The Genius of John: A Composition-Critical Commentary on the Fourth Gospel

by Peter F. Ellis

BASED ON THE DISCOVERY THJAT THE GOSPEL IS STRUCTURED AND WRITTEN FROM BEGINNING TOI END ACCORDING TO THE LAWS OF PARALLELISM USED BY ANCIENT AUTHORS. ESTABLISHING THE ARCHITECTONIC STRUCTURE AND UNITY OF THE GOSPEL, CLARIFIES TEXT AFTER TEXT.

Genres: Religion

Paperback

First published September 1, 1984

About the author

He was professor emeritus of biblical studies in the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education (GRE) at Fordham University, Bronx, N.Y.

Reviews

[Andrew Goodson]

It's a really good book, and makes a lot of things in the gospel very comprehensible. The description of the chiastic structures, especially in chapters 18 to 21, is a real eye-opener. Chiasmus in the early part of the gospel is less obvious, but Ellis makes a convincing case that the whole book is chiastic. There is just one thing I disagree with him about, when he says that chapter 21 is the counterpart of chapter 12; in fact it mirrors not chapter 12 but chapter 13, as the verbal correspondences make clear.

[Mike]

This is one of the first critical biblical commentaries that I have ever read. I loved it. It was a bit over my head for the time that I read it (I was only 19) but I really enjoyed going beyond the text the way that Peter Ellis explored how the book of John was put together, that it is a chiastic text. This kind of information was all new to me, having never been taught anything like this in Sunday School before!

[Dave Tielung]

this give us the experience of John while he with his master and how John interpreted the situation and made His own conclution with his onw understanding over his great experience with his beloved master.

here...John expressed the rejection of the Jews over Jesus as the Messiah.

Ellis also gives the nature of joannie writings on introducing Jesus as the sources of everytnig

[JonM]

This is a very helpful book on the literary structure of John. It's only defect is the omission of the periscope adulterae

[Oneidastjoe]

Excellent! A non-technical commentary written suggesting that the work is structured concentrically.