“The Elder vnto the elect Lady, and her children, whome I loue in the trueth: and not I onely, but also all they that haue knowen þe trueth:”
1611 King James Version (KJV)
1:1 The elder - An appellation suited to a familiar letter, but upon a weighty subject. To the elect - That is, Christian. Kuria is undoubtedly a proper name, both here and in #2Jo 1:5|; for it was not then usual to apply the title of lady to any but the Roman empress; neither would such a manner of speaking have been suitable to the simplicity and dignity of the apostle. Whom - Both her and her children. I love in the truth - With unfeigned and holy love.
2Jo 1:1 SUMMARY OF II JOHN: The Address to an Elect Woman and Her Family. The Commandment of Love. Antichrists. Godspeed Not to Be Given to These Opposers. Greetings. The elder. John, unlike Peter and Paul, nowhere in his writings speaks of himself as an apostle. Peter also speaks of himself as an elder. John probably uses the term here, not officially, but in reference to his great age, as the only survivor of the apostles, and perhaps then the only personal disciple of the Lord living. Unto the elect lady. The term is "Kyria" in the Greek, a term which we know to have been a female proper name. Hence many of the best commentators from the time of Athanasius have held that this is the name of the sister. If not a proper name "Kyria" would be the feminine form of "Kurios" (Lord), the term applied to Christ, a worldly title unaccountable in the church, which does not recognize artificial distinctions of rank. To avoid this difficulty some have held that by "Kyria" the church is meant. It is better to regard the term a proper name. Whom I love. That is, the mother and her children.