What Is The Meaning Of “Idols” In 1 John 5:21?

By Benjamin L. Merkle

[Benjamin L. Merkle is Associate Professor of New Testament and Greek, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, North Carolina.]

John ended his first epistle by stating, “Little children, guard yourselves from idols” (Τεκνία, φυλάξατε ἑαυτὰ ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων, 1 John 5:21). This ending has long been a source of confusion and debate. To some, it is so unexpected that the phrase is judged to be “linguistically non-Johannine.”[1] Others simply note that the verse is “introduced abruptly” and forms “the abrupt ending of the letter.”[2] John’s last verse is somewhat unexpected for several reasons: (a) there is no connecting particle or conjunction, (b) there is a shift from the indicative mood in verse 20 to the imperative mood (φυλάξατε),[3] (c) the terms φυλάσσω and εἰδώλον are not used elsewhere in 1 John, and (d) the epistle has no formal doxology or concluding farewell. Of these four reasons the use of the term “idols” (εἰδώλων) is perhaps the most difficult to explain.

Why did John end his letter in this way? Were his readers prone to idolatry? If this issue was so important, why did he wait until the end of the letter to mention it? The thesis of this article is that the ending of John’s letter reiterates and emphasizes the main point of his letter and does not introduce a new thought. In support of this view this article considers the purpose of John’s letter, the meaning of the term “idols,” and how John’s understanding of idols relates to the entire letter.

The Purpose Of 1 John

First John was written to give assurance to believers: “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life” (5:13). But the assurance John offered is like a two-edged sword. By explaining the difference between those who are believers and those who are not, he gave assurance to the former and exposed the latter. As Kruse comments, “The author’s purpose was to bolster the assurance of his readers by the double strategy of showing the secessionists’ claims to be false and showing his readers that they are in the truth.”[4] Thus John’s purpose was both pastoral and polemical.[5] He was writing to encourage believers and to warn them about the dangers of following the teachings of those who have left their community (2:19).

Many commentators affirm that, although the structure of 1 John is sometimes difficult to outline,[6] three major tests cycle through the letter. For example, while noting that “the structure of 1 John is disputed,” Carson and Moo also state, “Virtually all sides agree that John lays down three tests: (1) true believers must believe that Jesus truly is the Christ come in the flesh, and this belief must work itself out in (2) righteousness and (3) love.”[7] This basic structure can be traced at least as far back as Robert Law’s commentary The Tests of Life: A Study of the First Epistle of St. John. Law outlined three cycles, each of which includes three tests: the tests of righteousness, love, and belief.[8] Stott has a similar scheme, noting the tests of obedience (the moral test), love (the social test), and belief (the doctrinal test).[9]

In the first cycle (1:5-2:28)[10] the first test involves righteousness: a Christian lives a godly life (1:5-2:6).

If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin (1:6-7).

By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked (2:3-6).

The second test involves love: a Christian loves others (2:7-17).

The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes (2:9-11).

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever (2:15-17).

The third test involves belief: a Christian believes that Jesus has come in the flesh (2:18-28).

Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also (2:22-23).

These three tests form the main message of John’s first epistle. In an effort to assure true believers, John presented these tests by which his readers can know that they have eternal life (5:13).[11]

New Testament letters are not written haphazardly; instead they demonstrate a unity of thought and cohesion of structure.[12] Therefore the best interpretation of the final words of John’s letter is one that relates this verse to the purpose and structure of the body of the letter. Griffith rightly notes, “The problem with other approaches to understanding 1 John is that they treat 5.21 virtually as if it were an afterthought.”[13] He also asserts that the last verse occurs “at arguably the most significant point of the letter.”[14] It seems unlikely that John would conclude this important letter with an admonition unrelated to the rest of the letter. Thus “the conclusion actually deals with major issues that have previously arisen in the letter.”[15]

The Meaning Of “Idols”

Raymond Brown lists ten possible interpretations of the term “idols” (εἰδώλων):[16] (1) Plato’s designation of the “unreal” objects of the senses, (2) the images of pagan deities, (3) an abbreviated description of food offered to idols (εἰδωλόθυτα), (4) a compromise with paganism, (5) the mystery religions and their practices, (6) Gnostic ideologies or philosophies, (7) Jewish worship in the Jerusalem temple, (8) various sins, (9) anything that takes the place of God, (10) secession from the community or apostasy. A problem with this list, however, is that many of the views are not defended by scholars today. For example views 1, 3, 5, 6, and 7 do not seem to be defended in modern scholarship.

Griffith groups the various views in four main categories:[17]

Conceptual interpretations. This refers to views that regard “idols” as primarily a mental construct, existing only in the mind (e.g., false teachings, false beliefs, or false gods). This is the view of most modern-day scholars.[18]

Socio-historical interpretations. This refers to literal images that were found in pagan temples or shrines in the Greco-Roman world. Two subcategories are under this main heading: (a) Confession before authorities (i.e., publicly renouncing Christ by worshiping or making an offering to an idol).[19] For example Edwards interprets the entire epistle in the context of martyrdom. He suggests that Christians were sometimes forced to worship idols, thus renouncing or abandoning their faith. John is therefore writing to encourage his readers to be willing to die (as martyrs) for their faith. Those who do not confess that Jesus is the Christ are those “who had failed the trial of martyrdom.”[20] (b) Return or accommodations to paganism. This view advocates a voluntary embrace of paganism.[21]

Metaphorical interpretations. This view includes those who interpret “idols” as sin[22] or apostasy.[23]

A literary interpretation. Hills argues that the ending of 1 John is a literary device linking the ending of the letter to the beginning (i.e., 1:1-3). He therefore maintains that 1:1-3 and 5:20-21 form a thematic inclusio. In particular he argues that the beginning of 1 John shares vocabulary with certain Old Testament passages such as Isaiah 40-48 that present a strong idol polemic. Thus John was using the language of the Septuagint to urge his readers to maintain their identity and remain faithful to their confession.[24] Griffith calls his view a “rhetorical interpretation,”[25] because the author of 1 John “is inspired by the idol polemic of the LXX.”[26] He maintains that 1 John should not be read in the context of Greek thought that influenced believers to deny that Jesus had a physical body. Rather, he argues that it represents a “continuing debate between Jews and Jewish Christians over whether Jesus was the Messiah.”[27] Thus John was using the well-known idol polemic of the Septuagint (somewhat paradoxically) to strengthen Jewish identity and cohesion. Essentially the author of 1 John was saying, “Jewish people must reject idols. Jesus Christ is the only true God. Therefore to go back to Judaism and thereby forsake Jesus is essentially idolatry.”

Instead of examining each view individually, all the views can be considered under two headings: a literal meaning, or a figurative, metaphorical, or conceptual meaning.

The literal meaning—that the word “idols” refers to a physical image of a pagan deity—is the minority view but has been gaining popularity for at least two reasons. First, the term εἰδώλον normally refers to a physical idol in the Septuagint and the New Testament. In the Septuagint εἰδώλον occurs ninety-three times, translating fifteen different Hebrew terms. In every occurrence it denotes pagan images and the deities they represent (including Exod. 20:4 and Deut. 5:8, which occur in the context of the second commandment). Similarly in the New Testament the ten other occurrences of the term refer to a physical idol.[28] Therefore it is natural to assume that in 1 John 5:21 εἰδώλον is used in its normal sense in referring to physical idols.

A second reason many believe εἰδώλον refers to a physical image is that idol worship was extremely common in the Roman Empire during the first century. According to church tradition the apostle John wrote his gospel from Ephesus and probably died there as well.[29] Evidence also suggests that John wrote his epistles from Ephesus. This location is significant because as is known from Acts 19:24-25 Ephesus was the home of the temple of Artemis (Diana). Silversmiths there made silver shrines to Artemis that brought a great amount of wealth (vv. 24-25). One of the silversmiths, Demetrius, is recorded as saying that Artemis was worshiped by “all of Asia and the world” (v. 27). In such a context it should not be surprising if John ended his letter with an admonition not to worship idols. Knowing that this was always a temptation for either those who came from such a background or for those who might be forced to worship idols, such a warning fits the historical context.[30]

Although a literal interpretation is possible, it does not seem to be the best option. A metaphorical or figurative meaning is to be preferred for several reasons. First, the term εἰδώλον has a broader semantic range than a physical idol in the wider Greek usage. The term can mean “shade,” “ghost,” “phantom,” or “copy.”[31] Though it occurs with the meaning of “idol,”[32] this usage is rare in a Greek context. Second, although εἰδώλον is not normally used to refer to a metaphorical idol in the New Testament, it is necessary to investigate not only the term, but also cognate terms (or even the concept).[33] For example the term εἰδωλολάτρης is used at least once in a metaphorical sense. In Ephesians 5:5 Paul wrote, “For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater [εἰδωλολάτρης], has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.” In this verse Paul broadened the concept of idolatry to include more than just worshiping a physical image. An idolater, he wrote, is someone who is covetous or greedy. Another example is in Colossians 3:5, where Paul used the related word εἰδωλολατρία: “Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry [εἰδωλολατρία].”[34] Here the noun “greed” is equated with the noun “idolatry.”[35] These examples are exceptions to the normal usage of the terms. Εἰδωλολάτρης is used six other times in the New Testament, all referring to someone who is a worshiper of a physical idol (1 Cor. 5:10-11; 6:9; 10:7; Rev. 21:8; 22:5). Εἰδωλολατρία is used three other times in the New Testament, all referring to the sin of physical idolatry (1 Cor. 10:14; Gal. 5:20; 1 Pet. 4:3). Although the term εἰδώλον normally refers to a physical idol, it is entirely possible that it is used in a figurative or metaphorical sense similar to the uses of εἰδωλολάτρης and εἰδωλολατρία. Thus “unlike the LXX, the New Testament works with a concept of idolatry (eidololatria), which opens the way for metaphorical applications.”[36] This widening of the concept of idolatry would have been understood by the time 1 John was written.

A third, and perhaps the most significant, reason is that the literal meaning of εἰδώλον does not fit the context of John’s letter.[37] Nowhere in this letter has John been discussing literal idols or idolatry.[38] It would seem odd for John to spend his entire letter speaking about crucial issues his audience desperately needed to hear, and then for his very last words to be an unrelated warning about falling into idolatry. This is the reason many if not most commentators opt for the metaphorical meaning.[39] For example Smalley states, “It would represent an abrupt change of thought if John had introduced the word in [the literal sense] at the very end of his letter.”[40] Likewise Marshall writes, “Nowhere in the letter has John spoken of the danger of worship of the material images and false gods whose cults flourished in the world of his readers.”[41] He concludes, “It would be surprising if John were to introduce this theme so suddenly at the end of his Epistle.”[42]

The reference to idols at the end of John’s epistle is not totally unexpected, however. In the previous verse John identified Jesus Christ as the true God: “And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life” (5:20).[43] Verse 21, then, forms an antithesis to this verse.[44] Because Jesus Christ is the true God, believers must avoid worshiping anything or anyone that is a false god. As Griffith comments, “1 Jn 5.21 is no mere afterthought. It provides an antithetical note, characteristic of the epistle’s form of thought throughout, while at the same time extending the ideas introduced in 5.20.”[45]

“Idols” In 1 John

Viewing John’s warning against idolatry as a fitting conclusion to the heart of his letter means that “idols” must have a metaphorical interpretation, referring to items that have been emphasized throughout his instructions. What had John been emphasizing? As noted earlier, the main structure and theme of 1 John can be found in the three tests of belief, righteousness, and love. John’s meaning of idolatry, then, relates directly to failing these three tests.

The test that is perhaps the most emphasized in 1 John is the test of belief (the doctrinal test). That is, a Christian must believe that Jesus has come in the flesh. Apparently some false teachers were claiming that Jesus did not possess a physical body or that Jesus was not really the Messiah; they denied that “Jesus Christ has come in the flesh” (4:2; cf. 2 John 1:7). John therefore began his letter by emphasizing Jesus’ humanity, noting that the apostles heard, saw, and even touched Him with their own hands (1 John 1:1-3). Anyone who denies that Jesus is the Messiah is a “liar” and an “antichrist” (2:22). In emphasizing Jesus’ humanity John also stated that Jesus “came by water and blood . . . not by the water only but by the water and the blood” (5:6, ESV). Many commentators agree that this difficult verse is most likely an apologetic against the teachings of the false teachers.[46] Jesus was the Messiah not only at His baptism (the “water”) but also at His death (the “blood”).[47] Jesus had a physical body that actually experienced death on the cross.

At the end of his letter John again stressed the true nature of Jesus: “He is the true God and eternal life” (5:20, ESV). If one does not embrace the apostolic teaching about Jesus but embraces another Jesus, he is in danger of worshiping an idol. If someone says he is a Christian (a disciple of Jesus) and yet does not affirm the apostolic teaching about the person of Jesus (in John’s setting, that Jesus has come in the flesh), he is guilty of worshiping an idol. It is an idol because it is a false god, a man-made Jesus. Akin rightly notes that John “would have in mind the ‘idols’ of the heretical teachers who speak about a Jesus who is less than God. John is very disturbed by the false teachers that the god they proclaim is not merely less than perfect or close to what he holds but is altogether an idol. That is, their god is not real but [is] the god of men’s imaginations.”[48] In this sense, then, when John wrote, “Guard yourselves from idols,” he was saying, “Guard yourselves from worshiping a Jesus that is different from the Jesus you have learned about from the apostolic tradition. Any other Jesus is nothing more than an idol.”

A second test John gave is the test of righteousness (the moral test). That is, a Christian must live a godly life. John is abundantly clear on this issue: “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth” (1:6). To claim to be a Christian and yet live like the rest of the world is to be a liar. Such a person is following a false religion. Again John wrote, “The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (2:4). A Christian cannot merely claim to know God and not follow God’s Word. Other verses that are related to this theme are these: “No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him” (3:6). “The one who practices sin is of the devil” (3:8). “No one who is born of God practices sin” (3:9). “Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God” (3:10).

In this sense, then, when John admonished, “Guard yourselves from idols,” he was saying, “Guard yourselves from worshiping a false god that allows you to claim to be a true worshiper but still live in sin. It is idolatry to claim to worship God and yet walk in unrighteousness.”

A third test John offered is the test of love (the social test). That is, a Christian must love others. According to John, “The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now” (2:9). A mere profession of faith without the accompanying virtue of love is an empty claim and thus a false god. Later John asserted that whoever “does not love his brother” is not of God (3:10). Loving others, especially loving other believers, is an essential characteristic of saving faith and true religion. Again this theme is found throughout John’s epistle:

Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (3:15).

But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth (3:17-18).

If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also (4:20-21).

In this sense, then, when John wrote, “Guard yourselves from idols,” he was saying, “Guard yourselves from worshiping a false god that allows you to claim to be a true worshiper but still not love others. It is idolatry to claim to love or worship God and not demonstrate love to other believers.”[49]

Conclusion

The New Testament letters were written for specific purposes and specific audiences and possess cohesion and unity. Therefore when John ended his first epistle with an admonition to avoid idols, those words should be interpreted in the context of the entire epistle and not merely as introducing a new thought. If such is the case, then one should look to the rest of the letter to see what would classify as idolatry. In his letter John sought to give believers assurance and at the same time expose those who are not true believers. He achieved this by offering three cycles of three tests: the tests of belief, righteousness, and love. Thus what John was emphasizing at the close of his letter is that those who claim to be Christians but do not believe the truth concerning Jesus, do not live a righteous life in obeying God’s commands, and do not love others are in danger of idol worship. This is an idol because they have created a religion that is false. This is a religion that man has created and not that of the apostolic faith. This is nothing short of idolatry. To embrace a form of Christianity that allows one to deny the truth about Jesus, not live a godly life, or not love others, is to create an idol—and that is something all Christians must constantly guard against.

Notes

1. See, for example, W. G. Kümmel, Introduction to the New Testament, rev. ed., trans. Howard Clark Kee (Nashville: Abingdon, 1975), 440.
2. I. Howard Marshall, The Epistles of John, New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978), 255. Robert W. Yarbrough similarly states, “The mention of ‘idols’ is abrupt” (1-3 John, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament [Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008], 322). Wilhelm Thüsing comments, “This particular concluding sentence is surely almost entirely unexpected” (The Three Epistles of St. John [New York, Herder & Herder, 1971], 102). D. Moody Smith states, “The last word (v. 21) is brief and puzzling. Nothing in the letter prepares us for the final warning about idols” except verse 20 (First, Second, and Third John [Louisville: John Knox, 1991], 137).
3. Ending a letter with an imperative is not uncommon. For examples see Terry Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols: A New Look at 1 John, Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series (London: Sheffield Academic, 2002), 58.
4. Colin G. Kruse, The Letters of John, Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 27. D. A. Carson and Douglas J. Moo likewise note, “John finds he must reassure the faithful and explain in straightforward terms the differences between the two groups and thereby give them grounds for their own assurance and confidence before God (1 John 5:13) at a time when they were being made to feel inferior and spiritually threatened” (An Introduction to the New Testament, 2nd ed. [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005], 678).
5. Some scholars maintain that because 1 John is pastoral and not polemical, there is no need to identify a group of heretics and their beliefs (e.g., Judith M. Lieu, “‘Authority to Become Children of God’: A Study of 1 John,” Novum Testamentum 23 [1981]: 210-28).
6. Yarbrough declares, “There is no agreement on the organization of 1 John” (1-3 John, 21).
7. Carson and Moo, An Introduction to the New Testament, 699-70.
8. Robert Law, The Tests of Life: A Study of the First Epistle of St. John (Edinburgh: Clark, 1909), 1-24. He writes that these three “are the connecting themes that bind together the whole structure of the Epistle” (ibid., 6).
9. John R. W. Stott, The Letters of John, rev. ed., Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1988), 61.
10. The other cycles are 2:29-4:6 and 4:7-5:21.
11. Other commentators say that 1 John provides tests of fellowship with God, not tests of salvation. See, for example, Zane C. Hodges, “1 John,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary, New Testament, ed. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1983; reprint, Colorado Springs: Cook, 1996), 881; idem, The Epistles of John (Irving, TX: Grace Evangelical Society, 1999), 34; and J. Dwight Pentecost, The Joy of Fellowship (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1971).
12. Although there is no consensus about the organizational structure of 1 John, Kruse overstates the issue when he comments that his analysis of 1 John “does not seek to trace any developing argument through the letter because there isn’t one” (Letters of John, 32). And Marshall maintains that 1 John cannot be “divided into large sections on a logical basis” (Epistles of John, 26). Rudolf Schnackenburg is correct in noting that the author “does not merely sail along without any particular plan” (The Johannine Epistles: Introduction and Commentary, trans. Reginald Fuller and Ilse Fuller [New York: Crossroad, 1992], 12-13). Similarly Andreas J. Köstenberger, L. Scott Kellum, and Charles Quarles note that “given the clear structure of John’s Gospel and Revelation, as well as the careful nuances displayed within the various paragraphs, it seems unlikely that the author had no plan in mind when writing the letter” (The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament [Nashville: B&H, 2009], 798). Regarding the structure of 1 John see L. Scott Kellum, “On the Semantic Structure of 1 John: A Modest Proposal,” Faith and Mission 23 (2008): 34-82; R. Longacre, “Towards an Exegesis of 1 John Based on the Discourse Analysis of the Greek Text,” in Linguistics and New Testament Interpretation: Essays on Discourse Analysis, ed. D. A. Black (Nashville: B&H, 1992), 271-86.
13. Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols, 89.
14. Ibid.
15. Ibid.
16. Raymond Brown, The Epistles of John, Anchor Bible (New York: Doubleday, 1982), 627-29. Brown notes that these views “are not necessarily exclusive of one another, and some commentators advocate several” (ibid., 627). Brown himself favors the tenth view.
17. Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols, 14-27. For a summary of Griffith’s position see his “‘Little Children, Keep Yourselves from Idols’ (1 John 5:21),” Tyndale Bulletin 48 (1997): 187-90.
18. For example Daniel L. Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, New American Commentary (Nashville: B&H, 2001), 215-16; A. E. Brooke, The Johannine Epistles, International Critical Commentary (Edinburgh: Clark, 1912), 154; Rudolf Bultmann, The Johannine Epistles, trans. R. Philip O’Hara with Lane C. McGaughy and Robert W. Funk, Hermeneia (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1973), 90; J. L. Houlden, The Johannine Epistles, Black New Testament Commentary (London: Black, 1973; reprint, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1988), 138; Marshall, The Epistles of John, 255-56; Stephen S. Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John, Word Biblical Commentary (Waco, TX: Word, 1984), 309-10; Kenneth Grayston, “The Johannine Epistles,” in New Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1984), 148; Stott, The Letters of John, 198-99; Kruse, The Letters of John, 202; Smith, First, Second, and Third John, 137; M. M. Thompson, 1-3 John, IVP New Testament Commentary (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1992), 148; and Georg Strecker, The Johannine Letters, trans. Linda M. Maloney, Hermeneia (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1996), 214.
19. So Klaus Wengst, Der erste, zweite und dritte Brief des Johannes, Ökumenischer Taschenbuchkommentar zum Neuen Testament 16 (Gütersloher: Mohr, 1978), 224-26; and M. J. Edwards, “Martyrdom and the First Epistle of John,” Novum Testamentum (1989): 164-71.
20. Edwards, “Martyrdom and the First Epistle of John,” 166.
21. C. H. Dodd, The Johannine Epistles, Moffatt New Testament Commentary (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1946), 141; and A. Plummer, The Epistles of S. John (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1894), 129; Adolf von Schlatter, Die Briefe und die Offenbarung des Johannes, Erläuterungen zum Neuen Testament (Stuttgart: Calwer, 1950), 111-12. Dodd also notes, “By idols he means not only images of the gods, but all false or counterfeit notions of God such as lead to the perversion of religion against which he has written” (The Johannine Epistles, 141).
22. Wolfgang Nauck, Die Tradition und der Charakter des ersten Johannesbriefes, Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der deutschen Orientgesellschaft (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1957), 136-38; J. C. O’Neill, The Puzzle of 1 John: A New Examination of Its Origins (London: SPCK, 1966), 63-64; Schnackenburg, The Johannine Epistles, 263-64; and Thüsing, The Three Epistles of St. John, 102.
23. Brown, The Epistles of John, 628-29, 633.
24. Julian Hills, “‘Little children, keep yourselves from idols’: 1 John 5:21 Reconsidered,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 51 (1989): 285-310.
25. Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols, 206.
26. Ibid., 208.
27. Ibid., 1.
28. Acts 7:41; 15:20; Romans 2:22; 1 Corinthians 8:4, 7; 10:19; 12:2; 2 Corinthians 6:16; 1 Thessalonians 1:9; and Revelation 9:20.
29. Irenaeus wrote, “John the disciple of the Lord, who also leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia” (Against Heresies, 3.1.1). Irenaeus also wrote that John was at Ephesus “remaining among them permanently until the time of Trajan” (Against Heresies, 3.3.4; cf. 2.22.5; see also Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 3.23.1-4). See Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John, xxxii, 309; Kruse, The Letters of John, 27-28; Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, 27; Yarbrough, 1-3 John, 17; Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction, rev. ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1990), 896; Carson and Moo, Introduction to the New Testament, 675-76; and Köstenberger, Kellum, and Quarles, The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown, 791.
30. Plummer noted, “There is no need to seek far-fetched figurative explanations of ‘the idols’ when the literal meaning lies close at hand, is suggested by the context, and is in harmony with the known circumstances of the time.” He asked if it was reasonable to look for a figurative meaning “when every street through which his readers walked, and every heathen house they visited, swarmed with idols in the literal sense: above all when it was its magnificent temples and groves and seductive idolatrous rites which constituted some of the chief attractions at Ephesus” (The Epistles of S. John, 129).
31. F. Büchsel, “εἰδώλον,” in Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Gerhard Kittel and Gerhard Friedrich, trans. and ed. Geoffrey W. Bromiley, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1964), 375-80. J. N. Suggit even interprets εἰδώλων as “phantom” or “ghost” in the context of 1 John (“1 John 5:21: ΤΕΚΝΙΑ, ΦΥΛΑΞΑΤΕ ΕΑΥΤΑ ΑΠΟ ΤΩΝ ΕΙΔΩΛΩΝ,” Journal of Theological Studies 36 [1985]: 386-90).
32. See Polybius, Histories 30.25.13-15.
33. Law explains, “It is true . . . that elsewhere in the N.T. εἰδώλον is invariably used in the literal sense. That, however, is no reason why it should not here express a more comprehensive idea, provided that this would be intelligible by those to whom the Epistle was addressed” (The Tests of Life, 414).
34. See also Ezekiel 14:4, which speaks of one who sets up “idols in his heart.” In the Qumran literature “idolatry” and “sin” are used interchangeably (cf. 1QS 2:11, 17; 4:5; 1QH 4:15; 4QFlor 1:17; CD 20:9). See also Matthew 6:24; Romans 16:18; and Philippians 3:19 for similar ideas without the use of the word “idols.”
35. For an excellent discussion of the relationship between covetousness or greed and idolatry see Brian S. Rosner, Greed as Idolatry: The Origin and Meaning of a Pauline Metaphor (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007). He says that the statement “greed is idolatry” means the following: “Tohave a strong desire to acquire and keep for yourself more and more money and material things is an attack on God’s exclusive rights to human love and devotion, trust and confidence, and service and obedience” (ibid., 173). He identifies these words as a Jewish metaphor and demonstrates how the two concepts are closely related. He writes, “To equate greed with idolatry is a powerful means of condemning greed, since idolatry was the most serious of sins, being the distinguishing mark of those who do not know God (the gentiles), which elicited the most disdainful polemic, prompted the most extreme measures of avoidance, and evoked an expectation of frightening judgment from God who demands exclusive worship and tolerates no rivals. It is in effect to charge that the greedy do not belong in the church” (ibid., 172).
36. Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols, 54. He maintains, however, that the literal use is so common, that “unless there is a specific qualifier” the word refers “to idols and their cult” (52). Thus “with regard to 1 Jn 5.21, there are no indicators whatever in the context to suggest that eidola refer to anything other than idols simpliciter” (ibid., 56).
37. For example Bultmann opts for the figurative meaning of idols as “false teaching” because “this warning runs through the whole letter” (The Johannine Epistles, 90). What Bultmann does not note, however, is that there is not just one warning (test) that runs through the letter (i.e., the test of belief), but three warnings or tests.
38. Judith M. Lieu maintains that “nothing in the letter prepares us for a concern with the temptation to revert to paganism” (The Theology of the Johannine Epistles [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991], 57).
39. See scholars cited in footnotes 18, 22, and 23.
40. Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John, 309.
41. Marshall, The Epistles of John, 255.
42. Ibid.
43. That Jesus Christ is the antecedent of “the true God” is affirmed by most commentators (e.g., Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, 214-15; Brown, The Epistles of John, 625-26; Bultmann, The Johannine Epistles, 90; Marshall, The Epistles of John, 254-55; Schnackenburg, The Johannine Epistles, 263; Strecker, Johannine Letters, 212; and Thompson, 1-3 John, 147). Some commentators say the antecedent of “the true God” is the Father (Brooke, The Johannine Epistles, 152-53; Law, The Tests of Life, 412-13; and Stott, The Letters of John, 197-98). Others are more noncommittal (e.g., Kruse, TheLetters of John, 199-200; Plummer, The Epistles of S. John, 128; Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John, 308; and Yarbrough, 1-3 John, 319-20).
44. So Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, 214; Kruse, The Letters of John, 200; and Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John, 309.
45. Griffith, Keep Yourselves from Idols, 61.
46. Dodd writes, “This implies that someone taught that Christ came by water but not by blood” (The Johannine Epistles, 130). See also Smith, First, Second, and Third John, 123.
47. Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, 196-97; Brooke, The Johannine Epistles, 133-24; Bultmann, The Johannine Epistles, 79-80; Dodd, The Johannine Epistles, 130; Marshall, The Epistles of John, 231-35; Plummer, The Epistles of S. John, 113-14; Schnackenburg, The Johannine Epistles, 232-33; Smith, First, Second, and Third John, 123-24; Stott, TheLetters of John, 180-81; Strecker, The Johannine Letters, 182-83; and Yarbrough, 1-3 John, 282-83.
48. Akin, 1, 2, 3 John, 216.
49. An objection could be raised as to why John used the plural “idols” instead of the singular, since he was essentially warning his readers to avoid worshiping a false concept of the true God, not warning them to avoid worshiping a plethora of literal idols. Three responses can be offered. First, each person can be guilty of creating his own version of the true God. In this case the plural refers not to one person worshiping several idols but to each person creating his own personal idol. Second John used plural forms to address his readers (Τεκνία, φυλάξατε ἑαυτὰ). Thus the plural “idols” makes sense with a plural subject. Third, εἰδώλον is normally found in the plural; so it is possible that this was a matter of style.