What if some of the details in the Gospel of John were designed to remind its original audience of the Scriptures they had recently heard read in the synagogue?
Today, Jewish communities read through the Torah on an annual cycle, beginning each year again in the seventh month of Tishri. But during the first century, Jewish communities in the land of Israel followed a Triennial Torah Reading Cycle, reading through the Torah over three years. Evidence suggests that some communities began the cycle in the month of Nisan.
This ancient reading cycle opens a fascinating window into the Gospel of John.
In this introductory lesson, we explore the work of Aileen Guilding and her book The Fourth Gospel and Jewish Worship. Guilding proposed that many of the themes, images, and even the timing of events in John's Gospel may be connected with the Torah and Haftarah readings being heard in the synagogue.
The story of the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 provides a remarkable example.
When we place the story within the proposed synagogue readings for the month of Shevat (Jan/Feb), an extraordinary collection of connections begins to emerge.
The readings include Exodus 2, where Moses meets his future wife at a well, and Hosea 2, with its powerful promise of Israel's restoration: "In that day...you will call me 'my husband.'"
Suddenly, John's presentation of Jesus as the Bridegroom coming to reclaim his bride becomes even richer.
Another reading takes us directly into the ancient dispute between Jews and Samaritans. Deuteronomy 27:4 instructs Israel in the Masoretic Hebrew tradition to erect an altar on Mount Ebal, while the Samaritan Pentateuch preserves Mount Gerizim—the very mountain at the center of the Samaritan woman's conversation with Jesus:
"Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." — John 4:20
Coincidence? Or is John deliberately weaving the synagogue readings familiar to his audience into the story he is telling?
Join us as we introduce the Triennial Torah Reading Cycle, examine Aileen Guilding's influential theory, and begin exploring how the Torah, the Prophets, Jewish worship, and the Gospel of John may fit together in ways that modern readers often miss.
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www.figtreeministries.org
Lesson Handout: https://www.figtreeteaching.com/blog/the-triennial-torah-cycle-the-hidden-key-to-the-gospel-of-john
Article: https://www.figtreeteaching.com/uploads/1/1/9/7/119763168/fig_tree_ministries_gospel_of_john_and_triennial_synagogue_reading_v2.pdf
Aileen Guilding Life and Work: https://www.academia.edu/2640173/Aileen_Guilding_her_Life_and_her_Work
Book "The Fourth Gospel and Jewish Worship" - https://www.amazon.com/Fourth-Gospel-Jewish-Worship/dp/B0014ZYUPQ/ref=sr_1_1_so_ABIS_BOOK?crid=3MA82I0OEKJ7O&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.91goByv-PHqn0mD5iyA-ffIUPjIJAa4lpB_X8RBpm_Nmv-6l37ocJcPdF8jRtLX385NXjImzokdeV0-_y54_9gDpHZJfw-3RNNXwWs8IdebfpZ30Xd3Ml1IjnkOkz3t16IeQGiLqB9Hoz5D7Gu9ZutwwnH4zR-4Fsip0LKuGofA7148Grl7s1NxG2BTiHNL-MYOGigjjOLwC3iQSSwSu1lSCmS90uIyMQxqr_AgSLQ0.8mqys_ON7zUWnJTxfrvpJs2oqAE-0Jknc2wRLG5caJE&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+fourth+gospel+and+jewish+worship&qid=1787344134&sprefix=the+fourth+gospel+and+jewish+worship%2Caps%2C213&sr=8-1
