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Evidence ID: HIS-EV24
Evidence: SAVE - Eyewitness Testimony of John (Gospel of John)
Summary: Based on biblical scholarship, the Gospel of John is credited to John "the beloved disciple". John was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus and a member of Jesus' inner circle of disciples. Because of John's intimate relationship with Jesus, his gospel is a trustworthy account of the divinity of Jesus.
Description: Based on biblical scholarship, the Gospel of John is credited to John "the beloved disciple". Say more ...
John does not refer to himself by name in the gospel. Rather, he refers to himself as "the disciple whom Jesus loved" (John 13:23, John 19:26, John 20:2, John 21:7-24). According to John 21, this beloved disciple was the author of the gospel.
20Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved—the one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper. ... 24This disciple is the one who testifies to these events and has recorded them here. And we know that his account of these things is accurate. (John 21:20-24 NLT)
The title "the one whom Jesus loved" was attributed to John by the early church father Clement of Alexandra (150-215 AD). Clement's reference is cited by Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History 3.23.1.
John was one of the three disciple that comprised Jesus' inner circle along with Peter and James the brother of John (Mark 13:3, Mark 14:33, Luke 8:51, Luke 9:28, Luke 22:8). He was present at the foot of the cross when Jesus was crucified, at the transfiguration and many other special occasions. There are many other intimate encounters John had with Jesus. These are recorded in the Gosel of John and the other gospels. Hence, referring to himself as the beloved disciple is an accurate description of the intimate relationship he had with Jesus.
The Gospel of John is largely theological in content and style. Throughout the gospel, the author emphasizes Jesus' divinity and the fulfillment of Old Testament messianic prophecies. Its teachings on how Jesus was foreshadowed in the many Jewish festivals are carefully developed and organized. As a Jew, John would have been well acquainted with Jewish culture, and religious teachings and festivals.
Early 2nd century writers Irenaeus ((Against Heresies Book III 180 AD) [REF-IRE01] and Tertullian (Against Heresies 5.1 155-240 AD) also credit the Gospel of John to John the beloved disciple. Finally, the Muratorian Fragment from the 8th century refers to John as the author of the forth Gospel, "The forth of the Gospels, that of John, (one) of the disciples" [REF-MUR01].
Most scholars believe that John completed writing his Gospel by 85-90 AD." This view is established on the basis of the Clement's statement that John's gospel was a suppliment to the other three gospel. This is cited by Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History 6.14.7 [REF-CEL10] and 6.25.3-6 [REF-CEL11]. This implies that John's gospel must be dated later than the estimated writing of the other gospels.
Still other biblical scholars date the Gospel of John as early as 50-70 AD. They claim that John's gospel was independent of the other synoptic gospels and therefore could have been written at anytime.
According to Geisler and Turek [REF-GEI01], the Gospel of John is historically, geographically and archaeologically accurate. Based on Carl Blomberg's research [REF-BLO01], they cite 59 passages that have been painstakingly attested by historical, geographical and archaeological discoveries. John's Gospel is historically and geographically accurate.
The accuracy of the Gospel of John is also corroborated by multiple papyri dating back as early as late first century.
Papyrus 52 (P52) from the Rylands Library contains text from John 18.31-33, 37-38. This fragment is dated by paleographers between 96-125 AD. If the gospel was written in 85-90 AD, then P52 was written 11-35 years of the autograph.
The evidence presented regarding the eyewitness testimony of John attests to the trustworthiness of the record concerning Jesus' life and ministry.
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