49 - 1Jn 3:18
Τεκνία μου, μὴ ἀγαπῶμεν λόγῳ, μηδὲ γλώσσῃ, ἀλλ᾽ ἔργῳ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ. The men here spoken of have no sort of love whatever. But it is not necessary that this lack of love should exhibit itself in words. We may present the semblance of love by words, while remaining absolutely without it in deeds. Hence follows the exhortation to avoid such hypocritical semblance of charity. But as this is about to close the section, and the apostle purposes here to sum up the whole in one clause, he turns his address in affectionate earnestness to the hearts of his readers. The wordsλόγῳμηδὲτῃγλώσσῃ [“let us not with word or tongue”], with which we should not love, derive their explanation from the antithesisἐν ἔργῳ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ [“in deed and truth”].To the λόγος [“word”] the ἔργον [“deed”] is opposed. The word of love to which the λόγος[“word”] refers may be meant sincerely, inspired by warm feeling, but be wanting in readiness for sacrifice; we may wish the best to the brethren, but not procure it for them by the proper τιθέναι τὴνψυχήν [“to lay down life”]. The Christians represented inJas 2:16 were suchἀγαπῶντεςἐνλόγῳ [“those loving in word”].Opposed to this is theἀγαπᾶνἐνἔργῳ [“love in deed”].Theἐν[“in”] must be noted as the opposite of the lack of it inλόγῳ [“word”].The apostle certainly could not have written μὴἀγαπᾶτεἐνλόγῳ [“do not love in word”],for this would have meant that we should not love in words, which is obviously not his meaning; but we are not to loveἐνλόγῳ [“in word”],in the sense that the word is made the representative, instrument, and only herald or spokesman of our love. We then come to the second pair of the four expressions: μὴτῃγλώσσῃἀλλ᾽ἀληθείᾳ [“not in tongue but in truth”](theἐν[“in”]is to be supplemented beforeἀληθείᾳ [“truth”]).To the truth, the inward actuality of love, stands opposed the γλῶσσα [“tongue”], the mere outward babbling about it. In the first member of the sentence we are exhorted against a love which approves itself only by good, sincere, and well-intentioned wishes; here, against hollow phrases as such. That λόγος[“word”]might come from a sympathizing soul, without, however, energy enough in its fellow-feeling; but in the other case mere phrases disguise the utter absence of all true sympathy. The apostle has thus, in contrast with the hatred which reigns in the world, not merely demanded of Christians love in general, but that love which the Lord Himself has taught; it must be self-sacrificing(1Jn 3:16); this self-sacrifice must approve itself in the outward relations of life(1Jn 3:17); and that not in deceptive words, but in deed and in truth(1Jn 3:18).