John 1 Background Information with Maps and Images (Picture Study Bible - John) Free Bible Online

John 1

1 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 - The same was in the beginning with God.

3 - All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made.

4 - In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

5 - The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness hasn't overcome it.

6 - There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John.

7 - The same came as a witness, that he might testify about the light, that all might believe through him.

8 - He was not the light, but was sent that he might testify about the light.

9 - The true light that enlightens everyone was coming into the world.

10 - He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world didn't recognize him.

11 - He came to his own, and those who were his own didn't receive him.

12 - But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God's children, to those who believe in his name:

13 - who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

14 - And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 - John testified about him. He cried out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me, for he was before me.'"

16 - From his fullness we all received grace upon grace.

17 - For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.

18 - No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him.

19 - This is John's testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

This is John's testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

---

20 - He declared, and didn't deny, but he declared, "I am not the Christ."

21 - They asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?"He said, "I am not.""Are you the prophet?"He answered, "No."

22 - They said therefore to him, "Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"

23 - He said, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as Isaiah the prophet said."Isaiah 40:3

24 - The ones who had been sent were from the Pharisees.

25 - They asked him, "Why then do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?"

26 - John answered them, "I baptize in water, but among you stands one whom you don't know.

27 - He is the one who comes after me, who is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I'm not worthy to loosen."

28 - These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

29 - The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

30 - This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before me.'

31 - I didn't know him, but for this reason I came baptizing in water: that he would be revealed to Israel."

32 - John testified, saying, "I have seen the Spirit descending like a dove out of heaven, and it remained on him.

33 - I didn't recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize in water, he said to me, 'On whomever you will see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.'

34 - I have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God."

35 - Again, the next day, John was standing with two of his disciples,

36 - and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!"

37 - The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

38 - Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them,"What are you looking for?"They said to him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), "where are you staying?"

39 - He said to them,"Come, and see."They came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about the tenth hour.

40 - One of the two who heard John, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

41 - He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah!" (which is, being interpreted, Christ).

42 - He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said,"You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas" (which is by interpretation, Peter).

43 - On the next day, he was determined to go out into Galilee, and he found Philip. Jesus said to him,"Follow me."

44 - Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter.

45 - Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, "We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

46 - Nathanael said to him, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?"Philip said to him, "Come and see."

47 - Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him,"Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"

48 - Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?"Jesus answered him,"Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."

49 - Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!"

50 - Jesus answered him,"Because I told you, 'I saw you underneath the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these!"

51 - He said to him,"Most certainly, I tell you all, hereafter you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

The Book of John

John 1:14 - And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 20:31 - But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

John in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Painting of St. John the Evangelist by Reni - 1620

Introduction to The Gospel of John

The Word Gospel. The fourth book of the New Testament is the Gospel of John. John is the fourth of the four gospel writings, yet there is only one gospel about Jesus Christ and there are four different writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word "Gospel" means "good news", and the good news is about Jesus Christ dying on the cross and then 3 days later conquering death and rising from the dead, offering salvation to all mankind, this is the Gospel.

Summary of The Book of John

Brief Summary. Jesus was Jehovah God, the eternal Word made flesh. He came to His home, Israel, and He was rejected. He came to this world, and the world rejected Him, but anyone who  would believe and receive Him would have life through His name, and be given authority to call themselves a "son of god."

Purpose. John makes one thing clear in John 20:30, 31 - "these ( things) are written that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ; and that believing ye may have life in his name." John sought to lead men to eternal life by first convincing them of His deity, the miracles were actually recorded as "signs" to confirm His deity, that He was Jehovah God, the incarnate Word made flesh. John called Jesus the bread of life, the light of the world, the good shepherd, the way the truth and the life, the true vine, all clearly pointing to the deity of Jesus. In fact John points to everything in His life and teachings as a sign that Jesus of Nazareth was truly the Eternal Word of God who "became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth" (John 1: 14).

John Compared to the Other Gospel Accounts. The "Synoptic Gospels" - Matthew, Mark and Luke all have their unique perspective of the life of Jesus Christ, as well as John's approach. John is always emphasizing the deity of Jesus as well as His divine miracles. John also gives us a bit more information about Jesus' ministry in Jerusalem, where Matthew, Mark and Luke focus more on His Galilean ministry. There is also a difference regarding the chronology of the last week (Passion Week) of Christ's life. It is important to note that the Gospel accounts do not necessarily place their focus on chronology and orderly biography of the ministry of Jesus with names, places, and dates, but rather a full perspective of their unique portrayal of Jesus Christ.

Authorship. The author of the Gospel of John is identified in John 21:20 as "The disciple whom Jesus loved" who leaned on Jesus' breast. It is clear that John was that disciple and he did not wish to use his own name directly as the author, possibly for reasons of humility. Early church historical writings from early second century AD recognize the Gospel of John as a sacred book. Theophilus of Antioch (170 AD) was the first to write the name John as the author. Shortly after this Irenaeus identified John as the disciple who had leaned on Jesus' breast. This is especially important because Irenaeus was a disciple of Polycarp, who had known the man John personally. Clement of Alexandria mentions John as having composed a "spiritual gospel."

Critics of John as the Author. There is a statement that was made by Papias that there were actually two men named John in Ephesus at the same time, and John the Apostle was referred to as "John the Elder". Many opponents of the apostle John's authorship give credit to the other John as the writer of the fourth Gospel. Although the answer cannot be positively determined by history, tradition and internal evidence definitely point to John the apostle as the author.

Date. It is worthy to consider the words of the most famous archaeologist of all time that according to archaeological evidence there is "no longer any solid basis for dating any book of the New Testament after about A.D. 80." Most scholars conclude that the book of John was written around 85 or 90 AD probably before the exile to Patmos. It is also important to consider John 5:2 when it mentions "Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep [market] a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches." This verse would indicate that this existed at the current time that the Gospel of John was written. This would place the written work before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. There is also no evidence as to whether John wrote the Gospel before or after his return to Ephesus from the Island of Patmos.

The Man John. John's book attributes the work to "the disciple whom Jesus loved." This say a lot about the man John, and the fact that Jesus left his mother Mary in John's care, having spoken the words from the cross, is very significant. Another indicator of John's character is found in the book of 1 John, he continually talks about love, loving one another, and that God is love, etc. It is also safe to say that John was a Jew, this can be clearly seen by his accuracy about Jewish customs, Jewish way of thinking, and by his quotations from the Hebrew Old Testament. He knew the topography of the land of Israel from a Jewish perspective quite well. It is easy to see in his writings that he was a close disciple of Jesus, an eyewitness of the events surrounding Jesus' ministry. One can determine by process of elimination, that the author is not just any John but John the apostle, the son of Zebedee, who is prominently mentioned in the Gospel accounts.

John and Church History.  Church tradition records that John came to Ephesus after Paul's work was finished there. Later, during the reign of the Emperor Domitian, he was banished to the Island of Patmos where he wrote the book of Revelation. Shortly thereafter he was released and returned to the city of Ephesus.

Archaeology. The Rylands Papyrus Fragment was discovered in 1920 in Egypt containing a few verses from John 18 dating back to about 120-135 AD.

Outline of the Book of John

The Word of God - Chapter 1:1-51
His Public Ministry - Chapters 2:1-12:50
His Private Ministry - Chapters 13:1-17:26
His Death and Resurrection - Chapters 18:1-20:31
John's Conclusion - Chapter 21:1-25

The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus" would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A). Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

John Resources

Outline of the Life of Jesus in Harmony
Simple Map of First Century Israel
Topographical Map of First Century Israel
Map of the Ministry of Jesus
Map of the Roads in Ancient Israel
Map of the Roman Empire