Commentary on the Gospel of John - Introduction

Introduction:   The entire gospel of John details probably no more than the final twenty days in the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus. The other Gospels, called the Synoptic Gospels cover the Chapters 13 - 19, a full one-third of the book concentrates upon the last twenty-four hours in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ.
           John does not emphasize the "what" of Jesus' ministry, but the "why" of it. John 1:18 states that Jesus "declared" the Father. The verb used here is the root from which we derive our word "exegesis." "Exegesis" is the word we use to describe the interpretation of God's word. It refers to a careful examination and then detailed explanation of a passage of Scripture.
           "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." (John 1:18) In other words Jesus made fully known and revealed God the Father to mankind. The phrase "he hath declared Him" is an emphatic statement that says that all the revelations men have received of God, whether under the law or the gospel, had Jesus Christ for their source.
           The Gospel of John is unlike the other Gospels presenting Jesus as the Messiah from the opening of the Book and recording that the Jews were plotting to His death from the start of His ministry.
           Each Synoptic Gospel presents Jesus with a different theme and audience:

Matthew - 55 AD - Jesus is the promised Messiah

Key verse Matthew 1:1 - Audience: Israel (Jews)
Key Word: Fulfilled (16 times)

Mark - 68 AD - Jesus is shown to be the Obedient Servant of God the Father

Key Verse Mark 10:45 - Audience: Romans
Key Word: Straightway (19 times)

Luke - 56-58 AD - Jesus is presented at the Perfect Man (Who Jesus was)

Key Verse Luke 19:10 - Audience: Gentiles (the World)
Key Word: Son of Man (29 times)
Additional Points:

1. Jesus is recognized as the Messiah from the beginning of His ministry in the synoptic gospels as well (Mk. 1:7-8, 24, 34, 3: 11).
2. The fact that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, is emphasized in the fourth gospel is due to the purpose for which John wrote his gospel.
3. The book was intended to be unlike the other gospels. It was written many years later and for a different purpose. All of the other gospels were written before the fall of Jerusalem with Jewish temple worship still in effect.
4. What is recorded in the fourth gospel is consistent with what is recorded in the Synoptic Gospels ( Matthew, Mark, & Luke).

I. The Authorship of the Gospel of John

A. It was the unanimous opinion of the early church that the apostle John was the author of the fourth gospel.
B. At least nineteen witnesses either use and/or recognize John as the author of the fourth gospel before the end of the second century.
C. The earliest extant copy of any part of the New Testament is a papyrus scrap which was written in Middle Egypt sometime in the first half of the second century (AD 135). It contains parts of five verses from John's gospel. It has been estimated that for a piece of literature to circulate from Ephesus to Middle Egypt would take about 30 years.

II. Purpose of John's gospel. John is the only one of the four gospel writers to specifically state the purpose for its writing. His purpose was fourfold (20:30-31).

A. His primary purpose appears to be the evangelization of the lost. The verb "believe" in the key verse is in the aorist tense in most manuscripts indicating that this was the purpose of John.
B. A secondary purpose may have been to establish and stabilize believers. A smaller group of manuscripts has the verb "believe" in the present tense implying not a one-time act, but a continuous life of faith.
C. An auxiliary purpose for the gospel was to combat heresies, particularly Gnosticism. He does this by proving that Jesus Christ was fully man and fully God. Jerome states that John wrote at a time when those who denied the unique person of the Lord were gaining a hearing in the church.
D. He wrote to supplement the other gospels.

1. The use of the term "this book" in 21 :25 implies that he was probably familiar with the synoptic gospels, or at least their content.
2. There is a further implication that John presupposes that his readers were familiar with the other gospels (In. 3:24 cf. Mk. 6:17 - 18). However this was not the main purpose of his writing.

E. The Audience of John's Gospel.

1. The gospel of John is not directed to a specific cultural group, but to the world at large.
2. The view of some church fathers is that John wrote a "spiritual gospel" to the church, in order to provide a fuller account of the ministry of Christ than the synoptic gospels did.

III. Unique Characteristics of the Gospel of John.

A. He omits the birth, boyhood, and begins with the fact that Jesus is God.
B. "Then" a Hebraic term is used 200 times.
C. John give no parables.
D. Only twenty days of the total within Christ's life are recorded. The days recorded are not in sequence.
E. John uses the term "Verily, verily" 25 times. The other Gospels only use "verily." The word means "amen" or "truly."
F. John uses 13 unique names for Jesus: (Marked with asterisk)

The Main Names of Jesus:
(Those underlined are found in John)
Jesus
Christ
Jesus Christ
Christ Jesus
Lord Jesus Christ
Son of God
Son of Man
Son of David

The Other Names of Jesus Used in the New Testament

Advocate (1 John 2:1)
*Bread of Life (Jn. 6:35)
Bridegroom (Mt. 9:15) Chief Cornerstone (Eph. 2:20)
Consolation of Israel (Lk. 2:25)
Counsellor (Is. 9:6)
Cornerstone (Mt. 21:42)
Dayspring (Lk. 1:78)
*Door of the Sheep (Jn. 10:7, 9)
Door (Jn. 10:7,9)
Emmanuel (Mt. 1:23)
Everlasting Father (Is. 9:6)
Friend (Jn. 15:15)
Friend of Sinners (Mt. 11:19)
God (Jn. 20:28)
*Good Shepherd (Jn. 10:11)
Governor (Mt. 2:6)
Gift of God (Jn. 4:10)
Greater than Jonah (Mt. 12:41)
Greater than Solomon (Mt.12:42)
Holy One of God (Mk. 1:24)
Heir (Mt. 21:38)
King of Israel (Mt. 2:2; 21:5; 25:34)
I AM (Jn. 8:58)
Judge (2 Ti. 4:8, Jn. 8:26)
*Lamb of God (Jn. 1:29)
*Light of the World (Jn. 8:12)
Living Water (Jn. 7:37-38)
Lord (Mt. 12:8; Jn. 20:28)
Lord of glory (1 Co. 2:8)
Master (Mt. 10:24, John 8:4)
Mediator (1 Ti. 2:5)
Messiah (Jn. 1:41)
Mighty God (Is. 9:6)
Nazarene (Mt. 2:23)
*Only Begotten Son (Jn. 1:14)
Prince of Peace (Is. 9:6)
Prophet (Mt. 13:57, Jn. 6:14)
Physician (Mt. 9:12)
Rabbi (Jn. 1:38)
*Resurrection and the Life (Jn. 11:25)
Rock (1 Co. 10:4)
Savior (Mt. 1:21, Jn. 4:42)
Shepherd (Mt. 26:31)
*Son of God (Mt. 14:33, Jn. 1:34)
Son of man (Mt. 8:20, Jn. 1:51)
Son of David (Mt. 21:9)
Son of Abraham (Mt. 1:1)
Sower (Mt. 13:3,37)
Stumblingstone (Ro. 9:33)
*True Vine (Jn. 15:1)
*Truth (Jn. 14:6)
*Way (Jn. 14:6)
Wonderful (Is. 9:6)
*Word (Jn. 1:1)

G. Only John refers to Jesus as the "Lamb of God." The Jews understood that the sacrifice of a lamb symbolized the taking away of sin. Exodus 12:1-12 records the sacrificial lamb being offered at the Passover.

IV. Characteristics of Apostle John.

A. The Apostle John is one of the most familiar names to the reader of the New Testament. From the Scriptural references we learn much about him.

1. He was a Jew, who was a native of Galilee, as were eleven of the twelve disciples. His name is always among the first four mentioned whenever the disciples are enumerated.
2. He was a disciple of John the Baptist prior to meeting Jesus (Jn. 1:37).
3. His father was named, Zebedee, and his mother, Salome (Mk. 1:19; Mk. 16:1 cf. Mt. 27:56).
4. His occupation before becoming a disciple was a fIsherman. His father appears to have been rather prosperous.

a. He had hired servants working for him (Mk. 1:20).
b. John was known to the High Priest in Jerusalem at a comparatively young age (18: 15).

5. His brother, James, was also a disciple of Jesus. Because James is always listed first whenever the two are named together it is presumed that James was the older of the two.
6. It appears that he and his brother were very emotional.

a. There are incidents which may point to a "hotheadedness" such as wishing to call down fire from heaven upon a Samaritan village which did not receive the Lord (Lk. 9:54).
b. He and his brother were nicknamed Boanerges, "the sons of thunder" by the Lord . (Mk. 3:17).

7. He was a man possessed with genuine humility, as he never mentions his own name in his own gospel, but rather refers to himself by descriptive titles.

a. The other disciple (In. 18: 16; 20:2, 3, 4, 8).
b. The disciple whom Jesus loved (In. 13:23).

8. He was an eyewitness of the events of the life of Jesus Christ.

B. A great deal of tradition supplies us with additional material about the life of John.

1. He apparently left Jerusalem prior to, or during, the Jewish wars (AD 65 - 69). He spent the final years of his life in Ephesus.
2. During the reign of Domitian (AD 81 - 96) he was banished to the isle of Patmos where he wrote the book of Revelation.
3. Upon the accession of the emperor Nerva (AD 97), he returned to Ephesus where he died during the reign of Trajan (c. AD 98). He was the only one of the twelve disciples to die a natural death.

V. Purpose of John's gospel. John is the only one of the four gospel writers to specifically state the primary purpose for its writing. His purpose was twofold as stated in John 20:30-31:

"And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, (1) that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and (2) that believing ye might have life through his name." (John 20:30-31)

A. His primary purpose appears to be the evangelization of the lost. The verb "believe" in the key verse is in the aorist tense in most manuscripts indicating that this was the purpose of John.
B. An auxiliary purpose for the gospel was to combat heresies, particularly Gnosticism. He does this by proving that Jesus Christ was fully man and fully God. Jerome states that John wrote at a time when those who denied the unique person of the Lord were gaining a hearing in the church.
C. He wrote to supplement the other gospels.

1. The use of the term "this book" in 21 :25 implies that he was probably familiar with the synoptic gospels, or at least their content.
2. There is a further implication that John presupposes that his readers were familiar with the other gospels (In. 3:24 cf. Mk. 6:17 - 18). However this was not the main purpose of his writing.

D. The Audience of John's Gospel.

1. The gospel of John is not directed to a specific cultural group, but to the world at large.
2. The view of some church fathers is that John wrote a "spiritual gospel" to the church, in order to provide a fuller account of the ministry of Christ than the synoptic gospels did.

E. Characteristics of John's gospel. The very nature of the gospel of John separates it from the synoptic gospels.

1. John's gospel has a.unique presentation of the person of Christ.

a. The main topic is the Savior, not the kingdom.
b. The main person is the incarnate God, not the king.

F. John's gospel has a unique presentation of the ministry of Christ.

1. He is the only gospel writer who mentions the early Judean ministry of the Lord (2: 13; 5: 1(7); 6: 14; 13: 1 and 18:28).
2. The gospel of John omits the birth, genealogy, youth, baptism, temptation transfiguration and ascension because he is presenting Jesus as divine and deity has none of these.
3. There are no parables in the gospel of John. The word translated "parable" in John 10:6 is 7rexpoLfJ,tex and is translated "proverb" the other three times it is used in the New Testament (In 16:25, 29; 2 Ptr 2:22).
4. There are eight miracles recorded in John's gospel and of them, only the feeding of the five thousand appears in any other gospel.

Turning water into wine (2:1-11).
Healing of the nobleman's son (4:46-54).
Healing of the paralytic (5:1-9).
Feeding of the 5000 (6: 1-14).
Stilling the storm (6:15-21).
Healing the blind man (7: 1-7).
Raising of Lazarus (11:38-45).
Miraculous catch of fish (21:4-17).

III. Date of John. Because of their preconceived opinions the higher critics are predisposed to accept a late date for John's gospel, in the process, they also deny the Johannine authorship of the book. Most conservative scholars favor a date between AD 80 and 98 for the composition of the book.

A. Factors influencing the date of the book.

1. The book implies that the apostle Peter was already dead (John 21: 19).
2. The Jews had become the confirmed enemies of the church and Christianity.
3. The fall of Jerusalem was so far in the past that it is not mentioned to in the book. Most scholars suggest that it is a minimum of ten to fifteen years before the writing of the book.
4. Epiphanius, a church father who wrote in about AD 300, states that John did not write his gospel until his return from Patmos.

B. The latest possible date for composition of the book is AD 98, when John died. C. The suggested date for the writing of the gospel of John is AD 90-95. This makes the Gospel of John one of the last books of the New Testament to be written.

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