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Who Wrote the Gospel of John?
The Gospel says the beloved disciple wrote it. Irenaeus names John, the disciple who leaned on Jesus’ breast, publishing at Ephesus. Dionysius’s doubt about a second John is quoted from Eusebius.
On this page
John, the disciple who leaned on Jesus’ breast, wrote this Gospel at Ephesus. That is Irenaeus’s sentence. The book itself says the beloved disciple wrote these things, and that his testimony is true. A later critical reading speaks of a Johannine community, and Eusebius, reading Papias, distinguishes a second John, a presbyter. John is the book. John 1 and the Word and Is Jesus God? are why the authorship matters.
Key points
- John 21:24
This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
John 21:24 · King James VersionOpen source (1) says the disciple who testifies of these things wrote them, and “we know that his testimony is true.” - John 21:20
Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?
John 21:20 · King James VersionOpen source identifies that disciple as the one who leaned on Jesus’ breast at the supper. John 13:23Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.
John 13:23 · King James VersionOpen source and John 19:26When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
John 19:26 · King James VersionOpen source are the same figure. - Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.1.1, says John, who had leaned upon his breast, published a Gospel at Ephesus after the other three. (2)
- The Muratorian fragment calls the fourth Gospel John’s, one of the disciples. (4)
- Eusebius, Church History 3.39.5, says Papias names John twice, once among the apostles and once as a presbyter. That two-John reading is Eusebius’s inference. (3)
- John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source says the Word was God. John 20:28And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.
John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen source has Thomas say “My Lord and my God.”
Who is the beloved disciple?
The last chapter identifies the writer. John 21:24This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
John 21:24 · King James VersionOpen source, King James Version:
This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
John 21:24 · King James Version
“We know” can be a circle of people adding their witness to his. The first half of the verse still says this disciple wrote these things. John 21:20Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?
John 21:20 · King James VersionOpen source points back to the disciple whom Jesus loved, who leaned on his breast at supper. John 13:23Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.
John 13:23 · King James VersionOpen source is that supper. John 19:26When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
John 19:26 · King James VersionOpen source places the same disciple at the cross, when Jesus commits his mother to him. John 19:35And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.
John 19:35 · King James VersionOpen source says the one who saw the piercing bore record, and that his record is true.
The book does not print the words “the apostle John, son of Zebedee” in those verses. It prints a disciple, loved, present at the supper and at the cross, who wrote. Irenaeus supplies the name the churches used.
What Irenaeus and the Muratorian fragment say
Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.1.1, after naming Matthew, Mark, and Luke: (2)
Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia.
The clause “who also had leaned upon His breast” is John 13:23Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.
John 13:23 · King James VersionOpen source and John 21:20Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?
John 21:20 · King James VersionOpen source in Irenaeus’s own words. He is identifying the writer by the Gospel’s scene. The full paragraph, including Matthew, Mark, and Luke, is quoted on Who Wrote Matthew, Mark, and Luke?. Irenaeus places this Gospel after the other three, at Ephesus. He does not print a year such as 90 or 100. A date in that decade is a scholarly estimate. It is not a line in Irenaeus, and it is not a date written on a manuscript of John.
The Muratorian fragment says: “The fourth Gospel is that of John, one of the disciples.” (4) The same damaged Latin then tells a story of Andrew and a fast. This page quotes the naming sentence and does not build a chronology on the restored story around it. The fragment’s English follows restorations.
Is there a second John?
Eusebius, reading Papias, thinks the name John appears twice. Church History 3.39.5: (3)
It is worth while observing here that the name John is twice enumerated by him. The first one he mentions in connection with Peter and James and Matthew and the rest of the apostles, clearly meaning the evangelist; but the other John he mentions after an interval, and places him among others outside of the number of the apostles, putting Aristion before him, and he distinctly calls him a presbyter.
That paragraph is Eusebius drawing an inference. It is not a sentence of Papias that says “the Gospel was written by the presbyter.” Eusebius himself says the first John is the evangelist. The second-John reading is why some later writers speak of a John the elder as a possible author. Dionysius of Alexandria, quoted on Who Wrote the Book of Revelation?, separates the Revelation from the apostle and still ties the Gospel and the catholic epistle to the son of Zebedee.
A Johannine community is a modern way of saying the “we” in John 21:24This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
John 21:24 · King James VersionOpen source and the shared style of the Gospel and 1 John. The style is real. 1 John 1:1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
1 John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source says “we” have heard and seen. 2 John and 3 John open with “the elder.” Dionysius already noticed that the Gospel and the first letter belong together. A community that preserved the book is compatible with the verse that says the disciple wrote it. The community replaces the disciple only when the verse is set aside.
How early is a copy of John?
The oldest fragment often discussed is Greek Papyrus 457 in the John Rylands Library at the University of Manchester, called P52, a piece of John 18. The library’s page says the first editor dated the fragment to the first half of the second century, between 100 and 150. The same page says recent research points to a date nearer to 200, and that there is no convincing evidence that any earlier New Testament fragments survive. Both sentences belong in the answer. A fragment from the second century is a copy. It is not the autograph, and it does not name the author. It does show the Gospel of John in Egypt, on papyrus, while the second century was still underway or just ending, depending on which of Manchester’s two datings a reader follows.
Is the Bible True? sets that fragment beside Codex Sinaiticus and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
John the Baptist did not write it
The Gospel distinguishes John the Baptist from the disciple who writes. John 1:19And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
John 1:19 · King James VersionOpen source introduces the Baptist as a witness, and the narrative continues after him. Mark 6:27And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
Mark 6:27 · King James VersionOpen source says the Baptist was beheaded. A beheaded man does not stand at the cross in John 19. Acts 12:2And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Acts 12:2 · King James VersionOpen source says Herod killed James the brother of John with the sword. That James is the son of Zebedee. The book of Acts does not narrate the death of John his brother. This page does not repeat a later legend about how the apostle died. The Gospel’s claim is that the beloved disciple wrote, and that he was alive to do it.
What the Gospel says about Jesus
John 20:31But 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 20:31 · King James VersionOpen source says these things are written so that the reader might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing, they might have life through his name. John 1:1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source says the Word was God. John 20:28And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.
John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen source has Thomas answer the risen Jesus, “My Lord and my God.” John 3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 · King James VersionOpen source says God gave his only begotten Son so that whoever believes in him should not perish. The deity of Christ and John 1 and the Word follow those sentences into the argument about who he is. Jehovah’s Witnesses read John 1:1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source differently in their New World Translation. That wording is Which Bible Translation Is Most Accurate?.
Frequently asked questions
Who wrote 1, 2, and 3 John?
1 John shares the Gospel’s style, and Dionysius treats the Gospel and that letter as the apostle’s. 2 John 1:1The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth;
2 John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source and 3 John 1:1The elder unto the wellbeloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
3 John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source say “the elder.” The Muratorian fragment reckons two letters of the John it has named among the catholic epistles. This page does not pretend the word “elder” is the signature “John the apostle” in invisible ink. It does say the early witness that names the Gospel names John.
What did God tell John not to write?
That line is in Revelation, not in this Gospel. Revelation 10:4And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.
Revelation 10:4 · King James VersionOpen source says to seal what the seven thunders uttered and not to write it. Who Wrote the Book of Revelation? is the book, the author, and that verse.
Why was John killed?
Mark 6:27And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
Mark 6:27 · King James VersionOpen source is the Baptist’s death. Acts 12:2And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Acts 12:2 · King James VersionOpen source is James the brother of John. The Gospel of John presents its writer as present at the cross and as the one who wrote the book. A separate legend of the apostle’s martyrdom is not a verse in either book, and this page does not supply one.
Keep reading
References
- Gospel of John, 21:24; 21:20; 19:35; 1:1; 20:28
This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.
John 21:24 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Against Heresies, 3.1.1
Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, did also hand down to us in writing what had been preached by Peter. Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him. Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia.
Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.1.1 · Ante-Nicene Fathers, New AdventOpen source (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.1.1. Ante-Nicene Fathers, as published on New Advent, revised and edited by Kevin Knight.) - Church History, 3.39.5
Mark, having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately, though not in order, whatsoever he remembered of the things said or done by Christ. For he neither heard the Lord nor followed him, but afterward, as I said, he followed Peter, who adapted his teaching to the needs of his hearers, but with no intention of giving a connected account of the Lord's discourses, so that Mark committed no error while he thus wrote some things as he remembered them. For he was careful of one thing, not to omit any of the things which he had heard, and not to state any of them falsely.
Papias, in Eusebius, Church History 3.39.15 · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, New AdventOpen source (Eusebius, Church History 3.39.5, on two men named John in Papias. Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, as published on New Advent, revised and edited by Kevin Knight.) - Muratorian fragment, the fourth Gospel
Moreover, the Acts of all the Apostles are comprised by Luke in one book, and addressed to the most excellent Theophilus, because these different events took place when he was present himself; and he shows this clearly-i.e., that the principle on which he wrote was, to give only what fell under his own notice-by the omission of the passion of Peter, and also of the journey of Paul, when he went from the city-Rome-to Spain.
Muratorian fragment, on Acts · Roberts-Donaldson, Ante-Nicene Fathers 5Open source (Roberts-Donaldson translation, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5. The Latin is fragmentary. The English follows restorations.) - Gospel of Mark, 6:27
And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
Mark 6:27 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Acts of the Apostles, 12:2
And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Acts 12:2 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version
See also
- Who Wrote Genesis in the Bible? — Jesus and the books themselves name Moses as the writer of the law, Genesis through Deuteronomy. The documentary hypothesis reads those books as later sources woven together.
- Who Wrote Matthew, Mark, and Luke? — Papias and Irenaeus name Mark as Peter’s interpreter, Matthew as the writer of a Gospel in Hebrew, and Luke as Paul’s companion. The books themselves do not open with those names.
- Who Wrote the Bible? — God is the Bible’s author, and named people wrote its books. Moses, the prophets, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul are the writers the books and the early church name.
- Who Wrote the Book of Acts? — Luke wrote Acts for Theophilus, the same man addressed in his Gospel. The Muratorian fragment and Irenaeus say so. The book never says Paul wrote it.
- Who Wrote the Book of Revelation? — The book names John, a brother on Patmos. Justin and Irenaeus say he was the apostle, and that the vision came near the end of Domitian’s reign. Dionysius hesitated to identify that John with the son of Zebedee.