The Pericope Adulterae (John 7,53-8,11) has long puzzled scholars due to its contested textual status. Rayan J. Lobo shows that it can nonetheless be read meaningfully within its literary context as part of the Gospel of John - as a wisdom tale rooted in oral tradition and a Jewish trial of Jesus that summarizes John 7-8.
John 7,53-8,11, known as the Pericope Adulterae (PA), is well known for its problematic textual history, which includes questions about its authenticity and its place within the Gospel of John. While previous studies on PA have largely limited themselves to the examination of the textual status of PA or to the interpretation of a few verses from PA, Rayan J. Lobo demonstrates that the entire Pericope Adulterae can be read within its current literary context and understood in a meaningful way as part of the Gospel of John. He employs both synchronic and diachronic methods, focusing on the origin, form, and interpretation of PA, as well as its role in Jn 7-8. In doing so, the author systematically demonstrates that the roots of PA lie in the oral tradition, that it follows the literary form of wisdom tales, and that it must be interpreted as a Jewish trial of Jesus.
Rayan J. Lobo
Born 1984; 2025 Doctor of Theology from Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule Sankt Georgen, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Christology diachronic analysis Feast of Tabernacles Gospel of John intertextual reading Jewish trial Johannine exegesis John 7:53-8:11 narrative criticism oral tradition Pericope Adulterae synchronic analysis textual history trial narrative wisdom tale