supported that this is an eyewitness account of the event, even though some scholars place the authorship of John as late as 270 BCE. Most of the evidence that points to the "eyewitness account" theory are minor details that would be left out had the author not actually been there. Such details include specific numbers (six water jars [2:6], 100 miles [6:19], 153 fish [21:11] [Malick, 1996]) and names that would normally have been forgotten such as Nicodemus, Lazarus (as can be noted from the lack of his story in the synoptic gospels) and Beth-zatha. It is also interesting to note that even though John makes it very clear that the author is Jewish, the Gospel is written primarily for a Greek audience. Because of his knowledge of the Old Testament, which he continually quotes, his understanding of Jewish ritual and culture and he knew and understood the prophesy of the coming Messiah, there is no doubt that either John was Jewish himself or he studied Judaism very well. However, the lack of concern for proving the prophecies set down in the Book of Isaiah supports evidence that this was not a testimony to a Jewish audience. Throughout the gospel, Jesus is shown as being both fully God and fully human, a concept that is more synonymous with Greek culture. Also, the very beginning of John states that Jesus was with God since the creation: "He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being" (1:2-3). This puts Jesus as a very cosmic and powerful being as opposed to the suffering servant that he is portrayed as being in the synoptic gospels. It is also interesting to note that the crucifixion is described in such a way so as to be appealing to a Greek audience. The notion of the saviour being sentenced to a criminal's death is less than inviting to an audience that believes that all gods are immortal. Not only that, but also the idea that the person could die is...
