Summary: In his study, the author explores the “conflict for unity” in John 11:47-53. The conflict occurs because of the different ways in which the Jewish authorities and the leaders of the Johannine community understood God. Each understanding of God provided those who held it, respectively, with their sense of unity and preserved it. The author assumes that the Gospel was written to lead the reader to confess his faith and, by that declaration, acquire true life. The author’s analysis of historical, communitarian and redactional contexts offers important conclusions and points of departure in the study of John 11:47-53.