God and Scripture: Analyzing Biblical Interpretation Methods in John

This essay provides an in-depth analysis of the Gospel of John, focusing on the portrayal of God and the methods used to interpret the scriptures. It explores historical criticism, examining the context and development of the text, and the canonical approach, understanding the text within the broader biblical canon. The essay also delves into narrative criticism, analyzing the story's structure and the author's narrative techniques. Through these methods, the essay seeks to understand the meaning of God's revelations and how they are presented in the Gospel of John, providing insights into the nature of God, Jesus Christ, and the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. The analysis covers key verses and themes, shedding light on the significance of God's Word, the concept of light and truth, and the role of faith in understanding the scriptures. The essay also touches upon the historical and socio-religious factors influencing the interpretation of the Gospel, emphasizing the importance of the text within the Christian tradition.

Running head: GOD AND SCRIPTURE
God and Scripture
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1GOD AND SCRIPTURE
Introduction
In the Gospel according to John, many stories have been revealed regarding the existence
of God in the world and His becoming through the Flesh. The factor that people did not
recognize God at the beginning of the world has been unfolded in these scriptures as well. This
paper aims to get through the scriptures and understand the meaning of the revelations of God in
new manners. The three essential methods will have to be discussed under the lens of these
scriptures of John. In his scriptures, John has always put up the claim of understanding God and
having faith in him properly. Through these scriptures, people get to know that this Universe was
not self-existent; instead, it had been created. In the scriptures of John, faithful followers of God
get an idea about the primary understanding of the benevolence of God.
According to the Gospel of John, God is the only omnipotent being who has created the
Earth, Sun, Moon, and all other components of the entire universe. Apart from that, this paper
will shed its light on the interpretation of the Biblical Scriptures of John through the three
methods like Historical criticism, canonical approach, and narrative criticism. In John 1:1, the
author has begun the proceedings with the understanding of God through the term Word. This
term signified Jesus Christ, and this also means the fact that God had existed from the very
beginning of the universe. In the Old Testament, Jesus Christ had appeared as God. On the other
hand, His appearance proved to be the human reincarnation of God as well. The hermeneutical
theology deals with the existence of God from the beginning of the universe and how it has
changed from time to time.

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Interpretation of the Gospel according to John using Historic criticism
Historical criticism has been used to analyze John 1:1-5. The entire analysis of this
section of the gospel is centered on the fact of how God and Jesus Christ has been portrayed in
the Bible and the Scriptures. The omnipotent powers of God have been appropriately portrayed
in this section. The Gospel has opened with the sentence, “In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John1:1). Therefore, this line signifies the
importance of God in the universe (Green, 2011: 56). The use of the term word has meant the
significance of the opening section of the Book of Genesis, where God has created the world
with the power of His speech. The Word or the Greek word logos has signified the fact of God’s
omnipotent power, where he could create and order the life of creatures on this earth. John 1:2
has also highlighted the importance of God by stating, “the Word became flesh and lived among
us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.”
Therefore, this verse suggests that God is the torchbearer of faith and truth in life (Spellman,
2014: 88). It also suggests that Jesus of Nazareth was the embodiment of the Word of God. Thus,
Jesus Christ was truly believed as the human embodiment of the omnipotent God.
As a part of God’s existence or His Word, Jesus Christ had the liability of carrying out all
the creative works of God that are also life-giving as well. Jesus Christ’s resurrection also
signifies His triumphant outcome from the jaws of death through crucifixion. This aspect
explains why John 1:3-5 has looked into the interpretation of the Bible from the beginning of the
Word and how it began the universe in different ways (Green, 2011: 56). The Word or Jesus
Christ lived among human beings, and this is one of the most significant factors to understand
that the glory of Jesus Christ has been very much important for all human beings in the world.
The Gospel, according to John, is regarded as the most metaphysical of all the four Gospels.

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Therefore, it will be very crucial for God to look after His children or all the human beings in
this world. The dwelling of God with all the people of the earth is symbolic of the fact that God
and Jesus Christ are always there to look after the ordinary people of the world by all means
(McGlasson, 2019: 39). In John 1: 3-5 it has also been revealed that Jesus Christ was entirely
God because He was the external Word. In the New Testament, Jesus Christ’s entity had been
affirmed as God Himself since He was able to show to the world that He was the real power in
the universe, but his powers were not recognized or acknowledged by the ordinary people.
The explanation of John has been very crucial and sufficient to discuss his contribution to
Christianity through verses 1: 1-5. The hermeneutical basis of these verses makes way for the
better interpretation of the historical construction. The historical development of this method is
critical since the scholars have discussed this verse based on the relationship between the Old
and New Testament (Hiebert, 2009: 29). The Gospel of John had been mainly written in the
latter part of the first century. The Bible and its verses could be read and interpreted in several
ways to be precise. This Gospel of John had been written in the interest of a particular number of
people who belonged to Christianity. All the forms of analysis have their strong and weak points
and are likely to bring out different perspectives of interpreting the Bible (Powell, 2018: 89). The
Word and the light of God are significant factors to be discussed in this matter. The Gospel of
John has been one of the most credible sources to analyze the importance of Biblical theology in
a particular manner. In this part of the Gospel, the author aims to make the readers understand
the importance of Greek philosophy.
In the further description of the situation, it is also shown that the Jewish people have not
been given the proper respect that they should have been given. The tradition of the early church
should be considered in this matter properly to locate the traces of the historical significance. The

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socio-religious factors will have to be given much importance when dealing with this issue.
From the descriptions in John 1:1-5, it has been shown that the creation of Jesus Christ was from
God (Hiebert, 2009: 29). The birth of Jesus in the flesh has been recorded in the historical facts
as well. History also reveals that the grace and truth of human beings is a fundamental matter for
human beings. Human beings have been taught to have faith in God and His omnipotent powers
(Powell, 2018: 89). Soon people began to believe in the name of God and Jesus Christ. The
significance of the pure light has also discussed in these verses. Therefore, it is quite clear that
Jesus Christ was the witness to this light. This light was the truth for human beings. The
historians have also spoken of this true light as this light guides a person towards success and is
honest. It has been said in the true light of God has been carried through Jesus Christ. According
to historians, John 1: 3 is also true since God has shaped and designed all the things in this world
(Brown, 2015: 27).
Without the help of God, nothing in this world could have been achieved. John 1: 5 is
true as all the people have seen that light is the only hope amidst the darkness in the world. This
light of God has the power to change the entire scenario of helplessness among the people. God
sent Jesus Christ by flesh and gave Him the torch to carry it. This light of the flame would help
all people to get over the darkness in their lives (Hiebert, 2009: 29). The primary purpose of the
Scripture of John or Johannine story is to highlight the fact that God’s power and positive
attitude towards the glory of life will always lead him to the overall success. The Jewish aspect
has been set aside. The beginning of this story is regarding the existence of the Word. This Word
is the Jesus Christ sent by His Father, the omnipotent God, to salvage all the sins from human
beings (Green, 1995: 47). These are the probable reasons as to how this historical criticism
method is so important to highlight the overall development of the story. The glory of the Son

5GOD AND SCRIPTURE
was probably the most important thing that could be sought at this juncture. Jesus Christ was the
only child who was born out of God. Historical evidence has supported this view as well as Jesus
was born at Bethlehem to Virgin Mary and Joseph after being sent from God. Thus Jesus
Christ’s birth was an indication of many good things to come in the future (Brown, 2015: 27).
As the history of the Bible suggests, the issue of the omnipotent power of God can be
found in other Biblical gospels like Matthew as well. The origins of the original texts date back
to thousands of years. The stories of Matthew have some similarities and differences between
themselves in specific contexts. These books and their stories are considered as one of the most
crucial sources for understanding the important things in the early church tradition. This method
of criticism is mainly based on the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament (Green, 1995: 37). The
story of the gospel of John is primarily included in the New Testament. The hermeneutical
theology is also an important topic for the understanding of the implications of God’s influence
over human beings. The contemporary environment, when the work was written, required a
source that could very quickly make people believe in God and have faith in him. It was evident
to avoid any further conflicts between man and God (Brown, 2015: 27).
On another note, historical criticism of the Bible is very much complex from different
angles. Many forms had to be considered when Biblical texts were analyzed. The differences
between the narrative and historical criticism are quite evident in this scenario. When the
Biblical texts like this (John 1:1-15) are analyzed, there is a risk regarding the limitations of the
analysis (Green, 1995: 37). Some critics have also said that it will be problematic to discover the
literary genres of these texts. So, the needs of the communities would be completely overlooked
in this context. The concept of light and truth does not get the proper limelight when it is
discussed from the historical criticism aspects.

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Interpretation of the Gospel according to John through Canonical approach
The method that has been chosen in this context to interpret John 1: 6-10 is the canonical
approach. This description will demonstrate how the Biblical texts will be explained using the
canonical approach. The beginning of the Word mentioned in the Biblical books will be
discovered using this approach. The primary purpose of the faith community is to develop a
group of people who will ensure people have faith in one true God. Through the interpretation of
the Gospel, according to John, it can be found that God created the world with a Word. After
that, He gave all His powers to this Word. The world will not afford any living thing when the
world is empty. This term Word means the source by which all the universal things had been
created.
In the verses of John 1: 6-10, it has been said that there was a person who was sent by
God. His name was John. It was thought that through the initiatives of John, the true light of God
could be believed. It is evident in John 1: 8 that John was not the light. Instead, he was given the
power to spread the light among all human beings. Jesus Christ was indeed the person who was
sent by God, His father. The purpose of the Almighty God was to eradicate all the evils and sins
from the world. It has become impossible for the darkness to understand the light. This light
always shined amidst the utter darkness. The message of God, the father, had been spread by
Jesus Christ, the Son. People die in the worldly atmosphere, but they are reborn in a spiritual
manner. This message had been proclaimed by John the Baptist in John 1: 10.
The historians of the Bible have been continuously trying to understand how Biblical
canon can approach the scriptures if the Bible can form the theological ideas from the
interpretation of the different verses of the Bible. The sentence in this Scripture stating, “God is
light, and in him, there is no darkness at all” Explains why it seems that God has all the light in

7GOD AND SCRIPTURE
Him, and He can do no wrong at any time (Green, 2011: 58). The Canonical criticism or
approach of the Bible is something that has focused on the Biblical canonical text as the final
product. It is, therefore, quite important to note that the current interpretation of the Biblical
should be taken up as the main element for the Biblical canonist approach. Many new
approaches have been developing within the community (Akala, 2014: 20). Therefore, it is quite
clear that two main ideas will have to be considered in this discourse so that the concepts of
John’s Scripture could be understood thoroughly. The proper concepts could be understood then.
These two ideas or concepts will have to be discussed in this discourse. The first concept is the
fact that the canonical collection of writing in the Bible is quite impressive from several angles.
It will focus on the final literary outcome of the Biblical stories, which is called the norma
normata (Ogden, 2014: 29).
As per the second form, it deals with the canonical collection of writings that have a lot to
do with the current religious traditions and functions, which is often called Norma Normans. In
this canonical approach of the Bible, the hermeneutical value is quite impressive, as well.
Through this, the believers of faith would gain normative written evidence about the existence of
Christ (Green, 2011: 56). Through the canonical approach, one is offered a different type of
explanation of John in the Bible. He has used the Greek grammar to use the personification
within the Scripture (Ogden, 2014: 29). The Godness had already existed in Jesus Christ, but this
is not the message that John gives through the writings. As per the overall context of this
approach, the Bible is rendered as a whole text. Thus the discriminations between the Old
Testament and the New Testament are no more in practice. The inspiration given by God to His
servants has a cohesive message within. Through the description of this method, only one God
has been rendered here, along with only one way resulting from Genesis to Revelation. This

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approach by Brevard Childs is looked upon as one of the most crucial factors for the success of
identifying the main points in the Scripture (Akala, 2014: 20).
In the Gospel, according to John, there are several implications of the Hebrew Scriptures
to be precise. In this process, canon takes up the role of being authoritative and normative in
certain angles. The proponent of the Canonical approach, Brevard Childs, has denied any
connection between the Bible being collection stories and historical texts. The Bible will go on to
show the path of truth and faith to the believers (Bultmann, 2014: 17). It should also be said in
this context that the conflict between Judaism and Christianity was very crucial and shaped
history. The essence of the Hebrew Scriptures is very well maintained in the various lines of the
gospel of John, where the significance of the term Word has been used. Several methods have
been identified in how the canonical approach has shown the importance of John 1:1-14. Critics
have admitted that the existence of Jesus Christ before His birth as a human has been subjected
to considerations. There are many alternative explanations regarding the translation of the
Scripture. After going through these discussions, it can be found that there is only one God and
Father and one Son named Jesus Christ (Green, 2011: 59). Jesus Christ has been placed in the
beginning in 1:1-2 at the beginning of the world in different ways. Many allegorical languages
have been used by the Jewish critics as well. According to the canonical approach framework, it
can be interpreted from John 1:1-14 that God had planned to eradicate all the evils from the
world to get the desired salvation in the world. Some critics have also said that Messiah was
among the seven things that existed before the creation of the Universe. Messiah came into
existence in this world after this universe was being created (Bultmann, 2014: 17).
The critics of this canonical approach had also said that the name of the Messiah was
created even before the Messiah was created. The other things that can be included in this list are

9GOD AND SCRIPTURE
the Garden of Eden, the Torah, repentance, the throne of Glory, and the temple. The Jewish
Midrash that the name of the Messiah had been placed to signify the eternal life of God in the
beginning period of the earth. The Jewish critiques have opined that the John 1:1-2 is simply a
figurative Midrash in the Church fathers of Greece believed in the Hellenistic representation or
worldview (Green, 2011: 59) They were completely unaware of the fact that John had
symbolically presented his worldview. Therefore, it could be concluded from his description that
Word was made of flesh indeed. Here it is of great importance to discuss the Midrash that can be
seen as a mixing o the figurative and allegorical language somewhat different from Greek
grammar (Huizenga, 2015: 37). The emergence of Jesus Christ in the human world was noted to
be someone who would eradicate all the sins from this world. Jesus Christ was therefore
considered a part of the figurative language to be precise. As the critics of the Bible have
revealed the fact that God wanted to live in this universe among the flesh, He sent His son Jesus
Christ to be a part of the human world (Spellman, 2014: 88). There, the Word or Jesus Christ
lived emerged as the being with life and light, which was something that could be implied in the
figurative language indeed.
Jesus Christ was considered as the Word of light and life. After that, Jesus Christ went on
to transform Himself to reality in flesh and blood, a transformation highly needed to fulfill the
desires of God (Huizenga, 2015: 37). If Greek could be placed before the Hebrews, it could be
discovered that Jesus was God who became flesh. Through this incident, Jesus could have
emerged as God in front of the entire world. In other books of the bible like Psalms, the Messiah
had been looked upon as God. Also, Moses had been considered as the Messiah in the Exodus
book. Thus, Jesus Christ was also the Messiah in some cases as well. Jesus Christ is the God
could be seen in the Scriptures of John. It is because Jesus Christ had the supreme power with

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Him to create all the new things in the world (Green, 2011: 69) The Word or Jesus Christ could
be associated as Messiah as per the Greek terms. Therefore, it was pretty clear that this could
surely be interpreted in the way that Christ had also existed since the beginning of the world.
After scanning through the lines of verses 1:1-14 of John, there are some differences between the
fact that Jesus Christ was roaming with God or He was God.
The central perspective of this paper, according to verses of John 1:1-14, was to prove
that God had existed in the previous time. So, the implementation of Greek thinkers would not
cater to the existence of Jesus Christ or God. Some Hebrew perspectives have been included in
the practice of the Christians (Green, 2011: 69). The Hebrew people generally worship God as
one. This concept of one God or Father has been implemented in the Christian worships as well
(Moore, 2016: 20). The difference between the Hellenistic culture and Monotheistic culture can
be seen as well as its conflicts. The practice of God the Messiah being worshipped is done in the
Jewish religion. However, it cannot be completely thrown off. In this manner, the Jewish
perspective of the New Testament can be implemented (Green, 2011: 69). Therefore, the
Canonical approach focuses on the current religious traditions of the Christian practices as well
as that of the outcomes of the Biblical stories. The use of the symbolic language is widespread in
the New Testament in various ways (Rowland, 2018: 24). The aspect of the existence of Jesus
Christ before the creation of the Universe could not be proved from the typical Jewish teachings.
However, it should also be kept in mind that Jesus Christ could use some Jewish teachings while
teaching His fellow disciples (Moloney, 2013:26).

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Interpretation of the Gospel according to John through Narrative criticism approach
Narrative criticism is one of the most important methods by which the objection about the
Biblical texts can be made. In some cases, it has been found that the narrative criticism approach
has stressed on the issue that narrators of the Bible are mainly modest by nature (Moore, 2016:
20). The story already has all the omniscient viewpoints. On the other hand, the narrators of the
Bible tend to speak out the story divinely. This approach of the narrators would surely supply the
element of divinity into the minds of the listeners or Christian followers. Therefore, it is rendered
as a fascinating factor for ordinary people to understand. John 1: 11-14 is analyzed using the
native criticism approach (Moloney, 2013:26). However, throughout the storytelling, the narrator
always stays in the background. The narrator tends to introduce all the positive and negative
things in the story. There have been specific differences between the standard literary criticism
and the literary criticism of the Hebrew Bible (Downie, 2014: 28). Through narrative criticism,
the listeners are guided through the narration to form a specific perspective. The narratives are
mainly influenced by two things; the events that have happened in the past and the series of
events that might occur in the future.
In John 1: 13, it has been symbolized that the omnipotence might not exist in this system
since there is a lack of control to control the universe with absolute power by God (Moloney,
2013:28). John 1: 11-13 will be discussed using pure literary criticism overlooking the historical
aspects of the same. Thus the Johannine story or prologue has to be looked at from the different
perspectives of the narrator. The metaphor of light has been used in this verse to depict that God
is always right, and he shows the path of truth to all of his followers.
In John1: 10, it has been revealed that the world did not recognize Him though the world
was made through Him (Downie, 2014: 28). It unveils the fact that the Word or Jesus Christ

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shaped the world and designed all the things in this world. However, the people of the world
were unable to recognize His powers. He was omnipotent and omniscient, and these lines of the
Johannine story speak the truth for the rest of them. He came to this world for the sake of His
people (Village, 2016: 19). However, they did not receive Him properly. John 1:14 also clearly
depicts the fact that Jesus was born out of God. Later, He took birth in human flesh and worked
for the well-being of the people (Martin & Wright, 2015: 39).
The people of whom John is talking about in this story are mainly the Gentiles and Jews.
According to the Jews, God was simply a personification of God’s will (Moloney, 2013:28). On
the contrary, it can be said that Jesus Christ was the only most perfect reflection of God. He was
the perfect revelation of God in flesh and blood, so His power was sure to be omnipotent. As per
the narrative criticism goes, Jesus Christ was utterly divine after being a man of flesh and blood.
John has applied the term ‘Word’ so it could create the respect of human beings in all sorts.
Therefore, it is also apparent that Jesus Christ was the real logos of God. He was both fully man
a fully God at the same time (Village, 2016: 19). The aspect of the Hebrew Bible has been shown
in this context several times. God is omnipotent, and His knowledge can be revealed through the
fact that God will always hold the light of the right path.
There is a long history between the prophecy and relationship. This difference between
the self-defense narrators and prophets will be unveiled in this system of narrative criticism. In
the Johannine story, John has revealed the fact that God was before him (Moloney, 2013:28). It
is always true since God revealed the promises to His followers. God has sent His son Jesus
Christ to eradicate all the sins from the surface of the earth. The moral realm has been presented
in the Johannine story when God’s quality has been revealed. The author has written from the

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perspective of Christianity, and his representation has to experiment from a literary point of view
(Klein, Blomberg & Hubbard Jr., 2017: 30).
However, it should be mentioned in this context that the books of the Bible had been used
as the primary resources for constructing the history from the proper perspectives. Some forms
of narrative criticism could be used in these verses. These are source criticism, form criticism,
and redaction criticism. The analysis of John 1: 11-14 should be done in a particular manner by
analyzing it with these different forms of narrative criticism. The scholars of the Gospel had been
able to understand and learn from the different stories of the Gospel in different ways. These
stories had enabled their strength to understand the underlying meaning of the stories of the
Bible (Moloney, 2013:30). The metaphor of the Word is a very crucial form of the Bible to
understand the crucial implications of life. The power of Word is something very critical for the
understanding of Christian followers. The scholars of Christianity were able to learn the
importance of life from the Biblical texts like the Old and New Testament. This form of narrative
criticism helped the early Christians to gain an insight into the factors of understanding the
messages of the Word. John 1: 13 says that the right to be God’s children were given to His
believers (Yong, 2017: 37).
However, it was quite an extraordinary fact that the Son of God was born as flesh, and he
worked for the well-being of the ordinary people. In the first place, it must be mentioned that
Jesus Christ was not born of the will of man or flesh. Instead, he was born of the will of God. In
the analysis of this method, some comparisons from other verses of the Bible should be
mentioned as well. The blood of Jesus that came because of the crucifixion rinsed all the sins of
human beings (Klein, Blomberg & Hubbard Jr., 2017: 30).

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In John 1: 13, when people believe in the light of God, they achieve the fellowship of
God in their rights. When the opponents of God often boast of their greatness and decide to
follow the path of darkness, the only failure comes up. Therefore, it is imperative to note in this
scenario that the fellowship with God will lead them to the betterment of their lives. Jesus is the
son of God, and He will surely clean every one of the sins they have committed. The author of
these stories has assured the human beings that all their sins will be cleared after they become
Christians (Yong, 2017: 37). This method of clearing of sins will lead to the primary justification
that has been happening in the purification of Christianity. Through this method, all human
beings in society would go on to believe in the omnipotence of God. This forgiveness of souls in
Christianity would make human beings pure as well (Powell, 2018: 89). When the construction
of apodosis is concerned, the question of walking with the light of God will always remain to be
one of the essential functions indeed. Thus, narrative criticism unfolds the fact that the verses of
John 1:1-15 has been exemplary to find out the methods of forgiving the sins for human beings
(Powell, 2018: 245-250)
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Scripture of John or the Johannine story of Gospel (1:1-15) should be
considered with utmost importance. This story describes the existence of God and the role of
Jesus Christ in bringing the light and truth to this world. The reading of both the Old Testament
and the New Testament should be studied very thoroughly. Certain concepts are useful in
discussing the issue from various standpoints. The canonical approach or canonical criticism
method is indeed a very crucial factor that would focus on the interpretation of this Scripture
from the perspectives of Biblical canon. The texts of the Bible should always maintain a proper
relationship with each other. Only then these texts would bear meaningful significance. Through

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the interpretation of the canonical method, the Bible is put in safe hands by incorporating
coherence and continuity in it.
Apart from that, the concept of truth and faith should go hand in hand. The only thing
that could result in this is the juxtaposition of history and theology. People should always stick to
the order and shape of the canon of the Bible. Only then the interpretation of the Bible can be
made in the proper ways. Other methods are narrative criticism and historical criticism. These
methods are very crucial to understand the development of biblical stories. The canonical
approach is probably the most critical method since it points out that historical criticism or
analysis should be given some importance as well. The significance of the Word or Jesus Christ
has been observed while He has salvaged the sins of human beings through His blood. The
purification has taken place, and it is time to carry on with the light that God has sent to the
world through Jesus Christ Himself.

16GOD AND SCRIPTURE
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