2 John 1:3

3 ¹Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.

2 John 1:3 Meaning and Commentary

2 John 1:3

Grace be with you, mercy [and] peace
This form of salutation, or wish and prayer for the blessings mentioned,

from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ,
is the same used by other apostles; see ( 1 Timothy 1:2 ) ( Jude 1:2 ) and (See Gill on Romans 1:7). Only it is added here with respect to Christ, that he is

the Son of the Father in truth and love;
which is mentioned by the apostle to confirm the deity of Christ, which is plainly implied in wishing for the above things equally from him, as from the Father; and to oppose and confront some heretics of those times, who denied the true and proper sonship of Christ; and therefore he calls him, "the Son of the Father", the only begotten of the Father; and that "in truth", or truly and properly, and not in a figurative and metaphorical sense, as magistrates are called the sons of God, and children of the most High, by reason of their office; but so is not Christ, he is God's own Son, in a true, proper, and natural sense: and he is so "in love"; he is his well beloved Son, his dear Son, the Son of his love; as he cannot otherwise be; since he is not only the image of him, but of the same nature, and has the same perfections with him.

2 John 1:3 In-Context

1 The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth,

2 because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:

3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.

4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.

5 And now I ask you, dear lady— not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning— that we love one another.

Cross References

• 1. 1:3 1 Tim. 1:2; 2 Tim. 1:2; [Jude 2]