14 [1:1 3] The First Epistle of John: Chapter One

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1 Chapter What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Yeshua Messiah. As noted in the introduction, 1John, which is typically referred to (both in ancient times as well as modern) as an epistle (a letter), does not begin as we might expect. When compared with the Pauline epistles, we see a stark contrast. The author does not identify himself, nor does he identify those to whom he is writing, and the customary words of greeting are lacking. Yet as we read 1John we are immediately aware of the fact that the author knows his readers well, for he repeatedly refers to them as his children, beloved ones, and brothers. 1 He also indicates that he belongs to their community (2:19) and he speaks as one who has authority, who was an eyewitness of the risen Yeshua and presents Himself as a close companion of the Lord during His earthly journey. We find a similar issue with the book of Hebrews, where the author does not identify himself nor does he identify those to whom he is sending the epistle. But a difference is also noted, in that the Greek of Hebrews is far more aligned with the style characteristic of classical Greek with its well structured sentences, while in our epistle the Greek tends more toward a Semitic Greek with many coordinated clauses that are short and regularly connected by the conjunction and (like the use of the conjunction vav in earlier biblical Hebrew). Verse 2 is a good example of this: and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us (NASB) We do well, then, as we study the epistle of 1John, to consider that even as John was writing his epistle in the Greek language, he does so in a manner which manifests his own Semitic way of constructing clauses and sentences. What was from the beginning (ὅ ἦν ἀπ ἀρχῆς) The parallel to the opening of the Fourth Gospel is obvious: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (Jn 1:1). But though the parallel to the Fourth Gospel is easily seen by the word ἀρχή (arxē, beginning ) 1 children ( 2:1, 12, 28; 3:7, 18; 4:4; 5:21); beloved ones (2:7; 3:2, 21; 4:1, 7, 11); brothers (3:13, cp. 2:9-11; 3:10, 12, 14 17; 4:20-21; 5:16). 13

2 14 [1:1 3] The First Epistle of John: Chapter One in the opening clause of both books, there is another, more subtle aspect that marks them as parallel, and that strengthens the conclusion that both the Fourth Gospel and 1John were written by the same author. This aspect is the common literary device John employs in both books, namely, that a direct reference to Yeshua as the primary topic or subject is not given in the initial sentences, but comes later in the opening of each book. Indeed, in the Fourth Gospel, Yeshua is not specifically named until the end of the Prologue: For the Torah was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Yeshua Messiah (1:17). Add to this that Yeshua does not come onto the stage until 1:29, and He does not speak until 1:38, 1 and it is clear that in using this literary device, John builds interest and literary tension which would pull the reader in to know more about the One Who is being described in the opening but not specifically named until later. The same literary device, though in a much shortened fashion, is employed by John in our epistle. In the opening clause of the epistle (Ὃ ἦν ἀπ ἀρχῆς), we see the neuter relative pronoun heads the clause, and thus the usual translation What was from the beginning. And, John continues to use the neuter relative pronoun three more times in the first verse: what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, So the initial question that John intentionally intends his readers to ask is obvious: to what are you referring, John? And he does not give us a direct answer to our question until we read further and come to the subject of the matter in the following verses, namely, [we] proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Yeshua Messiah (vs. 2b, 3b). Thus, the use of the neuter gender relative pronouns in the opening verse refer to the message of the Apostles, John being the last surviving Apostle of the Twelve and thus the final voice of those who walked so closely with Yeshua in His public ministry and who were eyewitnesses of His teaching, the miracles He performed, His death, His triumphant resurrection, and His ascension to the Father. The following paraphrase of v. 1 helps to show the manner in which the clauses relate in terms of grammar and syntax. Here is our own testimony which we announce to you concerning the Word of life, and our testimony incorporates that which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our own eyes, that which we have examined and our own hands have handled. What was from the beginning (ὅ ἦν ἀπ ἀρχῆς) If the parallel to the Fourth Gospel is emphasized in seeking to derive John s meaning of from the beginning in this opening verse, then it would seem quite clear that he is using beginning to mean before time began, i.e., from eternity. This understanding 1 Martin M. Culy, Jesus Friend of God, Friend of His Followers: Echos of Friendship in the Fourth Gospel, Ph.D. diss., (Baylor Univ. 2002), p. 138.

3 The First Epistle of John: Chapter One [1:1 3] 15 of the word beginning would be reinforced in v. 2 when John writes that the Word of Life was with the Father (ἧν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα), which utilizes the same construction as in Jn 1:1, and the Word was with God (ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν). Moreover, in 2:13 of our epistle the phrase the One from the beginning (τὸν ἀπ ἀρχῆς) describes Yeshua. So clearly John could have eternity in view when he begins his epistle with the notice that he, together with his fellow Apostles, were witnesses of the eternal Son of God. But another possibility presents itself for understanding the phrase what is from the beginning, that the Apostles were witnesses of Yeshua s life from the beginning of His public ministry. 1 This would coincide with the subject of John s opening being the testimony he was announcing to his readers, namely, that the Twelve were with Yeshua from the beginning of His public teaching and works. We do find the word beginning (αρχή, arxē) used in this way in the Gospels. The beginning of the gospel of Yeshua Messiah, the Son of God. (Mk 1:1) When He began His ministry, Yeshua Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli, (Lk 3:23) Likewise, in Luke s recounting of the Apostolic ministry following the ascension of our Messiah, and describing the testimony and message of Peter on the day of Shavuot, he writes: Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Yeshua went in and out among us beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection. (Acts 1:21 22) In my opinion, there is no reason to have to decide between the two interpretations. Both may well have been in the mind of John as he wrote the opening words of this epistle. Surely the opening emphasizes John and his fellow Apostles as eyewitnesses of Yeshua, from the very beginning of His public ministry. But at the same time, John clearly emphasizes that Yeshua, having been sent by the Father and having been with the Father from the beginning, is Himself eternal, without beginning or end, and thus is one with the Father in the mystery of the Godhead. The point is this: John affirms the incarnation of God in the person of Yeshua, Who is Immanuel. As Yarbourgh notes: The first point is that in Jesus Christ what is eternal and transcendent has become palpably immanent. In other words, John affirms the incarnation. Transcendence or eternality is implied by the words what was from the beginning (1:1). 2 1 A proponent of this view is Raymond E. Brown, The Epistle of John in Albright and Freedman, eds., The Anchor Bible, vol. 30 (Doubleday, 1982), pp [Hereafter Brown, 1John] 2 Robert Yarbough, 1John in Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Baker Pub., 2008), p. 34.

4 16 [1:1 3] The First Epistle of John: Chapter One what we have heard John makes it clear that he is giving not only his own testimony as witness, but that he speaks for the whole circle of disciples, the Twelve, who ministered together with Yeshua. Interestingly, the verb we have heard (ἀκηκόαμεν, akēkoamen) and the next verb we have seen (ἑωράκαμεν, heōrakamen) are in the perfect tense/aspect in the Greek, which emphasizes that what the Apostles heard and saw as first-hand witnesses, they continue to proclaim. 1 The primary point that John emphasizes here, however, is that they did not hear Yeshua s teachings in the sense of someone telling them what Yeshua taught and said. Rather, they listened directly and immediately to Yeshua and were commissioned by Him to tell others what they had heard. Further, since there were twelve of them, their witness is valid, being confirmed by multiple witnesses. Thus, when they write their testimony, being superintended by the Ruach, and their words being endowed by the inspiration of the Ruach, we can trust that their testimony and witness is true and that which we must follow if we are to walk in the footsteps of our Messiah, Yeshua. Regarding the witness of John to the historical Yeshua, Dodd writes: [The author, John] is stating what has always been true of the gospel. His witness, unlike that of his opponents, represented neither innovation nor afterthought. Moreover his witness was based on the immediate evidence of the senses. It does not represent airy speculation or fabricated fable. 2 what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at Keeping in mind the purpose of John to combat nascent and rising Gnosticism, he states directly that he and the other disciples saw Yeshua with their own eyes. They did not see an image or some apparition whose voice they heard but whose body they could not see. They saw the incarnate Messiah, the One Who was born as a babe in Bethlehem, Who grew up along with others in His community, and Who had a physical, human body. The second clause, what we have looked at, utilizes a different word than the previous clause. We have seen translates ἑωράκαμεν (heōrakamen) from the verb ὁράω (horaō). The phrase what we have looked at, however, utilizes a different verb, θεάομαι (theaomai), which generally has the sense of to look intently, to take something in with one s own eyes. 3 What is more, the verb in this clause is in the aorist tense, which would emphasize what took place historically when the disciples were ministering with Yeshua. Together it seems clear that John s meaning is this: they not only were witnesses of the incarnate, physical person of Yeshua, but they also contemplated or even scrutinized (looked very carefully and intently) Him to ascertain whether or not He matched the description of Israel s prophets who prophesied about the coming One. There may be yet another important nuance to John s choice of the verb 1 Some commentators do not see this as significant since, in their estimation, at times in Koine Greek the perfect and aorist tenses can do similar duty. See, e.g., Stephen Smalley, 1, 2, 3 John in the Word Biblical Commentary (Word, 1984), p C. H. Dodd, The Johannine Epistles, (Hodder and Stoughton, 1946), p See BDAG, θεάομαι.

5 The First Epistle of John: Chapter One [1:1 3] 17 theaomai. If we look in the Fourth Gospel at the times John uses this verb, we may note an interesting pattern. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. (Jn 1:14) John testified saying, I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. (John 1:32) The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Yeshua. And Yeshua turned and saw them following, and said to them, What do you seek? They said to Him, Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying? (Jn 1:37 38) Do you not say, There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. (John 4:35) Therefore Yeshua, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat? This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. (John 6:5 6) Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him. (John 11:45) What is significant about these texts in which John uses the verb θεάομαι (theaomai) is that in each one there is a sense of seeing the spiritual significance of the event. John uses the verb [1] when he relates seeing Yeshua s glory [2] when he saw the Ruach descending as a dove at Yeshua s mikvah in the Jordan [3] when John relates that Yeshua saw two disciples following Him whom He had already chosen to be members of the twelve (i.e., Andrew and Peter) [4] when Yeshua uses the fields white for harvest as illustrative of the need to take the Gospel to the nations. [5] when Jews who had come to Mary recognize that Yeshua s power to raise Lazarus from the dead established beyond doubt that He was the promised Messiah, and they believed in Him. If, in fact, John s use of the verb theaomai in the Fourth Gospel helps identify his intended meaning in our epistle, then his testimony that the Twelve looked intently (theaomai) may indicate spiritual perception as well. John seems to be emphasizing that they were not only witnesses to the physical reality of Yeshua but were also given the spiritual ability to receive what they experienced as true, a truth that led them to exercise saving faith in Yeshua. and touched with our hands Once again, the humanity of Yeshua is clearly affirmed by John and his fellow Apostles. Contrary to the heretical teaching of the Gnostics, Yeshua is fully human. His body was not some kind of mirage or ethereal vision.

6 18 [1:1 3] The First Epistle of John: Chapter One The mystery of the incarnation cannot be solved by diminishing either the full humanity or the full divinity of our Savior. The mystery of the incarnation must be received by faith as the blessed and gracious reality of our God Whose thoughts and ways are beyond us. For who has known the mind of the lord, that he will instruct him? But we have the mind of Messiah. (1Cor 2:16) concerning the Word of Life The testimony or witness which John gives in this epistle has one primary focus: the Word of life (περὶ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ζωῆς). Some feel that the preposition περί (peri), the Greek word translated concerning, requires that John has the the message which brings life, i.e., the Gospel, in mind and not the incarnate Yeshua. Thus Westcott paraphrases the line as the message of life, or, according to the more modern idiom, the revelation of life. 1 While this interpretation is possible, one cannot help but hear the words of John in the Prologue of the Fourth Gospel when he refers to the Word as life itself: In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men (Jn 1:4). Given the fact that John is known referring to Yeshua as the Word (λόγος, logos, cf. Jn 1:1, 14; Rev 19:13), it seems very likely that he intended his readers to understand that he was using Word in the same way as he opened this epistle. The fact that Yeshua is the Word indicates clearly that He came to reveal the Father and thus to make known the truth about the Father and His will. He did this by speaking God s words with absolute authority (Matt 24:35; Mk 13:31; Lk 21:33) and thus revealing the will of God because He testifies [to man] to what He has seen and heard (Jn 3:32) in the presence of God. But He not only reveals the message of life, He also possesses that life within Himself and sovereignly gives life to those who are His. Yeshua said to her, I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies. (Jn 11:25) Yeshua said to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. (Jn 14:6) Thus, Yeshua is both the revealer of the message (i.e., the word) regarding life as God intends, and the Giver of life to all who accept Him as the Word and as the One Who alone is the source of life eternal. We see, then, that in the opening verse of this epistle, John has emphasized two primary realities: [1] Yeshua is the incarnate, human Messiah promised by the prophets of Israel, and this is verified by eyewitnesses who heard Him, saw Him, touched Him, and thoroughly examined His words and actions. [2] Yeshua is the incarnate, divine Messiah Who has no beginning and no end; Who is eternally One with the Father, equal in time (eternal), holiness (supreme), and power (infinite). 1 Brooke Foss Westcott, The Epistles of St John (Eerdmans, 1966), p. 6 [Hereafter Westcott, 1John]