1:1–18. The prologue

If any given passage in the Gospel is of special import, it is the prologue. As the introduction to the whole work, it shapes the expectations with which a reader will approach the Gospel as a whole. The prologue thus merits more extended treatment in this commentary than some following passages, because the conclusions of our examination of this thematic introduction will affect our reading of the Gospel as a whole. Our analysis will indicate that the writer introduces the Gospel on a note of high Christology, presumably to address the conflict with the synagogues. Whereas some synagogue leaders maintain that the Johannine believers» Christology undermines Torah, the Fourth Gospel responds that Jesus is Wisdom, the full embodiment of Torah, made flesh (1:17).