Signs

John’s gospel begins with a “book of signs,” the word semeion used sixteen times in the first 12 chapters and only once after (20:30). The last use of the noun in the book of signs occurs in 12:37, which speaks of the “signs” that Jesus performs to unbelieving Jews.

What comes after the “book of signs”? It seems that 12:33 tells us: In talking about being “lifted up,” Jesus “signified” ( semaino ) the death that He would die. This is the first use of the verb in John’s gospel (indeed, in the entire NT), but it is picked up in 18:32 and 21:19, both of which also talk about “signifying” Jesus’ manner of death .

The book of signs is followed by the book of the single sign, the sign of the cross.

(As a bonus, we might notice, following J. Massyngberde Ford, that all the uses of the word semeion in Revelation come after chapter 12. John’s book of signs in 1-12 thus matches Revelation’s book of signs in 12-22, with the sign of the cross bridging the two.)