John did learn of pauls gospel, if not before, by the council of jerusalem in 51 a. Speaking of the apocalypse from the previous post giving that odd video. John also wrote first, second, third john, and revelation. John could have written his gospel quite early, possibly before pauls letters. It varies from the other three gospels of matthew, mark and luke also known as the synoptic gospels, by focusing more on spiritual. Jan 18, 2019 john wrote the gospel sometime after 70 a. Referencing the fourth gospels author, early church father irenaeus c. Who wrote the gospel of john and was it the same person who. Jul 09, 2016 i discuss theories for and against the view that john the son of zebedee is the author of the gospel of john.
All three synoptic gospels record an account of jesus calling a tax collector. Therefore the purpose of john s gospel is to confirm and secure christians in the faith. The gospel of john, of course, stands apart from the other three gospels. Assuming john wrote the gospel, why did he write it. Such identifications were not made in any of the other three biblical gospels either. Johns is the only one of the four not considered among the synoptic gospels i. Nov 01, 2012 nineteen hundred years ago, someone called the beloved disciple told stories about jesus and his days on earth, including reports of what jesus did and said. Introduction to the gospel of john study resources.
Is john the baptist the same john who wrote the book of. The gospel of john is closely related in style and content to the three johannine epistles, and most scholars treat the four books, along with the book of revelation, as a single. The first three gospels totally omit the one whom jesus loved, but they often refer to john by name and yet all of those events where john was referenced by name in the first three gospels are missing from the. To answer this question we must first be clear on how the gospels were formed. Polycarp, a secondcentury christian martyr who knew john personally, told irenaeus that john had written the. Gospel according to john, fourth of the four new testament narratives recounting the life and death of jesus christ. Mar 21, 2014 what was the purpose for the gospel of john. The authorship of the johannine worksthe gospel of john, epistles of john, and the book of revelationhas been debated by scholars since at least the 2nd century ad.
Notes 1 the book went through two to three stages, or editions, before reaching its current form, at the latest, around ad 80100. Someone recently asked me if the same author could have written both the book of revelation and the gospel of john. A further modification possible but less likely is that a disciple of john wrote the memoirs of the apostle after his death. The best place to start is with his own purpose statement in john 20. Early writers such as irenaeus and tertullian say that john wrote this gospel, and all other evidence agrees. Book of john overview insight for living ministries.
The purpose of johns gospel jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. Who wrote the book of revelation and the fourth gospel. In his book jesus of nazareth, pope benedict takes up the question of who wrote johns gospel and proposes a solution that other scholars have advocated. This summary of the gospel of john provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the gospel of john. John wrote his gospel so that those reading it might believe that jesus is the christ, the son of god. The context reveals he is the one called that disciple in verse 23 and the disciple whom jesus loved in verse 20. What everyone should know about the fourth gospel 061120 12.
Learn more about the gospel of john by signing up for gary burges online course. Eusebius argued that john wrote in order to complement the synoptics where they were lacking, while the muratorian canon suggested that his fellow disciples in asia minor urged him to write an account. After they had further proclaimed the word of the lord and testified about jesus, peter and john returned to jerusalem, preaching the gospel in. Nov 01, 2007 it takes faith to believe that god revealed the new testament, the quran, or the book of mormon. John is also traditionally credited with writing 1, 2, and 3rd john as well as the book of revelation. A biblical history the gospel of john is one of four gospels in the holy bible and is the fourth book in chronological order presented in the new testament. In the gospel, are the books of john also written by john. Such evidence exists both internal to the documents in question and in testimony from external.
Oct 30, 2017 jimmy akin discusses whether john the beloved disciple, john the evangelist, and john of patmos are all the same person, embarking on a tour of several historical theories about the different. It appears that towards the end of the second century, it was noticed that john, one of the three most important disciples in the synoptic gospels, is never mentioned by name in the fourth gospel. John was an apostle of israel and the prophetic program. Dear dave and tom, i noticed that as you are going through the gospel segment of your program you say that its johns gospel.
Aug 23, 2017 it appears that towards the end of the second century, it was noticed that john, one of the three most important disciples in the synoptic gospels, is never mentioned by name in the fourth gospel. The gospel of john is one of four gospels in the holy bible and is the fourth book in chronological order presented in the new testament. Many others believe the author was in fact a committee of unknown authors, editors, and redactorsthe johannine community. My new living translation bible has this to say about the author. In our previous articles, we looked at evidence for mark and matthews authorship as well as lukes. It includes such well known and oftquoted texts as. The closest we get to a claim of authorship is at the very end of the book of john, where the author implies that the book was written by the disciple whom jesus loved john 21. Moreover, the book makes a case for the author being lazarus, the one whom jesus raised from the. Who wrote the gospels evidence for john come reasons. Traditionally, both books have been identified as coming from the same person, john the son. May 15, 2012 john was a companion of simon peter, and was a fisherman by trade before jesus called him. Not surprisingly, the gospel of john never provides the name of its author. Early writers such as irenaeus and tertullian say that john wrote this gospel, and all other evidence agrees see introduction to 1 john.
According to this theory the substance of the gospel is johns but not the actual writing. I recently read a book that argues that there is no verse in that particular gospel which says that john wrote it. In christian tradition, johns gospel has always been referred to as the fourth gospel, meaning it was composed after the other three. It was written by the discipleapostle john around 8595 a. This is the same john who also wrote the letter known as 1 john. Tradition tells us that john was the longest living disciple and that his gospel was probably written last. Thomass gospel of john commentary of the th century is still highly regarded today by modern scholars. The key personalities of this book are jesus christ, his twelve disciples, mary magdalene, john the baptist, lazarus, his sisters mary and martha. John the apostle, the beloved disciple of jesus, there has been considerable discussion of the actual identity of the author. The early church fathers, after disputing who this john really was, finally decided to include revelation in case the author was the apostle john, son of zebedee. It is believed that origen, an alexandrian christian scholar and theologian, wrote his gospel of john commentary while in alexandria at some point after 218 a. Who wrote the gospels, and how do we know for zondervan. The fact that a copy of johns gospel was circulating in egypt, where the fragment was discovered, by that time gives strong support that the good news according to john was recorded in the first century c. Settings in the book include bethany, galilee, capernaum, jerusalem, judea, and samaria.
We read about several johns in the new testament, including john the baptist and john the apostle, the son of zebedee. He had greeks in mind, as the gospel is evangelical in nature. In a previous post, i have tried to make a case thoroughly unoriginal for the apostle john as the author of the gospel that bears his name. John, the disciple of the lord, wishing to set forth the origin of all things. Jul 06, 2003 dear dave and tom, i noticed that as you are going through the gospel segment of your program you say that its johns gospel. None of the gospels came with an about the author section. In the end, the most likely scenario is that the gospel of john was written by john son of zebedee. John was part of three men who made up the inner circle of companions. The gospel of john is the fourth of the canonical gospels. Jan 02, 2020 the gospel of john shares much about the approaching ministry of the holy spirit after jesus ascension.
How do we know who wrote the gospels in the new testament. This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things, and we know that his testimony is true john 21. It is the book that is most often used at christian funerals. Augustinea famous fourth century church fathercontributed no fewer than 124 tractates in his gospel of john commentary, while st. The gospels, the first four books of the new testament, tell the story of the life of jesus. These stories had been todl for decades, but then someone took the stories and wrote them down, turning them from oral tradition into the book we know as the gospel of john.
First, the book itself identifies the author as the disciple whom jesus loved. Polycarp, a secondcentury christian martyr who knew john personally, told irenaeus that john had written the book during the apostles time serving the church in ephesus. Patristic evidence seems to confirm that john wrote the gospel. However, two significant factors point to the identification of john as the author. Professor of classics and director of the religious studies program. There are certain words or phrases that create a recurring theme in the gospel of john. He is believed to have outlived the other apostles. Euangelion kata ioannen is the fourth of the canonical gospels. The book went through two to three stages, or editions, before reaching its current form, at the latest, around ad 80100. The gospel writers treated them like different people. The story of the storytellers the gospel of john from. Jimmy akin discusses whether john the beloved disciple, john the evangelist, and john of patmos are all the same person, embarking on a tour of several historical theories about the different.
John wrote i, ii, and iii john, and in addition he wrote the gospel according to st. The gospel of john embedded in the socalled spiritual gospel is an architectural hostility toward judaism. It takes faith to believe that god revealed the new testament, the quran, or the book of mormon. He was prominent in the early church but is not mentioned by name in this gospel which would be natural if he wrote it, but hard to explain otherwise.
The prologue proclaims jesus as the preexistent and incarnate word of god who has revealed the father to us. The gospel of john shares much about the approaching ministry of the holy spirit after jesus ascension. Therefore the purpose of johns gospel is to confirm and secure christians in the faith. The new testament books most frequently challenged regarding traditional authorship, are the gospels matthew, mark, luke and john, the epistles of john 1, 2, and 3 john, the epistles of peter 1 and 2 peter, and various epistles of paul ephesians, colossians, 1 and 2 thessalonians, 1 and 2 timothy, titus. John the apostle, the beloved disciple of jesus, there. The author of the gospel of john is john the beloved disciple, the apostle and the one who was imprisoned on the island of patmos. It is written anonymously, although it identifies an unnamed disciple whom jesus loved as the source of its traditions. The gospel of john is a unique perspective of the life of jesus christ. As we have in previous articles, this article will look at the proposed author, the internal and external evidences for authorship, the dating, and the. Yet only onethe gospel of johnclaims to be an eyewitness account, the testimony of the unnamed disciple whom jesus loved. Irenaeus, writing at about ad 200, says that the beloved disciple was john, the disciple of jesus, and that john originated the gospel at ephesus. But it takes only reason and evidence to believe mohammed wrote the quran, joseph smith wrote the book of mormon, or that john wrote his gospel.
While our modern bibles attach johns name to the beginning of the gospel, john just like the other gospel authors never documented his name within the book. The gospel of john begins with a magnificent prologue, which states many of the major themes and motifs of the gospel, much as an overture does for a musical work. For the past few weeks, we have investigated the authors of the gospels and the book of acts. Most bible scholars and church historians are comfortable with john as the author of this book. Who wrote the gospel of john and was it the same person. The author then wrote, this is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things fourth gospel 21. The book of john is a gospel that contains narrative history, sermons, parables, and a few prophetic oracles. John, who wrote the gospel of john, wrote it exquisitely, for he was steeped in jewish tradition and heritage.
The book of revelation is signed by a person called john but which john. Nov 01, 2012 this, as well as literary similarities between the gospel and the epistles of john, suggest a common author. One gospel, three letters, and the book of revelation are all attributed to john. With so much talk lately about the gospels, i wonder, who wrote the gospels and how do we know. So how can we know that the apostle john wrote the fourth gospel. In this article, we examine the evidence for the gospel of john. I discuss theories for and against the view that john the son of zebedee is the author of the gospel of john. Irenaeus and the muratorian fragment make it clear that luke the companion of paul wrote the third gospel while johns gospel was penned by a close companion of jesus himself. The gospel of john author question, who wrote the gospel of john. Nineteen hundred years ago, someone called the beloved disciple told stories about jesus and his days on earth, including reports of what jesus did and said.
Mark faithfully recorded the words of simon peter and that the gospel according to matthew originated with an apostle and originally circulated in hebrew characters. The main debate centers on who authored the writings, and which of the writings, if any, can be ascribed to a common author. According to scholars, the gospel of john was written by the beloved disciple john. His gospel is wholly jewish and is old testament just like the synoptics. Note that each of them required some additional designation to. John was a companion of simon peter, and was a fisherman by trade before jesus called him.