The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (113 page)

1:5 light . . . darkness:
Symbolic of the struggle between good and evil (1 Jn 2:8-11). Jesus himself is the true light (1:9) that drives away death, deception, and the devil (1 Jn 3:8). Other contrasts in the Gospel include flesh and Spirit (3:6), truth and falsehood (8:44-45), heaven and earth (3:31), and life and death (5:24). 
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1:6 John:
John the Baptist, who fulfilled a divine mission to Israel (1:31) but was not the divine Messiah (1:20). Emphasis on John's subordinate role to Jesus runs throughout the Fourth Gospel, suggesting that one of the aims of the evangelist is to win over the remaining band of John's disciples who had not yet accepted Jesus (3:25-30; 5:36; 10:41). Support for this is found in Acts 19:1-7, where we learn that a contingent of John's followers lived in Ephesus—the same city that tradition links with the publication of the Fourth Gospel. See introduction:
Author.
 
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1:10 the world:
One of several concepts in John with multiple meanings. The world can refer
(1)
to the universe created by God (1:10),
(2)
to the fallen family of man in need of redemption (3:17),
(3)
and to the sphere of the devil that opposes God and hates the truth (15:18-20). 
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Word Study

Word
(
Jn 1:1
)

Logos
(Gk.): "word", "statement", or "utterance". The term is used 330 times in the NT. The background of this concept in John is both philosophical and biblical.
(1)
Ancient Greek philosophers associated the Word with the order and design of the universe or with the intelligible expression of the mind of God as he sustains and governs it.
(2)
In biblical tradition the Word is the powerful utterance of God that brought all things into being at the dawn of time (Gen 1:3; Ps 33:6; Wis 9:1).
(3)
Another biblical tradition links the Word of God with the Wisdom of God, who was depicted as God's eternal companion (Prov 8:23; Sir 24:9), the craftsman who labored alongside God at creation (Prov 8:30; Wis 7:22), and the one who remains a source of life for the world (Prov 8:35). John, it seems, has pulled these traditions together to say something entirely new: the Word of God is not so much an abstract principle or an audible power as it is a Divine Person: God the Son (Rev 19:13). This eternal Word, once a mediator of creation, has now become a mediator of salvation through his Incarnation (Jn 1:14; 3:17).

1:11 received him not:
Jesus' ministry to Israel was often resisted and sometimes rejected (8:56-59; 10:31; Lk 4:2830). 
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1:12 believed in his name:
i.e., believed that Jesus is the Messiah of Israel and the eternal Son of God (20:31; 1 Jn 5:1, 13). Names are inseparable from persons in Semitic thinking. So, for instance, the Lord himself is invoked when his name is called upon in worship (Gen 4:26; 12:8) and when covenants are ratified by swearing an oath in his name (Gen 21:23; 24:3).
children of God:
By the grace of divine generation we are filled with divine life and reborn as sons and daughters of the Father (1 Jn 3:1, 9). This transformation requires faith and takes place in Baptism (3:5-8; Gal 3:26-27) (CCC 2780-82). 
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1:13 not of blood . . . flesh . . . man:
Three means or processes that bring about natural birth into the world, i.e., women, the sexual impulse, and men. John is stressing that natural birth does not establish us in a supernatural relationship with God. • A similar cluster of ideas is found in Wis 7:1-2, where human existence is said to depend on the blood of prenatal gestation, the pleasure of marital relations, and the seed of man. 
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1:14 the Word became flesh:
Asserts the mystery of the Incarnation. It means that Christ, who is fully divine, eternal, and equal in being with the Father, came from heaven to earth and entered history as a man. The word "flesh" signifies all that is natural, earthly, and human (3:6; 6:63; 1 Jn 4:2) (CCC 423, 456-63).
dwelt among us:
The Greek means that Jesus "tabernacled" or "pitched his tent" among us (Rev 21:3). • John is making a link between the Incarnation of Jesus and the erection of the wilderness Tabernacle in the OT (Ex 25:89). The Tabernacle, once the architectural expression of Yahweh's presence in Israel, is a prophetic image of Jesus dwelling in our midst as a man. Likewise, as the Wisdom of God once tabernacled in Israel in the Torah of Moses (Sir 24:8), so Jesus is the embodiment of divine Wisdom in the flesh (1 Cor 1:24). See word study:
Word.
grace and truth:
Equivalent to the "mercy and faithfulness" of God celebrated in the OT (Ex 34:6; Ps 25:10; 89:1; Prov 20:28; CCC 214).
his glory:
The magnificence of God's presence and Being once visible in the fiery cloud that indwelt the wilderness Tabernacle (Ex 40:3435) and later the Jerusalem Temple (1 Kings 8:10-11). The glory of Christ is veiled behind his humanity and becomes visible only when he manifests it through his miracles (2:11; 11:40) (CCC 697). 
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1:15 ranks before me . . . was before me:
The preeminence of Jesus over John is deduced from his preexistence. Although his ministry followed that of John, his life with the Father predated the foundations of the world itself (1:1; 8:58; 17:5). 
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1:16 grace upon grace:
Or "grace in place of grace". As implied in the next verse, the graces of the Old Covenant have been superseded by the blessings of the New (1:17; CCC 504). 
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1:18 No one has ever seen God:
God is pure spirit and thus invisible to human eyes (4:24; 1 Tim 6:16). Even still, the face of the Father can be seen in the face of Christ, who is the visible image of the invisible God (14:9; Col 1:15). Only in eternity will we see God as he truly is (1 Cor 13:12) (CCC 151).
the only-begotten Son:
A significant textual variant reads "God, the only begotten", which directly asserts the deity of Jesus. The reading followed in the translation can
(1)
refer to the eternal generation of Christ within the Trinity or
(2)
mean "unique" and "precious", as Isaac was the beloved of his father, Abraham (Heb 11:17) (CCC 444). 
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1:19 Jews:
The term has a geographical tint and can sometimes be translated "Judeans". It has negative connotations in the Fourth Gospel because Jesus encounters great resistance in Judea (4:43-44) from the Judean leaders of Jerusalem who orchestrate his death (11:47-53; 19:12-16). The term is not a derogatory epithet directed at ethnic Jews in general; after all, Jesus was a Jew, as was his Mother, his disciples, and most of the earliest Christians (CCC 597).
See note on Jn 4:47
. 
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1:20 the Christ:
i.e., the Messiah (1:41). See word study:
Christ
at Mk 14. 
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1:21 Elijah?:
Israel anticipated the return of the prophet Elijah. • Malachi foretold that Elijah would make final preparations for the arrival of Israel's messianic Lord (Sir 48:10; Mal 4:5). John is not Elijah come again in the flesh, but he fulfills his mission in spirit (Lk 1:17) (CCC 718).
See note on Mk 9:11
.
the prophet?:
Israel awaited the coming of a prophet in the likeness of Moses. • That the authorities question whether John is
the
prophet and not simply
a
prophet suggests they are thinking of this Mosaic figure foretold in Deut 18:15-19. John is not the messianic prophet; it is Jesus who fulfills this role as the new Moses (4:20-26; 6:14; 7:40). 
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1:23 I am the voice:
A quotation from Is 40:3.
See note on Lk 3:4-6
. 
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1:24 the Pharisees:
The influential leaders of a Jewish renewal movement in NT Palestine. They are fierce opponents of Jesus and his message (7:45-53). See topical essay:
Who Are the Pharisees?
at Mk 2. 
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1:26 I baptize with water:
The water baptism of John is merely a sign of the sacramental Baptism of Jesus. The former signified our need for cleansing and renewal; the latter effects this by an infusion of the grace and new life of the Spirit (Acts 2:38; Tit 3:5) (CCC 720, 1262). 
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1:28 Bethany:
An unknown location east of the Jordan River (10:40). It is distinct from the Judean village of Bethany near Jerusalem (11:18). 
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1:29 Lamb of God:
Points to the sacrificial dimension of I Jesus' mission. • This was
prefigured
by the Passover lambs of the Exodus, whose blood was a mark of divine protection for Israel and whose flesh was eaten in a liturgical meal (Ex 12:1-27), and
prophesied
by Isaiah, who portrayed the suffering Messiah as an innocent lamb slain for the sins of others (Is 53:7-12; CCC 608). See notes on Jn 12:32 and 19:36. 
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1:32 the Spirit descend as a dove:
The Baptism of Jesus, which initiates his manifestation to Israel (1:31) and prefigures the effects of sacramental Baptism (3:1-13). See notes on Mt 3:15 and Mk 1:10.
remain:
The Greek expression is used often in John (also translated "dwell" or "abide") for the enduring bond between the Father and Son (14:10; 15:10) and for the indwelling of the Trinity in the believer (6:56; 14:17; 15:4-7). 
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1:35 two of his disciples:
One of these is identified as "Andrew" (1:40), while the other is probably the evangelist himself. See introduction:
Author.
 
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1:39 the tenth hour:
About 4
P.M.
See note on Mt 20:1
. 
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1:41 the Messiah:
A rendering of the Hebrew word for "Anointed One". This title is rendered into Greek as
Christ
(4:25). See word study:
Christ
at Mk 14. 
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