Prologue
1:1 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked at intently and our hands touched, concerning the Word, the source of life –
1:2 This Life was revealed. We have seen it. And so, we testify to it and proclaim to you this Life, the Eternal Life, which was in the presence of the Father and was revealed to us.
1:3 – what we have seen and what we have heard we proclaim also to you so that you too may have fellowship with us. And indeed, this fellowship of ours is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. 1:4 We are writing these things so that our joy may be full.
Translation by the author from the SBL Greek New Testament.
Review
As noted in previous posts, First John was written to address a crisis that was disrupting the churches that the Apostle John pastored in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). It appears that some members were teaching beliefs that were contrary to the Good News revealed by Jesus Christ. These disruptors had left the churches, but their teachings had sown doubts among the members that remained.
In response, John wrote a pastoral letter (now called First John), not to attack the disruptors, but to encourage and reassure the remaining members he cared for that what they believed were the foundational truths handed down from Jesus Christ.
His presentation of these foundational truths is organized around three “proclamation” sections that focus on the nature of God and the implications for fellowship with God and fellowship with fellow believers. The three proclamation sections are:
– God is Light: Fellowship Depends on Walking in the Light
– God is Righteous: Fellowship Depends on Practicing Righteousness
– God is Love: Fellowship Depends on Expressing Mature Love
Here is one way to outline the contents of First John:
I. Prologue (1:1-4)
II. First Proclamation: God is Light (1:5-2:28)
Fellowship Depends on Walking in the Light
III. Second Proclamation: God is Righteous (2:29-4:6)
Fellowship Depends on Practicing Righteousness
IV. Third Proclamation: God is Love (4:7-5:4)
Fellowship Depends on Expressing Mature Love
V. Epilogue (5:5-17)
VI. Proclamation Summaries (5:18-21)
Click here for a full outline of First John.
John begins his letter with a prologue (1:1-4) which is explained below.
Structure of the Prologue
1. Built around a chiasmus.
John’s prologue is a dramatic and elegant opening that is built around a chiasmus. From the previous post, you may recall that a chiasmus is a literary device that uses a sequence of words or ideas that are later repeated in reverse order. Sometimes the point where the chiasmus reverses is the focus of the chiasmus. The ideas can be diagrammed as A-B-C [Focus] C’-B’-A’. The chiasmus in John’s prologue is built around identical verb forms and has as its focus the Eternal Life. It runs as shown below. Locate these elements in the translation above.
A we have heard / ἀκηκόαμεν (1:1)
B we have seen / ἑωράκαμεν (1:1)
C was revealed / ἐφανερώθη (1:2)
Focus: the Eternal Life / τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον (1:2)
C’ was revealed / ἐφανερώθη (1:2)
B’ we have seen / ἑωράκαμεν (1:3)
A’ we have heard / ἀκηκόαμεν (1:3)
Disruptors were spreading a new teaching where Jesus Christ was not central to knowing God. John starts his letter with a chiasmus that makes Jesus Christ the focus – He is central to Christianity. In fact, Jesus Christ will be central in the rest of the letter to everything John says about knowing God and having fellowship with Him and with fellow believers. It brings to mind the claim of Christ as recorded in John’s Gospel:
I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)
2. One long sentence in Greek.
Verses 1:1 to 1:3 of the prologue are one long, complex sentence in Greek that the ancient Greek listeners would have considered dramatic and elegant, not only because it is built around a chiasmus, but because it draws the listeners into the narrative by stringing them along. The main object of the verb is introduced right at the beginning of verse 1:1 – “what was from the beginning“. However, the main verb itself is held until verse 3 at the completion of the chiasmus – “we proclaim” (ἀπαγγέλλομεν / apangellomen). The main subject, verb, and object in verses 1 to 3 are simply: “we proclaim what was from the beginning“. Everything else develops this idea and drives the narrative along.
The additional three “what” clauses in verse 1:1 are brought to the front to focus attention on them – “what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked at intently. and our hands touched…” They highlight John’s authority to speak about the issues because he and others were actual witnesses to the life of Jesus Christ, unlike the disruptors.
Verse 1:2 is parenthetical information that further explains the “source of life” introduced at the end of verse 1:1. Verse 1:2 includes the focus of the chiasmus “the Eternal Life“.
3. Subject not named.
John also draws in the listeners by not directly naming the subject in verse 1. The subject is the undefined neuter relative pronoun “what” (ὅ / ho). Of course what he writes is all about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who gets mentioned at the end of verse 3.
If you are familiar with the New Testament, you may have noticed that these opening verses of First John have many echoes of the opening of the Gospel of John, also written by the Apostle John. The “what” in these verses is the eternal Son of God who was there at the beginning with God. As John wrote in his Gospel:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)
In Him was life, and that life was the light of mankind. (John 1:4)
And the Word became flesh and lived among us and we looked intently at His glory. (John 1:14)
John explains that he and other eyewitnesses actually heard, saw, and touched something. Their eyewitness testimony is trustworthy and credible. What they experienced was the eternal Son of God who was there at the beginning of Creation and who became the incarnate (i.e., “in the flesh”) Word, the source of life, in the person of Jesus Christ. Thus “what” is more than a message – it is a person, and He is the source of true life.
Click here to open a PDF document that explains and visually illustrates the structure of the Prologue.
Purposes of the Prologue
1. Establishes John’s authority.
John claims at be an ear-witness and eye-witness of the revelation of Jesus Christ as the Source of Life. He saw and heard the teachings of Jesus first-hand which gives him authority to speak about what is required to have fellowship with God.
2. Introduces the role of Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the source of Life, Eternal Life, who was with the Father and was revealed to apostolic witnesses like John. He is the way to fellowship with God.
3. States the purpose of John’s letter.
John’s purpose is to explain what he has heard and seen from Jesus Christ so that the readers can experience and enjoy fellowship with God and with each other. True fellowship with God and other believers is only possible through the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
Go back to Book Background
Go back to Book Structure and Outline
Go forward to Verses 1:1-2
Your Personal Study
Read First John 1:1-4 at the top of this post and answer the questions below.
1. The word “what” is used four times in verse 1:1. What or who does this refer to?
2. Is the “what” something that is spirit/spiritual or material/physical? How do you know? Why is this important?
3. What do you think “from the beginning” refers to? The beginning of what?
First John Translation.
First John Translation with Outline and Notes.
Bibliography of source information used for this series of posts.
Title Slide Image Credit: First John in Codex Alexandrinus, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Unless otherwise noted, English translations of Bible verses are by the author from the Greek text and are not quotations from any copyrighted Bible version or translation.
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