The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (279 page)

3:18 To him be the glory:
Ascribing glory to Christ presupposes his divinity (1:1; Rev 5:12). A similar doxology appears in 1 Pet 4:11.
Amen:
It is uncertain whether this final "Amen" was in the original letter or not. 
Back to text.

INTRODUCTION TO

Author
 The First Letter of Saint John nowhere reveals the name of its author. Twelve times the epistle purports to come from an individual ("I am writing", 2:1, 7, 8, etc.), and one passage indicates that the author was writing as a spokesman on behalf of others ("we are writing", 1:4). The earliest traditions we have about the letter identify the author as the Apostle John, son of Zebedee (Mk 3:17). This was widely accepted in early Christian times and coheres well with the author's claim to give us eyewitness testimony about Jesus (1 Jn 1:1-3). The apostolic authorship of the letter has also been supported by an extensive list of verbal, conceptual, and thematic parallels between 1 John and the Gospel of John, keeping in mind that the latter work was universally attributed to the same apostle by the Church Fathers. Despite the strength and antiquity of this tradition, voices have been raised in modern times that call into question the apostolic authorship of 1 John. A popular alternative theory attributes the letter to a contemporary of the apostle named John the "elder" or "presbyter", a figure mentioned briefly by the second-century bishop Papias of Hierapolis (quoted in Eusebius,
Ecclesiastical History
3, 39). Not only does the author of 2 and 3 John use this exact title to introduce himself to readers (2 Jn 1; 3 Jn 1), but the activity of another noteworthy John in first-century Asia Minor could explain how the name "John" came to be attached to the letter in the first place, even if subsequent generations mistook it to mean the apostle. Scholars of this opinion thus do not account for the many parallels between 1 John and the Gospel of John in the traditional way. Some concede that both works came from the hand of the same writer, but they identify this figure as someone other than the Apostle John. Others ascribe the Gospel and the epistle to two different authors and explain the similarities between them in terms of stylistic and theological influence.

In the end, the question of authorship cannot be decided conclusively. The issue is one of probability rather than provability. That said, the tradition of apostolic authorship more adequately explains the evidence than existing theories of non-apostolic authorship. Not only does early Christian testimony weigh in favor of this position, but alternative views generally lack sufficient support to overturn the tradition. For instance, it would be quite natural for the Apostle John to describe his personal encounters with Christ in the terms given in 1:1-3. However, there is no evidence to indicate that John the Elder was an eyewitness to the historical ministry of Jesus in Palestine. Of course, he could have been, but no testimony to this effect survives from antiquity. Likewise, one has to account for the preservation and eventual canonization of this letter among the writings of the New Testament. Again, it is within the realm of possibility that someone other than John the Apostle could have written 1 John; but how was its authority so readily granted in the ancient Church if its author was a non-apostle whose identity was so soon forgotten? The question has force when we consider that no rival tradition circulated in early Christianity that attributed the letter to anyone other than the apostle. So too, the testimony of Papias fails to indicate that John the Elder had ever been known as an author, much less the author of a New Testament book. On the basis of historical probability, then, it remains likely that 1 John is an authentic writing of the Apostle John.

Date
 Scholars tend to date 1 John after the publication of the Gospel of John. Admittedly, the evidence for this order of composition is slight, but most are inclined to think that the epistle reflects historical circumstances that arose slightly later than those that prompted the writing of the Gospel. The widespread belief that John's Gospel was written in the 90s of the first century has thus resulted in the common view that 1 John was composed around
A.D.
100. Of course, an earlier date for the Gospel could mean an earlier date for 1 John as well, but support for this remains inconclusive. See introduction to the Gospel of John:
Date.

Destination
 The author never identifies his readers or their location. The dominant tradition is that John eventually left the assembly of apostles in Jerusalem and made his way to Ephesus in Asia Minor, where he spent the rest of his days overseeing the churches in the region. Scholars who accept this tradition infer that John is addressing members of his flock living in Ephesus and its environs. The sense running throughout the letter that John is personally acquainted with his readers and their situation makes this a strong possibility (2:1, 1214; 3:11).

Purpose
 The letter aims to strengthen believers threatened by a heretical group that broke away from their community (2:19). These individuals— whom John calls antichrists, liars, deceivers, and false prophets—denied that Jesus was "the Christ" (2:22; 5:1) and "the Son of God" (2:23; 5:5) who had truly "come in the flesh" (4:2). Attempts have been made to identify these apostates with various heretical groups that cropped up in the second century, such as the
Docetists,
who denied the reality of Christ's humanity, the
Gnostics,
who had a deep aversion to the physical and material element of man, or the
Cerinthians,
who claimed that the Divine Person of Christ descended on the man Jesus at his Baptism but withdrew from him just before the Passion. Others see them as former converts from
Judaism
who became increasingly troubled by the doctrine of the Incarnation and the messianic title that Christians gave to Jesus. Whatever the background of these opponents, John wanted to expose their propaganda as contrary to the apostolic faith handed down since the beginning.

Themes and Characteristics
The formalities of correspondence that usually characterize ancient letters are absent from 1 John. That is, it never identifies the sender or the recipients, nor does it contain a personal greeting or farewell. Perhaps more than any other New Testament book, 1 John resembles a short catechetical treatise. Still, the work appears to be more spontaneous than systematic in its presentation of Christian doctrine, and its warm, pastoral tone has notable affinities with the canonical letters of Peter, Paul, and James. We might think of it more as a pastoral exhortation than a formal letter. Nevertheless, in terms of literary form, it is undeniable that 1 John is something unique, something that resists a neat and tidy classification among other works of its kind. Be that as it may, longstanding tradition counts 1 John as one of the seven "Catholic Epistles" of the New Testament.

The content of the letter focuses on authentic fellowship with God. Faced with innovators who broke away from Christian orthodoxy, John's readers need assurance that they have embraced the true gospel that comes from the apostles. He therefore stresses that they—and not other rival groups —possess what was passed down from "the beginning" (1:1; 2:7, 13, 24; 3:11). They are the ones whose faith is victorious (5:4) and whose fellowship with God is certain (1:3; 3:24), provided they walk in the light (1:7), confess their sins (1:9), keep the commandments (2:3), and love one another in word and deed (3:18). The difference between true and false believers emerges as John divides the world into light and darkness (1:5), truth and error (4:6), love and hate (2:10-11), life and death (3:14), Christ and the antichrists (2:22). The line that runs between these contrasts is also the line that distinguishes the children of God from the children of Satan (3:10). At the height of all these reflections stands the triune God, who is light, life, and love (1:5; 4:8; 5:11). The fellowship that believers enjoy with the Father rests on the grace of divine life that is given us by the Son (5:12) and abides in us by the indwelling of the Spirit (3:24). This gives John the boldness to insist that we are truly "children of God" (3:1) born of the Father (3:9) for eternal life (5:13). «

OUTLINE OF THE FIRST LETTER OF SAINT JOHN

1. Prologue (
1:1-4
)

2. Living in the Light (
1:5-3:10
)

   A. Fellowship with God and One Another (
1:5-2:6
)

   B. Loving God and One Another (
2:7-17
)

   C. Exposing the Antichrist (
2:18-29
)

   D. Revealing the Children of God (
3:1-10
)

3. Living in Love (
3:11-5:12
)

   A. Loving the Brethren (
3:11-24
)

   B. Discerning the Spirits (
4:1-6
)

   C. God Is Love (
4:7-21
)

   D. Faith and Life in God the Son (
5:1-12
)

4. Conclusion (
5:13-21
)

THE FIRST LETTER OF

Chapters

1
2
3
4
5

The Word of Life

1
 
* 
That which
was from
the beginning
, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—
²
the life was made manifest, and we saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was
with the Father
and was made manifest to us—
³
that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have
fellowship
 
*
with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.
⁴
And we are writing this that our
^a
joy may be complete.

God Is Light

5
 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that
God is light
and in him is no darkness
 
*
at all.
⁶
If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth;
⁷
but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
⁸
If we say
we have no sin
, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
⁹
If we confess
our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
¹⁰
If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Christ Is Our Advocate

2
  
My little children
, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if any one does sin, we have an
advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
²
and he is the
expiation
for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the
sins of the whole world.
³
And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we
keep his commandments
.
 
*
⁴
He who says "I know him" but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
⁵
but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him:
⁶
he who says he abides in him ought to walk in
the same way in which he walked
.

A New Commandment

7
 Beloved, I am writing you
no new commandment
, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.
⁸
Yet I am writing you a new commandment, which is true in him and in you, because
^b
the darkness is passing away and
the true light
is already shining.
⁹
He who says he is in the light and hates
his brother is in the darkness still.
¹⁰
He who loves his brother abides in the light, and in it
^c
there is no cause for stumbling.
¹¹
But he who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

12
 I am writing to you, little children, because
your sins are forgiven for his sake
.
¹³
I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the Evil One. I write to you, children, because you know the Father.
¹⁴
I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the Evil One.

15
 
Do not love the world
or the things in the world. If any one loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.
¹⁶
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world.
¹⁷
And the world passes away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides for ever.