Koine Foundations

Walking in the Darkness vs. Walking in the Light

^2:7 Beloved, what I am writing to you is not a new commandment, but an old commandment which you have possessed from the beginning. This old commandment is the message which you have heard all along. ^2:8 And yet, what I am writing to you is a new commandment. It is truly expressed in ˹Jesus Christ˺ and in you, because the darkness is fading away and the light, the Real Light, is already shining.

Translation by the author from the SBL Greek New Testament.

Summary of Verses 2:7-8

Verses 2:7-8 are in the unit that runs from 1:6 to 2:11. In verses 2:7 and 2:8, John transitions from his discussion of obedience to God’s commandments in general (verse 2:3) and from love for God specifically by keeping His commandments (verse 2:5), to the specific commandment of love for fellow believers (2:9-11).

Obedience and love are intertwined in the true Christian life. Jesus summed up the law (all of God’s commandments) in the single word love: love God and love others (Matthew 22:34-40). Love was at the core of the Old Testament commandments: love for God (Deuteronomy 6:5) and love for one’s neighbor (Leviticus 19:18). John has this in mind as he writes.

Obedience to the love commandment is a test by which those who claim to walk in the light can truly know if they are walking in the light.

Verses 2:7-8 are in the unit that runs from 1:6 to 2:11. Click here to open a PDF document that explains and illustrates the structure of verses 1:6-2:11.

Click here for a full outline of First John.

Verse 2:7

Beloved,

John addresses his readers as “beloved” (ἀγαπητοί / agapētoi) six times in this short letter: 2:7, 3:2, 3:21, 4:1, 4:7, and 4:11. The word is significant for the following reasons:

1. In each instance, It gets the attention of the reader and signals that what follows is an important statement.
2. It highlights the affection John has for the readers.
3. It implies that John writes as a mentor who has a true personal interest in the spiritual development of the readers.

“beloved” should probably be understood as not just John’s love for the readers, but also God’s love for the readers – they are beloved by John and God.

what I am writing to you is not a new commandment, but an old commandment which you have possessed from the beginning. This old commandment is the message which you have heard all along.

“from the beginning” could refer to both the beginning of the readers relationship with God (i.e., when they became believers), and to the very beginning (i.e., creation).

John reminds the readers of the commandment to love which they had heard when they first heard the gospel message. In that sense it is not a new commandment, but an old commandment which came through Jesus Christ. It is also an old commandment in that it was foundational to the laws given by God to Moses thousands of years before, and it actually goes back to the very beginning of creation – love is grounded in God’s eternal character.

The old command is the basis for walking in the light (verses 2:9-11) and for walking as Jesus walked (verse 2:6).

Verse 2:8

And yet, what I am writing to you is a new commandment.

And yet there is a way in which this old commandment is a new commandment. Jesus called it a new commandment when He gave it to His disciples at the Last Supper: “I am giving you a new commandment, ‘Love one another. Just as I loved you, you also are to love one another‘”. (John 13:34)

It is new because Jesus reaffirmed it. It is new because it remains true.

It is truly expressed in ˹Jesus Christ˺ and in you,

It is also new because it is a living commandment that was perfectly fulfilled in Jesus Christ and is being lived out in some measure in those who love Him. Jesus sacrificial death gave new meaning to the old commandment. Jesus showed what true love is by willingly dying for others.

because the darkness is fading away and the light, the Real Light, is already shining.

John has already used the dark/light contrast in verses 1:5 and 1:6-7.

In this verse, darkness is the realm of human existence where sin dominates and there is moral and spiritual gloom. Jesus Christ, the Real Light (see John 1:4-9), is shining in this darkness because of His work of love in dying for our sins. His completed work is causing the darkness to dispel wherever people believe in Him.

The darkness is in the process of fading away. As F. F Bruce notes in his commentary: “Although ‘the true light’ is already shining, the darkness has not passed completely away; it is in process of ‘passing away’. Thanks to the victory of Christ, the outcome of the conflict between light and darkness is a foregone conclusion, but the conflict is still going on.” [BRUCE p. 55]

Go back to Verses 2:3-6
Go forward to Verses 2:9-11

Your Personal Study

Read First John 2:9-11 below and answer the questions.

^2:9 The one who says, “I am in the light,” and yet hates his fellow believer, is still in the darkness. ^2:10 The one who loves his fellow believer abides in the light and there is nothing in him to cause others to stumble. ^2:11 But the one who hates his fellow believer is in the darkness and is walking in the darkness. He does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

1. According to John, is it possible to walk in the light and have fellowship with God if we hate others?

2. John does not explain in these verses what is included in love and hate. However, he has referred to the love commandment in verses 2:7-8 above, which Jesus summarized in Matthew 22:36-40. Based on what Jesus said about love towards others in Matthew 22:39, what are some specific ways you think love and hate are expressed?

3. In verse 2:10, John notes that the one who loves does not cause others to stumble. How would hating someone cause them to stumble, i.e., fail or fall? Can you think of specific ways you have caused others to stumble?

4. According to verse 2:11, living in spiritual darkness eventually causes spiritual blindness. What do you think it means that someone is spiritually blind? How does that affect the way they live and treat others?

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First John Translation.

First John Translation with Outline and Notes.

Bibliography of source information used for this series of posts.

Title Slide Image Credit: First John in Codex Alexandrinus, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Unless otherwise noted, English translations of Bible verses are by the author from the Greek text and are not quotations from any copyrighted Bible version or translation.

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