Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of John: Volume 4

by Francis J Moloney S D B

Overview

No other book of the New Testament has attracted as much attention from commentators as the Fourth Gospel. It has stirred minds, hearts, and imaginations from Christianity's earliest days. In The Gospel of John, Francis Moloney unfolds the identifiable point of view" of this unique Gospel narrative and offers readers, heirs to its rich and widely varied interpretative traditions, relevance for their lives today.

The Gospel of John's significance for Christianity has been obvious from the time of Irenaeus. It was also fundamental in the emergence of Christian theology, especially in the trinitarian and christological debates that produced the great ecumenical Councils, from Nicaea to Chalcedon.

What sets this commentary on the Fourth Gospel apart from others is Moloney's particular attention to the narrative design of the Gospel story. He traces the impact the Johannine form of the Jesus story has made on readers and explicates the way in which the author has told the story of Jesus. Through this he demonstrates how the Gospel story articulates a coherent theology, christology, and ecclesiology.

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Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780814659670
Publisher:	Liturgical Press
Publication date:	10/01/2005
Series:	Sacra Pagina , #4
Pages:	632
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Francis J. Moloney, SDB, studied at the Salesian Pontifical University, at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, both in Rome, and at the University of Oxford (DPhil, 1976). Foundation professor of theology at Australian Catholic University (1994–1999), dean and professor of New Testament at the Catholic University of America (1999–2005), Moloney is a member of the Order of Australia (AM) and a fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities (FAHA). He is currently a senior professorial fellow at the Catholic Theological College in Melbourne, Australia, part of the ecumenical University of Divinity. Moloney is also the author of more than forty books, including The Gospel of John in the Sacra Pagina series.

Table of Contents

CONTENTS

Editor’s Preface   ix
Preface   xi
Note on References and the Translation   xv
Abbreviations   xvii

Introduction
A. The Johannine Literature   1
B. The Author   6
C. “The Jews” in the Fourth Gospel   9
D. Approaches to the Fourth Gospel   11
E. The Approach Adopted in this Commentary   13
F. The Theological Contribution and Contemporary Significance of the Fourth Gospel   20
G. The Structure of the Gospel   23
General Bibliography   25

Translation, Interpretation, Notes
I. THE PROLOGUE (1:1-18)   33
II. THE BOOK OF SIGNS (1:19–12:50)   48
   A. The First Days of Jesus (1:19-51)   48
   B. From Cana to Cana (2:1–4:54)   63
      Introduction   63
      The Response to Jesus Within Israel (2:1–3:36)   65
      i. The First Miracle at Cana: Faith in the Word of Jesus (2:1-12)   65  
      ii. Jesus and “the Jews” (2:13-22)   75
      iii. The Narrator’s Comment (2:23-25)   84
      iv. Jesus and Nicodemus (3:1-21)   88
      v. Jesus and John the Baptist (3:22-36)   103
      The Response to Jesus Outside Israel (4:1-54)   113
      vi. Jesus and the Samaritan Woman: I (4:1-15)   114
      vii. Jesus and the Samaritan Woman: II (4:16-30)   125
      viii. Jesus’ Comment (4:31-38)   136
      ix. Jesus and the Samaritan Villagers (4:39-42)   145
      x. The Second Miracle at Cana: Faith in the Word of Jesus (4:43-54)   150
   C. The Feasts of “the Jews” (5:1–10:42)   164
      Introduction   164
      i. Jesus and the Sabbath (5:1-47)   165
         a) Jesus’ Healing Work on a Sabbath (5:1-18)   166
         b) Life and Judgment (5:19-30)   176
         c) Witness and Accusation (5:31-47)   185
      ii. Jesus and the Passover (6:1-71)   193
      Introduction   193
         a) An Introduction (6:1-4)   195
         b) The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes (6:5-15)   196
         c) The Miracle on the Sea (6:16-21)   201
         d) A Second Introduction (6:22-24)   205
         e) The Discourse on the Bread From Heaven (6:25-59)   207
         f) The Crisis Created by the Word of Jesus (6:60-71)   226
      iii. Jesus and Tabernacles: I (7:1–8:59)   232
      The Feast of Tabernacles   232
         a) Before the Feast (7:1-9)   237
         b) At the Feast in Jerusalem (7:10-13)   239
         c) About the Middle of the Feast (7:14-36)   241
            1. Jesus, “the Jews,” and “the People” (7:14-24)   242
            2. The Jerusalemites and “the People” (7:25-31)   246
            3. Jesus and “the Jews” (7:32-36)   248
         d) On the Last Day of the Feast (7:37–8:59)   251
            1. Jesus, “the People,” and the Leaders (7:37-52)   251
            Excursus on John 7:53–8:11: The Woman Taken in Adultery   258
            2. Jesus Reveals Himself as the Light of the World (8:12-30)   265  
            3. Jesus and “the Jews” in Conflict Over Their Respective Origins (8:31-59)   274
      iv. Jesus and Tabernacles: II (9:1–10:21)   289
      v. Jesus and Dedication (10:22-42)   312
   D. Jesus Turns Toward “The Hour” (11:1–12:50)   322
      i. A Resurrection That Will Lead to Death (11:1-54)   322
      ii. The Hour Has Come (11:55–12:36)   346
      iii. Conclusion to the Ministry of Jesus (12:37-50)   362
III. THE BOOK OF GLORY (13:1–20:31)   370
   A. The Last Discourse (13:1–17:26)   370
      i. Making God Known: The Footwashing and the Morsel (13:1-38)   370
         a) The Footwashing (13:1-17)   372
         b) To Make God Known (13:18-20)   379
         c) The Gift of the Morsel (13:21-38)   381
      ii. Departure (14:1-31)   391
      iii. To Abide, to Love, and to Be Hated (15:1–16:3)   416
         a) To Abide (15:1-11)   418
         b) The Command to Love (15:12-17)   424
         c) To Be Hated by the World (15:18–16:3)   427 
      iv. Departure (16:4-33)   436
      v. Making God Known: Jesus’ Final Prayer (17:1-26)   458
   B. The Passion (18:1–19:42) 481
      i. Jesus and His Enemies in a Garden (18:1-11)   482
      ii. Jesus’ Appearance Before “the Jews” (18:12-27)   486
      iii. Jesus Before Pilate (18:28–19:16a)   492
      iv. The Crucifixion of Jesus (19:16b-37)   501
      v. Jesus Is Buried in a Garden by His New-found Friends (19:38-42)   510
   C. The Resurrection (20:1-29)   515
      Introduction   515
      i. Scenes at the Tomb (20:1-18)   518
         a) Visits to the Empty Tomb (20:1-10)   518
         b) Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene (20:11-18)  524
      ii. Scenes in the House (20:19-29)   529
         a) Jesus Appears to the Disciples but not Thomas (20:19-23)   529
         b) Jesus Appears to the Disciples and to Thomas (20:24-29)   536  
IV. THE CONCLUSION TO THE GOSPEL (20:30-31)   542
V. EPILOGUE (21:1-25)   545
      Further Resurrection Appearances (21:1-25)   545
      Introduction   545
      i. Jesus Appears to His Disciples at the Sea of Tiberias (21:1-14)   547
      ii. Jesus, Peter, and the Beloved Disciple (21:15–24)   547
      iii. A Second Conclusion to the Gospel (21:25)   562
      Conclusion: Does John 21 Belong to the Story?   562
Indexes
Scripture Index   569
Index of Ancient Writings   579
Index of Authors   586
Supplementary Bibliography   595

Editorial Reviews

The manner in which Moloney contains the size yet incorporates major past and contemporary scholarship makes the book a valuable contribution to Johannine studies. His ability to draw the reader into the narrative is exceptional.
The Australasian Catholic Record


Moloney’s volume on John is a masterpiece that approaches the gospel from the perspective of literary criticism, attentive to its final form as a literary work. . . . Moloney’s commentary is substantial without being overly technical; he always keeps the needs of the pastor or preacher in mind as he explains the multiple levels of meaning in the text. This volume, together with each volume in this fine series, belongs in every college, seminary, and university library.
Catholic Library World


With all the scholarly work done on the interpretation of the Gospel of John, is there a need for another? For this book, the answer is yes.
Crux of the News


As each passage flows by, and with each dive into the original text, the author lays the groundwork and the foundation for his explanation: that the author of the fourth Gospel had a decided point of view that he wanted to get across, and that the modern reader can get as much out of the reading as a first century Christian. It helps us to understand how and why we made the choice to believe.
Crux of the News


All good libraries ought to have this commentary.
Vidyajyoti Journal


This commentary further testifies to Frank Moloney's position at the front rank of international Johannine scholarship. The mastery of the second literature, old and new, is clear but never intrusive. The author creatively deploys the narrative critical approach in a concise and clear exposition that successfully unfolds the theological vision of the Gospel. Scholars, pastors, theological students and all whose faith leads them to seek deeper understanding will welcome this notable addition to Sacra Pagina.
Brendan Byrne, SJ, Jesuit Theological College


The author is interested in facilitating the Gospel's speaking to contemporary readers, and he is consistently successful in doing so. The importance of this work in biblical studies is that it succeeds also in practicing a narrative criticism without denigrating historical critical questions. Hence, it is important for scholarship as well as for the Church.
Interpretation


I can strongly recommend this as the most contemporary, insightful, and useful single-volume commentary on John that I know.
Theological Studies

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