What has just been said regarding the object of the Gospel will enable us to form a general conception of its plan. It must be carefully borne in mind that St. John did not intend to write a Life of Christ, nor to give a general view of His teaching, nor to compile a work on the general history of his own times. His main object was to prove that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God; and the various parts of the Gospel are carefully disposed with a view to this end. Out of the vast mass of materials at his disposal (xxi. 25; xx. 30) he selects such incidents, such miracles and discourses of our Lord, as are best suited to the attainment of this special purpose. In accordance with this view, we subjoin a brief outline of the _plan_ of the Gospel. I. 1‐18. *The Prologue.* The Word in His absolute, eternal Being; in His relation to creation generally, and to the spiritual enlightenment and sanctification of man; His incarnation. I. 19‐XXI. 23. _The Narrative_, which divides itself naturally into two parts:— (_a_) I. 19‐XII. 50. Manifestation of Christ’s Divinity in His _Public Life_— By the testimony of the Baptist. By the testimony of His disciples. By the testimony of His miracles. By the testimony of His discourses. (_b_) XIII. 1‐XXI. 23. Manifestation of Christ’s Divinity in His last discourses, and in His passion, death, resurrection, and risen life. XXI. 24, 25. *The Epilogue*, in which the beloved disciple testifies that he is the author of the Gospel, and that what he has written is true, though incomplete. V.—Time And Place Of Writing. The exact date of our Gospel is uncertain. One thing is absolutely certain: that it was written after the other three Gospels. Some have placed it almost as early as 70 A.D.; but the weight of evidence, external and internal, places it in the last decade of the first century, that is to say, between 90 and 100 A.D. There is great doubt, too, as to the place where it was written. Irenæus distinctly states that it was written at Ephesus,(11) and many of the fathers are of the same opinion. On the other hand, a large number of ancient writers hold, that, like the Apocalypse, it was written in Patmos. See Patrizzi, lib. i., cap. iv., § 86, who himself inclines to the latter view. VI.—Integrity. With the exception of three passages: v. 4, vii. 53‐viii. 11, and the whole of the last chapter, which have been attacked as interpolations, the integrity of the fourth Gospel has not been seriously questioned. These passages we shall examine as they occur, and there discuss the question of their authenticity. VII.—Language. It is certain that St. John wrote in Greek. Such has been the opinion of all writers, and it is proved by the fact that he wrote for the Christians of Asia Minor, whose language we know was Greek. VIII.—Christ’s Discourses In The Gospel.