The Secret Book of John is a foundational Sethian text that provides unique insights into Christian Gnosticism. According to tradition, John, an apostle of Jesus, encounters the Savior shortly after his crucifixion. Despite the Pharisees' accusations, Jesus reveals that he has ascended to Barbelo and is ready to bestow the secret truths of our humanity, salvation, and cosmic origin.
The following rendering of this gospel was made possible by Dr. Stevan Davies, who has graciously provided exclusive permission to present it here. If you want to learn more about this gospel, I strongly recommend his book on Amazon. There Davies takes you through a guided tour of the text, explaining each section with detailed diagrams and insightful commentary.
Because this book is the product of several authors, we'll use color codes to denote who scholars believe is writing.
| white | The main author |
| blue | The Christian |
| green | The demonologist |
| orange | The inquirer |
| purple | The hymnist |
| yellow | Scribal clarifications |
All rights including the right of electronic reproduction are reserved by the author. Chapter and verse numbers have been added to aid reference.