We know more of John than we know of any other author of the Gospels. However, there are no irrefutable proofs against the authorship of John.
According to some a Presbyterian by the same name shall have been the author. There have been, however, other presumptions in the past as well as in recent times. Theophilus of Antioch quoted the first verse of the gospel around 180 AD and named John as author. This is confirmed by Irenaeus (140 to 202 AD) who was a pupil of Polycarp of Smyrna (who himself had known John). This reserve would confirm the tradition of the old church that John, the disciple of the Lord, is the author of this Gospel. Of the three disciples who were most intimate with the Lord Jesus (which are Peter, James and John) the latter is never mentioned throughout the whole Gospel. In fact, only an eyewitness would be able to give such clear particulars as "about the tenth hour" ( John 1:39), "six water pots of stone" ( John 2:6) and "153 great fishes" ( John 21:11).įive times, the author of the Gospel calls himself "the disciple, whom Jesus loved" (compare John 21:24 with ch. John was an eyewitness of the reported occurrences though, as he himself writes ( John 1:14 John 19:35). The writer steps back into the background, behind the message of God. So when Jesus says that soon the world will not be able to see Him, but these men will (John 14:19), the meaning is not clear.The name of the author of the Gospel of John is not mentioned - as is the case with the three synoptic gospels as well. These men understand the broad concepts, but haven't seen the specific details. We read Jesus' words knowing exactly what's going to happen, and how it will all work out. Modern readers have the benefit of hindsight. At this point, the disciples don't fully understand everything Jesus has told them. Just as names like "Mary" were extremely common among women (Luke 24:10 Matthew 27:61), names like John and Judas were common among men. In Greek, this name is Iouda, which is also the name of the author of the book of Jude. This verse notes another disciple named Judas, likely the person also called Thaddeus in Mark 3:18 and Matthew 10:3.
During the lifetime of the disciples, however, it was a common name.
Modern culture, especially in the west, has almost entirely abandoned using the name Judas, thanks to the reputation of Judas Iscariot (John 13:2).
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