1 John 2:18

{16} {n} Little children, {17} it is the last time: {18} and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. (16) Now, he turns himself to little children, which nonetheless are well instructed in the sum of religion, and wills them by various reasons to shake off laziness, which is too familiar with that age. (n) He uses this word Little not because he speaks to children, but to allure them the more by using such sweet words. (17) First, because the last time is at hand, so that the matter suffers no delay. (18) Secondly, because antichrists, that is, such as fall from God, are already come, even as they heard that they would come. And it was necessary to warn that careless and fearless age of the danger.

1 John 2:18-29 . A Warning against Heretical Teaching. “Little ones, it is the last hour; and, as ye heard that Antichrist is coming, even now have many antichrists arisen; whence we recognise that it is the last hour. From our company they went out, but they were not of our company; for, if they had been of our company, they would have abode in our fellowship; but the purpose of it was that it may be manifested that they all are not of our company. And ye have a chrism from the Holy One, and ye all know. I did not write to you because ye did not know the Truth, but because ye know it and because every lie is not of the Truth. Who is the liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? This is the Antichrist—he that denieth the Father and the Son. Every one that denieth the Son neither hath he the Father; he that confesseth the Son hath the Father also. As for you, that which ye heard from the beginning, let it abide in you. If that abide in you which ye heard from the beginning, ye also in the Son and in the Father will abide. And this is the promise which He Himself promised us—the Life, the Eternal Life. These things I wrote to you regarding them that would lead you astray. And as for you, the chrism which ye received from Him abideth in you, and ye have no need that any one should teach you; but, as His chrism is teaching you regarding all things, and is true and is not a lie, and even as it taught you, abide in Him.

And now, little children, abide in Him, that, if He be manifested, we may have boldness and not be shamed away from Him at His advent. If ye know that He is righteous, recognise that every one also that doeth righteousness hath been begotten of Him.” A heresy had arisen in the bosom of the Church (see Introd. pp. 156 f.). It was a fatal heresy, a denial of the possibility of the Incarnation, and therefore of the relation of fatherhood and sonship between God and man. St. John’s emphatic condemnation of it was justified, but his apprehension was groundless. He shared the prevailing expectation of the imminence of the Second Advent ( cf. 1 Corinthians 10:11 ; 1 Corinthians 15:51 ; Php 4:5 ; 1 Thessalonians 4:15 sqq. ; Hebrews 10:25 ; Jam 5:8 ; 1 Peter 4:7 ; Revelation 1:1 ; Revelation 1:3 ; Revelation 3:11 ; Revelation 22:7 ; Revelation 22:10 ; Revelation 22:12 ; Revelation 22:20 ), and saw in the heresy an evidence that the end was at hand. It was rather an evidence that the Gospel was winning its way. The era of simple and unquestioning faith in the apostolic testimony was past, and men were beginning to enquire and reason. A heresy has the same use in theology as a mistaken hypothesis in science: it provokes thought and leads to a deeper understanding. What seemed to the Apostle the pangs of dissolution were in reality “growing pains”.

The last time; the time here referred to seems to be the destruction of Jerusalem, and the finishing of the Jewish state, both civil and ecclesiastical. In the Greek, the last hour, the approaching period of Daniel’s seventy weeks, as Mr. Mede understands it, in his Apostacy of the Later Times. Whereas therefore it was now a known and expected thing among Christians, that the eminent antichrist, or antichristian state, (expressly foretold, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17 ), was to come, or take place; therefore the apostle says, ye, i.e. the generality of Christians, have heard so much. So he says, even now, as the forerunners of that eminent one, are there many antichrists, ( foretold also by our Saviour, Matthew 24:5,24 ), viz. noted heretics and seducers then in being: not such falsely assuming vicarious Christs, as only pretended to do that part which the Jews expected from their Messiah, the delivering them from the Roman tyranny, and so set up to be merely civil or secular Christs, having themselves never been Christians, but such as had revolted from Christianity, and now laboured fundamentally to subvert it, denying Christ to be come in the flesh, 1Jo 2:22 2Jo 1:7 ; having been before professed Christians, as appears by the following words.

1 John 2:18 . Little, or young, children — The former caution against the love of the world belongs chiefly to old experienced Christians, or those who have attained some considerable knowledge and experience in divine things, because they are most apt to offend in that particular; this against seducers belongs chiefly to younger Christians, who are less established, and therefore more liable to be seduced. It is the last time — Greek, εσχατη ωρα εστι , it is the last hour, namely, as some understand it, of the duration of the Jewish Church and state, a sense of the expression which is favoured by the consideration that it was the period in which our Lord had foretold the rise of many false Christs. And therefore the apostle here cautions them against such deceivers, intimating, at the same time, for their encouragement and comfort, that the power of their persecutors, the Jews, would speedily be broken. Doddridge, however, Wesley, and many others, by the last hour, or last time, here understand the last dispensation of grace. As if the apostle had said, “The last dispensation that God will ever give to the world is now promulgated, and it is no wonder if Satan endeavour, to the utmost, to adulterate a system from which his kingdom has so much to fear.” And as ye have heard that antichrist shall come — Ερχκεται , cometh. “The word αντιχριστος , antichrist, is nowhere found but in John’s first and second epistle. It may have two meanings.

For if the preposition αντι , in αντιχριστος , denotes in place of, the name will signify one who puts himself in the place of Christ: consequently antichrist is a false Christ. But if the preposition denotes oppositions, antichrist is one who opposeth Christ. The persons to whom this epistle was written had heard of the coming of antichrist in both senses of the name. For the first sort of antichrists were foretold by our Lord, Matthew 24:5 : Many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many. The second sort were foretold Matthew 24:11 , Many false prophets will arise and deceive many. From what John hath written, 1 John 2:22 of this chapter, and chap. 1 John 4:3-4 ; 1 John 2:7 , there is reason to think that by antichrist he meant those false prophets, or teachers, who were foretold by our Lord to rise about the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, and who were now gone abroad. Some of these denied the humanity of Jesus Christ, others of them denied his divinity; and as both sorts opposed Christ, by denying the redemption of the world through his death, it is probably of them chiefly that John speaks in his epistles. When the apostle mentions these false teachers collectively, he calls them the antichrist in the singular number, as St. Paul called the false teachers collectively, of whom he prophesied, 2 Thessalonians 2:3 , the man of sin.

Little children (παιδία) See on 1 John 2:13. The last hour (ἐσχάτη ὥρα) The phrase only here in the New Testament. On John's use of ὥρα hour, as marking a critical season, see John 2:4; John 4:21, John 4:23; John 5:25, John 5:28; John 7:30; John 8:20; John 11:23, John 11:27; John 16:2, John 16:4, John 16:25, John 16:32. The dominant sense of the expression last days, in the New Testament, is that of a period of suffering and struggle preceding a divine victory. See Acts 2:17; James 5:3; 1 Peter 1:20. Hence the phrase here does not refer to the end of the world, but to the period preceding a crisis in the advance of Christ's kingdom, a changeful and troublous period, marked by the appearance of "many antichrists." Antichrist Peculiar to John in the New Testament. The absence of the article shows its currency as a proper name. It may mean one who stands against Christ, or one who stands instead of Christ; just as ἀντιστράτηγος may mean either one who stands in the place of a στρατηγός praetor, a propraetor (see Introd. to Luke, vol. 1, p. 246, and note on Acts 16:20), or an opposing general. John never uses the word ψευδόχριστος false Christ (Matthew 24:24; Mark 13:22). While the false Christ is merely a pretender to the Messianic office, the Antichrist "assails Christ by proposing to do or to preserve what he did, while denying Him." Antichrist, then, is one who opposes Christ in the guise of Christ.

Westcott's remark is very important, that John's sense of Antichrist is determined by the full Christian conception of Christ, and not by the Jewish conception of the promised Savior. Cometh (ἔρχεται) The prophetic present, equivalent to is about to come. The same term is used of Christ (John 14:3; John 21:22; Revelation 22:20). Are there (γεγόνασιν) Rev., more correctly, have there arisen. Whereby (ὅθεν) Lit., whence. Only here in John. It is found in Matthew and Luke, and frequently in Hebrews, and not elsewhere.

1 John 2:18 . Παιδία , little children ) See on 1 John 2:12 . The doctrine respecting antichrist is not beyond the capacity of a more tender age: 2 John 1:7 , note. Whence also the eleventh Catechesis , or Lecture to beginners , of Cyril treats of antichrist.— ἐσχάτη , the last ) not with respect to all times of the world, but in the antithesis of children to fathers and to young men .[4]— καὶ καθὼς , and even as ) and it is so, even as ye have heard , namely, that antichrist comes; and , indeed, already there are many , etc. There is a similar ellipsis, 1 John 2:27 , note.— ἠκούσατε , ye have heard ) ch. 1 John 4:3 .— ὅτι , that ) The particle is not redundant. The language is more distinct by the use of ὅτι , that , appended to it.— ὁ ἀντίχριστος , antichrist ) The Spirit had predicted the falling away of many from the truth of Christ Jesus the Son of God; but John does not use the word antichrist in the singular number except in the 1st Epistle, 1 John 2:18 ; 1 John 2:22 , 1 John 4:3 , in the 2d Epistle 1 John 2:7 : he does not introduce it at all in the 3d Epistle, in his Gospel, or in the Apocalypse; nor does any other writer of the New Testament use it.

Whether the phraseology of the apostles or the language of the faithful led to the introduction of that word, John, about to cut off [guard against] the errors which might arise, wishes mention to be made not only of antichrist , but also of antichrists : and when he speaks of antichrist , or the spirit of antichrist , or a deceiver and antichrist , though he speaks in the singular number, he designs to point out all who are deceivers and enemies of the truth. The faithful had heard that the spirit of antichrist , and antichrist himself , should come. John acknowledges that, and adds, that the spirit of antichrist is now already in the world, that now there had arisen many antichrists . And as Christ is sometimes spoken of for Christianity , so antichrist is spoken of for antichristianity , or the doctrine and multitude of men opposed to Christ. There is in particular one remarkable adversary, who is called the Horn speaking great things , Daniel 7:8 ; Daniel 7:20 ; the man of sin , etc., 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 ; a beast ascending out of the bottomless pit , Revelation 11:7 ; Revelation 17:8 ; but he indeed appears to be called by the same name of antichrist , rather in accordance with ecclesiastical usage, ancient and modern, than in accordance with the sense of the apostle. Comp. H. More’s Synopsis of Prophecy, Book 1st, Ch. i. 4.