Editing Second Epistle of John (section)

==Interpretation of "The Lady"==

The text is addressed "to the elect lady" and her children ({{Langx|el|ἐκλεκτῇ κυρίᾳ|eklektē kyria}}; some interpretations translate this phrase as "elder lady," "a very special woman," "chosen lady," "dear Lady" etc.), and closes with the words, "The children of thy elect sister greet thee." The person addressed is commended for her piety, and is warned against false teachers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://biblehub.com/nrsvce/2_john/1.htm|title=2 John 1 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition|website=biblehub.com}}</ref>

The lady has often been seen as a metaphor for the church, the church being the body of believers as a whole and as local congregations.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Burton|first= Ernest DeWitt|author-link=Ernest DeWitt Burton|year=1896|title=The Epistles of John|journal=The Biblical World|volume=7|issue=5|pages=368–69|jstor=3140373}}</ref> The children would be members of that local congregation. The writer also includes a greeting from another church in the final verse, "The children of thy elect sister greet thee." The term ''the elect'' (ἐκλεκτοί, ''eklektoi'') was a fairly common term for those who believe in the gospel and follow Christ.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.thebereancall.org/content/october-2013-classic| title = ''thebereancall.org''}}</ref><ref>''Did Christ Die Only for the Elect?: A Treatise on the extent of Christ's Atonement'' {{ISBN|1-57910-135-6}} pp. 113–114</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/all-women-bible/Elect-Lady| title = ''biblegateway.com''}}</ref> Scholar [[Amos Wilder]] supports this view, saying the content of the epistle itself shows it was addressed to the church as a whole rather than a single person.<ref>{{cite book|last=Wilder|first=Amos|author-link=Amos Wilder|editor-last=Harmon|editor-first=Nolan|title=The Interpreter's Bible|volume=12|page=303|chapter=II John: Exegesis}}</ref>

Another interpretation holds that the letter is addressed to a specific individual. [[Athanasius]] proposed<ref name="net">{{cite book |title=New English Translation |page=2 John |url=https://bible.org/download/netbible/ondemand/bybook/2jo.pdf}}</ref> that Kyria, the Greek word used here which means lady,<ref>{{cite web |title=κυρίᾳ |url=https://biblehub.com/greek/kyria_2959.htm |access-date=13 April 2020}}</ref> was actually a name. The [[Young's Literal Translation]] of the Bible translates it this way.<ref>{{cite web |title=2 John 1 YLT |url=https://biblehub.com/ylt/2_john/1.htm |access-date=13 April 2020}}</ref> It is also possible it refers to an individual but simply does not use her name.<ref name="net"/> One theory is that the letter refers to [[Mary, mother of Jesus]]; Jesus had entrusted his "beloved disciple" with Mary's life when Jesus was on the cross ([[Gospel of John|John]] 19:26–27). The children would thus refer to the [[brothers of Jesus]]: [[James, brother of Jesus|James]], [[Joses]], [[Simon, brother of Jesus|Simon]] and [[Jude, brother of Jesus|Jude]], and the sister to Mary's sister mentioned in {{bibleverse||John|19:25}}. Mary was likewise never referred to by name in John's gospel. Such an interpretation would assume a much earlier date of composition than modern scholars have suggested.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/people-in-the-bible/was-mary-magdalene-wife-of-jesus-was-mary-magdalene-a-prostitute/| title = ''biblicalarchaeology.org''| date = 25 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://bible-truth.org/JohnChapter11.html| title = ''bible-truth.org''}}</ref>