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Authors: Amy-Jill Levine
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For these reasons, it is difficult to use historical circumstances as a basis for dating the Gospel.
The most persuasive evidence for the date of the Gospel is textual. The earliest material evidence for the Gospel is a small Egyptian codex fragment of John 18.31–33,37–38, known as the Rylands Library Papyrus 52. This fragment is dated to 135–160. Because circulation of the Gospel from Asia Minor, where it was likely written, to Egypt would have taken a few decades, the existence of this fragment suggests a late first- or early second-century dating for the final version of the Gospel. For these reasons, John’s Gospel is generally thought to have been completed ca. 85–95 CE.
HISTORY OF COMPOSITION
This dating applies to the final version of the Gospel found in the most complete manuscripts of the New Testament, such as Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, and Vaticanus. This final version, however, was the product of a lengthy and complicated history of composition. It is likely that pre-Johannine sources or early versions of the Gospel circulated for some decades before the date of final composition. Evidence for a lengthy process of composition includes narrative inconsistencies and awkward narrative transitions. For example, whereas ch 5, which recounts the healing of a lame man, is set in Jerusalem, ch 6, v. 1 abruptly situates Jesus on the “other side of the Sea of Galilee.” Also puzzling is the comment in 14.31, in which Jesus says, “Rise, let us be on our way,” and then continues to speak, with no change in setting, for three more chapters.
Some scholars posit that a written “signs source” served as the basis for the Gospel’s narrative. The Gospel recounts a series of “signs” (Gk “semeia”) or wondrous deeds, often, though not always, accompanied by lengthy discourses. These signs are not mere miracles but rather witnesses to Jesus’ identity as God’s only son; the accounts of these signs are intended to foster or deepen the faith of the Gospel’s audience.
The version of John’s Gospel now found in the New Testament contains one passage that did not originally belong: the story of the woman caught in adultery (7.53–8.13) is absent from some of the earliest manuscripts, and in some manuscripts it appears after Luke 21.38 (where it fits better narratively). Questions have also been raised regarding John 21. On the grounds of both content and style, some scholars believe that this final chapter is a later addition, written by someone other than the author(s) of the rest of the Gospel. In antiquity, later traditions were often added at a book’s end.
AUTHORSHIP AND PROVENANCE
The Gospel identifies the beloved disciple (or “the disciple whom Jesus loved”) as the eyewitness author (19.35; 21.24). This anonymous figure first appears in the scene of Jesus’ last meal with his disciples (13.23). He is presented as the disciple who is closest to Jesus, and at the cross, Jesus appoints him to take care of his mother (19.25–27). Since the second century, Christian tradition has identified the beloved disciple with John son of Zebedee, one of the twelve disciples mentioned in the Synoptics. This tradition is unlikely to be correct, however, both because John the son of Zebedee, a Galilean fisherman, does not match the Jerusalem-based depiction of the beloved disciple, and because the Gospel does not identify the beloved disciple as John. Therefore, the Gospel’s author is better understood to be anonymous and probably not an original follower of Jesus or an eyewitness. The final version of the Gospel has traditionally been assigned to Ephesus in Asia Minor (Izmir, in modern-day Turkey), though it is possible that an early version originated orally or in written form with a group from Judea.
AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE
John 20.30–31 states the purpose for the Gospel: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so
The most persuasive evidence for the date of the Gospel is textual. The earliest material evidence for the Gospel is a small Egyptian codex fragment of John 18.31–33,37–38, known as the Rylands Library Papyrus 52. This fragment is dated to 135–160. Because circulation of the Gospel from Asia Minor, where it was likely written, to Egypt would have taken a few decades, the existence of this fragment suggests a late first- or early second-century dating for the final version of the Gospel. For these reasons, John’s Gospel is generally thought to have been completed ca. 85–95 CE.
HISTORY OF COMPOSITION
This dating applies to the final version of the Gospel found in the most complete manuscripts of the New Testament, such as Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, and Vaticanus. This final version, however, was the product of a lengthy and complicated history of composition. It is likely that pre-Johannine sources or early versions of the Gospel circulated for some decades before the date of final composition. Evidence for a lengthy process of composition includes narrative inconsistencies and awkward narrative transitions. For example, whereas ch 5, which recounts the healing of a lame man, is set in Jerusalem, ch 6, v. 1 abruptly situates Jesus on the “other side of the Sea of Galilee.” Also puzzling is the comment in 14.31, in which Jesus says, “Rise, let us be on our way,” and then continues to speak, with no change in setting, for three more chapters.
Some scholars posit that a written “signs source” served as the basis for the Gospel’s narrative. The Gospel recounts a series of “signs” (Gk “semeia”) or wondrous deeds, often, though not always, accompanied by lengthy discourses. These signs are not mere miracles but rather witnesses to Jesus’ identity as God’s only son; the accounts of these signs are intended to foster or deepen the faith of the Gospel’s audience.
The version of John’s Gospel now found in the New Testament contains one passage that did not originally belong: the story of the woman caught in adultery (7.53–8.13) is absent from some of the earliest manuscripts, and in some manuscripts it appears after Luke 21.38 (where it fits better narratively). Questions have also been raised regarding John 21. On the grounds of both content and style, some scholars believe that this final chapter is a later addition, written by someone other than the author(s) of the rest of the Gospel. In antiquity, later traditions were often added at a book’s end.
AUTHORSHIP AND PROVENANCE
The Gospel identifies the beloved disciple (or “the disciple whom Jesus loved”) as the eyewitness author (19.35; 21.24). This anonymous figure first appears in the scene of Jesus’ last meal with his disciples (13.23). He is presented as the disciple who is closest to Jesus, and at the cross, Jesus appoints him to take care of his mother (19.25–27). Since the second century, Christian tradition has identified the beloved disciple with John son of Zebedee, one of the twelve disciples mentioned in the Synoptics. This tradition is unlikely to be correct, however, both because John the son of Zebedee, a Galilean fisherman, does not match the Jerusalem-based depiction of the beloved disciple, and because the Gospel does not identify the beloved disciple as John. Therefore, the Gospel’s author is better understood to be anonymous and probably not an original follower of Jesus or an eyewitness. The final version of the Gospel has traditionally been assigned to Ephesus in Asia Minor (Izmir, in modern-day Turkey), though it is possible that an early version originated orally or in written form with a group from Judea.
AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE
John 20.30–31 states the purpose for the Gospel: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so
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