The fourth book of the four gospels; the fourth book of the New Testament; the forty-third book of the Bible.
Author: As with the other Gospels, this book does not specifically name its author. However, internal evidence and early church tradition attribute it to the disciple John, also the author of the book of Revelation and the letters 1, 2, and 3 John. Among the advocates of this view was the early church father Polycarp, who actually knew John personally.
Audience: The Gospel of John was written after the other three, and was one of the last books of the Bible to be written. It seems to be written to those who are already familiar with the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Rather than cover the exact same material, John adds additional details. In particular, John is focused on proving that Jesus Christ is, in fact, God, and that people ought to believe in Him (John 20:31).
Date: Most likely, the Gospel of John was written between AD 85 and 90. Early church fathers always referred to it as “the fourth Gospel,” and it is clearly written by someone who already knows the details given in the other three. Tradition also holds that John wrote this book around the same time as the book of Revelation, when he was already a very old man.