A Letter of Recommendation? 221 thus invited to: a. imitate a good example; b. consider the Elder an honorable person; and c. dissociate himself from the censurable conduct of Diotrephes. Moreover, as Watson argued, the Elder establishes a connection between Gaius and Demetrius by using the same topoi (ajlhvqeia and marturiva) to describe both of them (75). Demetrius thus becomes a pivotal character through whom Gaius and the Elder are tightly (re-) connected. f) Graceful and “bridging” remarks (vv. 13-14) As the papyrus leaf is almost filled, the Elder concludes his letter with a formula practically identical to 2 John 12 and a wish for a visit — a rather common feature in non literary letters (76). A “bridge to further communication” (77) has hopefully been built, as the hope remains to talk to Gaius “mouth to mouth”, an expression also found in the conclusion of Second John and borrowed from Num 12,8, where Moses is the only human being to whom God spoke in those terms (78). g) Closing Formula (v. 15) The concluding formula is threefold: “[P]eace to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name” (v. 15). If we suppose that eijrhvnh here replaces the more common e[rrwso or ejrrw'sqe, the threefold formula is well attested (79). The wish “peace to you” appears at the beginning of many Jewish letters (cf. 2 Baruch 78,2), and NT epistles (1 Cor 1,3; 2 Cor 1,2; Gal 1,3; Eph 1,2; Phil 1,2; Col 1,2; 1 Thess 1,1; 2 Thess 1,1), and is often combined with grace and/or peace. However, peace and grace are combined at the end of Ephesians (6,23-24), while peace and mercy are found in Gal 6,16. Hence, the peace wish at the end of this letter is neither unique nor unexpected (80). More relevant is the mention of the “friends”. Paul used to convey greetings from those who were with him, and greeted those who were (75) WATSON, “Rhetorical Analysis”, 499. (76) Cf P. Oxy XIV 1666,15-17 (III CE) and P. Mich VIII,481,14-15. KLAUCK, Ancient Letters, 38. (77) WATSON, “Rhetorical Analysis”, 499. (78) KLAUCK, Ancient Letters, 39-40. Third John 14 has a Semitic flavor (EDWARDS, The Johannine Epistles, 23), as also Num 12,8 LXX, which reads stovma kata; stovma lalhvsw aujtw/'Δ. (79) E.g., P. Mich. VIII,472,20-21 and P. Mich. III,203,33-35: KLAUCK, Ancient Letters, 39-40; BROWN, John, 794; DOTY, Letters, 10-11. (80) Cf. BROWN, John, 795.