Limitless Word
Grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God the Father and from Jesus Christ—the Son of the Father—will continue to be with us who live in truth and love.
2 John 1:3 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
  • KJV 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.
  • BSB Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, will be with us in truth and love.
  • NKJV Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
  • NASB Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

John pronounces grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son, in truth and love. These gifts flow from God himself and frame the whole letter.

Overview

This greeting blends a typical apostolic blessing with the letter's twin themes of truth and love. By naming Jesus Christ "the Son of the Father" alongside God the Father, John affirms Christ's full deity and the unity of Father and Son, a point central to the doctrinal battle that follows. Grace, mercy, and peace are unearned gifts secured through Christ, reminding readers that the Christian life rests on God's saving initiative.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Rom 1:7to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
  • 1 Jn 4:10In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
  • 1 Tim 1:2to Timothy, my true child in faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
  • 1 Tim 1:14The grace of our Lord abounded exceedingly with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
  • Gal 5:6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision amounts to anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love.
  • 2 Tim 1:13Hold the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
  • 2 Jn 1:1The elder, to the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in truth; and not I only, but also all those who know the truth;
  • 1 Jn 2:23–24Whoever denies the Son, the same doesn’t have the Father. He who confesses the Son has the Father also.
  • Zech 8:19Yahweh of Armies says: “The fasts of the fourth fifth, seventh, and tenth months shall be for the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts. Therefore love truth and peace.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 2 John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 2 John 1:3YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 2 JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

To walk in truth and love is to abide in 'the teaching of Christ'; whoever has the Son has both the Father and life.

How 2 John 1:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.