Diotrephes

Diotrephes is a single-verse figure who appears in the third Johannine letter as a man inside the church whose refusal to receive its leadership has reached the writer's attention.

A Disputed Welcome

The writer's complaint is direct: "I wrote somewhat to the church: but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, doesn't receive us" (3 John 1:9). Two charges sit side by side. The first is the love of preeminence — a self-positioning above others in the congregation. The second is the practical effect of that disposition: a written communication to the church goes unreceived because Diotrephes will not give it standing.

The verse fixes the conflict at the level of hospitality and authority within a local body, not at the level of doctrinal exposition. What is said about Diotrephes is what he does not do: he does not receive.