Semantic Analysis

Semantic Analysis — 3 John (Koine Greek → Japanese)

Book Overview and Coverage Note

3 John is a single-chapter personal letter of 14 verses (Greek text follows NA28/UBS5 versification; some editions number a 15th verse by splitting v.14, but this analysis follows the standard 14-verse enumeration used by Shinkaiyaku 2017 and most modern editions). The author identifies himself only as “ὁ πρεσβύτερος” (“the Elder” — traditionally John the Apostle/Evangelist), writing to a otherwise-unknown believer named Gaius. The letter contrasts three figures: Gaius (commended for hospitality to itinerant gospel workers), Diotrephes (rebuked for pride, slander, and wrongful expulsion of believers from the church), and Demetrius (commended as a well-attested faithful witness).

Because 3 John has only one chapter, and the core passage (1:1–14) is the entire book, full-book coverage is achieved entirely within the verse-by-verse analysis below. There is no separate chapter-by-chapter section to add: there are no additional chapters beyond the core passage. This is stated explicitly here to satisfy the full-book-coverage mandate — every verse of every chapter of 3 John has been analyzed below; none has been silently omitted.

Five curriculum doctrines anchor the analysis: (1) Hospitality to Traveling Ministers, (2) Imitating Good rather than Evil, (3) Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes), (4) Commendation of Faithful Witness (Demetrius), (5) Truth and Christian Fellowship. Each load-bearing term below is tagged to its governing doctrine(s).

Baseline reuse rule: any term already present in the Romans translation_memory.json (church/教会, peace/平安, god/神, gentiles/異邦人, fellowship/交わり, exhort/勧める, etc.) is reused exactly as recorded. New terms unique to 3 John’s vocabulary are analyzed fresh below and proposed for addition to translation memory in Phase 1 Step 3.

Verse-by-Verse Analysis — 3 John 1:1–14

3 John 1:1

Greek: Ὁ πρεσβύτερος Γαΐῳ τῷ ἀγαπητῷ, ὃν ἐγὼ ἀγαπῶ ἐν ἀληθεί�ᾳ. Gloss: “The Elder, to Gaius the beloved, whom I love in truth.”

πρεσβύτερος (elder) — Doctrine: Church Leadership and Pride

Transliteration: presbyteros
Literal meaning: “older man”; by NT usage, an office-title, “elder”
Semantic range: literal senior in age; a recognized office of church oversight (cf. Titus 1:5); here a self-designation of apostolic-era pastoral authority, likely John the Apostle writing in his old age
English variants: “the elder” (most versions); “the old man” (rare)
Contextual theological meaning: Establishes the author’s legitimate, recognized pastoral authority — the standard against which Diotrephes’ illegitimate self-promotion (v.9) will later be measured
Japanese rendering: 長老 (chourou) — Risk: Medium. 長老 is the established Japanese Christian term (cf. Presbyterian = 長老派, chourouha) and is doctrinally sound, but secular readers may also associate it with a village/clan elder (村の長老) or simply “elderly person.” Teaching should clarify this designates a recognized pastoral office of the apostolic era, not mere seniority in age.

ἀγαπητός (beloved) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: agapetos
Literal meaning: “one who is loved [with agape]”
Semantic range: term of address expressing covenantal/familial affection among believers; recurs as vocative “Ἀγαπητέ” (Beloved) in vv.2, 5, 11
English variants: “beloved,” “dear,” “dear friend”
Contextual theological meaning: Marks Gaius (and later the reader, in the repeated vocative) as an object of genuine Christian love, not mere epistolary courtesy
Japanese rendering: 愛する者(あいするもの, aisuru mono) — Risk: Medium. See full risk discussion under ἀγάπη below; the term must be kept distinct from Japan’s dominant secular/romantic register of 愛.

ἀγαπάω / ἀγάπη (love) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: agapao / agape
Literal meaning: to love with committed, selfless regard
Semantic range: covenantal, self-giving love (distinct from ἔρως romantic desire and φιλία companionate friendship, though 3 John also uses φίλος, see v.14)
English variants: “love,” “cherish”
Contextual theological meaning: The Elder’s love for Gaius is grounded “in truth” (ἐν ἀληθεί�ᾳ) — i.e., love arising from and consistent with shared gospel conviction, not mere personal affection
Japanese rendering: 愛 (ai) / 愛する (aisuru) — Risk: High. Japan’s overwhelmingly dominant contemporary usage of 愛 is romantic-love vocabulary (love songs, dramas, Valentine’s Day marketing); a distinct word, 恋 (koi), exists for romantic longing, but 愛 itself is heavily colored by that register in everyday use. Teaching materials must actively establish 愛 here as self-giving, truth-grounded covenantal love, not romantic sentiment, paralleling the “grace” entry’s need for active doctrinal restoration against secular dilution.

ἀλήθεια (truth) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: aletheia
Literal meaning: “un-hiddenness,” that which is disclosed/real
Semantic range: factual accuracy; moral integrity/sincerity; in Johannine literature, a near-personified divine reality revealed in Christ and indwelling the believer (cf. John 14:6, “I am the truth”; 1 John 5:6, “the Spirit is the truth”)
English variants: “truth,” “the truth”
Contextual theological meaning: The letter’s dominant keyword (occurs 6+ times in 14 verses). Denotes the gospel reality that governs Christian love, conduct (“walking in truth”), and even, personified, bears witness (v.12). Central to the whole letter’s ethical logic: love, hospitality, and commendation are all measured “in truth.”
Japanese rendering: 真理 (shinri) — Risk: High. 真理 is also standard vocabulary in Japanese Buddhist philosophy for ultimate/cosmic truth or the truth realized through enlightenment (悟りの真理), an abstract impersonal principle rather than a personal reality revealed by and identified with Christ. Teaching must repeatedly anchor 真理 in 3 John to the person and gospel of Christ (cf. John 14:6), not an impersonal cosmic principle attainable through practice. New entry recommended for translation memory given its centrality to this book.

3 John 1:2

Greek: Ἀγαπητέ, περὶ πάντων εὔχομαί σε εὐοδοῦσθαι καὶ ὑγιαίνειν, καθὼς εὐοδοῦταί σου ἡ ψυχή. Gloss: “Beloved, concerning all things I pray/wish that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.”

εὔχομαι (pray/wish)

Transliteration: euchomai
Literal meaning: to wish, to express a desire
Semantic range: a general wish or hope, distinct from προσεύχομαι (formal petitionary prayer to God); can carry the sense of a wish spoken as a blessing
English variants: “pray,” “wish,” “hope”
Contextual theological meaning: An epistolary blessing-wish, not liturgical prayer; still theologically warm, expressing pastoral care
Japanese rendering: 願う (negau) — Risk: Low. Standard, non-technical.

εὐοδοῦσθαι (prosper, “have a good road/journey”) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers (thematic echo)

Transliteration: euodoo (passive infinitive εὐοδοῦσθαι)
Literal meaning: “to be given a good road” (εὖ + ὁδός, “road/way”)
Semantic range: to prosper, succeed, have things go well — general well-being, not narrowly financial
English variants: “prosper,” “be well,” “go well”
Contextual theological meaning: The Elder wishes Gaius holistic well-being that matches his already-flourishing soul; the sequence (soul first, v.2b, then the wish for outward prosperity) subordinates material well-being to spiritual health
Japanese rendering: 繁栄する (hanei suru) or 物事がうまく運ぶ — Risk: Medium. Risk is not a false-concept collision but dilution toward a prosperity-gospel reading (material success as the main point) if the verse is quoted in isolation from its own qualifying clause (“even as your soul prospers”). Teaching must keep the soul-clause as the interpretive key: outward prospering is wished for in proportion to, not instead of, spiritual health.

ψυχή (soul)

Transliteration: psyche
Literal meaning: breath, life, the inner self
Semantic range: the whole inner person — life, mind, will, spiritual condition; distinct from πνεῦμα (spirit) though overlapping
English variants: “soul,” “inner being,” “life”
Contextual theological meaning: Denotes Gaius’s spiritual condition/character as already flourishing — the standard by which the Elder measures true prosperity
Japanese rendering: 魂 (tamashii) — Risk: Medium-High. 魂 is ordinary Japanese vocabulary but carries strong folk-animist resonance: ancestral spirits venerated at Obon, ghost-story 幽霊 associations, and popular-culture “spirited away” (魂を抜かれる, 千と千尋の神隠し) imagery of souls being extracted or wandering. Teaching should clarify 魂 here denotes the whole inner person’s spiritual condition before God, not a detachable animist spirit-entity.

3 John 1:3

Greek: ἐχάρην γὰρ λίαν ἐρχομένων ἀδελφῶν καὶ μαρτυρούντων σου τῇ ἀληθεί�ᾳ, καθὼς σὺ ἐν ἀληθεί�ᾳ περιπατεῖς. Gloss: “For I rejoiced greatly when brothers came and testified to your truth, just as you walk in truth.”

χαίρω (rejoice)

Transliteration: chairo (aorist ἐχάρην)
Literal meaning: to rejoice, be glad
Semantic range: joy ranging from mild pleasure to deep gladness; in NT frequently theological joy over gospel-consistent conduct (cf. v.4)
English variants: “rejoice,” “was glad”
Contextual theological meaning: The Elder’s joy is specifically evoked by a report of Gaius’s gospel fidelity, not generic good news
Japanese rendering: 喜ぶ (yorokobu) — Risk: Low. Standard term, no significant collision.

ἀδελφός (brother) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship; Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: adelphos
Literal meaning: brother (biological sibling)
Semantic range: biological brother; extended metaphorically to fellow believers as members of God’s family — a standard NT usage
English variants: “brother(s),” “fellow believer(s)”
Contextual theological meaning: Refers to itinerant Christian workers/messengers who traveled to report on Gaius; establishes the traveling-minister network central to this letter’s hospitality theme
Japanese rendering: 兄弟 (kyoudai) — Risk: Medium. 兄弟 in ordinary Japanese denotes literal siblings, and Japanese kinship vocabulary is itself age-ranked (兄 elder brother / 弟 younger brother), a distinction the Greek term does not carry. Context must make clear this is the extended spiritual-family sense (fellow believers), not literal family members visiting. This sense is already established in Japanese Bible tradition and should be used consistently with any prior/parallel Romans usage.

μαρτυρέω (testify) — Doctrine: Commendation of Faithful Witness (Demetrius); Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: martyreo
Literal meaning: to bear witness, testify
Semantic range: legal/courtroom testimony; general attestation of character or fact; in Johannine literature frequently carries theological weight (bearing witness to Christ/truth)
English variants: “testify,” “bear witness,” “give a good report”
Contextual theological meaning: The visiting brothers gave commendatory testimony about Gaius’s gospel-consistent life; this verb and its noun form μαρτυρία recur as the letter’s structural device for evaluating all three named figures (Gaius v.3, Diotrephes’ works implicitly examined vv.9-10, Demetrius explicitly v.12)
Japanese rendering: 証しする (akashi suru) — Risk: Medium. Established Japanese Christian vocabulary for personal testimony of faith/character, distinct from the more legalistic-register 証言 (shougen, courtroom testimony) used in secular news reporting of scandals/trials. Recommend 証しする consistently for this letter’s commendation-testimony sense to avoid a legalistic, adversarial overtone inappropriate to the pastoral commendations here.

περιπατέω (walk) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: peripateo
Literal meaning: to walk about
Semantic range: literal ambulation; a standing NT ethical metaphor for one’s manner of life/conduct
English variants: “walk,” “live,” “conduct oneself”
Contextual theological meaning: Gaius’s habitual, ongoing manner of life is characterized by truth — not a single act but a settled pattern of gospel-consistent living
Japanese rendering: 歩む (ayumu) — Risk: Low. This ethical “walking” metaphor is already established in Japanese biblical idiom (cf. Romans 6:4’s “歩む” for walking in newness of life) and should be reused consistently.

3 John 1:4

Greek: μειζοτέραν τούτων οὐκ ἔχω χαράν, ἵνα ἀκούω τὰ ἐμὰ τέκνα ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ περιπατοῦντα. Gloss: “I have no greater joy than this, to hear that my children walk in truth.”

χαρά (joy) — see χαίρω above (v.3); noun form. Japanese: 喜び (yorokobi). Risk: Low.

τέκνον (child) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: teknon
Literal meaning: child, offspring
Semantic range: literal biological child; metaphorically, a spiritual convert/disciple regarded with parental affection (common Pauline and Johannine usage, cf. Gal 4:19, 1 Tim 1:2)
English variants: “children,” “my children”
Contextual theological meaning: The Elder addresses converts under his spiritual care as his own “children” — a relationship of spiritual parentage, not biological or merely institutional
Japanese rendering: 私の子どもたち (watashi no kodomotachi) — Risk: Medium-High. Without qualification, this could read as literal offspring. Japan’s culturally vivid teacher-disciple lineage tradition (師弟関係, shitei kankei — martial arts, craft apprenticeship, and historically Buddhist master-disciple transmission) offers a resonant frame for spiritual mentorship, but risks importing a guru-disciple hierarchy model rather than the NT’s familial-adoption sense already established for “adoption” (子とされること) in the baseline Romans package. Teaching should draw the connection to spiritual fatherhood/parentage, not a lineage-transmission model.

3 John 1:5

Greek: Ἀγαπητέ, πιστὸν ποιεῖς ὃ ἐὰν ἐργάσῃ εἰς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τοῦτο ξένους, Gloss: “Beloved, you do a faithful thing whatever you do for the brothers, and especially strangers,”

πιστός (faithful) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: pistos
Literal meaning: trustworthy, reliable, faithful
Semantic range: descriptive of persons (trustworthy) or acts (done in a trustworthy/faithful manner); shares a root with πίστις (faith)
English variants: “faithful,” “loyal,” “a faithful thing”
Contextual theological meaning: Gaius’s hospitality is commended as an act consistent with, and evidencing, genuine faith — not a mere social nicety
Japanese rendering: 忠実な (chuujitsu na) — Risk: Medium-High. 忠実 in Japanese carries strong resonance with Bushido/feudal loyalty ethics (忠 as loyalty to one’s lord, a core samurai virtue) and modern corporate loyalty culture. Teaching must clarify that Gaius’s faithfulness flows from gospel conviction toward fellow believers and strangers, not hierarchical loyalty-display toward a superior — the same collision risk already flagged for “obedience of faith” in the baseline package.

ξένος (stranger) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: xenos
Literal meaning: a stranger, foreigner, one not previously known
Semantic range: foreigner/outsider; a guest received in hospitality; the root of “xenophobia” (fear of the xenos)
English variants: “strangers,” “those you did not know”
Contextual theological meaning: Gaius extends hospitality specifically to itinerant gospel workers unknown to him personally — hospitality that crosses ordinary social boundaries of familiarity, central to the letter’s commendation of him
Japanese rendering: 旅人 (tabibito, “traveler”) — Risk: Medium. Japan’s highly developed hospitality culture, omotenashi (おもてなし) — gracious, anticipatory care for guests — is a genuine and valuable cultural bridge, but omotenashi is typically extended within a defined host-guest social frame (a customer, an invited visitor) rather than to an unknown itinerant stranger crossing normal insider/outsider (内・外, uchi-soto) boundaries. Teaching should use omotenashi as a bridge while clarifying that biblical hospitality here specifically crosses the uchi-soto line for the sake of gospel partnership with people previously unknown.

3 John 1:6

Greek: οἳ ἐμαρτύρησάν σου τῇ ἀγάπῃ ἐνώπιον ἐκκλησίας· οὕς καλῶς ποιήσεις προπέμψας ἀξίως τοῦ θεοῦ· Gloss: “who testified of your love before the church; whom you will do well to send forward in a manner worthy of God,”

ἐκκλησία (church) — reuse baseline term exactly: 教会 (kyoukai). Risk: Medium per baseline. Here denotes the local gathered congregation before whom the traveling workers reported Gaius’s love — the same corporate-assembly sense as the Romans baseline entry, not a building.

προπέμπω (send forward, help on one’s journey) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: propempo
Literal meaning: to send before/ahead; to accompany or equip someone setting out on a journey
Semantic range: a standing NT technical term for practical missionary support — providing funds, provisions, and companionship for a stage of travel (cf. Acts 15:3, 1 Cor 16:6, 11)
English variants: “send forward,” “help on their journey,” “send on their way”
Contextual theological meaning: Names the concrete, material form Gaius’s hospitality should take — not simply a warm welcome but active material support for onward gospel travel
Japanese rendering: 旅の支援をして送り出す (tabi no shien wo shite okuridasu) — Risk: Medium. Japan’s culturally vivid custom of 見送り (miokuri, formal ceremonial send-offs, e.g., at train platforms, with bowing) risks reducing this to a polite farewell gesture. Teaching must clarify this term specifically implies material provision (funds, supplies) for gospel travel, not merely a courteous goodbye.

ἀξίως (worthily) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: axios (adverb)
Literal meaning: in a manner that has appropriate weight/value; worthily, fittingly
Semantic range: fitting conduct measured against a standard; here, the standard is God himself
English variants: “in a manner worthy of God,” “in a way that honors God”
Contextual theological meaning: Sets the measure for Christian hospitality — not mere social propriety but conduct that reflects and honors God’s own character
Japanese rendering: 神にふさわしく (kami ni fusawashiku) — Risk: Medium (driven by the baseline “god” term’s own Critical risk rather than by ἀξίως itself; ensure 神 here, though not requiring the full qualifying phrase in this brief adverbial use, is understood within a passage already anchored earlier in teaching to 唯一のまことの神).

3 John 1:7

Greek: ὑπὲρ γὰρ τοῦ ὀνόματος ἐξῆλθον μηδὲν λαμβάνοντες ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνικῶν. Gloss: “For they went out for the sake of the Name, taking nothing from the Gentiles/pagans.”

ὄνομα (“the Name”) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: onoma
Literal meaning: name
Semantic range: a person’s given name; by metonymy, a person’s identity, authority, or reputation — “the Name” (with the article, unqualified) is a recognized NT shorthand for the name/authority of Christ (cf. Acts 5:41, “for the Name”)
English variants: “the Name,” “his name,” “the sake of the Name” (some versions supply “Christ” or “the Lord”)
Contextual theological meaning: These missionaries traveled specifically as representatives of Christ’s authority and reputation, refusing pagan support to keep the gospel’s integrity free from any appearance of exploitation
Japanese rendering: 御名（のため） (mina [no tame], honorific “the [Lord’s] Name”) — Risk: Medium. Japan’s cultural conventions of name-avoidance and honorific naming (e.g., historic taboo on speaking an emperor’s given name directly, posthumous Buddhist kaimyō names) could create unintended resonance around name-reverence practices distinct from this text’s sense. Teaching should clarify “the Name” refers specifically to Christ’s identity and authority, on whose behalf these workers travel, not a name-avoidance or naming-ritual custom.

ἐθνικός (Gentile/pagan) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: ethnikos
Literal meaning: “of a nation/people,” i.e., an outsider to the covenant people; by NT usage, a non-believing pagan outsider
Semantic range: related to, but distinct in nuance from, ἔθνη (“the nations/Gentiles” as an ethnic-covenant category, cf. Romans); ἐθνικός in contexts like Matt 6:7 and here carries a more pointed “pagan/unbeliever” flavor, describing conduct or identity outside the community of faith, often with a mildly pejorative edge
English variants: “the Gentiles,” “pagans,” “unbelievers”
Contextual theological meaning: The missionaries’ refusal to accept support from non-believers protected the gospel’s reputation, ensuring their ministry could not be mistaken for a paid religious service
Japanese rendering: 異教徒 (ikyouto, “adherents of a different/pagan religion”) — Risk: Medium. Distinguish carefully from the baseline Romans term for “Gentiles” (異邦人, ihoujin), which names the ethnic-covenant Jew/Gentile category in Romans without necessarily a religious-outsider connotation. Here the sense is closer to “non-believing outsiders,” so 異教徒 better captures the nuance; flag for reviewer awareness that this is a distinct sense from, not identical to, the baseline 異邦人 entry, to avoid conflating two related-but-different Greek terms under one Japanese rendering.

3 John 1:8

Greek: ἡμεῖς οὖν ὀφείλομεν ὑπολαμβάνειν τοὺς τοιούτους, ἵνα συνεργοὶ γινώμεθα τῇ ἀληθείᾳ. Gloss: “We therefore ought to support such people, so that we may become fellow workers with the truth.”

ὀφείλω (ought, to be obligated) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: opheilo
Literal meaning: to owe (a debt); by extension, moral obligation, duty
Semantic range: literal financial debt; moral/ethical obligation (“ought”)
English variants: “ought,” “are obligated,” “owe it”
Contextual theological meaning: Frames hospitality to gospel workers as a genuine moral duty flowing from shared commitment to the gospel — a positive, gospel-partnership obligation
Japanese rendering: 〜べきである / 義務がある (~beki de aru / gimu ga aru) — Risk: Medium. Because ὀφείλω is literally “owe,” there is a superficial resonance with Japan’s on-giri (恩・義理) reciprocal-obligation framework already flagged as Critical for “grace” in the baseline package. This is an important but distinct case: unlike grace (which must never be framed as creating a repayment debt), this verse legitimately calls believers to a duty of hospitality flowing from gospel partnership. Teaching should clarify the contrast explicitly: this is a grateful duty among gospel co-laborers, not a mechanism for earning standing with God or repaying a favor received.

ὑπολαμβάνω (receive, support) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: hypolambano
Literal meaning: to take up, take under (one’s care)
Semantic range: to receive with material support/hospitality; in other contexts, “to suppose/assume” (not the sense here)
English variants: “support,” “receive,” “welcome”
Contextual theological meaning: The positive counterpart to Diotrephes’ refusal (ἐπιδέχομαι, vv.9-10) — active material and relational support of gospel workers
Japanese rendering: 支える (sasaeru, “support”) — Risk: Medium. Both this term and ἐπιδέχομαι (vv.9,10) can be glossed “receive” in English, but the letter deliberately contrasts right reception (support, here) with Diotrephes’ wrongful refusal to receive (there). Translators must select Japanese verbs (支える here; 受け入れる for ἐπιδέχομαι) that preserve this structural contrast rather than collapsing both into one identical Japanese word.

συνεργός (fellow worker) — Doctrine: Hospitality to Traveling Ministers; Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: synergos
Literal meaning: one who works together with another
Semantic range: co-laborer, partner in a shared task (common Pauline term for gospel co-workers)
English variants: “fellow workers,” “co-workers,” “partners”
Contextual theological meaning: Hosting gospel travelers makes the host an active participant in the gospel mission itself, not merely a passive supporter — partnership “with the truth” personified as a shared cause
Japanese rendering: 協力者 (kyouryokusha) — Risk: Low-Medium. Standard term; ensure context specifies this is partnership with gospel truth/mission, not generic teamwork.

3 John 1:9

Greek: Ἔγραψά τι τῇ ἐκκλησί�ᾳ· ἀλλ᾽ ὁ φιλοπρωτεύων αὐτῶν Διοτρεφὴς οὐκ ἐπιδέχεται ἡμᾶς. Gloss: “I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not receive us.”

φιλοπρωτεύω (to love being first/preeminent) — Doctrine: Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes)

Transliteration: philoproteuo
Literal meaning: “to love (φιλέω) being first (πρῶτος)”
Semantic range: a NT hapax legomenon (occurring only here in the entire New Testament) describing an ambitious, status-seeking love of preeminence; the compound itself signals the author’s pointed diagnosis of Diotrephes’ core sin as self-love of rank, not merely a personality trait
English variants: “loves to be first,” “loves preeminence,” “likes to put himself first,” “who likes to dominate proceedings”
Contextual theological meaning: Names the theological heart of the Diotrephes problem — not doctrinal error but prideful self-exaltation over the church, in direct contrast to the servant-posture the letter commends in Gaius and Demetrius
Japanese rendering: 自分が一番になりたがること (jibun ga ichiban ni naritagaru koto) — Risk: High. Japan’s culture contains rich resonance for status-consciousness and rank (senpai-kohai seniority structures, corporate title/rank culture, 肩書き business-card status markers), which can cut two ways: it can helpfully illuminate what Diotrephes is doing, or it can cause readers to read his ambition sympathetically as ordinary, even admirable, leadership drive in a culture where climbing rank is often prized. Teaching materials must explicitly frame this as sinful self-exaltation contrary to Christlike servant-leadership, not as commendable ambition. As a genuine NT hapax with no established Japanese Bible-tradition rendering to inherit unchanged, this term requires deliberate glossary definition rather than simple lookup.

ἐπιδέχομαι (receive, welcome, accept) — Doctrine: Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes); Hospitality to Traveling Ministers

Transliteration: epidechomai
Literal meaning: to receive, accept, welcome
Semantic range: to welcome a person hospitably; to accept/acknowledge a person’s authority or message
English variants: “receive,” “welcome,” “accept,” “acknowledge”
Contextual theological meaning: Diotrephes’ refusal to receive the Elder (here) and the brothers (v.10) is the concrete outworking of his love of preeminence — he will not submit to or welcome apostolic authority or fellow believers who might threaten his self-appointed status
Japanese rendering: 受け入れる (ukeireru) — Risk: Medium. See note under ὑπολαμβάνω (v.8): keep this term visibly distinct from the positive-hospitality vocabulary used for Gaius, so the contrast between right reception and Diotrephes’ wrongful refusal remains clear to the Japanese reader.

3 John 1:10

Greek: διὰ τοῦτο, ἐὰν ἔλθω, ὑπομνήσω τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ ἃ ποιεῖ, λόγοις πονηροῖς φλυαρῶν ἡμᾶς, καὶ μὴ ἀρκούμενος ἐπὶ τούτοις οὔτε αὐτὸς ἐπιδέχεται τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τοὺς βουλομένους κωλύει καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐκβάλλει. Gloss: “Therefore, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds, which he does, slandering us with wicked words; and not content with that, he himself does not receive the brothers, and those wanting to, he forbids, and casts them out of the church.”

φλυαρέω (talk nonsense, slander maliciously) — Doctrine: Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes)

Transliteration: phlyareo
Literal meaning: to talk empty nonsense, chatter idly; by extension, to speak maliciously/slanderously about someone
Semantic range: a rare word; ranges from “babble idly” to the pointed sense here of malicious, baseless accusation against a person’s character/authority
English variants: “talking wicked nonsense,” “spreading malicious gossip,” “slandering,” “making unjust accusations”
Contextual theological meaning: Diotrephes’ opposition to the Elder is not principled doctrinal disagreement but slanderous character attack, compounding his sin of pride with active harm to others’ reputations
Japanese rendering: 中傷する (chuushou suru, “to slander/defame”) — Risk: Medium. Recommend the more formal 中傷する over casual 悪口を言う (“badmouth”) or トリビアルな噂話 (“mere gossip”), which would trivialize the seriousness of malicious, reputation-damaging false accusation described here.

πονηρός (evil, wicked)

Transliteration: poneros
Literal meaning: bad, evil, malicious
Semantic range: often connotes actively harmful or malicious evil (distinct in nuance from the more general κακός used in v.11); modifies “words” here
English variants: “wicked (words),” “malicious (words),” “evil (words)”
Contextual theological meaning: Qualifies Diotrephes’ slander as not merely mistaken but morally malicious speech
Japanese rendering: よこしまな (yokoshima na) or simply 悪い — Risk: Low-Medium. Note for teaching: 3 John uses two distinct Greek “evil” words (πονηρός here; κακός in v.11); both may be rendered with 悪 (aku) family vocabulary in Japanese without a corresponding lexical distinction, so any nuance difference (actively malicious vs. general moral badness) should be preserved through explanatory teaching rather than word choice alone.

κωλύω (hinder, forbid)

Transliteration: koluo
Literal meaning: to hinder, prevent, forbid
Semantic range: to actively prevent someone from doing something
English variants: “forbids,” “hinders,” “prevents”
Contextual theological meaning: Diotrephes actively blocks other believers who want to show hospitality to the traveling brothers — an abuse of whatever local influence/office he holds
Japanese rendering: 妨げる (samatageru) — Risk: Low. Standard term.

ἐκβάλλω (cast out, expel) — Doctrine: Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes)

Transliteration: ekballo
Literal meaning: to throw out, cast out
Semantic range: used elsewhere in the NT for casting out demons (exorcism); here, for expelling believers from congregational fellowship — an early instance of abusive, illegitimate “excommunication” by a self-appointed authority
English variants: “puts them out of the church,” “expels,” “casts out”
Contextual theological meaning: The climactic and most severe of Diotrephes’ abuses — he exercises what should be a solemn, corporately-discerned act of church discipline (cf. Matt 18, 1 Cor 5) unilaterally and wrongfully, against those who simply wanted to practice biblical hospitality
Japanese rendering: 追い出す (oidasu) — Risk: Medium. Because this same verb elsewhere describes exorcism (“casting out demons”), and because church discipline/expulsion language could otherwise be mistaken as a positive model to imitate, teaching must make unmistakably clear this is a condemned abuse of authority — a negative example illustrating the Church Leadership and Pride doctrine, not a pattern for legitimate church discipline.

3 John 1:11

Greek: Ἀγαπητέ, μὴ μιμοῦ τὸ κακόν, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἀγαθόν. ὁ ἀγαθοποιῶν ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστίν· ὁ κακοποιῶν οὐχ ἑώρακεν τὸν θεόν. Gloss: “Beloved, do not imitate the evil, but the good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.”

μιμέομαι (imitate) — Doctrine: Imitating Good rather than Evil

Transliteration: mimeomai
Literal meaning: to imitate, follow the example of
Semantic range: to model one’s behavior on a pattern or example (root of English “mimic,” “mime”); in NT ethical exhortation, a positive term for character formation through following a good example (cf. 1 Cor 11:1, “imitators of me, as I am of Christ”)
English variants: “imitate,” “follow the example of,” “do not model yourself on”
Contextual theological meaning: Directly applies the Diotrephes/Demetrius contrast just narrated: Gaius (and the reader) is exhorted to choose which example — evil (Diotrephes) or good (Demetrius) — to pattern his life on
Japanese rendering: 見習う (minarau) — Risk: Medium-High. Avoid 真似る (maneru), the more common everyday Japanese word for “imitate,” which carries a strong connotation of superficial, surface-level copying without genuine understanding (cf. 猿真似, saru-mane, “monkey imitation,” a common idiom for mindless copycatting). 見習う (or 倣う, naraiu) better conveys learning from and internalizing a good model, matching the NT sense of character formation through imitation — a word-choice decision of real weight given this is the curriculum’s central “Imitating Good rather than Evil” doctrine.

κακός (evil, bad)

Transliteration: kakos
Literal meaning: bad, evil, worthless
Semantic range: a general term for moral badness, less pointedly “malicious” than πονηρός (v.10) but still clearly moral, not merely aesthetic or practical, badness
English variants: “evil,” “bad,” “what is evil”
Japanese rendering: 悪 (aku) — Risk: Low-Medium. See v.10 note on the two Greek “evil” words.

ἀγαθός (good) / ἀγαθοποιέω, κακοποιέω (do good / do evil) — Doctrine: Imitating Good rather than Evil

Transliteration: agathos; agathopoieo; kakopoieo
Literal meaning: good (morally, intrinsically beneficial); to do/practice good; to do/practice evil
Semantic range: ἀγαθός denotes intrinsic moral goodness (distinct from καλός, aesthetic/functional “fineness”); the verbal compounds describe habitual practice, not a single act
English variants: “good,” “does good,” “does evil”
Contextual theological meaning: The doing of good is presented as evidence (“is of God”) that one already belongs to God, and the doing of evil as evidence (“has not seen God”) that one does not — an evidentiary, not causal-merit, relationship: good deeds flow from and reveal an existing relationship with God, they do not create or earn it
Japanese rendering: 善（を行う）/ 悪（を行う） (zen [wo okonau] / aku [wo okonau]) — Risk: High. Japan’s ethical vocabulary for 善 (moral good) is shaped by both Confucian virtue-cultivation ethics and Buddhist karma/merit thinking, in which good deeds accumulate merit (功徳, kudoku — the same concept explicitly forbidden for “grace” in the baseline package) that improves one’s standing or future condition. There is a genuine risk that “doing good is of God” (v.11) is read as merit-earning rather than as fruit/evidence of an already-existing relationship with God through Christ. Teaching must explicitly parallel the grace/works clarification already established for justification: doing good here is the fruit of belonging to God, not the means of earning that belonging.

θεός (God) — reuse baseline term exactly: 神 (Kami), with the baseline’s Critical-risk qualifying convention (唯一のまことの神, “the one and only true God”) applied at first occurrence in any teaching unit covering this verse, per the baseline’s persistent-qualifier rule for doctrinally weighty statements (“is of God… has not seen God”).

3 John 1:12

Greek: Δημητρίῳ μεμαρτύρηται ὑπὸ πάντων καὶ ὑπὸ αὐτῆς τῆς ἀληθείας· καὶ ἡμεῖς δὲ μαρτυροῦμεν, καὶ οἴδατε ὅτι ἡ μαρτυρία ἡμῶν ἀληθής ἐστιν. Gloss: “Demetrius has been testified to by everyone, and by the truth itself; and we also testify, and you know that our testimony is true.”

μαρτυρέω / μαρτυρία (testify / testimony) — Doctrine: Commendation of Faithful Witness (Demetrius) — see full treatment under v.3. Here the verb recurs twice (μεμαρτύρηται, perfect passive, “has been testified to”; μαρτυροῦμεν, “we testify”) plus the noun μαρτυρία (“testimony”), forming the letter’s most concentrated commendation. Notably, ἀλήθεια itself is personified as a witness (“testified to… by the truth itself”) — an unusual construction (cf. similar Johannine personification of truth, e.g. John 8:32). Japanese rendering: 証しする / 証し (akashi suru / akashi), consistent with v.3. Risk: Medium, specifically for the personification: a literal rendering (“真理自体によっても証しされている”) may read as awkward or confusing in Japanese if not clarified; teaching should explain this idiom means Demetrius’s character is so evidently gospel-consistent that the truth of the gospel itself, so to speak, vouches for him — not that “Truth” is a distinct personal agent bearing witness in a metaphysical sense.

ἀληθής (true)

Transliteration: alethes
Literal meaning: true, truthful, in accordance with reality
Semantic range: adjectival cognate of ἀλήθεια; describes a statement’s or testimony’s veracity
English variants: “true,” “truthful,” “trustworthy”
Contextual theological meaning: Confirms the reliability of the Elder’s own commendation of Demetrius, closing the loop of the letter’s three-way character evaluation
Japanese rendering: 真実な (shinjitsu na) — Risk: Low-Medium. Standard adjective; ensure consistency with the ἀλήθεια (真理) word-family already established at v.1 so the reader recognizes the connection between “truth” as noun and “true” as this related adjective.

3 John 1:13

Greek: Πολλὰ εἶχον γράφειν σοι, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ θέλω διὰ μέλανος καὶ καλάμου σοι γράψαι· Gloss: “I had many things to write to you, but I do not want to write to you with ink and pen/reed.”

No new theological vocabulary in this verse. μέλαν (ink) and κάλαμος (reed pen) are ordinary material/cultural terms describing ancient writing implements (a reed pen dipped in carbon-based ink). Japanese rendering: 墨 (sumi, ink) and 筆・ペン (fude/pen) as needed for background/cultural notes only. Risk: Low — purely descriptive, no doctrinal content; note for cultural-background material only, similar to the baseline’s historical-note treatment of the Kirishitan-era ゼズス transliteration.

3 John 1:14

Greek: ἐλπίζω δὲ εὐθέως σε ἰδεῖν, καὶ στόμα πρὸς στόμα λαλήσομεν. Εἰρήνη σοι. ἀσπάζονται σε οἱ φίλοι. ἀσπάζου τοὺς φίλους κατ᾽ ὄνομα. Gloss: “But I hope to see you soon, and we will speak mouth to mouth [i.e., face to face]. Peace to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.”

ἐλπίζω (hope)

Transliteration: elpizo
Literal meaning: to hope, expect
Semantic range: everyday expectation (“I expect to…”); elsewhere in the NT (e.g. Romans 5, 8) a theologically weighted term for hope grounded in God’s promises — here used in its ordinary, non-technical epistolary sense
English variants: “hope,” “expect,” “trust”
Contextual theological meaning: A simple personal expectation of an imminent visit, not a doctrinal statement about eschatological hope
Japanese rendering: 〜したいと思う / 望む — Risk: Low in this context. Note for teaching: distinguish this mundane usage from the theologically freighted “hope” (ἐλπίς) elsewhere in the NT, so students do not over-read doctrinal weight into this verse’s ordinary sense.

στόμα πρὸς στόμα (“mouth to mouth,” i.e., face to face)

Transliteration: stoma pros stoma
Literal meaning: “mouth to mouth”
Semantic range: a Hebraic/Greek idiom (cf. Numbers 12:8 LXX, God speaking to Moses “mouth to mouth”) for direct, unmediated, personal conversation, as opposed to letter-writing or third-party report
English variants: “face to face,” “in person”
Contextual theological meaning: Expresses the Elder’s preference for personal presence and direct conversation over the limits of letter-writing — echoed in 2 John 12 as well
Japanese rendering: 直接顔を合わせて（話す） (chokusetsu kao wo awasete [hanasu]) — Risk: Medium. A literal rendering (口から口へ, “mouth to mouth”) must be avoided: in contemporary Japanese this phrasing risks sounding like a reference to mouth-to-mouth resuscitation or, in casual register, physical intimacy — neither intended. Use the idiomatic “meeting and speaking directly, face to face” instead.

εἰρήνη (peace) — reuse baseline term exactly: 平安 (heian). Risk: Medium per baseline (distinguish relational/covenantal peace from generic wellness 安心/癒し). Here used as a standard epistolary closing blessing, consistent with its Romans 5:1 sense of God-given relational well-being extended in greeting.

φίλος (friend) — Doctrine: Truth and Christian Fellowship

Transliteration: philos
Literal meaning: friend, one who is dear
Semantic range: companionate affection/loyalty, distinct from ἀγάπη’s self-giving covenantal love and from ἀδελφός’s family-of-God sense; in Johannine literature specifically elevated by Jesus’ own words in John 15:14-15 (“I have called you friends… no longer servants”)
English variants: “friends,” “the friends”
Contextual theological meaning: The closing greeting names the local believers as “the friends” — likely a deliberate Johannine echo of Jesus’ elevation of his disciples from servants to friends, giving this closing greeting more theological weight than a casual sign-off
Japanese rendering: 友人 (yuujin) — Risk: Medium. Ordinary Japanese 友人/友達 (yuujin/tomodachi) denotes casual peer relationship and can additionally carry unspoken status-consciousness inherited from Japan’s senpai-kohai (seniority) social patterning even among peers. Teaching should draw the explicit connection to John 15:14-15’s elevated “friend” language so this closing greeting is read as a term of covenantal dignity among believers, not a merely casual farewell remark.

ὄνομα (“by name”) — see v.7 entry for the theological “the Name”; here used in its ordinary sense (κατ’ ὄνομα, “by name,” i.e., individually/personally), not the christological idiom. Japanese: 名前を挙げて (namae wo agete) / 一人一人に — Risk: Low in this ordinary sense; note the contrast with v.7’s weighted theological use of the same noun so translators do not conflate the two occurrences.

Summary Table: Doctrine-to-Term Mapping

Doctrine	Load-Bearing Greek Terms
Hospitality to Traveling Ministers	ξένος, προπέμπω, ὑπολαμβάνω, ὀφείλω, συνεργός, ἐθνικός, ἀξίως
Imitating Good rather than Evil	μιμέομαι, κακός, ἀγαθός, ἀγαθοποιέω, κακοποιέω
Church Leadership and Pride (Diotrephes)	πρεσβύτερος (contrast), φιλοπρωτεύω, ἐπιδέχομαι, φλυαρέω, πονηρός, κωλύω, ἐκβάλλω
Commendation of Faithful Witness (Demetrius)	μαρτυρέω, μαρτυρία, ἀληθής, ἀγαθοποιέω
Truth and Christian Fellowship	ἀλήθεια, ἀγάπη, ἀγαπητός, ἀδελφός, ἐκκλησία, περιπατέω, φίλος, ὄνομα

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