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Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels
Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels
Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels
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Recommended: Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels
The Synoptic Gospels are composed of the gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke. These three gospels covered many of the same stories; yet, they disagree with each other on various details within certain stories. Also, numerous events that are in Mark, is not in Matthew or Luke and vice versa. Many historians have concluded that Mark was the first of the three gospels written and that Matthew and Luke used Mark as a source to their own gospels. The Synoptic Gospels were first written in Greek, which would suggest to some ambiguity within Mark, Matthew, and Luke due to certain perceptions and translations within the Greek language. One ambiguity that is shown within the Synoptic Gospels dealt with Jesus’s view on marriage and divorce. Using Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr’s Gospel Parallels, readers can dissect what Jesus may have thought of marriage and divorce and realize the ambiguities shown among the Synoptic Gospels; even bringing into questions the ideas of sexism and homosexuality.
In the Synoptic Gospels, only Mark and Matthew write about Jesus preaching to the Pharisees in Judea about marriage and divorce. Luke instead quotes Jesus’s thoughts on marriage and divorce in between Jesus’s preaching of the Pharisees about money. Mark and Matthew seems to disagree on many of the chronology and details regarding what he preached. Mark 10:1 states: “He left that place and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan.” Mark suggests that Jesus left a “place” and went to two locations; both Judea and beyond Jordan to preach marriage and divorce; however, Matthew disagrees. In Matthew 19:1, it is quoted: “When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.” Matthew defines M...
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...they would not have to follow the rules of marriage and divorce.
The gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke are known as the Synoptic Gospels. Many of the writings in these gospels on what Jesus thought of marriage and divorce are similar; however, the details of many events and wordings of the writing are dramatically different. The writings are vague and ambiguous and may hold one of many meanings. This ambiguity may have occurred because of the translations from Greek to other languages or because each of the gospels writers thought differently on each of the subjects. Using Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr’s Gospel Parallels the readers can dissect what Jesus may have said about marriage and divorce and realize its ambiguity. It is up to the reader to interpret what Jesus may have thought about marriage and divorce according to the reader’s own beliefs and thoughts.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered to be Synoptic Gospels because they have overlapping content with parallel information. The Synoptic Puzzle, according to Powell, “shows us that the Gospel of Matthew is twice as long and contains 90 percent of the material that is in the Gospel of Mark.” To help us understand this even further Powell uses the “Two-Source Hypothesis.” He states that, “Mark’s gospel was written first, Matthew and Luke use Mark as a source, Matthew and Luke used copies of Q, and Matthew and Luke used copies of M and L sources to form their own opinion.” ...
The authors of the Gospel According to Matthew, and the Gospel According to Luke made some considerable modifications, deletions, and additions to the Gospel of Mark. To the average reader the changes seem rather significant and one might ask why these changes were made. Well, there are several reasons why these changes were made. For example, the authors wanted to show readers that Jesus was more holy than the original author set him out to be. Also, the authors sought after to express the gospel in, what they thought, were better words to make it appear more authentic. Furthermore the authors of the Gospel According to Matthew and the Gospel According to Luke wanted simply to modify the text because they didn’t see eye to eye with what the original author said.
It is stated in the New Jerusalem Bible that “the Gospels don’t reflect the biography or the life of Jesus but are the four versions of the preaching from Jesus and are full of wonders and mysteries regarding the life of Jesus.” (New J Bible 1147). All the stories in gospels share similar outcomes and main ideas. They are very similar mainly that of Gospels of Mathew, Mark and Luke while Gospel of John is a little different from the rest three. The stories from Matthew, Mark and Luke are known as the synoptic. It is because they have the same synopsis and are simil...
...guing about proper observance of the Law. The Synoptic Gospels present Jesus as a powerful messiah who constantly shattered the worldview held by the Jews of his day. Jesus proved that the messiah was not simply human but also God. He showed that God desires purity of the heart, not ritualistic purity. Furthermore, he showed that God loves and welcomes all people to His kingdom. He also showed that the Law was a means to an end, that is to draw closer to God. Through understanding the Second Temple period worldview, the Jesus presented in the Synoptic Gospels becomes clearer. His actions and his teachings enter into their proper context. Jesus lived in a world filled with preconceived ideas about God and His kingdom. As a result, the Jews were missing what God had in store for them. Jesus called them back to order, seeking to bring God’s people back into His kingdom.
The Gospel according to Matthew, although being the first book of the New Testament canon, it was not considered the first gospel genre to be written. Matthew’s gospel gives an account of the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. In this essay, I intend to look at how the exegesis and interpretation of this gospel may be affected by our understanding of the authorship, its intended readership and where and when it was written. Although all these categories are important in their own right, I will focus more of the intended audience and readership of this gospel.
So it can be said that gnosis is secret knowledge revealed to man hat only get by someone or a
Mark, on the other hand, is parallel to Matthew. The first difference is that Matthew says they plucked ears of corn when Mark states that they plucked heads of grain (v 23). The Pharisees for a second time want to know why they are doing what is unlawful to do on the Sabbath. Jesus defends his disciples again and gives the same example of David that Matthew did but there is a slight difference. Mark tells who the high priest is whereas Matthew says does not reveal who he is. Mark additionally states whom the Sabbath is for. By this, he said that the Sabbath was made for humankind and not humankind made for Sabbath (v 27).
Christian Worldview is specific and one that focuses on gods teaching through, scripture, prayer, chapel and the bible. Christians live to Gods words and become a product of God by using his scriptures to live by. Humans must put their trust in God and let him guide their lives. In order to have a good relationship with God you must have faith and ask for forgiveness when needed. This worldview can be explained by answering who God is, who Jesus is, how humanity goes into being a Christian, and how to solve the problems of humanity.
One of the similarities that is distinct in the synoptic gospels is the fact that all of the writers agreed that the man was demon possessed. Additionally, all three authors agreed that the demonic spirits were sent into the herd of swine. Lastly, they all note that the herd of swine drowned or perished. Some of the differences are geographical location. Matthew list the geographical location as Gadarenes; however, Mark and Luke seem to believe it to be Gerasenes, which was approximately thirty miles inland from the Sea of Galilee. Another difference is the fact that Matthew states, “there were two who were possessed that were coming from the tomb;” but Mark and Luke noted that there was one possessed with a demon. In Mark and Luke the demon possessed man sees Jesus, then falls down and begins to worship him. The authors of Mark and Luke also give a name for the demon possessed man,
This work is also said to be anonymous, and believed to have been produced in Syria within a large Jewish and Jewish-Christian community. It is apparent from a number of shared accounts, and overlapping stories of Jesus that the author of Matthew’s Gospel used Mark as a source. Although many of the stories are expanded upon, and carry different connotations, the same basic stories are found in all of the synoptic gospels, and because Mark was the first written, scholars assume it was a source used by both Matthew and Luke. It should also be noted that many of Jesus’ teachings in Matthew were not found in Mark. This led scholars to search for a second source, which resulted in the Q document. Although not available as a feasible document, Q designates a compilation of Jesus’ parables and sayings from about 50 to 70 CE, which are present in Matthew (Harris p.156). Throughout the gospel, Matthew uses formula quotations, meaning he quotes from the Old Testament. This strong relationship with the Hebrew Bible helps scholars determine that Matthew wanted to emphasize his Jewish position. This is important because his interpretations of Jesus throughout the gospel are not agreed upon by all Jews, in fact only a small fraction. Although it is obvious to the readers than John and Matthew carry very different stories of Jesus’ life, it is interesting to
The first three gospels are sometimes called the 'synoptic' (same view) gospels. This is because they each cover teaching and miracles by Jesus that are also covered in another account. John, writing later, recounts Jesus' other words and miracles that have a particular spiritual meaning.
Jesus teaching on divorce was not favorable to the Pharisees. They were eager to confound Jesus, by asking Him if it was “lawful” for a man to divorce his wife “for any cause?” Jesus replied by quoting from Genesis 2:24, which emphasizes the onene...
The four gospels are detailed accounts of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Each portrays a unique story and angle of Jesus, who is the savior of the Jews and the world. Apostle Matthew’s writings are to prove to the Jews that Jesus is their Messiah. Mark stressed the humanity of Jesus and also his deity. Luke wanted to show that the gentile Christian in God’s kingdom is based on the teachings of Jesus. John speaks of Jesus as one sent from God to reveal His love and grace to man. The four gospels work together to elaborate on the several key themes; salvation, spreading His word, and the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise.
The word "gospel" is a translation of the Greek word "euangelion" which means "good news. The first three books in the New Testament (Mark, Matthew, and Luke) are often referred to as the Synoptic Gospels (from Greek synoptikos, "seen together") They bear greater similarity to each other than any of the other gospels in the New Testament. Along with these similarities come some differences among the gospels, suggesting that each gospel was written for a specific audience and for a specific purpose. This paper will examine the resurrection of Jesus, while identifying the significant differences between Mark, Matthew and Luke. This paper will also analyze the differences to suggest the prominent theological perspective each gospel author might be trying to convey about the resurrection of Jesus.
The term “Synoptic Problem” alludes to the similarities and differences that is apparent in the Synoptic Gospels. Events that occurred are detailed in somewhat different arrangements and narrations. These differences and similarities have caused observant Christians to wonder what could cause what appear to be a chronological difference in these Gospels and why do we have more than one Gospel? All of these observations and questions in essence make up the “Synoptic Problem.” (Lea and Black,The New Testament Its Background and message 2003:114) The development of the Gospel as described by Luke referred to “eyewitnesses” an “account of the things” and “an orderly account”. These stages correlate to the Oral tradition, the period of written sources, and the period of final composition.(Lea and Black,The New Testament Its Background and message 2003:115)