This radically new, three-volume commentary by Urban von Wahlde on the Gospel and letters of John is the most detailed study of the composition of the Johannine literature ever put forth by an American scholar.

Perhaps more than any other New Testament book, the Gospel of John has been read and used by Christians in every age, and for the greatest variety of purposes. Nearly all of the problems confronted by those who study John have to do with the literary strata of the Gospel of John and their relation to the composition of John's letters.

Exhibiting an archaeologist's precision and engaging a whole range of scholarly contributions in this area, von Wahlde digs down to the foundations and exposes three distinct literary strata in the development of the Johannine tradition. This first and foundational volume gives detailed evidence identifying and listing the criteria for each stratum.

Including the first-ever history of the development of Johannine theology, this commentary is a major breakthrough in the study of John's Gospel and his three letters.