These factors suggest that john wrote the book between ad 85 and ad 95. The greek of revelation is different and nonstandard, probably because john wrote it as a letter without help. John was a deciple and walked and lived with jesus and the other deciples. John is traditionally believed to be one of two disciples the other being andrew recounted in john 1. John, 1, 2, and 3 john, and revelation were all written by john the apostle. Yes, they are two different people who shared a very common name. Ramsey michaels categorizes them into two types of variation. John s gospel is a mystical reflection on the word made flesh, jesus christ. The gospel of john is the fourth of the four gospels of the new testament matthew, mark, luke, and john.
Jun 26, 2010 the book of revelation is a revelation of the time john was in and a prophesy of the future, and of the past, so it is most important to be the last book of the bible. Then, when jesus was being put on trial, this author said that peter and another disciple showed up, who is also called that other disciple. Since one can align the documents attributed to john while also noting that the apostle ministered in ephesus while living to 98 ad, the gospel and. John bible book with full chapters king james version. He is believed to have outlived the other apostles. Another characteristic that set john apart is his writing style. The elder, the seer, and the apostle bible odyssey. Gospel according to john, fourth of the four new testament gospels. This theologically profound gospel is composed by the beloved. He was a jewish christian prophet, probably belonging to a group of such prophets, and was accepted by the. It appears that john may have been written in the mid80s to early 90s as he may have served as pastor of the church of ephesus. He is also believed to be the only disciple who died of old age the others were allegedly martyred. Jun 25, 2019 he had ministered to the church in ephesus. Book of john overview insight for living ministries.
Yet only onethe gospel of johnclaims to be an eyewitness account, the testimony of the unnamed disciple whom jesus loved. The gospel of john, the fourth of the gospels, gives a highly schematic account of the ministry. He had greeks in mind, as the gospel is evangelical in nature. The closest it comes to identifying its author is john 21. The author of john was a brilliant theologian writing good greek an argument, incidentally, against his being one of the simple galilean fishermen who made up the disciples of the historic jesus and his advanced or high christology suggests the sophisticated development that had occurred since marks gospel. The gospel of john, the fourth of the gospels, gives a highly schematic account of the ministry of jesus, with seven signs culminating in the raising of lazarus foreshadowing the resurrection of jesus and seven i am discourses culminating in thomass proclamation of the risen jesus as my lord and my god, followed by a conclusion setting out its purpose. Introduction to the gospel of john study resources. John is known as the author of the gospel of john and four other books in the new testament the three epistles of john and the book of revelation. Invoking the in the beginning language of genesis 1. Matthew first made a noise on the sacerdotal trumpet in his own gospel.
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 there were skeptics, even early on, about the authorship of the text most. John of patmos also called john the revelator, john the divine, john the theologian, and possibly john the apostle. John, the galilean fisherman, would have learned greek not as his mother tongue but as a second or third language. The other john was also a cousin of jesus, through marys sister salome and so was als. That john was the last evangelist to write is also well attested, mentioned by irenaeus adv. Nov 01, 2007 it takes faith to believe that god revealed the new testament, the quran, or the book of mormon. The authorship of the gospel is credited to the disciple whom jesus loved, and john 21.
It is excellent for use by individuals or groups, for families or schools. At the end of the 2nd century, polycrates, bishop of ephesus, claims that johns tomb is at ephesus, identifies him with the beloved disciple, and adds that he was a priest, wearing the sacerdotal plate, both martyr and teacher. The name revelation comes from the first word of the book in koine greek. Is john the baptist the same person that is in the bible in the new. The author names himself as john, but modern scholars consider it unlikely that the author of revelation also wrote the gospel of john. Early writers such as irenaeus and tertullian say that john wrote this gospel, and all other evidence agrees see introduction to 1 john. John did not include the nativity story in his gospel. The apostle john is usually credited with the authorship of the fourth gospel. While church tradition has attributed the gospel of john, the letters of john, and the book of revelation to the same authorjohn the apostle and son of zebedeeinternal and external evidence may require us to. He wrote, john, the disciple of the lord, who leaned back on his breast, published the gospel while he was resident at ephesus in asia. Augustinea famous fourth century church fathercontributed no fewer than 124 tractates in his gospel of john commentary, while st. Was the book of john written first or the book of revelation.
The gospel of john has many touches that appear to reflect the recollections of an eyewitness such as the house at bethany being filled with the fragrance of the broken perfume jar see 12. The second reason is for how the book starts in the first 5 verses. Nonetheless, john is clearly the author of all four documents. During the 3rd century two rival sites at ephesus claimed the honour of being the apostles grave.
In the book of john, that we do not see in the other gospels is the conversation of jesus with nicodemus, the conversation with the woman of. In christian tradition, johns gospel has always been referred to as the fourth gospel, meaning it was composed after the other three. This book can serve as a basic bible study guide for working through the gospel of john, helping the student plumb the depths of st. But that john wrote as a very old man is an inference which only appears later and combined with other statements which cast considerable doubt on its. The apostle john is not the same person as john the baptist the apostle john wrote the books of revelation, john, and the 1st,2nd,and 3rd books of john the apostle john was the last apostle living. Johns subsequent history is obscure and passes into the uncertain mists of legend. It is the only book of the new testament classified as apocalyptic literature rather than didactic or historical, indicating thereby its extensive use of visions, symbols, and allegory, especially in connection with future events. John also wrote first, second, third john, and revelation. The gospel of john author question, who wrote the gospel of john.
John s testimony is preserved while serving in ephesus in asia minor. The first is that it is written by john, also known as the disciple whom jesus loved. John 1 niv the word became flesh in the bible gateway. The word became flesh in the beginning was the word, and the word was with god, and the word was god.
John the apostle was the son of zebedee and the younger brother of james, son of zebedee james the greater. Evidence for johns authorship from the early church. Are john the apostle, john the evangelist, and john the. The author of the book of revelation calls himself john rev. He claimed, based on the writing style and the lack of an apostolic claim in the book, john the elder presbyter was the author not john the apostle. John s gospel is followed by the acts of the apostles in the new testament of the bible. How could john the baptist have written the gospel of john.
Yet only onethe gospel of john claims to be an eyewitness account, the testimony of the unnamed disciple whom jesus loved. John the apostle, the beloved disciple of jesus, there has been considerable discussion of the actual. Johns gospel is a mystical reflection on the word made flesh, jesus christ. This summary of the book of 1 john provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of 1 john. John is similar in style and content as the gospel of john, and reaffirms the theme of the divinity and humanity of jesus christ. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Such evidence exists both internal to the documents in question and in testimony from external. Revelation to john appears to be a collection of separate. Evidence suggests that john s gospel was the last to be written at some point after 70 ad. In the book of john, we find that jesus ministry altogether was approximately 312 years. John s high christology depicts jesus as divine, preexistent, and identified. Its title is derived from the first word of the koine greek text. Johns gospel is followed by the acts of the apostles in the new testament of the bible. This short work was written before john was exiled to the island of patmos, and before he wrote the book of revelation. It is possible that john used an amanuensis to write the gospel and the first letter and wrote 2 and 3 john with his own hands. The book of revelation often called the revelation to john, apocalypse of john, the revelation from jesus christ from its opening words, the apocalypse, the revelation, or simply revelation is the final book of the new testament, and consequently is also the final book of the christian bible. Gospel according to john, fourth of the four new testament narratives recounting the life and death of jesus christ. Further evidences presented within the gospel book address the issue that some appeared to be worshiping john the baptist as the messiah, where the apostle john had to correct that misunderstanding john 1.
The gospel of john, though clearly coming from john, looks like. Clicking on a chapter will show you the text of that chapter of john in the bible king james version. Feb 06, 2019 john is traditionally regarded as the author of five books of the bible. John, who wrote the gospel of john, wrote it exquisitely, for he was steeped in jewish tradition and heritage.
John the baptist was the son of elizabeth, marys cousin. The apostle john is not the same person as john the baptist the apostle john wrote the books of revelation,john, and the 1st,2nd,and 3rd books of john the apostle john was the last apostle living. The gospels, the first four books of the new testament, tell the story of the life of jesus. The gospel of john varies from the synoptic gospels in more ways than one. He also wrote the gospel of john,three lettersjohn 1,2. He would have also had a decent familiarity with palestine before the destruction of the temple in ad 70, and would have been familiar with the jewish way of life. He knew from the tradition of the church that john was the last of the evangelists to compose his gospel eusebius, church history vi. The only other clue to the authors identity is that he states he received his visions while on the island of patmos rev. I love the intimacy that john and jesus shared as brothers. Therefore the origin of the gospel must in some way be connected to this personthe gospel of john may be a record of his eyewitness account of jesus life. What apostle wrote the book of john in the holy bible answers. An introduction with commentary and notes on the greek text 2nd ed. Jesuss disciple john, brother of james, son of zebedee yes they are.
In the book of john, christ speaks of god as the father over 100 times. John the apostle, there has been considerable discussion of the actual identity of the author. Book of first john overview insight for living ministries. Johns testimony is preserved while serving in ephesus in asia minor. Tradition has long held that john the apostle, whom we have seen penned the fourth gospel and the three letters attributed to him, wrote the last book of scripture. John s is the only one of the four not considered among the synoptic gospels i. If so, john penned much of the new testament, with only paul and luke writing more than him.
Patristic evidence seems to confirm that john wrote the gospel. The author of this epistle never identified himself by name, but christians since the beginning of the church have considered this letter authoritative, believing it was written by john the apostle. In christian tradition, john s gospel has always been referred to as the fourth gospel, meaning it was composed after the other three. Is john the baptist different from john of the book of. I would have absolutely no idea how they formed the conclusion that one was written before or after the other though. 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 makes a significant difference if the author particularly of 1 john was in fact an eyewitness to the earthly ministry of jesus christ as he appears to claim in 1 john 1.
Revelation to john, also called book of revelation or apocalypse of john, last book of the new testament. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. It is important to begin with a discussion of authorship, in light of the christological controversy which permeates the three johannine letters. According to church tradition, their mother was salome he was first a disciple of john the baptist. While church tradition has attributed the gospel of john, the letters of john, and the book of revelation to the same authorjohn the apostle and son of zebedeeinternal and external evidence may require us to attribute them to other individuals who may or may not have also been named john.
That group of witnesses includes polycarp, an early secondcentury bishop who as a young man knew john personally. John, in which he everywhere makes clear his conviction of the apostolic origin of. According to scholars, the gospel of john was written by the beloved disciple john. Christ jesus is the son of god and the savior of the world i john 4. The author first differentiated himself from the rest of the disciples when he wrote, now there was leaning on jesus bosom one of his disciples, whom jesus loved fourth gospel. First of all, the author had to have been an eyewitness of the ministry of jesus 1.