Scripture Readings - John

Gospel of Saint John

This Gospel, by the Beloved Disciple, speaks of the Mystery of the Person of Jesus. He is like other men, yet quite unlike them, for He was the Son of God. He was eternally present with God, active in creating the world, and was the source of the moral and spiritual nature of man (life and light). When He became man, He made known the eternal God Whom no one has ever seen (John 1:14,18). St. John records real events, but goes beyond the other Evangelists in interpreting them. He uses symbols from common experience bread, water, light, life, shepherd, door, etc. as well as contrasts light and darkness, truth and lies, love and hatred, etc. to make the meaning of Christ clear. For this reason he is aptly called by the Church the Theologian.

The Gospel is divided in the following manner: Prologue (Ch. 1:1-18 In the beginning was the Word…); Jesus Christ as the object of Faith (Ch. 1:19-4:54); Conflicts with unbelievers (Ch. 5-12); Fellowship with believers (Ch. 13-17 (14-17 are generally known as the Farewell Discourses)); Death and Resurrection (Ch. 18-20); and (Ch. 21) An Epilogue.

The Gospel of St. John is read liturgically from Pascha until Pentecost Sunday. This Gospel is read sequentially, for the most part, for the fifty day. There are, however, several exceptions to the sequential daily reading. On three days, the Gospel lessons are taken from other Gospels:

  • On Bright Tuesday, from Luke
  • On the Sunday of the Myrrhbearers, from Mark
  • On Ascension Day, from Luke

Sunday readings: The Gospel lessons on the Sundays during this period (except the Sunday of the Myrrhbearers) are all taken from John, but they do not follow any particular sequence. On certain other days during the fifty-day period, the strict sequential reading from John is broken.

Reading Read Time Hit Count
John 1:1-17 (Sunday of Holy Pascha) 1 min 6,812
John 1:18-28 (BRIGHT MONDAY) 1 min 5,572
John 1:29-34 (Forerunner) 1 min 5,237
John 1:35-51 (BRIGHT WEDNESDAY) 2 mins 5,929
John 1:43-51 (1st Sunday of Great Lent) 1 min 5,965
John 2:1-11 (2nd Monday after Pascha) 1 min 5,546
John 2:12-22 (BRIGHT FRIDAY) 1 min 5,251
John 3:1-15 (Bright Thursday) 2 mins 5,040
John 3:13-17 (Sunday Before Elevation of the Cross) 1 min 3,040
John 3:16-21 (2nd Tuesday after Pascha) 1 min 5,179
John 3:22-33 (BRIGHT SATURDAY) 1 min 6,843
John 4:5-42 (5th Sunday after Pascha) 4 mins 5,378
John 4:46-54 (3rd Monday after Pascha) 1 min 5,063
John 5:1-4 (At the Blessing of Waters) 1 min 4,101
John 5:1-15 (4th Sunday after Pascha) 2 mins 4,987
John 5:17-24 (2nd Wednesday after Pascha) 1 min 4,759
John 5:17-24 (For the departed – Monday) 1 min 4,136
John 5:24-30 (7th Saturday of Pascha) 1 min 8,279
John 5:30-47; 6:1-2 (2nd Friday after Pascha) 2 mins 4,782
John 6:5-14 (5th Wednesday after Pascha) 1 min 5,009
John 6:14-27 (2nd Saturday of Pascha) 2 mins 5,803
John 6:27-33 (3rd Tuesday after Pascha) 1 min 4,964
John 6:35-39 (3rd Wednesday after Pascha) 1 min 5,036
John 6:35-39 (For the departed – Wednesday) 1 min 4,536