Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
prologue to John's Gospel - Coggle Diagram
prologue to John's Gospel
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UBelphbDNSaEUtZBysVEE3boQQ913TwX31gE5YW0n5o/edit
key themes of prologue
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Sone, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth
Incarnation (new idea)
Jesus shows his humanity; tired, thirsty, angry, weeping for Lazarus' death - full humanity shown
Jesus supersedes the Law (Torah) bringing grace (Gk: charis) & truth (Gk: alethea)
in gospel seen through wedding at Cana, cleansing of the temple & Jesus as the Passover lamb
John the Baptist sent by God to be a witness to Jesus as the Messiah
v6-8 & v15 (poss not part of original poem/hymn)
Jesus as the Logos - the word of God
Jesus pre-existed - with god from the beginning
sets Jesus in a 'cosmic' setting
Jesus brings life (zoe) - eternal life for the children of God who have faith in Jesus
linked ro purpose of John's gospel - Jn20:30-31 'these things are written so you may believe and through believe may have eternal life'
Jesus shows us the Glory (Gk: doxa) of God
in the 4G 'glory' usually refers to Jesus' death & resurrection
Jesus will be rejected by his own people (the Jews)
seen as passion narratives in the gospel itself
v11
Jesus is the light - who will conquer the darkness
in gospel itself as; 'i am the light of the world'; healing of man born blind (gives him light); theme of dualism light/dark
"the prologue is the key that unlocks the gospel" - Hooker
combines Jewish ideas & Hellenistic/Greek philosophical ideas
Jewish background of the word of God
Memra = word in Aramaic
God's word is creative - Genesis
the word was God's wisdom embodied in the Law & giving meaning to life
Dabar = word in Hebrew
the word is powerful - practical idea that once a word is spoken it couldn't be taken back
Memra was used as a substitute for God where his name was too holy
Hellenistic background of the word of God
logos was viewed as the 'principle of reason' in the universe
in stoicism the logos became something more than a principle - it had governing power over the universe
logos = active principle
Hellenistic Judaism - Philo of Alexandria
he fused both the Greek & Jewish views
the logos was created by God, was the intermediary between God & his creation - gave meaning & plan to the universe
he also equated the logos with wisdom (often personified in Judaism & thought of as a sort of intermediary between God & mankind)
replacement theology
= the Christian idea/doctrine that holds that Jesus supersedes the Old Law (Torah)
high Christology
= the 4G prologue emphasises & starts with Jesus divinity compared to the synoptic gospels - son of God
e.g. 1:2 & 1:3
Midrash
a form or rabbinic literature that offer a commentary or interpretation of biblical texts
scholars have suggested that the prologue is a midrash on Genesis
scholars on how the prologue is integral is the 4G
"a lens through which to view the rest of the Gospel" - Stanton
"the key which unlocks the gospel" - Hooker
"a microcosm of the original gospel" - Smalley
scholars on how the prologue is vital, integral & original
"an integral part of the gospel ... the prologue is as necessary to the gospel as the gospel is necessary to the prologue" - Barrett
"the evangelist attempts to re-write the Christian method in terms of the current philosophies" - Scott
scholars on how the prologue is an executive summery (original)
"a suitable introduction & conclusion to the Fourth Gospel" - Hoskyns & Davy
"there is no compelling reason to regard it as older than the gospel or as composed by a different hand" - Lindars
scholars on how the prologue isn't original
"a poem originally written by the Johannine Church" - Brown
midrash on Genesis 1 ?
inspired by Gospel
"an ancient Aramaic hymn, possibly written in honour of the logos (Jesus)" - Burney
inspired by gospel
"a prefixed appendage" & "a porch into the original gospel" - Robinson
someone found it thought it fit & put it in front of the gospel
Jesus as the Logos
how logos is used in the 4G
Logos is used by john as it is the word best adapted to enables his audience (Jews & Greeks) to understand the person of Christ.
the life Jesus offers was more than physical existence it was the 'light' & source of intellect, understanding & spiritual truth (eternal life)
use of Logos enables focus upon gospel the theological insights of OT, of Jewish rabbinic tradition & Hellenistic tradition
all these idea a refused in background of term logos BUT new idea - incarnation (logos could become flesh)
the word is...
v14 Incarnate
v14 & 18 revealing the glory of God
v17 superseding the law (with grace & truth)
Jews believed that keeping God's law (torah) = life
v1 pre-existent
v2 masculine
v3 the creator/creative
v4 (eternal) life
v11 rejected by his own
new idea of 4G - Incarnate
v14 - the word became flesh and made his dwelling among us
Carson - the bold, ambiguous almost shocking 'fleshing' of the word was a 'bombshell' in understanding of Logos for both Jews & Greeks
god become flesh meant God was revealed & able to be known by Man
mutual indwelling
a distinctive way for the 4th evangelist to explain that he believed Jesus was he living the word of God
scholars views of v1:14
this is the first clear statement of the incarnation which became a fundamental doctrine of Christianity - Lindars
the bold, ambiguous almost shocking 'fleshing' of the word was a 'bombshell' in understanding go Logos for both Jews and Greeks - Carson
flesh meaning human nature in its entirety, not just physical constituents of the body - Marsh
e.g. he got tired & hungry & upset