A COMPARISON OF JOHN’S GOSPEL WITH THE OTHER SYNOPTIC GOSPELS

The Gospel of John is the last in the Gospel series, but it is renowned for its
distinctiveness. According to Tenney (1985), "the Gospel of John is the most unusual and
perhaps the most valuable member of the quartet of canonical Gospels”. Widely accepted as
having been authored by John (one of the sons of Zebedee), its estimated date of writing has
been set at 85 A.D or even later (Barker, 2002). Its content is structured around three key
words: ‘signs’, ‘believe’ and ‘life’ (John 20:30-31 KJV) - of which believe (mentioned
ninety-eight times in the book) is the most important (Moon, 1998). Nevertheless, its genre
determines that like the others, it too focuses on the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Hence,
an appreciation for its uniqueness and canonical value must be gained from a comparison of
the book with the other Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke).
A perusal of John’s Gospel explains its exclusion from the Synoptics, and Stevenson
(2014) highlights why. Firstly, the Synoptic Gospels emphasize kingdom inheritance, but
John focuses on the inheritance of eternal life. Secondly, while the Synoptics describe various
events of Jesus' life, John prefers to reflect on the meaning of these events. Thirdly, John
outlined longer discourses by Jesus; however, shorter sayings of Jesus can be found in the
Synoptics. Fourthly, the Synoptic Gospels place emphasis on future prophecy; however,
John's Gospel scarcely mentions this topic. Additionally, John’s coverage of Jesus' public
ministry is different in length; he utilizes more symbolism and double meaning; and he does
not emphasize the second advent of Christ as a future eschatological event (Harris III, 2004).
Therefore, these differences and others have caused critics to question the reliability of John's
Gospel.
However, this criticism is baseless, for there are similarities between John and the
other Gospels. For example, all four Gospel accounts begin with a statement of the true
identity of Jesus (Stevenson, 2014). Furthermore, they agree on Jesus' political context; His
family; geography and locations; His link to John the Baptist; His mission; His relationship
with His Heavenly Father; His titles; His disciples; references to the Old Testament; His
miracles and teaching; His popularity and opposition; and His triumphal entry, the Last
Supper, betrayal, arrest, trial, mockery, crucifixion, burial, and resurrection (Arlandson,
2008). All of which comprise the ‘good news’ of Jesus Christ and indicate the fulfilment of
Old Testament prophecies.
Hence, despite the differences, the Gospel of John does not contradict the narrative or
theological elements of the Synoptics. In fact, the fundamentals of Jesus' story and the key
themes of His teaching ministry are the same as in the others. Therefore, its uniqueness does
not detract from its inspiration; instead, the Gospel of John solidifies its worth in the
canonical placement of the New Testament texts.

References

Arlandson, J. (2008). Similarities among John's Gospel and the Synoptic Gospels. Retrieved
from https://bible.org/seriespage/13-similarities-among-johns-gospel-and-synoptic-
gospels

Barker, K. L. (Ed.). (2002). "John: Introduction." Zondervan NIV study Bible. Rev. ed.
Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Harris III, W. (2004). Major Differences Between John and the Synoptic Gospels. Retrieved
from https://bible.org/seriespage/2-major-differences-between-john-and-synoptic-
gospels

Moon, J. (1998). New Testament Survey - A Study Guide (4th ed., p. 188). Irving, Texas: ICI
University Press.

O'Neal, S. (2017). Why Is John's Gospel Different Than the Others?. Retrieved from
https://www.thoughtco.com/comparing-john-and-the-synoptic-gospels-363395

Stevenson, J. (2014). New Testament Survey 06 - The Gospel of John [Video]. Retrieved
from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KaQEwX14z4&list=PLvwgUlicDKGo3QZYR
LJC81Uh0ooaSRXpl&index=6

Tenney, M. (1985). New Testament Survey Revised (pp. 188). Grand Rapids, Mich.:
Eerdmans.