| New King James Version | New Living Translation |
| 1The Elder, To the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all those who have known the truth, | 1This letter is from John, the elder. I am writing to the chosen lady and to her children, whom I love in the truth—as does everyone else who knows the truth— |
| 2because of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever: | 2because the truth lives in us and will be with us forever. |
| 3Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love. | 3Grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God the Father and from Jesus Christ—the Son of the Father—will continue to be with us who live in truth and love. Live in the Truth |
| 4I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received commandment from the Father. | 4How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded. |
| 5And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another. | 5I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning. |
| 6This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it. | 6Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. |
| 7For 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. | 7I 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. |
| 8Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward. | 8Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked so hard to achieve. Be diligent so that you receive your full reward. |
| 9Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. | 9Anyone who wanders away from this teaching has no relationship with God. But anyone who remains in the teaching of Christ has a relationship with both the Father and the Son. |
| 10If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; | 10If anyone comes to your meeting and does not teach the truth about Christ, don’t invite that person into your home or give any kind of encouragement. |
| 11for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds. | 11Anyone who encourages such people becomes a partner in their evil work. Conclusion |
| 12Having many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face, that our joy may be full. | 12I have much more to say to you, but I don’t want to do it with paper and ink. For I hope to visit you soon and talk with you face to face. Then our joy will be complete. |
| 13The children of your elect sister greet you. Amen. | 13Greetings from the children of your sister, chosen by God. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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