And now I urge you, dear lady—not as a new commandment to you, but one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now I beg you, dear lady, not as though I wrote to you a new commandment, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
- KJV 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.
- NKJV And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another.
- NASB Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another.
- NLT 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.
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 urges the lady to love one another, reminding her this is not a new command but one held from the beginning. Mutual love is a foundational, original mark of the Christian community.
Overview
Echoing Jesus' own teaching (John 13:34), John frames love as a command Christians have possessed since they first received the gospel. He gently presses the duty of love while making clear he is recalling them to familiar ground, not imposing something novel. This love among believers flows directly from Christ's love for them and is the visible evidence of belonging to him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- 1 Jn 3:11This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
- John 13:34–35A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.
- John 15:12This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
- 1 Th 4:9Now about brotherly love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.
- 1 Jn 3:23And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and we should love one another just as He commanded us.
- 1 Jn 4:20If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
- 1 Jn 3:14–18We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. The one who does not love remains in death.
- 1 Pet 4:8Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
- 1 Jn 2:7–8Beloved, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but an old one, which you have had from the beginning. This commandment is the message you have heard.
- Heb 13:1Continue in brotherly love.
- 1 Pet 1:22–23Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.
- 2 Pet 1:7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.
- 1 Jn 4:7–12Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
- Eph 5:2and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.
- Gal 5:22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
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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 1:5 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
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