New Testament · Letter · book 64 of 66 · 1 min read
The book of 3 John
Fifteen verses about a church politics problem: a man named Diotrephes who likes being first and will not receive anyone the elder sends.
“I have no greater joy than this: to hear about my children walking in truth.”
At a glance
- Chapters
- 1
- Author
- "The elder"; traditionally John
- Written
- Probably 90s AD
- Written for
- Gaius, one man in a church with a difficult leader
- Themes
- hospitality, support, church politics, imitation
What it is about
3 John is a personal note to Gaius, commending him for supporting travelling missionaries and warning him about Diotrephes, who refuses to welcome them and puts out anyone who does.
It is the most ordinary document in the New Testament, and that is its value: a first-century church with a leader guarding his position, and a letter working out what to do about it.
It also contains the elder's most human line, about having no greater joy than hearing that his children are walking in truth.
Where to start
The whole letter. Fifteen verses.
The chapters worth knowing
- 3 John 1 — The whole letter — Gaius commended, Diotrephes named, and Demetrius vouched for.
What people get wrong about it
That it is too minor to bother with. It is the clearest surviving snapshot of an ordinary first-century congregational dispute, which is exactly what makes it useful.
Questions
What is 3 John about?
Hospitality to travelling missionaries, and a church leader named Diotrephes who refuses to receive them and excludes those who do.
Who was Diotrephes?
A figure in the congregation described as loving to be first, who would not welcome the elder's messengers. Nothing more is known about him than these few verses say.