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the chapter of John's Gospel

John 1 is the first chapter in the Gospel of John in the New Testament of the Holy Bible. The author of the book containing this chapter is John that composed this gospel.

The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 51 verses.

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.|John 1:5, New King James Version
English translations of this verse often translate the Greek κατελαβεν as 'understanding' (such as in the New King James Version), but in other translations the meaning is given in terms of a struggle between darkness and light: "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" (Revised Standard Version).

Verse 6 introduces "a man sent from God, whose name was John". Joseph Benson notes that the name "John" means 'grace': "a name fitly given to the Messiah's forerunner, who was sent to proclaim the immediate accomplishment of God's gracious intentions". Theologians differ in their interpretation of these verses. Wesley viewed "in the world" as meaning "even from the creation", whereas in Albert Barnes' opinion, "He was in the world[ ] refers, probably, not to his pre existence, but to the fact that he became incarnate; that he dwelt among human beings".

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.|John 1:14, KJV

The word flesh is emphasized as a 'symbol of humanity', drawing the attention to "the entry of the Word into the full flow of human affairs".

For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.|John 1:17, NKJV

The incarnate Word's name is first mentioned in this verse; thereafter "John never uses the noun λόγος, the word, in this signification, throughout this whole book".

The first appearance of the "disciple whom Jesus loved" in this Gospel is as one of the two disciples of John the Baptist who become the first followers of Jesus, but this is indicated in a subtle way. Bauckham notes the occurrence of at least two specific words in the narratives of both the first and the last appearance of this disciple: "to follow" (Greek: '') and "to remain/stay" (Greek: , ''). In verse it is stated that "Jesus turned, and seeing them following ('akolouthountas'), said to them, "What do you seek? "", then in verse they "remained ('emeinan') with Him that day". In the last chapter of the Gospel, the last appearance of the 'Disciple whom Jesus loved' is indicated using similar words: in verse it is written that "Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following ('akolouthounta')", then in verse "Jesus said to him [Peter], "If I will that he remain ('menein') till I come, what is that to you?" Bauckham sees the placement of the appearances of the disciple as "the inclusio of eyewitness testimony" to privilege his witness (in the Gospel of John ) over Peter's, not to denigrate Peter's authority, but rather to claim a distinct qualification as an 'ideal witness' to Christ, because he survives Peter and bears his witness after Peter. The inclusio also reinforces the Beloved Disciple's unique status among the disciples: He has followed and remained with Jesus from beginning to end. The appearances are also close to Peter's, as the first one, along with Andrew, happened just before Peter's, who was then given the name 'Cephas' (alluding Peter's role after Jesus' departure), and the last one, just after Jesus' dialogue with Peter, acknowledging the significance of Peter's testimony within "the Petrine's inclusio", which is also found in the Gospel of Mark and Luke (see Luke 8 under "The Women who sustained Jesus").

In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church and in Western Rite Orthodoxy, the chapter's first fourteen verses are known as the "Last Gospel", as they are recited at the end of the Tridentine Mass (or "Extraordinary Form") of the Mass. This is distinct from the Proclamation of the Gospel that occurs much earlier in the service. After reciting the dismissal formula Ite Missa est, the priest reads the Last Gospel in Latin from the altar card to their left. Instead of touching the text with his thumb and then making the small Sign of the Cross as at the Gospel reading, he instead touches the altar. At the beginning of verse 14, Et Verbum caro factum est ("And the Word became flesh"), the priest and attending servers genuflect. Any congregants present, who remain standing for the reading, would kneel at this point, responding with Deo gratias ("Thanks be to God") at its conclusion. This ritual began as a private devotion for the priest after Mass. It is not part of the 1969 Mass of Paul VI (known as the "Ordinary Form" and widely used today) that was introduced after the Second Vatican Council. The Prologue to St. John's Gospel, 1:1 18, is read on Christmas Day at the principal Mass during the day in the Roman Catholic Church, a tradition that dates back at least to the 1570 Roman Missal. In the Church of England, following the Book of Common Prayer (1662), St. John 1:1 14 is appointed to be read on Christmas Day. This tradition has been maintained in the Episcopal Church (United States) in its Book of Common Prayer beginning in 1789. In the Book of Common Prayer (1928) and Book of Common Prayer (1979), St. John 1:1 14 is appointed as the Gospel lesson for the principal celebration on Christmas Day. The Revised Common Lectionary provides three sets of Propers for Christmas, with John 1:1 14 assigned in Proper III, intended for use at the principal celebration on Christmas Day.

The King James Version of verse 29 from this chapter is cited as texts in the English language oratorio "Messiah" by George Frideric Handel (HWV 56).