The Synoptic Gospels

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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.

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