Commentary on Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist, Homilies 48–88 (The Fathers of the Church, Volume 41)

The Homilies on St. John's Gospel come from the period in
which Chrysostom attained his greatest fame as pulpit orator, the years
of his simple priesthood at Antioch (386-397). This was the peaceful
period in Chrysostom's life that preceded his elevation to the
episcopacy as patriarch of Constantinople (398), wherein adverse
imperial and ecclesiastical reaction to his program of moral reform led
to his deposition, banishment, and all but martyr's death (407).

The 88 Homilies,
which date from about 390, work systematically through the text of St.
John's Gospel and thus form a commentary upon it. In his exposition
Chrysostom reflects his youthful Antiochene training in the
interpretation of Holy Scripture through his emphasis upon the literal
or historical meaning of the sacred text. The exposition focuses sharply
on practical morality and thus often supplies telling information about
fourth-century life and times. The homilies show the flowering of
Chrysostom's intensive study of rhetoric and are especially commendable
for their command of imagery. The first 47 Homilies are
contained in Vol. 33 of this series; this entry carries the remaining
41, extending the commentary through to the end of the Gospel.