Authorship of The Johannine Works - Early Use of The Johannine Works

Early Use of The Johannine Works

The gospel was not widely quoted until late in the 2nd century. Justin Martyr is probably the first Church Father to quote John's gospel. Some scholars conclude that in antiquity John was probably considered less important than the synoptics. Walter Bauer suggests:

Can it be a coincidence that immediately after Justin, the enemy of heretics who took aim at the Valentinians (Dial. 35. 6), we note the appearance in Italy-Rome of two representatives of this latter school who especially treasure the Fourth Gospel--namely Ptolemy and Heracleon (Hillolytus Ref. 6. 35)? To be sure, Justin's disciple Tatian placed the Gospel of John on the same level as the synoptics, but he also broke with the church on account of profound differences in faith--poisoned, so Irenaeus thought, by the Valentinians and Marcion (AH 1. 28. 1 ).

One reason for this ‘orthodox ambivalence' was gnostic acceptance of the fourth gospel. The early Gnostic use is referred to by Irenaeus and Origen in quoted commentary made on John by the Gnostics Ptolemy and Heracleon. In the quote below, one can see how passionately Irenaeus argues against this gnostic heresy from his book :

For, summing up his statements respecting the Word previously mentioned by him, he further declares, "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us." But, according to their hypothesis, the Word did not become flesh at all, inasmuch as He never went outside of the Pleroma, but that Saviour who was formed by a special dispensation, and was of later date than the Word.

Several Church fathers of the 2nd century never quoted John, but the earliest extant written commentary on any book of the New Testament was that written on John by Heracleon, a disciple of the gnostic Valentinus.

The following table shows the number of times various church fathers cited John compared to the synoptic gospels.

John was considered the last to be written. Most scholars today give it a date between 90 and 100, though a minority suggest an even later date. The Fourth Gospel may have been later also because it was written to a smaller group within the Johannine community, and was not circulated widely until a later date. However, claims for authorship later than 100 have been called into question due to Rylands Library Papyrus P52, a fragment of the gospel found in Egypt that was probably written around 125 as well as by the recent work of Charles Hill. Hill gives evidence that the Gospel of John was complete and in use between 90 and 130, and of the possible use of uniquely Johannine gospel material in several works which date from this period. These works and authors include Ignatius of Antioch (c. 107); Polycarp (c. 107); Papias’ elders (c. 110-120); of Hierapolis' Exegesis of the Lord’s Oracles (c. 120-132). Hill assesses that many historical figures did indeed reference the Gospel of John.