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relationship. No such tradition exists in Gos. Thom. To see all the questions Jesus asks disciples and Jews, and the questions disciples and Jews ask Jesus, in the Gospel of John, see Appendix 3. Some units in the Gos. Thom. contain phrases related to statements in the Gospel of John. Only a few of the questions are perpetuated in the Gos. Thom., but most that are perpetuated are important topics in both the Gos. Thom. and the Gospel of John. Two minor similarities occur in the following questions:

John 8 46 Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?
//Gos. Thom. 104 2 Jesus said, "What sin have I committed, or how have I been undone?"

John 6 68 Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go?" //Gos. Thom. 12 1 The disciples said to Jesus, "We know that you will leave us. Who is going to be our leader?"

In each instance, there is a similarity close enough to detect some kind of relationship in the tradition. In John 8:46 Jesus is responding to Jews rather than his disciples, as in Gos. Thom. 104:2, and in John 6:68 Peter asks the questions rather than this disciples. But these variations would not be unusual even if the relation were scribal.

When we look further into the questions in John, a phenomenon arises that is challenging to interpret but noticeable. In three instances at least where there is a relationship between questions Jesus asks in John and Gos. Thom., Jesus' response in Gos. Thom. contains Q-context material. One instance concerns who Jesus is and occurs with John 8:25-26:

John 8 25 They [the Jews] said to him, "Who are you?" Jesus said to them, "What I have told you from the beginning." 26 I have much to say about you and much to condemn...."

In Gos. Thom. 43:1, Jesus' disciples rather than the Jews ask the question of Jesus. Jesus' response includes a variant version of Q-context material:

Gos. Thom. 43 1His disciples said to him, "Who are you to say these things to us?" 2"You do not understand who I am from what I say to you. 3Rather, you have become like the Jews, for they love the tree but hate its fruit, or they love the fruit but hate the tree."
///Luke 6 43 For no healthy tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a rotten tree bear good fruit; 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit.
//Matt 12 33 Either think that the tree is healthy, and its fruit good; or suppose that the tree is rotten and its fruit bad; for by its fruit the tree is known. (cf. Matt 7:16-20)

The Q-context tradition shows variation both within itself and between itself and Gos. Thom. There are various passages in John that refer to fruit (4:36; 12:24; 15:2, 4, 5, 8, 16) but none to the tree. In Gos. Thom., Jesus' response concerning who he is contains content that exhibits a relation to Q-context tradition.

Another instance concerns not who Jesus is, but where he is going. The Gospel of


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