General letter, also called a “catholic epistle,” meaning a general letter. One of the apostle John’s five books. 23rd book of the New Testament.
Author: The apostle John is the traditional author of this book, though the text does not specifically name the author. The author notes an eyewitness relationship with Jesus (1 John 1:1–4). External evidence is found in many early sources. This includes Irenaeus (AD 140–203), Clement of Alexandria (AD 150–215), Tertullian (AD 155–222), and Origen (AD 185–253).
Audience: First John is one of five New Testament books written by the apostle John. The others are the Gospel of John, 2 John, 3 John, and the book of Revelation. This is the first of his three letters in the New Testament. Its recipients were clearly believers, but no specific audience is mentioned. Since John traditionally ministered among churches in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) in his later years, this letter was most likely written to one or more of these congregations. This letter’s audience was clearly dealing with problems related to false teachers. John warns against them throughout this entire writing. John also develops themes of fellowship, Christ-like love, forgiveness of sins, and assurance of salvation. It has been suggested that John’s audience was already well aware of the basics of the gospel message, since these are not included in this letter. Instead, John focuses on specific needs related to the congregation. There are many connections between 1 John and the Gospel of John, which are mentioned in verse commentary.
Date: Unknown. Most likely written around the same time as the Gospel of John and the letters 2 and 3 John; between AD 80–95.