Signs in the Fourth Gospel

Signs in the Fourth Gospel

The signs are a vital part of the Fourth Gospel as a vehicle for its Christology and theology. Gordon Reid unpacks their significance for understanding the Gospel

In the Synoptic Gospels, the writers use the word dunameis (‘act of power’) to describe the miracles of Jesus. In contrast, the author of the Fourth Gospel uses the word semeia (‘signs’) to describe the miracles, implying that it is not the actual miracle that is important, but the meaning behind it. The signs/miracles were acts performed by Jesus to show who he was and to lead people into faith in him. In ‘The Gospel According to John’, Barrett wrote that there were, ‘…clear indications that he by whom the signs are wrought is the Son of God and equal to God himself’.

Jesus himself uses the term erga (‘works’) when referring to the miracles. This comes from Jewish tradition, where miracles are seen as a sign of God’s mighty and saving power. Jesus links God’s work in the past with his own in the present: ‘For the very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me’ (John 5:36).

Yet, despite this, the Gospel writer shows that Jesus hoped that the people would believe without the need for signs. They were, in many ways, a last resort.

‘Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.

John 10:37–38

Indeed, it soon becomes clear that the signs often led not to faith, but to controversy, conflict and condemnation. For instance, when Jesus healed on the Sabbath and claimed himself to be equal to God, he was condemned by the religious authorities:

‘Jesus said to them, ‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.’ For this reason, the Jews tried all the harder to kill him: not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own father, making himself equal with God.

John 5:17–18

Leading up to the feeding

The miracle of turning water into wine (John 2:1–11) at the wedding at Cana is a sign that faith in Jesus replaces Jewish rituals. The incident, taking place ‘on the third day’, is a sign pointing to Jesus’ resurrection 3 days after his death. The words ‘…they have no more wine’ (John 2:3) show that Jewish religious rituals cannot save. Jesus changes the ritual water into the finest wine as a sign that faith in Jesus has replaced the legalism of Judaism.

In his book Understanding the Fourth Gospel (2009), John Ashton argues that the water into wine episode is a sign that the blood (wine) of Christ will lead to eternal life and this is reflected in the messianic banquet where believers would eventually eat and drink with the Messiah. Ashton wrote:

‘This miracle, so different from those that were to come, resembles them in the most important point, for it too suggests…the kind of faith it is designed to inspire: a faith of fulfilment and of transformation, of joy and celebration. ̕̕

The second miracle or sign occurs when Jesus heals the son of an official (John 4:46–54) with the words: ‘You may go. Your son will live’ (John 4:50). The official has faith in Jesus and his words, and does not ask for any more signs or evidence. He goes home to his newly healed son.

The message of the sign is clear — it is the words of Jesus that give life.

The third sign (John 5:1–30) takes place at the pool of Bethesda where Jesus meets a crippled man who has been by the pool for 38 years. Jesus heals him on the Sabbath, and the sign shows that Jesus can bring both physical and spiritual healing. A person who is healed by Christ starts life afresh. The Jewish authorities are angry because the healing is performed on the Sabbath. They question Jesus, and when he tells them plainly of his unique relationship with God (‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working’) the Jews are left in disbelief: ‘I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts’ (5:42).

The feeding and walking on water

At the feeding of the 5,000 (John 5:42), with just five small loaves and two fish, Jesus feeds a great crowd as a precursor to the messianic banquet and the sign of his body on the cross. His disciples gather up 12 baskets of fragments, symbolic of the 12 tribes of Israel. However, the crowd fails to understand the symbolism. They are only concerned with their immediate physical needs and cannot grasp the sign and spiritual significance of Jesus’ action. His teaching was too hard for them and many followers deserted Jesus — not all the signs were successful. In John, the Maverick Gospel, Robert Kysar writes, ‘Wondrous deeds…are not absolute proof, but always ambiguous.’

Perhaps the strangest sign is Jesus walking on the water (John 6:16–24), the authenticity of which has been questioned by scholars. Some have argued that the original Greek wording in 6:19 is epi tes thalasses, meaning ‘on the sea’, though others say it means ‘by the sea’. If the latter is true, then there is no miracle, for Jesus is simply walking on the beach.

However, assuming the validity of the account, it is clear that this is a sign that Jesus does, indeed, have the power of God. He walks on water, calms the storm and leads the terrified disciples to a safe haven. Barrett said this sign was a fulfilment of Psalm 107:29–30:

’ He stilled the storm to a whisper: The waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, And he guided them to their desired haven.

Healing and restoration

Later comes the sign of Jesus bringing light, life and truth into the world (John 9:1–41). Jesus meets a man born blind and, remarkably, says that the man was blind ‘…so that the work of God might be displayed in his life’ (9:3).

It seems as if this sign is almost pre-planned. Jesus restores the man’s sight by spitting into some clay and rubbing the man’s eyes with it. This is symbolic of the way that God created Adam from clay (Genesis 2), and here Jesus is making the blind man into a new person. The sign is clear.

Kysar notes that the blind man receives a new baptism as the waters wash away his blindness — he receives spiritual life and faith in Christ: ‘…the overcoming of blindness is more than a physical healing…blindness suggests darkness, and the healing of blindness, light’.

This miracle takes place on the Sabbath and the sign is totally missed by the Jewish authorities, who can only see Jesus as a sinner: ‘This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath’ (John 9:16). Jesus finds the man and asks him, ‘…do you believe in the Son of Man?’ (9:35). The man understands that Jesus is the Son of Man and worships him — the man has received physical sight and spiritual sight. But the Jewish authorities cannot see the sign because they are spiritually blind, as Jesus reminds them: ‘If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains’ (9:41).

Perhaps the greatest sign is the raising of Lazarus (11:1–44). He has been dead for 4 days before Jesus arrives, but his sister Martha has sufficient faith to believe that Jesus can still do something. She says, ‘But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask’ (11:22).

Martha believes that Jesus is ‘the Christ, the Son of God’ (John 11:27). In contrast, Mary arrives but displays no such faith. Jesus is touched by the crowd’s grief and he weeps (11:35). He encourages them to have faith in him and the power of God:‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ (11:40). Then he orders that the stone be taken away. He prays and cries out for Lazarus to come out. Lazarus rises from the dead and comes out of the tomb. He is physically and spiritually reborn, and Jesus has the power of God to overcome death.

The sign is clear — the raising of Lazarus marks the end of the old Israel and the birth of the new. Lazarus dies as a member of the old Israel and comes back to life through belief in Christ. In his book The Person and Work of Christ (2015), Benjamin Warfield writes that,

‘The raising of Lazarus thus becomes a decisive instance and open symbol of Jesus’ conquest of death and hell.’

The same message

The signs and miracles in the Fourth Gospel all point to the same message — that Jesus is the Son of God and that believing in him is the way to eternal life. As the author of the Fourth Gospel concludes:

‘Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.,

John 20:30– 31

Gordon Reid is a former head of religious studies at Alleyn’s School, London, and is an editor of RELIGIOUS STUDIES REVIEW.