3 John 1:9 (GNV)

Passage

I wrote vnto the Church: but Diotrephes which loueth to haue the preeminence among them, receiueth vs not.

Nearby Context

3 John 1:7 Because that for his Names sake they went forth, and tooke nothing of the Gentiles.

3 John 1:8 We therefore ought to receiue such, that we might be helpers to the trueth.

3 John 1:9 I wrote vnto the Church: but Diotrephes which loueth to haue the preeminence among them, receiueth vs not.

3 John 1:10 Wherefore if I come, I will call to your remembrance his deedes which he doeth, pratling against vs with malicious wordes, and not therewith content, neither he himselfe receiueth the brethren, but forbiddeth them that woulde, and thrusteth them out of the Church.

3 John 1:11 Beloued, follow not that which is euill, but that which is good: he that doeth well, is of God: but he that doeth euill, hath not seene God.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wrote", "vnto", "church", "diotrephes", "loueth", "haue", "preeminence", and "receiueth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wrote" and "vnto", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "We therefore ought to receiue such that..." into verse 10's "Wherefore if I come I will call...", so "wrote" and "vnto" belong inside that flow. In 3 John context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "wrote" and "vnto" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.