The Johannine Exegesis of God

An Exploration into the Johannine Understanding of God

Daniel Rathnakara Sadananda

• Publisher: De Gruyter
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN:
  9783110182484
• eBook ISBN:
  9783110921748
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Criticism & Interpretation

Johannine Exegesis of God is a stimulating study of the explicit and implicit theological language of the Johannine community. It exegetically explores crucial questions concerning the Fourth Evangelist's language used to characterize God. It makes a sojourn into the relationship between Johannine Christology and Theology. It examines the dialogue dynamics of a theological conversation between those who do not share the same theological affirmations, and enumerates how the Johannine community derives benefit, becomes enriched and learns inclusiveness through its dialogue/conflict with its pluralistic environment. In approaching and interpreting the Gospel narrative, the implications of 'Theo-logy' in the Johannine community's struggle for legitimacy, identity and existence become clear. The Theology of the Johannine community shows a creative dialect with its sociological context, and its experiential theologising makes its theological language authentic, clear and precise.

Table of contents

• Acknowledgements
• Chapter One: Introduction
• 1.1 The Quest
• 1.2 The Problem of the Theology of the New Testament
• 1.3 The Theological Re-Reading
• 1.4 Theology in Christological Captivity?
• 1.5 Travails of a Theological Quest – Compositional History of the Fourth Gospel
• 1.6 Theologising History – Historidty of the Fourth Gospel
• 1.7 Theological Re-Reading of the Fourth Gospel – Towards Understanding the Johannine Exegesis of God
• Chapter Two: Is Jesus God? Thomas' Confession in the Light of the Passion Narrative
• 2.1 Introduction
• 2.2 Thomas’ Confession – “My Lord, My God”
• 2.3 Self-Giving Jesus – Composure and Sovereignty in the Midst of Betrayal and Arrest
• 2.4 Jesus – The Pascal Lamb
• 2.5 The Trial of Jesus – The Man, The King
• 2.6 Mission Completed – Jesus Heralds Victory Even in Death
• 2.7 That You may Believe – Jesus the Christ, the Son of God
• 2.8 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Three: Theology in Conflict – Is Jesus Equal to God? (John 5:17-30)
• 3.1 Introduction
• 3.2 Order of Chapters Five and Six
• 3.3 The Pericope
• 3.4 The Structure
• 3.5 TheContext
• 3.6 Exegesis
• 3.6.1 Verses 17-18: Overture – Is Jesus Equal to God?
• 3.6.2 Verses 19-30: The Father and the Son – Relationship Explained
• 3.7 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Four: Theology in Conflict – Is Jesus Pre-existent? (John 8:12-59)
• 4.1 The Literary Structure
• 4.2 The Context
• 4.3 Exegesis
• 4.3.1 Verses 12-20: Jesus the Light of the World – the Authority of Jesus' Witness
• 4.3.2 Verses 21-30: Jesus the One from Above – The Origin of Jesus' Authority
• 4.3.3 Verses 31-34: Truth and Liberation
• 4.3.4 Verses 35-36: Operation Liberation
• 4.3.5 Verses 37-47: God's Party and the Devil's Party
• 4.3.6 Verses 48-59: Jesus the Pre-existent Son is the Revealer and Embodiment of Salvation
• 4.4 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Five: Theology in Conflict – Are Jesus and the Father One? (John 10:22-39)
• 5.1 The Context
• 5.2 The Structure
• 5.3 Exegesis
• 5.3.1 Verses 22-30: Oneness of the Father and the Son
• 5.3.2 Verses 31-39: Mutual In-dwelling of the Father and the Son
• 5.4 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Six: The God of the Johannine Jesus: Characterisation of God in the Prayer of Jesus (John 17:1-26)
• 6.1 Introduction
• 6.2 Exegesis
• 6.2.1 Verses 1-5: The True God
• 6.2.2 Verses 6-10: The God who gives identity
• 6.2.3 Verses 11-15: The God who protects
• 6.2.4 Verses 16-19: The God who sanctifies
• 6.2.5 Verses 20-23: The God who unites
• 6.2.6 Verses 23b-26: The God who loves
• 6.3 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Seven: Incamate Logos as Historical Theophany (John 1:1-18)
• 7.1 Integrity of the Prologue
• 7.1.1 In Search of a pre-Johannine Hymn
• 7.1.2 The Prologue is a Unity
• 7.1.3 Analysis
• 7.1.4 A Possible Solution
• 7.2 The Logos – A Search for a Mythological Context
• 7.2.1 The Origin
• 7.2.2 Old Testament Wisdom Tradition?
• 7.2.3 Philonic Exegesis of the Old Testament?
• 7.2.4 Targumic Traditions?
• 7.2.5 Gnostidsm?
• 7.2.6 Analysis
• 7.3 Exegesis
• 7.3.1 Verses 1-2: The Logos and God
• 7.3.2 Verses 3-5: The Logos and the World
• 7.3.3 Verses 6-8: Witness to and Interpreter of God's Acts in the World – God's Human Instrument 'the Man' John
• 7.3.4 Verses 9-13: God's A-historical Presence and Covenant with the World through the Logos
• 7.3.5 Verses 14-18: The Incarnation and the Exegesis of God – a Historical Theophany
• 7.4 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter 8: Theology in Dialogue – Dialogue with the Considerate Jews (John 3:1-21)
• 8.1 Introduction
• 8.2 Exegesis
• 8.2.1 Verses 3-6: God Creates a New Eschatological Community
• 8.2.2 Verses 7-8: A New Community – The Sign of God's Freedom to Act
• 8.2.3 Verses 9-15: Jesus – The Normative Determinant to Understand God's Action
• 8.2.4 Verses 16-17: Jesus – The Metaphor of the Self-emptying God
• 8.2.5 Verses 18-21: Only a Self-emptying Community. Can Represent a Self-emptying God
• 8.3 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Nine: Theology in Dialogue – Dialogue with the Samaritans (John 4:1-42)
• 9.1 Introduction
• 9.2 Exegesis
• 9.2.1 Verses 5-6: The Place of the Dialogue
• 9.2.2 Verses 7-15: Dialogue on God's Gift which Transcends all Traditions
• 9.2.3 Verses 16-26: Dialogue on God's Worship, the Centre of a New Tradition
• 9.2.4 Verses 27-38: Dialogue on God's Will – The Basis of New Traditions
• 9.2.5 Verses 39-42: The Dialogue's Ultimate Goal – Recognising the God-sent Saviour and Confessing the Saviour-hood of God
• 9.3 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Ten: Revelation Continued – the Authentic Theology: The Paraclete and the Understanding of God
• 10.1 Composition of the Farewell Discourses
• 10.2 The Paraclete – God's Comforting and Challenging Presence
• 10.3 The Paraclete – Re-enactor of God's Revelation in Teaching and Remembering
• 10.4 God Creates the Possibility of 'Authentic Witness' in the Face of the World's Vicious Contempt through Paraclete
• 10.5 The Paraclete Creates a 'Mirror Model' of God's World
• 10.6 The Paraclete – the Sign of God's Revelation Continued
• 10.7 Summary and Conclusions
• Chapter Eleven: Conclusion: Johannine Exegesis of God
• 11.1 The Characterisation of God in the Fourth Gospel
• 11.2 Johannine Theo-centric Christology
• 11.2.1 Agent Christology
• 11.2.2 Mediator Christology
• 11.2.3 ’I am’ Christology
• 11.2.4 Oneness Christology
• 11.3 Theological Hermeneutic
• 11.4 Whither Theo-logy?
• Bibliography
• Select Index of References
• Index of Modern Authors