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These Study Sheets:
- Are not a substitute for, nor even a digest of, the book
- Are a series of observations from the book less likely to be familiar to students
- Are to be read sequentially with John's Gospel because ideas are only cited at their first instance. Consequently, comments become progressively shorter and some Sections go without comment.
The object of John is to show that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God (John 20:30-31; 21:25).
It is split into five parts:
- Prologue John 1:1-18
- The 'Book of Signs' 1.19-10.42. Beginning of ministry over approximately two years: baptism; first disciples; teaching and miracles; believers and opposition
- Interlude 11.1-12.11: Lazarus
- The 'Book of Glory' (13.1-20.31): the last few days; teaching; trial; death; Resurrection
- Epilogue (21).
There is a great deal of debate about who wrote the Gospel but a better way of understanding the issue is to think of its being written with John's authority. It was written largely independently of the other three Gospels (except for 6.1-25) It seems to have gone through a number of editions before the form in which we have it and it is the result of years of theological reflection. Whether John, the Letters of John and Revelation have a common author is a separate, complex topic.
It has a limited vocabulary with the frequent use of:
look, see, witness, know, believe, have faith, world, glory, abide, remain, hour send
And characteristic pairings:
light and darkness; truth and falsehood; life and death; above and below; love and hate; Father and Son.
Key Statistics:
|
Term |
Frequency |
Notes |
|
Amen Amen/Truly Truly |
25 |
|
|
Believe |
100 |
> x 3 Synoptics |
|
Bread |
24 |
|
|
Father, The (as God) |
110 |
> x 2 Synoptics |
|
Hour |
25 |
|
|
I am (ego eimi) |
35 |
Not Synoptic |
|
Jesus (as the Son) |
50 |
|
|
Jews, the |
70 |
> x 5 Synoptics |
|
Life |
> x 2 Synoptics |
|
|
Light |
> x 2 Synoptics |
|
|
Send |
60 |
> x 2 Synoptics |
|
Testify (aka ‘witness’) |
35 |
|
|
True/Truly |
50 |
> x 3 Synoptics |
|
Water |
27 |
|
|
Witness/Bear witness (aka testify) |
35 |
|
|
World |
80 |
> x 5 Synoptics |
Like many ancient texts it has a placid surface but works at many levels. Jesus' conversations begin with natural things - birth (3.3); water (4.7); bread (6.25); sight (9.1) - but he soon goes beyond these to deeper realities to "true bread" or the "true vine".
John narrates several miracles but calls them "signs" which "reveal his glory" (2.11). There are many, he says, but John chooses seven:
- Water into wine (2.1-11)
- Healing the official's son (4.46-54)
- Healing the paralysed man (5.1-15)
- Feeding the 5000 (6.1-15)
- Walking on water (6.16-21)
- Sight to the blind man (9.1-7)
- Raising Lazarus (11.17-44)
Some analysts include the great catch of fish in the Epilogue (21.1-11) and remove 6.16-21 as it does not seem to signify anything.
Taken from:
Burridge, Richard: John: The People's Bible Commentary, The Bible Reading Fellowship, revised 2008, ISBN 978 1 84101 570 5. (commission earned)
KC VII/08
Related Study Sheets…
Richard Burridge: John Chapters 1-2
Added: 10th September 2009
Richard Burridge: John Chapters 3-4
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Richard Burridge: John Chapter 5
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Richard Burridge: John Chapter 6
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 7-8
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 9-10
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 11-12
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 13-15
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 16-17
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 18-19
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Richard Burridge: John Chapters 20-21
Added: 10th September 2009
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Vermes, The Changing Faces of Jesus - John
Added: 15th July 2008