Chapter 5 marks the beginning of the third section in John’s apocalyptic letter (see outline), shifting the reader’s attention from epistolary thanksgiving to the main body of his composition. The study of the main body of religious letters has received little attention from scholars. They agree, however, that the importance of the body segment is substantive and rhetorical (see introduction). In this section of his letter, the writer deals with and seeks to resolve the crisis that threatens his audience’s faith in God. In addition, the sermonic and paraenetic (ethical) nature of this material indicates the author’s intimate awareness of those trying circumstances facing his readers. In some of Paul’s letters, discrete paraenetic sections address in a specific and traditional way the audie…