The Book of John

Who wrote John?

The Book of John is one of the four Gospels, the books at the start of the New Testament that tell the story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

The book doesn’t sign its author’s name. Near the end, it says it was written by “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” a close friend of Jesus who saw these events for himself (see John 21:20 to 24). Since the early church, Christians have understood this disciple to be John, the son of Zebedee. He was a fisherman from Galilee who left his nets to follow Jesus and became one of the twelve apostles. Most believe he wrote this Gospel near the end of the first century, when he was an old man.

Why was it written?

John tells us plainly why he wrote it:

John reads a little differently from the other three Gospels. It spends more time on what Jesus said about who He is, such as “I am the bread of life” and “I am the good shepherd.” It also slows down for long, personal conversations: a religious teacher who visits at night, a woman drawing water at a well, two grieving sisters.

New to the Bible? Start here

John is a wonderful first book to read. If you read one chapter a day, you will finish in three weeks. Before you begin, you can simply ask God to help you understand. As you read, notice what Jesus says and does, and how people respond to Him.

These pages use the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), a modern English translation that is accurate and easy to read. Each verse sits on its own line with a small verse number, and every chapter ends with a link to the next one, so you can just keep reading.