Witness to the Word: A Commentary on John 1

by Karl Barth, Walther Fuerst (Editor), Geoffrey William Bromiley (Translator)

Karl Barth's lectures on the first chapter of the Gospel of John, delivered at Muenster in 1925-26 and at Bonn in 1933, came at an important time in his life, when he was turning his attention more fully to dogmatics. Theological interpretation was thus his primary concern, especially the relation between revelation and the witness to revelation, which helped to shape his formulation of the role of the written (and spoken) word vis-a-vis the incarnate Word. The text is divided into three sections - John 1:1-18, 19-34, 35-51, with the largest share of the book devoted to the first section. Each section begins with Barth's own translation, followed by verse-by -verse and phrase-by-phrase commentary on the Greek text. Although Barth's interpretation is decidedly theological, he does take up questions of philology and textual criticism more thoroughly than in his other works. Much has happened in Johannine scholarship since these lectures were first delivered, yet they remain valuable today - 100 years after Barth's birth - both for their insights into the gospel and into Karl Barth.

Genres: Theology

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Protestant theologian Karl Barth, a Swiss, advocated a return to the principles of the Reformation and the teachings of the Bible; his published works include Church Dogmatics from 1932.

Critics hold Karl Barth among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important since Saint Thomas Aquinas. Beginning with his experience as a pastor, he rejected his typical predominant liberal, especially German training of 19th century.

Instead, he embarked on a new path, initially called dialectical, due to its stress on the paradoxical nature of divine truth—for instance, God is both grace and judgment), but more accurately called a of the Word. Critics referred to this father of new orthodoxy, a pejorative term that he emphatically rejected. His thought emphasized the sovereignty of God, particularly through his innovative doctrine of election. His enormously influenced throughout Europe and America.

Reviews

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful commentary on John 1. Barth is, as per usual, orthodox sounding and in this book is indeed largely on board with the classic Protestant/Christian sources he interacts with. One of the biggest divergences is in verse 4 of John 1, wherein he argues that the light of men is not natural revelation but a salvific light and illumination. But by and large I found his commentary compelling, especially since he makes detailed arguments from the Greek text of John 1. It's also as rhetorically powerful as always with Barth.