Tradition identifies the apostle John as the writer of this letter. Though possibly addressed to an individual woman, because he writes that they should "love one another," this is probably to a church. All instances of "you" and "your" in this letter are plural unless noted otherwise. In this letter, John includes himself and his readers by using the word "us" and "our." (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-you]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-exclusive]])
This is how letters were started. The name of the author can be made explicit. Alternate translation: "I, John the elder, am writing this letter to the chosen lady and her children" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-explicit]])
This refers to John, the apostle and disciple of Jesus. He refers to himself as "elder" either because of his old age or because he is a leader in the church.