- The Oxford Handbook of Johannine Studies
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Contributors
- Introduction
- The Text of The Gospel and Letters of John
- Literary Sources of the Gospel and Letters of John
- John and other Gospels
- The Story of the Johannine Community and its Literature
- The Beloved Disciple, the Fourth Evangelist, and the Authorship of the Fourth Gospel
- The Gospel of John and Archaeology
- The Jews of the Fourth Gospel
- The Johannine Literature in a Greek Context
- The Johannine Literature and Contemporary Jewish Literature
- The Johannine Literature and the Gnostics
- The Fourth Gospel as Narrative and Drama
- Ideological Readings of the Fourth Gospel
- Gender and the Fourth Gospel
- Social-Scientific Readings of the Gospel and Letters of John
- Symbolism and ‘Signs’ in the Fourth Gospel
- Dualism and the World in the Gospel and Letters of John
- Eschatology and Time in the Gospel of John
- The Person of Jesus Christ in the Gospel of John
- The Purpose of the Ministry and Death of Jesus in the Gospel of John
- Faith, Eternal Life, and the Spirit in the Gospel of John
- Ethics in Community in the Gospel and Letters of John
- Temple, Festivals, and Scripture in the Gospel Of John
- The Johannine Literature and the Canon
- Johannine Commentaries in the Early Church
- Index Locorum
- General Index
Abstract and Keywords
The paratext of the narrative, i.e. the Prologue (1:1–18) and the conclusion (20:30–31), specify the identity of the Johannine Jesus. The dominant perspective in John’s presentation of the person of Jesus is that of the envoy. This Christology of the envoy constitutes the hermeneutical matrix of the story. This enables a career of three phases for Jesus in John: The first focuses on his pre-existence and the incarnation. The second, which takes place in the fulfilment of his mission, is realized in the signs he performs and the words he speaks in both dialogues and discourses. The third and last phase is the return of Jesus to the Father through the cross. The interpretation of Jesus’ death occupies an important place in the Gospel from the beginning. The Christology of the envoy in three phases leads the reader to a new understanding of monotheism.
Keywords: Johannine Christology, pre-existence, incarnation, sign, ‘I am’ words, Christological discourse, Farewell Discourse, Paraclete, death of Jesus, monotheism
Jean Zumstein is Professor Emeritus at the Faculty of Theology of the University of Zurich, Switzerland. His areas of specialization are hermeneutics, the Gospel of Matthew and the Johannine Literature. He is the author of Kreative Erinnerung: Relecture und Auslegung im Johannesevangelium (2nd edition; 2004) and L’Evangile selon Saint Jean (2nd edition; 2016).
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- The Oxford Handbook of Johannine Studies
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Contributors
- Introduction
- The Text of The Gospel and Letters of John
- Literary Sources of the Gospel and Letters of John
- John and other Gospels
- The Story of the Johannine Community and its Literature
- The Beloved Disciple, the Fourth Evangelist, and the Authorship of the Fourth Gospel
- The Gospel of John and Archaeology
- The Jews of the Fourth Gospel
- The Johannine Literature in a Greek Context
- The Johannine Literature and Contemporary Jewish Literature
- The Johannine Literature and the Gnostics
- The Fourth Gospel as Narrative and Drama
- Ideological Readings of the Fourth Gospel
- Gender and the Fourth Gospel
- Social-Scientific Readings of the Gospel and Letters of John
- Symbolism and ‘Signs’ in the Fourth Gospel
- Dualism and the World in the Gospel and Letters of John
- Eschatology and Time in the Gospel of John
- The Person of Jesus Christ in the Gospel of John
- The Purpose of the Ministry and Death of Jesus in the Gospel of John
- Faith, Eternal Life, and the Spirit in the Gospel of John
- Ethics in Community in the Gospel and Letters of John
- Temple, Festivals, and Scripture in the Gospel Of John
- The Johannine Literature and the Canon
- Johannine Commentaries in the Early Church
- Index Locorum
- General Index
