Eschatology in the Gospel of John

Eschatology in the Gospel of John Josh Easter Dr. D. Denton BIB/THE-4073-1 Southwest Baptist University May 10, 2012 Many agree that understanding the eschatological view of John is the key to understanding his Gospel. The purpose of this paper is to examine in detail the intricacies of the eschatology found in the Fourth Gospel. Though many others have written on this topic, the three to be focused on in this paper include George Eldon Ladd, Craig R. Koester, and C. Marvin Pate. After reading one work by each of these three men, it is clear that they will provide useful insight on the way the apostle John sheds light on the eschatology presented by Christ. As will be seen, the eschatological sayings found scattered in the Fourth Gospel entail both present, or realized, realities as well as a futuristic, or apocalyptic, sense. As the Synoptics were very much apocalyptic in their eschatological mentions of the Kingdom, scholars have concluded that John either completely contrasts with the Synoptics’ eschatology or at least sheds a new light on it. This is seen in the fact that the central theme of John seems to be eternal life realized in the person of Jesus. The aforementioned scholars debate John’s intention of his eschatological usage, and each must be looked at in detail. First, G. E. Ladd’s view of John’s eschatology will be analyzed and evaluated, followed by a look at Koester’s views, and finally an evaluation of Pate’s work. Before giving his own views, Ladd uses the first few pages of the twenty-third chapter in his A Theology of the New Testament to introduce the views held by other renowned scholars. Ladd first turns to R. H. Charles, who sees Jesus’ incarnation as the actual parousia by using 14:2-3 as support. Ladd, however, is quick to refute this by pointing out Jesus’ words in 21:22 (Ladd, 335). Ladd then notes English powerhouse C. H. Dodd. Dodd holds a similar view to Charles in that he sees John’s eschatology as purely realized. John completely rids of the Synoptics’ views of an apocalyptic eschaton and hones in on the realized aspect only. Dodd does realize that Jesus used apocalyptic language but claims that this was merely symbolic jargon. As Ladd elaborates on Dodd’s view, he writes, “… John so completely sublimates eschatology into mysticism in terms of platonic dualism, which conceives of an eternal order of being of which the phenomenal order of history is the shadow and symbol, hat eternal life is ‘no longer a hope for the last day.’ In Johannine though, ‘all that the church hoped for in the second coming of Christ is already given in its present experience of Christ through the Spirit,’” (Ladd, 336). Following Dodd, Ladd moves onto the famous critical scholar Rudolf Bultmann. The Bultmannian view is simply summed up by Ladd’s writing that he “reinterprets eschatology along existential lines,” (Ladd, 336). Next, J. A. T. Robinson is exposed by Ladd. Robinson is similar to Dodd in that he believes John writes only of a realized eschatology, but is not deliberately correcting the Synoptics (as Dodd sees it), but is independent in thought. Robinson believes that “the sayings about a future coming of Jesus do not refer to a ‘coming again’ but merely to his coming….The resurrection inaugurates the parousia,” (Ladd, 337). All of the scholars covered thus far see John’s eschatology as completely realized. However, by taking a look at W. G. Kümmel, Ladd shifts the perspective to futuristic views. Kümmel, Ladd writes, argues that a futuristic reading of John’s eschatology is essential to Johannine thought. John refines the Synoptics; he states better what it is that they were really trying to say. Kümmel's argument is that “Jesus came from eternity as the one sent by God in the present. Such a person with a past and a present must also have a future. Therefore the hope of the parousia and an eschatological consummation is an essential element in Johannine thought,” (Ladd, 337). However, this seems to be a rather week argument. Ladd hopes to sharpen Kümmel’s view by introducing W. F. Howard, who believes “the veiled revelation of God’s glory in the historical Jesus demands a real future fulfillment,” (Ladd, 337). Ladd ends the opening to chapter twenty-three of his book by making known a mediating view between the two mentioned above. Citing C. K. Barrett and C. F. D. Moule, Ladd presents the belief that John’s eschatology may have both present and future elements. C. K. Barrett is quoted as saying, “it has been impossible…to deny the presence of both a mystical and an eschatological element,” (Ladd, 337). Ladd records Moule as saying, ‘“The only ‘realized eschatology’ in the Fourth Gospel is on the individual level; and such a type of ‘realized eschatology,’ far from replacing a futuristic eschatology, need by only its correlative’” (Ladd, 338). The latter two views present by Ladd in the form of Barrett and Moule align with the view that Ladd will hold in the rest of his chapter. Ladd makes known his view right away by claiming: the structure of Johannine thought is a twofold dualism: a vertical dualism of above and below, and a horizontal dualism of present and future. The horizontal (eschatological) is not as obvious in John as it is in the Synoptics…. While the primary emphasis of John is on the vertical dualism of above and below, the Gospel does not lose sight of the eschatological dualism. This is reflected … in [12:25]. (Ladd, 338). After noting that “this world” and “this age” are interchangeable terms, Ladd initially gives support for this view in using two separate proof-texts found in the Fourth Gospel. First, he notes that the eschatological dualism is seen in 12:31 as Satan is called “the ruler of this world.” He then points to John 3:3, 5, which he says shows that the Kingdom of God is “a present reality to be received now that qualifies one to enter the Kingdom of God in the future. Present and future are inseparably bound together,” (Ladd, 339). Ladd sees John not in direct contradiction with the Synoptics (as Dodd does), rather he sees it as a parallel. Ladd masterfully summarizes his opening introduction of his view by writing “If the Synoptics recognize a vertical dualism but emphasize the eschatological, John recognizes the eschatological but emphasizes the vertical,” (Ladd, 339). Ladd would use the rest of the chapter to show how this is true by looking at three things: the coming of Christ, the resurrection, and the judgment. In his section on the coming of Christ, Ladd uses scriptural support of his claim mentioned above. He turns first to John 16:16 to prove this, followed by showing that the coming of Christ comes in the order of the Paraclete, or the Spirit (14:18). This coming of the Spirit, he argues, is part of John’s realized elements. But regarding John 14:3 and 21:22-23, he notes the futuristic aspect of Jesus’ coming again (Ladd, 339-340). Ladd then shows the dualism in the resurrection. Ladd writes, “We find a reiterated emphasis upon the bodily resurrection at the last day when the dead shall be raised in the fullness of eternal life; but we also find that the life that pertains to the resurrection has reached back into the present age and has become available to people in the spiritual realm,” (Ladd, 341). The heart of his argument is found in 11:25, the event of Lazarus’ death being the context for Jesus’ words. According to Ladd, the story of Lazarus shows that life, both present and future, is found in Christ. Ladd would later go on to show this again in 5:28-29. Those who have accepted the Son of Man in the present age will rise in the future, while those who reject the Son will not rise in the future (Ladd, 342). One can find a purely realized sense of eschatology through the lens of resurrection by looking at 5:25-26. Here one will see that the hour “is now here” that the spiritually dead will have the opportunity to respond to the Son of God and gain eternal life, which will be experienced in the future. Yet still, eternal life is available now, in the person of Jesus. Found also in John is the sense of a future resurrection (6:39, 44, 54). All three references speak to raising up “on the last day.” One can see in John’s portrayal of the resurrection both a present and a future reality. The present eschatology is found in that humans currently live and can accept the Son. The future eschatology is found in that humans will later rise from the dead to move on to eternal life. Finally, Ladd’s chapter twenty-three covers John’s eschatology by means of the judgment. Ladd also uses the judgment to show both a present and future sense of eschatology in the Fourth Gospel. He finds the present sense of judgment in that the way people live now is setting them up for the future judgment. He finds future eschatological judgment in John 12:48 when it says “on that day”. As sinless Jesus is the control, the standard of comparison, for those to be judged, “this future judgment has reached back into the present in the person of Christ, and the future eschatological judgment will essentially be the execution of the sentence of condemnation that has in effect been determined on the basis of people’s response to the person of Christ here now” (cf. 3:18, 19) (Ladd, 343). Those who did good in receiving Christ will in their life on Earth will enjoy a future eternal life in the Kingdom; those who did evil in the present life will suffer the consequences in eternal hell. What one does in the present directly affects his or her future judgment; thus, judgment in John is both present and future. Ladd’s presentation of the eschatology is strong. The arguments he makes based on the scripture given logically flows. He is able to show the continuity of Christ’s work in time through the works of His coming, resurrection, and judgment. His view that both a realized and futuristic eschatology is convincing and has turned into a widely held interpretation of John’s Gospel. Craig R. Koester holds more or less the same view as G. E. Ladd and therefore less discussion is required for his work. Koester writes eleven pages on the subject of John’s eschatology in his The Word of Life: A Theology of John’s Gospel. However, the first thing to be reflected upon comes very early on in this section of his book. He writes, “The Gospel gives the vivid sense that future hopes have become present realities,” (Koester, 175). It is worthy to consider whether “future hopes have become present realities” or “present realities have shed light upon future hopes.” Supporting his claim, Koester writes “Many expected the dead to be raised at the end of the age, when the kingdom of God arrived and the present world of sorrow came to an end (11:24), and now Jesus has risen from the dead, calling people to new life in him (5:25; 11:25-26). The Spirit has come like a stream of living water, bringing people the gift of eternal life and true worship of God (4:10, 14, 23-24),” (Koester, 175). However, when one turns to 14:3, Ladd’s view that this is an interpretation of the parousia seems to be correct; the present Jesus seems to be shedding light on the future hope of life in glory. The latter claim is also supported in 17:37-39, in which Jesus says that brings rivers of living water, but at the same time John also mentions that Jesus was speaking of the future when the Paraclete comes. Both claims seem to have support, but which is more accurate? This is a question that requires much more scholarly research to be done as the answer has not yet been settled. John seems to give hints that both are true; perhaps both claims can be true based on the circumstance. This would entail Ladd’s view that there is both a realized and futuristic sense in Johannine thought. Koester covers a topic not explicitly covered by Ladd, though it may have been mixed in within Ladd’s main points. Koester presents the “present and future of life” found in the Fourth Gospel. He writes: … when addressing the problem of death the Gospel will do two things: First, it will acknowledge that death is real and not illusory. There is no attempt to mask it; death’s power is evident. Second, the Gospel will make clear that death is real but not final. Jesus died and Jesus rose, and what happened to him will happen to those who follow. (Koester, 179-180). Similarly to Ladd, Koester looks to the death of Lazarus for insight. He sees Lazarus’ resurrection of things to come in Christ; death is not the end for those who believe. Koester takes 11:44 and 5:28-29 hand in hand, side by side, by showing that “the way Jesus calls Lazarus out of the tomb anticipates ‘the last day,’ when ‘all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out’ (11:44; 5:28-29)” (Koester, 181). He notes that the only difference in the analogy is that Lazarus has a bodily resurrection in which he is able to die again, whereas the final resurrection will be a bodily resurrection but no longer bound to death but to eternal life. Koester later notes the present and future reality found in Jesus’ prayer in the garden when Jesus prays to return to heavenly glory (17:1-5). Divinity is present in the human form with a future (and a past) in the heavenly realm. He also sees a present reality in the cross: “The glory of divine love, which the Son now shares in his Father’s presence, has its present form in the self-sacrificing love of the Crucified,” (Koester, 186). The futuristic results of the cross that show the love of God, as seen in 17:24, is that “glory will no longer be given under the cloak of suffering. Instead, the glory of divine love, which Jesus shares with the Father, will come unopposed as the faithful share it in the presence of God,” (Koester, 186). Craig R. Koester holds views very much in line with G. E. Ladd. Both find a present and future aspect to John’s eschatology, and both are correct. C. Marvin Pate is the final author to be investigated. His work, The Writings of John: A Survey of the Gospel, Epistles, and Apocalypse, is more expository in nature than the previous two works looked at. Pate’s focus is that of looking at specific passages in the book of John and exegetically drawing out their eschatological features. However, before diving into this, Pate gives some useful background information. He claims that Palestinian Judaism in general and particularly the Dead Sea Scrolls were the most likely influences on John’s eschatology. He writes: According to early Judaism, time is divided into two consecutive periods: this age and the age to come. This age is characterized by sin and sufferings as a result of Adam’s fall. The age to come will be inaugurated when the Messiah comes and with him righteousness and peace. In effect, the age to come is synonymous with the kingdom of God. But according to the Gospels, the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ marked a paradigmatic shift resulting in the overlapping of the two ages. The age to come, or the kingdom of God, was inaugurated within this age. In other words, the two ages are coterminous, and Christians live in the intersection of the two. This idea is commonly referred to as the already-not yet eschatological tension. That is, the age to come has already dawned because of the first coming of Christ but is not yet complete; that awaits his second coming. (Pate, 28-29). As is seen early on, Pate is in agreement with Ladd and Koester in their views that John presents both a present and future reality, though the realized is more prominent. Having established his overall view of eschatology found in the Fourth Gospel, Pate then moves into his exegesis of particular passages. What Ladd and Koester may only slightly touch on for support and proof-texts, Pate looks at in detail. The first passage that Pate focuses on is the story of Lazarus and Martha. Pate shows how Martha’s response was the typical Jewish response that believed people would be raised to life at the end of time (11:24), but Jesus would go on to show here that the time of resurrection is now, the last day is here (11:25). As noted earlier, this is the combining of the realized eschatology (resurrection is realized in Christ) and the futuristic eschatology (last day resurrection) (Pate, 130). Pate makes know that the most essential section of eschatology in John is found in chapter 16, particularly vv. 4-33. In this passage Pate finds all elements that Jews believed signified the end of time. He does a great job at exegeting John 16:20-33, in which Jesus explains his departure. In this passage Pate finds the events that Jews of the day associated with the inauguration of “the age to come.” The first is messianic woes as represented by wars, earthquakes, famines, and more. Pate gets this from verse 20 thru 22. Jesus says that the pains of birth produce the joy of life. Similarly, the woes of the Christians on Earth will be replaced with the joy of life eternal. In verses 23 thru 30, Jesus promises the knowledge of God. “One of the great Old Testament promises regarding the end times is that the people of God will come to a genuine knowledge of God (see Isa. 11:9; Jer. 31:33-34; Hab. 2:14). John 16:23-30 seems to promise the same end time knowledge of God,” (Pate, 169). Then, in 31-32, there is another sign of the reality of the age to come as seen in apostasy and the forsaking of Christ. The falling away of disciples is the sign of end times, but Christ will not abandon them, he will reclaim them. The final sign seen in the passage is the Holy War (v. 33). Jewish tradition taught that this would happen at the end of time, but John was proclaiming that it was happening in Jesus at the cross as he was defeating Satan and the forces of evil (Pate 169-170). Pate notes three more key points. First, future and present eschatology is found in Jesus’ prayer found in 17:1, 4-5 in which he prays for the Father to glorify him, glorification being a futuristic eschatological reality (Pate, 174). Second, Pate points out that “like ‘joy,’ ‘fellowship’ is understood by John to be the present experience of the eschatological age to come, or kingdom of God, that comes by abiding in Christ (John 15:11; 16:20-24; 17:13)” (Pate, 251). Finally, he makes known that some of the Fourth Gospel’s authorship is disputed. It is agreed that after John’s death, some of his disciples added references to John as the “beloved disciple” (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20) and the epilogue found in chapter 21. However, some argue that these disciples also added the futuristic tint of eschatology found in the gospel (5:26-30). Pate does not go much into depth about this; he says that it is possible but less certain (Pate, 238). This would make the eschatology of the Apostle John easier to understand and would relieve tension between the presence of a realized and futuristic eschatology. However, this theory is not yet proven. Pate provides insights on more passages not mentioned or not thoroughly covered by Ladd or Koester. He is in agreement with the other two authors that John writes of both a present and future eschatology. However, one verse that none of these author cite as proof of this is John 3:16. In this verse, we find the presence of Jesus on Earth to offer eternal (future) life. Perhaps the most popular verse in John’s Gospel was either overlooked or simply not incorporated in the work of each of these men. In conclusion, Ladd, Koester, and Pate are all correct in their assertions of the eschatology found in John. John artistically employs both a realized and futuristic sense of eschatology in his Gospel. Life is offered in the incarnate Christ, but this eternal life comes at the end of time. This is the central theme of John, and it is both horizontal and vertical. There is still much scholarly work to done regarding this topic, however it easy to see John’s intent. The evangelist offers a word of hope that Christ’s departure is not the end for those who received his message and follow his commands. Eschatology in John runs deep and is worthy of the study of everyone. Bibliography Koester, Craig R. The Word of Life: A Theology of John's Gospel. Grand Rapids: WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008. 175-186. Print. Ladd, George Eldon. A Theology of The New Testament. Revised ed. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1993. 334-344. Print. Pate, C. Marvin. The Writings of John: A Survey of the Gospel, Epistles, and Apocalypse. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012. Print. aster 12