Gospel of Thomas introduction from The Gnostic Bible

The Gospel of Thomas is a wisdom gospel. Like the sayings gospel Q, which most scholars now suggest was a source used in compiling the gospels of Matthew and Luke, the Gospel of Thomas protrays Jesus as one who disseminates life-giving wisdom through his sayings.
Unlike the New Testament gospels of Matthew. Mark, Luke, and John, and other, non-canonical gospels, the Gospel of Thomas contains almost no narrative, Jesus in Thomas performs no physical miracles, reveals no fulfillment of prophecy, announces no apocalyptic kingdom about to disrupt the world order, dies for no one's sins, and does not rise from the dead Easter Sunday. His value, rather, lies in his enigmatic sayings, which are pregnant with possibilty and power. "Whoever discovers what these sayings mean will not taste death," Jesus promises. That is to say, one who uncovers the interpretative keys to the meaning of these sayings thinks Jesus' thoughts after him and completes his sayings in new and sagacious ways. Such a one seeks and finds true wisdom and knowledge.
The editor of the gospel is said to be Judas Thomas, or Judas the twin, who is acclaimed by Syrian Christians as the twin brother of Jesus and the messenger (or apostle) to the Syrians. A version of this gospel may have been composed, most likely in Greek, as early as the middle of the first century, or somewhat later. A few scholars have suggested that the Gospel of Thomas may have been composed in Syriac, but that proposal has not proved to be convincing. The gospel may have been written in Syria, possibly at Edessa (modern Urla), where the memory of Thomas was revered and where his bones were venerated. Many of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas recall sayings of Jesus in the film Stigmata.
The numbering of the sayings employed here (1-114) is a scholarly convention. The translation gives Semitic form of Semitic names, in order to highlight the Jewish identity of Jesus and his students and the Jewish context of the life of the historical Jesus. For example, the name Yeshua is used for Jesus; the other names are identified in the notes.