Verse Lens · Concise explanation
3 John 1:14 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 14. 14But I trust I shall shortly see thee, and we shall speak face to face. Peace be to thee. Our friends salute thee. Greet the friends by name.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The Elder hopes for face-to-face conversation and closes with peace and reciprocal, individual greetings among friends.
Read It With
- 3 John 1:13–14
Read 3 John 1:13–14 together. Verse 13 introduces the contrast between further writing and direct conversation; verse 14 completes it with the hoped-for visit, peace, and reciprocal greetings. The KJV includes here material numbered verse 15 in many modern editions.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The closing completes the writing-versus-presence contrast and leaves the unresolved conflict inside a continuing pursuit of peace and personal, name-by-name relationship.
What Remains True
Truthful communication can value personal presence, peace, and name-by-name care without discarding the importance of writing.
How It Can Shape Life
- Move sensitive matters toward safe personal conversation when possible and remember the people involved individually rather than as anonymous sides.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 3 John 1:13–14 — Face-to-Face Hope, Peace, and Personal GreetingsSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
Where care is needed
Whether the intended visit occurred is unknown.
The KJV includes in verse 14 the peace and greetings that the SBL Greek text and many modern editions number as verse 15.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: The exact displayed English Scripture text and the complete verse assignment for this thought unit.
Exact location: Pinned KJV source-data record for 3 John 1:13–14, derived from the repository's checksum-locked 1769 KJV corpus.
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: The Greek wording, grammar, discourse connections, and original-language terms checked for this thought unit.
Exact location: SBLGNT data/sblgnt/text/3John.txt, 1:13–14 (critical-edition numbering uses 1:15 for the final peace and greetings).
Open the 3 John Greek text file ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — 3 John with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Material translation, syntax, lexical, and verse-numbering questions in this thought unit.
Exact location: NET Bible, 3 John 1, translation and translators' notes on 1:13–14.
Open source ↗modern commentary
The Letters of John: An Introduction and Commentary
John R. W. Stott
InterVarsity Press, 1988
Supports: The unit's literary movement, older-language clarification, principal interpretations, and explicit limits on reconstruction.
Exact location: Stott, The Letters of John, 3 John commentary pp. 265–266.
Open source ↗open exegetical commentary
Exegetical Commentary on 3 John 1–15
W. Hall Harris III
Bible.org, 2004
Supports: Verse-level Greek, literary flow, translation choices, and major exegetical alternatives for this unit.
Exact location: Harris, Exegetical Commentary on 3 John 1–15, 'The Body of the Letter (vv. 3-14),' verse 13 and verse 14 Summary/Exegetical Details, and 'The Concluding Formula (v. 15).'
Open source ↗