1, 2, & 3 John (ACNT)

by Robert Kysar

Publisher:

Fortress Press

, 1986

Overview

No other document of the New Testament speaks more often and more explicitly of love than the epistles of John, and for that reason alone these books have become dear to the hearts of many Christians. 1, 2, & 3 John present us with expressions of the life of the earliest church in the struggle for unity and integrity, and for this reason these epistles merit study. Kysar’s commentary on the epistles of John offers exegetical analysis and comprehensive discussions of historical, theological, and interpretive challenges found in 1, 2, & 3 John.

Key Features

• Discussion of historical issues, such as authorship, dating, and location
• Textual and literary notes
• Bibliographies and suggestions for further reading and study
• Scripture references linked to your Greek New Testament or English translation

Contents

Top Highlights

“a mere reflection of God’s specific, historical act for the benefit of humanity.” (Page 97)

“Verses 3–6 begin with the general assertion that confidence in faith emerges from obedience (v. 3). Then comes an antithetical parallelism which affirms that true Christian faith involves obedience (vv. 4–5a). Finally, the section returns to the general affirmation with which it began (vv. 5b–6). This unit is related to the previous sections in that it declares that the liberation from sin affirmed in 1:8–2:2 can be known as an accomplished fact by means of obedience. Further uniting the three subsections of 1:8–2:6 is the insistence on the logical association of confession and life (compare 1:8 and 2:6).” (Page 47)

“To destroy (lysē) can also be rendered ‘to loose.’ It means to free humans from the power of evil. Here the author invokes a slightly different concept of atonement which centers in the objective forces of opposition to God.” (Page 81)

“Christian life is authentic, genuine existence, as it was intended by God. Through him means as a consequence of his life.” (Page 97)

“God’s grace and forgiveness exceed our inner state of being” (Page 87)

Praise for the Print Edition

Kysar needs no introduction to those who work in the field of Johannine studies. In addition to numerous essays and minor works, his major survey and assessment of these studies, The Fourth Evangelist and His Gospel, has rightly earned him gratitude and respect.

—Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society

Product Details

• Title: 1, 2, & 3 John
• Author: Robert Kysar
• Editors: Roy A. Harrisville, Jack Dean Kingsbury, and Gerhard A. Krodel
• Publisher: Augsburg
• Series: Augsburg Commentary on the New Testament
• Publication Date: 1986
• Pages: 159

About Robert Kysar

Robert Kysar earned his Ph.D. in New Testament from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, after an undergraduate education at the College of Idaho. He was a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Religious Studies of Yale University, 1973–1974. After seventeen years of college teaching (of which twelve were spent at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota), he became co-pastor of Christ United Lutheran Church, Gordon, Pennsylvania, with his wife, the Reverend Myrna C. Kysar. He is now professor of Homiletics and New Testament at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia.

Among his several books are Called to Care and four books on the Gospel of John. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Society for New Testament Studies.