The Enigma of the Fourth Gospel

Its Author and Its Writer

Robert Eisler

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN: 9781032794211
• eBook ISBN: 9781040050675
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Theology

First Published in 1938, The Enigma of the Fourth Gospel by Robert Eisler presents a comprehensive overview of the Fourth gospel, its author, and its writer. In forty-one chapters, it discusses themes like an insoluble enigma; the preface to the Christian reader; the longer Anti-Marcionite preface to the Fourth Gospel; the Greek and the Latin texts of the Anti-Marcionite prologue to Luke; the two traditions about the evangelist John; John killed by King Herod in Jewish tradition; the two tombs of St. John in Ephesus; the confusion of the two Johns; who wrote the Gospel dictated by John; the date of the Fourth Gospel and of the first Epistle of John; traces of Marcionism in the Gospel of John; John the evangelist and the Fourth evangelist identified. This is a must read for scholars and researchers of Christianity and religion.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Frontispiece
• Original Title Page
• Original Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Preface
• Table of Contents
• Illustrations
• I. An Insoluble Enigma?
• II. The ‘Preface to the Christian Reader’ and the Ancient Bio-Bibliographical Librarian’s Notes
• III. The Earliest Gospel Prefaces and Summaries discovered by Dom de Bruyne
• IV. Breves Fortunatiani
• V. Fortunatian’s Sources
• VI. The Longer Anti-Marcionite Preface to the Fourth Gospel
• VII. The Greek and the Latin Texts of the Anti-Marcionite Prologue to Luke
• VIII. Heretic and Catholic Second-Century Testimonies concerning John of Ephesus
• IX. The Leucian ‘Acts of John’ on the Beloved Disciple of Jesus
• X. Bishop Polycrates of Ephesus on the Ephesian John
• XI. ‘John of the High-priestly Kin’ in Acts iv. 6, and in Flavius Josephus’ ‘Jewish War’
• XII. Pseudo-Hilarius Africanus on St. John—the Boy in Jesus’ Arms (Matt. xviii. 2; Mark ix. 36)
• XIII. The Two Traditions about the Evangelist John
• XIV. The Martyrdom of the Two Sons of Zebedee in the Earliest Martyrologies and Lectionaries
• XV. Literary Testimonies for the Martyrdom of the Zebedaid John
• XVI. John killed by King Herod in Jewish Tradition
• XVII. The Original Text of Acts xii.
• XVIII. The Meeting of Paul and John the ‘Pillar’ in Galatians and in the Acts
• XIX. The True Text of Gal. ii. 9, and the Alleged Confusion of the Two Jameses by Irenaeus
• XX. The Chronology of Galatians and the True Date of the Crucifixion
• XXI. The Martyrdom of the Two Witnesses in Rev. xi. 3-11
• XXII. Rev. i. 9, referring to the zebedaid john deported under the Emperor Claudius
• XXIII. The World-wide Congratulations in Rev. xi. 10 and the Historic Date of the Zebedaids’ Execution
• XXIV. The Source of Rev. xi. 13, the Date of the Oracle Rev. x. i—xi. 2, and the Original Meaning of the Two Murdered Witnesses
• XXV. The ‘Apocalypse of John’—a Pseudepigraphic Writing by the Gnostic Cerinthus
• XXVI. The 144,000 ‘Virgins’ in Rev. xiv. 4 and the ‘Virgin’ John of the ‘Leucian’ Acts
• XXVII. St. John going to Sleep in his Tomb
• XXVIII. St. John’s Grave and the Dust rising out of It—Archaeological Evidence for a Miracle Legend
• XXIX. The Two Tombs of St. John in Ephesus
• XXX. The Confusion of the Two Johns
• XXXI. The Identification of John the Son of Zebedee with John Mark and with John the Evangelist in Pseudo-Hippolytus
• XXXII. Papias on the Apocalypse of John and the Fourth Gospel
• XXXIII. The Quotation from Papias in Fortunatian’s Preface to the Gospel of John
• XXXIV. Papias ‘the Beloved Disciple of John’
• XXXV. Who wrote the Gospel dictated by John?
• XXXVI. The Punctuator and emendator of fortunatian’s Prologue—the Presbyter Patricius of Ravenna, instructed by Bishop Ecclesius
• XXXVII. The Restored Witness of Papias and the Internal Evidence of the Fourth Gospel
• XXXVIII. The Date of the Fourth Gospel and of the First Epistle of John
• XXXIX. Traces of Marcionism in the Gospel of John
• XL. The Gospel ‘published during the Lifetime of John’, and the Author’s Super- and Subscription
• XLI. St. John witnessing the Testimony of the Beloved Disciple
• XLI I. John the Evangelist—an Eyewitness of the Arrest of Jesus. ‘The High-Priests’ Present at the Crucifixion
• XLIII. The Fourth Evangelist identified
• Index