In other passages of Scripture, especially in Johannine in writings, believers are referred to as children of God or little children. (cf. 1 John 2:1-28 and specifically 2:1, 12, 13).

Paul identifies believers as "children of light" (Ephesians 5:8). He also endearingly referred to those he raised in the Lord as "my beloved children" (1 Corinthians 4:14).

Peter refers to believers as "obedient children" as opposed to accursed children (1 Peter 2:14).

CONCLUSION

My view is that John was writing from a Christian community whose greetings he conveys in 2 John 1:13. This was probably a local Christian assembly with which the recipient church was familiar.

John therefore addressed his letter to a Christian congregation which was in spiritual communion with his church. It was true to the apostolic teachings of Christ and His works of the cross. It is the cross that unites us. This is what makes us distinctly Christian.

Sisterhood is a shared heritage of members of one family who have a common father. Again John's use of this word is symbolic rather than literal. This affirms the universality of the true Christian community. The children here are probably a group of believers belonging to both communities of context.

The fact that the two Christian communities are metaphorically identified as sisters is therefore evidence of their common spiritual heritage in Christ. The two were distinct Christian communities that were spiritually joined together in Christ.

Some have argued that John concealed the identity of the Christian communities because of the persecution that was prevailing at that time. This is difficult to establish from the passage.

In any case John later wrote to the Seven Churches in Revelation 2-3 while mentioning them by name as commanded by our Master.

SUMMARY OF THE MESSAGE OF 2 JOHN

I can summarize the object of John's second letter as follows:

1) To edify the recipient Christian community and to encourage them in their walk of faith (2 John 1:1-4).

John found that some members of this community were faithfully walking in Christ, perhaps in the face of persecutions and false teachings (cf 2 "John 1:7).

Could this suggest that some had fallen away from the truth and needed to be restored? The urgency of this letter suggests that the impact of false teachings was possibly profound.

John had probably visited this community on a previous occasion. 2 John 1:8 suggests that he was possibly part of a team of missionaries or Christian leaders who had preached to these believers.

Alternatively, we can infer that John identified the recipient church ministry as a product of the collective effort of his apostolic council.

2) To exhort them to love one another as God's children (2 John 1:5-6). The reference to a lady  in 2 John 1:5 is most probably intended for the Christian community in its singular sense as a body of Christ. We may be divided by denominations or regions but all who are in Christ are collectively one body of God's elect.

3) To warn the church about false teachers who he refers to as deceivers who have gone out into the world and who deny the incarnate coming of Christ (2 John 1:7-11). This was among the earliest reference to false teachers in the New Testament Scripture.

The false teachers were a heretical group which scholars believe were part of the early Gnostics who were similar to the Mormons and the Jehovah's Witnesses.

These heretics deny the humanity of Christ without which His works of the cross would be inconceivable.

If Christ was not fully God and fully man at the same time during His earthy life, then His redemption works of the cross could not have satisfied God's divine purposes and our reconciliation with God would be a mirage!

John warned the believers never to entertain such heretics because of the obvious damage they can inflict on the doctrines.

We are faced with the same danger today as heretics propagate their false doctrines and misleading many, turning them away from the path of truth (cf James 5:19-20).

This warning is perhaps more timely today because of the exponential number of false teachers who propagate a different gospel from what Scripture teaches and who mislead millions into apostasy. Christian heresy must be resisted by all means.

Shalom 



© Ezekiel Kimosop 2019