The Purpose and Authorship of John

About this Course

About the Course

In this course, Dr James Carleton Paget (University of Cambridge) explores the purpose and authorship of the fourth Gospel. In the first module, we introduce the questions surrounding the authorship of John, and reasons behind varying historical attributions of authorship. In the second module, we go on to examine the purpose of John, through close textual analysis and reflections about the context in which John might have been writing. In the third module, we come to look at possible audiences of John’s Gospel, before turning to John’s emphasis on Jesus as the fulfilment of scripture in the fourth module. In the fifth and final module, we return to the purpose of John, with some closing remarks about the significance of delineating an understanding of John’s purpose for proper readership.

About the Lecturer

James Carleton Paget is a lecturer in New Testament Studies at the University of Cambridge. His research interests are research interests in Jewish-Christian relations in antiquity, ancient Jewish Christianity, inter-testamental Judaism and the history of ancient biblical interpretation. His publications include Jews, Christians and Jewish Christians in Antiquity (2010) and The Epistle of Barnabas: Outlook and Background (1994)