Lady Eclecte was recommended by a former professor, who commented on my YouVersion public note when I asked, “Who is this elect lady?”
Lady Eclecte is an extremely dense read. Lawrence H. Blumell is a papyrologist and his writing reflects his passion. He argues that an undiscovered copyist error in the received text of 1 John 1 results in translators and commentators misconstruing the recipient of this letter. He expertly guides the reader through countless examples of contemporary historical epistolary papyri, majuscules, minuscules and other fragments to build a convincing argument.
While his overall conclusion appears defensible, some individual arguments taken on their own are less so. His omnomastic argument in particular is not entirely convincing. Additionally, while he insists he is not providing commentary on the letter, his understandable bias against a metaphorical reading prevents him from seeing Eclecte’s house as anything more than a physical location where a group of believers may gather.
This relatively short book is a heavily researched and scholarly work. Nearly half the book is given to supporting notes. If Blumell’s work becomes generally accepted, this most certainly will change the translation of 1 John you will hold in your hand in the near future.