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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 3Jn_1:11-12
11Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God. 12Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself; and we add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.
3Jn_1:11 "do not imitate what is evil" This is a present middle (deponent) imperative which often implies to stop an act in process. We get the English term "mimic" from this Greek word (mimeomai). We must carefully choose our role models. They ought to be mature Christian persons in the church (cf. 2Th_3:7; 2Th_3:9; Heb_6:12; Heb_13:7). Demetrius is a good example, Diotrephes is a bad example.
▣ "The one who does good is of God" John's letters have three tests by which one can know they are Christian. This refers to the obedience test (cf. 1Jn_2:3-6; 1Jn_2:28-29; 1Jn_3:4-10; 1Jn_5:18; 2Jn_1:6). There are also allusions to the other two tests: (1) doctrine (3Jn_1:3-4) and (2) love (3Jn_1:1-2; 3Jn_1:6).
▣ "the one who does evil has not seen God" The false teachers claimed to know God intimately but lived godless and loveless lives. This reflects the antinomian, libertine Gnostics who believed that salvation was an intellectual truth to be affirmed but had no relationship to daily life.
3Jn_1:12 "Demetrius has received good testimony" This is a perfect passive indicative. This really seems to be a letter of recommendation from John to Gaius about the missionary Demetrius, who may have delivered 3 John to Gaius. For other letters of recommendations in the NT, see Act_18:27; Rom_16:1; 1Co_16:3; 2Co_3:1; 2Co_8:16-24; Col_4:10.
▣ "and from truth itself" Truth (see Special Topics at Joh_6:55; Joh_17:3) is personified as another witness to Demetrius' good testimony.
▣ "you know that our testimony is true" John is asserting his own trustworthy witness to Christ (cf. Joh_19:35; Joh_21:24).