This book by reputed scholar Craig Blomberg has become the leader in the field in the unique category of the historical reliability of John’s Gospel. Haven already written “The Historical Reliability of the Gospels”, Mr. Blomberg was right at home in digging deeper into the much beloved Gospel of John.

Part one covering through page 68 is what he calls introductory considerations. It includes topics such as you would find in a traditional Introduction of a major commentary, yet always with an eye to his subject of historical reliability. A skepticism in the matter of historical reliability mars many works in print on the Gospel of John today. It’s wonderful to see a book that upholds that reliability when he discusses authorship, date and provenance, sources, the relationship between John and the Synoptic Gospels, literary genre, and audience and purposes. The final part of this section discusses where he feels the burden of proof lies in what the criteria of authenticity ought to be followed by his sensible suggestion for the way forward.

Part two is a commentary of over 200 pages on the Gospel of John with a focus in every text on the historical data and why it is reliable. To my mind, that makes this short commentary a jewel. It’s a subject that might be ignored in several texts in even major commentaries on the Book of John. In our skeptical age, this commentary helps in an area of one of the strongest onslaughts against the Book of John that we face. Frankly, the value of this commentary exceeds its size.

The commentary is followed by an incredibly detailed bibliography of near 35 pages. All in all, this volume’s attractive cover and economical price makes it an all-around winner.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.