The Formation of John's Gospel

This part of the site traces the complete history of the formation of John's gospel. It starts with the currently accepted text which is effectively the Third Edition, works backwards to the Second Edition (produced by 'the Redactor') and thence to the First Edition (produced by 'the Evangelist'). It introduces a hypothesis that every episode was once close to a multiple of approximately 800 Greek letters in length. This hypothesis is used as a guide for the removal of the later (post-Redactor) interpolations from the text, thus arriving at the Second Edition of the gospel. By assuming that this feature would also have been present in the First Edition, and by applying standard critical methods, the contents and order of the First Edition are identified. The Evangelist's special interests and the Redactor's motives are then elucidated.

• The page pattern

• Picking out the later changes

• The Second Edition

• Tracking down the First Edition

• The structure of the First Edition

• The Redactor

• Conclusion