The Parable of Joy: Reflections on the Wisdom of the Book of John

Michael Card's book follows the book of John chapter by chapter and explains several customs and details that are often overlooked. Interesting, insightful, highly recommended!

Michael does a great job looking into the Gospel of John. Using his 'own' translation, he intersperses footnoted commentary with a imaginative narrative style that really helps you visualize the scene. We've used a couple of his books for a small group bible study over the past year; solid teaching to match his fine, bible-centered music.

I thought it would be a typical gospel text, but it really highlighted how radical the gospel of Jesus was and is. Card's writing is not a fictional story that wraps itself around the gospel of Jesus...but a fluid exposition incorporating the historical cultural practices and attitudes of the time, which adds a level of depth and enjoyment to the reading of the biblical text. In fact, I enjoyed reading it so much the first time, that after losing my copy, I am buying a second one to share.

This book is an in-depth look at the gospel of John. Each chapter begins with a translated passage from the gospel, then goes into commentary or reflective writing - some of which imagines the events as they could have been, not necessarily as they were. When I first read this book some years ago, it made John my favorite of the gospels and infused my thinking about Jesus with all kinds of wonderful images. According to the introduction, John wrote his gospel last, after the others had been circulated for many years, and when he was an old man. Rather than tell all about Jesus' life, John selects the very few instances that stand out in his own mind to illustrate who Jesus was and why He came. What Jesus did was well-known; John focused on the meaning of His life. For instance, whereas Luke starts with the events before the Christmas story and Matthew with a geneology of Christ, John starts out with "In the beginning was the Word..." and "the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us." This book made the gospel of John more vivid and more dear to me, and in so doing, enlightened my vision of the rest of the Bible, too. It is a great book for reflection and study - and it is a joy.

Michael Card gives us insight into the historical and social context of John's Gospel while keeping it winsome and poetical. He tells the story of John's gospel so we gain insight into the place and time of the writer as well as the characters he introduces us to. Well worth the reading and a good resource for study.