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Gospel of Luke

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The Gospel According to Luke (Greek: Κατὰ Λουκᾶν εὐαγγέλιον, kata Loukan euangelionτὸ εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Λουκᾶν, to euangelion kata Loukan), generally shortened to the Gospel of Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension. The author is traditionally identified as Luke the Evangelist.

The author, commonly understood to be writing from a Gentile perspective, is characteristically concerned with social ethics, the poor, women, and other oppressed groups.[1] Certain popular stories on these themes, such as the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan, are found only in this gospel. This gospel also has a special emphasis on prayer, the activity of the Holy Spirit, and joyfulness.[2]

According to the preface[3] the purpose of Luke is to write a historical account[4], while bringing out the theological significance of the history.[5] The author's portrays Christianity as divine, respectable, law-abiding, and international.[1]

Most modern critical scholarship concludes that Luke, used the Gospel of Mark for his chronology and a hypothetical sayings source Q document for many of Jesus' teachings. Other scholars have put forward the possibility that the Gospel of Luke was based on the Hebrew Gospel. [6] [7] Luke may also have drawn from independent written records.[8] There are two serious possibilities regarding the date of composition, the early 60s,[9][10] or the later decades of the 1st century.[11]

Biblical Scholars are in wide agreement that the author of the Gospel of Luke also wrote the Acts of the Apostles.[12] Many believe "the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles originally constituted a two-volume work." [13] [14] [15]

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Content

Content summary

The Gospel of Luke tells the story of Jesus' miraculous birth, ministry of healing and parables, passion, resurrection, and ascension. Donald Guthrie claims, “it is full of superb stories and leaves the reader with a deep impression of the personality and teachings of Jesus."[16]

The composition may follow the two-source hypothesis, that the text is based in part on the Gospel of Mark and a now lost document (commonly referred to as Q). However, this hypothesis is also consistent with the author's declaration that Luke is written after widely investigating eyewitnesses and other accounts. A single author may have intentionally drawn upon Mark as part of this investigation.

Introduction

Luke is the only gospel with a formal introduction, in which the author explains his methodology and purpose. It states that many others have already "undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word."[17] The author adds that he too wishes to compose an orderly account for Theophilus, so that Theophilus "may know the certainty of the things [he has] been taught".

Birth narratives and genealogy

Like Matthew, Luke recounts a royal genealogy and a virgin birth for Jesus. Unlike Matthew, who traces Jesus' birth back through the line of David to Abraham in order to appeal to his Jewish audience,[18] in Luke the evangelist traces Jesus' lineage back to Adam, indicating a universal sense of salvation.[18] Unique to Luke is John the Baptist's birth story, the census and travel to Bethlehem, the birth in a manger, and a story from Jesus' boyhood.

Miracles and parables

Luke emphasizes Jesus' miracles, recounting 20, four of which are unique. Like Matthew, it includes the Sermon on the Mount and other important sayings. More than a dozen of Jesus' most memorable parables are unique to Luke, including the Good Samaritan, the Corrupt Steward and the Parable of the Prodigal Son.

Role of women

More than the other gospels, Luke focuses on women as playing important roles among Jesus' followers, such as Mary Magdalene, Martha, and Mary of Bethany. The Gospel of Luke is the only Gospel which contains the Annunciation of the Birth of Jesus to Mary his mother (1:26-38).

Trials and crucifixion

Luke emphasizes that Jesus had committed no crime against Rome, as confirmed by Herod, Pilate, and the thief crucified with Jesus. In Luke's Passion narrative Jesus prays that God forgive those who crucify him and his assurance to a crucified thief that they will be together in Paradise. See also Responsibility for the death of Jesus.

Resurrection appearances

Luke's accounts differ from those in Mark and Matthew. Luke tells the story of two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and (as in John) Jesus appears to the Eleven and demonstrates that he is flesh and blood, not a spirit. Jesus' commission (the Great Commission) that the Eleven carry his message to all the nations affirms Christianity as a universal religion. The account of Jesus' ascent at the end of Luke is apparently an addition subsequent to the original redaction. The Book of Acts, written by the same author to the same Theophilus, declares about Jesus that "he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days..." Acts 2:3

Manuscripts

See also: Acts of the Apostles § Manuscripts

The earliest manuscripts of the Gospel of Luke are three extensive papyrus fragments dating from the late 2nd century or early 3rd century. P4 is probably the earliest,[19] dating from the late 2nd century.[20] P75 dates from the late 2nd century/early 3rd century.[21][22] Finally P45 (mid-3rd century) contains an extensive portion of all four Gospels. In addition to these major early papyri there are 6 other papyri (P3, P7, P42, P69, P82 and P97) dating from between the 3rd-8th century which also have small portions of Luke's Gospel.[22][23] The early copies, as well as the earliest copies of Acts, date after the Gospel was separated from Acts.

The Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus, 4th-century codices of the Greek bible, are the oldest manuscripts that contain the full text of Luke. Codex Bezae is a 5th- or 6th-century Western text-type manuscript that contains Luke in Greek and Latin versions on facing pages. This text-type appears to have descended from an offshoot of the main manuscript tradition, departing from more familiar readings at many points. Verses 22:19–20 are omitted only in Codex Bezae and a handful of Old Latin manuscripts. Nearly all other manuscripts including Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus and Church Fathers contain the "longer" reading of Luke 22:19 and 20. Verse 22:20, which is very similar to 1 Cor 11:25, provides the only gospel support for the doctrine of the New Covenant. Verses 22:43–44 are found in Western text-type. But they are omitted by a diverse number of ancient witnesses and are generally marked as such in modern translations. See Bruce M. Metzger's Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament for details.

Luke's writing style

The main characteristic of this Gospel, as Farrar (Cambridge Bible, Luke, Introd.) remarks, is expressed in the motto, "Who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil" (Acts 10:38; cf. with Luke 4:18). Luke wrote for the "Hellenistic world".

Greek

The books of the New Testament were written in Greek. Luke's style is the most literary of these books, ahead of Saint Paul's epistles.[24]

Attention to women

Compared to the other canonical gospels, Luke devotes significantly more attention to women. The Gospel of Luke features more female characters, features a female prophet (2:36), and details the experience of pregnancy (1:41–42).

Prominent discussion is given to the lives of Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist and of Mary, the mother of Jesus (ch. 2).

Disputed verses

Textual critics have found variations among early manuscripts and have used principles of textual criticism to tentatively identify which variants are original. Bart D. Ehrman cites two cases where proto-orthodox Christians may have altered the text in order to prevent its being used to support heretical beliefs.[25]

When Jesus is baptized, some early witnesses attest that Luke's gospel had the Father say to Jesus, "This day I have begotten you." In orthodox texts (and thus in most modern Bibles), this text is replaced by the text from Mark. Ehrman concludes that the original text was changed because it had adoptionist overtones.

When Jesus prays in the garden of Gethsemane, the text refers to his being comforted by an angel and sweating drops like blood (verses 43-44 in 22:40-46 Luke 22:40–46). These two verses disrupt the literary structure of the scene (the chiasmus), they are not found in all the early manuscripts, and they are the only place in Luke where Jesus is seen to be in agony. Ehrman concludes that they were inserted in order to counter doceticism, the belief that Jesus, as divine, only seemed to suffer. While probably not original to the text, these verses reflect first-century tradition.[26]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Harris, Stephen L., Understanding the Bible. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985.
  2. ^ Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Leicester, England: Apollos, 1990), p. 105.
  3. ^ Luke 1:1–4
  4. ^ N. B. Stonehouse, The Witness of Luke to Christ (1951), pp. 24-45; H. J. Cadbury, The Beginnings of Christianity II, 1922, pp. 489-510; R. Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses (Eerdmans, 2006).
  5. ^ Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Leicester, England: Apollos, 1990), p. 107.
  6. ^ Pierson Parker, A Proto-Lukan Basis for the Gospel According to the Hebrews Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 59, No. 4 (Dec., 1940), pp. 471-473
  7. ^ James R. Edwards, The Hebrew Gospel & the Development of the Synoptic Tradition, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2009 pp. 1-376
  8. ^ Funk, Robert W., Roy W. Hoover, and the Jesus Seminar. The five gospels. HarperSanFrancisco. 1993. "Introduction," p 1-30.
  9. ^ D. R. W. Wood, New Bible Dictionary (InterVarsity Press, 1996), 704.
  10. ^ Carson, D.A.; Moo, Dougals J. (1992). "4" (in English). An introduction to the New Testament. Morris, Leon. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. pp. 116. ISBN 0-310-519-40-3.
  11. ^ Harris, Stephen L., Understanding the Bible. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985. "The Gospels" p. 266-268
  12. ^ Udo Schnelle, The History and Theology of the New Testament Writings, p. 259.
  13. ^ David Aune The New Testament in Its Literary Environment (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1987), p. 77.
  14. ^ The Books of The Bible (Colorado Springs: International Bible Society, 2007); The Original New Testament (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985).
  15. ^ In some editions of the Bible, Luke-Acts has been presented as a single book. Both Luke and Acts are addressed to a certain "Theophilus", and there are several theories concerning why.
  16. ^ Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Leicester, England: Apollos, 1990), p. 102.
  17. ^ translation from Richard Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses (Cambridge: Eerdmans, 2006), pp. 116-117.
  18. ^ a b Ehrman, Bart D., The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings (Fourth Edition). New York: Oxford. 2008
  19. ^ Gregory (2003) p.27+30
  20. ^ P4 contains Lk 1:58-59, 62-2:1,6-7; 3:8-4:2,29-32,34-35; 5:3-8; 5:30-6:16
  21. ^ P75 contains Lk 3:18-4:2+; 4:34-5:10; 5:37-18:18+; 22:4-24:53 and John 1:1-11:45, 48-57; 12:3-13:10; 14:8-15:10
  22. ^ a b Complete List of Greek NT Papyri Cite error: The named reference "Willker" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  23. ^ List of New Testament papyri
  24. ^ "Greek." Cross, F. L., ed. The Oxford dictionary of the Christian church. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005
  25. ^ Bart D. Ehrman. Misquoting Jesus.
  26. ^ May, Herbert G. and Bruce M. Metzger. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. 1977.
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This article was originally based on text from Easton Bible Dictionary of 1897 and from M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by Thomas Nelson, 1897.

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