There are miraculous signs called “Oth” in the Old Testament that were proof of divinity for example in 1 Kings Elijah heals a sick child rather like the Healing of the Official’s Son. Glasson points out that “Exodus motifs abound” in John’s signs. In the Healing at the Pool the paralytic has been ill for 38 years, the time the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness. There are also 5 colonnades symbolising the Jewish Pentatuch; again the water in the pool is inadequate, Jesus is necessary to help the paralytic. The paralysed man is outside the temple, rejected by Judaism but accepted by Jesus. This is part of demonstrating the Universality of the Christian religion as opposed to the exclusivity of Judaism. Hunter regards the signs as tokens of the New Messianic Age, Jesus is the Messiah prophesised in Jewish Scripture, come from God to replace Judaism with Christianity.
However, the signs aren’t just about Replacement Theology, Dr. Motyer points out the importance of faith in the signs. For example in the Wedding at Cana the servants trust Jesus when he tells them to serve the purification water as Jesus does not mention that he has turned it to wine. In the Healing of the Official’s Son, the official must leave without knowing for certain that his son is cured “he took Jesus at his word”. In the Healing at the Pool the paralytic simply does what he is told by Jesus “pick up your mat and walk”, he is not told that he is cured by Jesus, he must have faith.
The signs also contain “erga”, links with the Father, they prove that Jesus is the Son of God for example after the Healing at the Pool Jesus says “the Son can do nothing without the Father”; after the Feeding of the Five Thousand Jesus says “My Father’s will is that everyone looks to the Son”. Peter Vardy states that the signs are the starting point of the faith journey and that they offer the reader a way to travel into a much deeper understanding of the significance of Jesus. The signs are intended to show that Jesus is the Son of God and also reveal the glory and power of Jesus as they are spectacular. For example in the Wedding at Cana Jesus turns galleons of water into good wine. In the Healing of the Official’s Son he heals simply by saying “your son will live” while the child is far away. Barrett maintains that there are clear indications that he by whom the signs are wrought is the Son of God and equal to God himself. The signs show the divine authority of Jesus, authority that comes from God.
The signs also reveal something about the person of Jesus. In the Wedding at Cana it is Jesus the Transformer. Jesus makes a difference and is needed to transform people’s lives to give them access to eternal life. In the Healing of the Official’s Son Jesus the Life-Giver is demonstrated, which harks back to John’s Prologue “In him was life and that life was the light of men”. At the Healing at the Pool Jesus was presented as a Judge “the Father judges no one but has entrusted all judgment to the Son”. The signs are part of John’s Christology, the revelation of who Jesus actually was. They also carry the theme of realised eschatology as they, according to Hunter, reveal the coming of the Kingdom of God. They reveal that it is present and at work in the world displayed in Jesus’ judgement, life-giving and transforming.
A major aspect of the signs is the theme of replacement theology however the signs are about more than that. They stress the importance of faith, link Jesus with God and reveal different aspect of his person and his glory.
