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Commentary on the
Gospel of John
Herakleon
J
—fl erakleon's Commentary on the Gospel of John is the first- substantive exegesis, Christian or gnostic, that we have of a
JL. canonical gospel. Herakleon (also spelled Heracleon) lived
at the end of the second century and probably into the third; he was a disci-
ple of Valentinos. Spread throughout the Roman Empire, east and west,
Valentinian gnosticism initially sought not to separate from Christianity but
to become the true Christian way; for that reason, Herakleon's exegesis was
directed specifically to Christians. But Christian authority viewed gnosticism
as an impossible and dangerous heresy and refused to compromise. Refuted
by Origen in great detail, Herakleon's analyses and allegorical interpretations
were nevertheless so important that they served as a model for the famous
theologian's own exegetical methods: Origen, too, became famous for his ex-
egesis of the Gospel of John. In this respect he was like other major theolo-
gians, such as Clement of Alexandria, who were profoundly imbued with the
thought and reasoning of their opponents.
Herakleon's purpose in explaining the inner meaning of John was to bring
the Christian reader to a decisively new interpretation of the gospel and the
meaning of the role of the savior. In his exegesis, the familiar vocabulary and
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