2 John 1:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.

NIV: I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.

NASB: For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.

CSB: Many deceivers have gone out into the world; they do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.

NLT: I say this because many deceivers have gone out into the world. They deny that Jesus Christ came in a real body. Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist.

KJV: For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

NKJV: For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

This verse begins a new section, extending through verse 11, which discusses false teachers. John begins by stating that there were not a few, but "many" deceitful teachers. In addition, they are not all in one place, but are spread out among "the world." John's words were words of warning and caution.

John then defines the attributes of these deceivers. First, they "do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh." These false teachers claimed that Jesus came to earth spiritually, perhaps as an enlightened one, but was not a human like other people. This is false, as Scripture teaches Jesus was born of a virgin, with a physical body like that of any other human being. If Jesus was not a real person, He could not have physically died and resurrected. Both the humanity and deity of Christ are an essential part of His being. This is why John taught those who denied Christ's humanity are, "the deceiver and the antichrist." They were speaking lies and were literally against Christ.

Second John 1:7–11 discusses a certain type of false teacher. Those who deny that Jesus came to earth in a real, physical, human form are not teaching the truth. According to John, these people are not to be supported in any way whatsoever. Those who help a false teacher are participating in their sin.

The entire book of 2 John is only 13 verses long. It is written by ''the elder,'' in this case the disciple John. In it, John commends a group of believers for holding fast to the truth of the gospel. He also warns these people to avoid those who deny aspects of the Christian faith, and who deceive people away from the truth. John uses the term ''elect lady and her children'' as a reference to this entire local church.

As a short letter, 2 John doesn’t develop any one topic too deeply. John is pleased to see that some believers are sticking to the truth, but this implies that others are not. He is concerned over the influence of false teachers, using strong terms to reject their teachings. John’s reference to ''the elect lady and her children'' is probably a reference to an entire local church and its members.

Second John is one of the disciple John’s letters. The others are 1 John and 3 John. He is also the author of the gospel of John and the book of Revelation. Letters such as this help us understand John’s guidance of early churches. As the last surviving disciple, John’s words would have carried great weight in the Christian community.