Topic: - Make an assessment of the synoptic gospels by identifying the major

a. Similarities
b. Differences and
c. The unique character of each book

Introduction:

The New Testament of the Christian Bible contains 27 books comprising a wide range of
authors, topics, genres and themes. Of these 27 books, there are four works that bear the name
Gospel. They are: The Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of Mark, the Gospel of Luke and the
Gospel of John. The four Gospel always held a place of particular interest to the Christian. They
are the main source of our knowledge of our Lord’s life. Out of the four Gospel the first three
gospels Mathew, Mark and Luke are called Synoptic Gospel. They display a high degree of
similarity in content, narrative arrangement, language, and structure both in sentence and
passage. This paper therefore aims to make a brief assessment of the synoptic gospels by
identifying it similarities, differences and the unique character of each book of the synoptic
Gospel.

1. Defining the term:

a. Gospel
The word Gospel is taken from the Anglo-Saxon word “godspell,” which means
“goodnews”. However, the root word comes from the Greek word, Euaggelion meaning
goodnews. It refers to a proclamation or message.1 It came to be used to denote the Christian
writings only since 2nd century CE. By the end of 2 nd century CE it was used to mean the
canonical gospels. 2 Gospel denotes the good news preached by Jesus, preached about Jesus and
books that contain the memories of Jesus that is the four gospels in the bible.
b. Synoptic
The three Gospels in the New Testament are called Synoptic Gospels. It was first labeled
the Synoptic Gospels by J.J Griesbach, a German biblical scholar, at the end of 18 th century. The
word Synoptic comes from the Greek words σύνοψη (Synopsis), which means “seeing together”
Because they may be set side by side and “viewed together”. If the three Gospels are put one

1
Raymond E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament ( New york: Doubleday, 1997), 99
2
H. Joseph Lalfakmawia, Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels (Kolkata: SCEPTRE, 2013),1

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next to the other, we will see them together or at the same time or at once. Therefore, they can
easily be arranged in parallel text as in the Gospel Parallels. The synoptic gospels are synoptic in
that they share a majority of their information. Mark contains 93% shared information, Matthew
58% and Luke contains 41%.3 The entire three Gospel have a great deal of material in common
and very often they present their material in the same order.4
2. The Evolution of Synoptic Gospels:
Christian writings did not exist from the beginning and there was at least thirty year gap
between the death of Jesus and the first Gospel. 5 Jesus teaching and acts were preserved mainly
in oral traditions. In fact, in those days the oral tradition was always preferred and carried more
authority than written documents. At the same time, there were eyewitness alive to bear witness
to what they had seen and heard; therefore the need for a written record was not greatly felt.
As the primitive Christian increased in numbers and time passed by there came
difficulties and faced the necessities which compelled them to produce writing so they can look
and adhered to. The factor also included due to the delay of Parousia, eyewitness began to die
and to meet the need of the new church established.6 The Gospel writers therefore made used of
those unwritten oral traditions for structuring and developing their Gospels.
St. Mark is recognized as the first evangelist who made efforts to reduce some of the
unwritten traditions to a written Gospel, and later on, another larger version of the same with
additional materials was produced and called the Gospel of St. Mathew, and then using both the
former documents and some additional materials, St. Luke prepared another version bearing his
name. 7 Thus the Synoptic gospel came into existence.
3. The Synoptic Problem:
The great similarities and yet differences between Mathew, Mark and Luke make us ask
ourselves: “What is the relationship between Mat, Mark and Luke?” “How do we explain the
similarities and dissimilarities / differences of Mat, Mark and Luke?” though the three Gospel
talk about the same person; the life and work of Jesus Christ. The similarities of materials

3
Allen C. Myers, ed. “Synoptic Problem.” The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary. 1997. Print. 976
4
Robert H. Stein, The Synoptic problem: An Introduction (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1994), 15
5
H. Joseph Lalfakmawia, Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels…4.
6
H. Joseph Lalfakmawia, Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels…4-5.
7
William West Holdsworth, Gospel Origin (London: Duckworth &Co, 1913), 17

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evidenced with notable dissimilarities within the three Gospels give raise to a problem which is
called Synoptic Problem. 8 Those questions are the questions which form the Synoptic Problem.
3.1 Similarities:
3.1.1 Similarities of CONTENTS:
Mathew, Mark and Luke narrate what Jesus did and said. Their materials include
miracles stories, parables, sayings of Jesus, and important events in the life of Jesus. Mark has
around 661 verses, Mat 1068, Luke 1149; (John 846). There are materials which can be found in
each Gospel only (Single Tradition): in Mark only (10% of Mark), in Mat only (30% of Mat), in
Luke only (50% of Luke). 80% of Mark are reproduced in Mat, and 65% in Luke. There are
materials (around 350 verses) which are found in the three Gospels (Triple Tradition). There are
materials (around 220 verses) which are found in Mat and Luke only (non-Marcan material;
Double Tradition). There are 50 verses similar in Mark and Luke only; there are 170 verses
similar in Mark and Mat only.9
3.1.2 Similarities of STRUCTURE:
After studying the outline / basic pattern / structure of the three Gospel scholar agreed
and find that the three Gospels narrate the ministry of Jesus in a journey with a geographical
pattern from Galilee to Jerusalem. Jesus, according to the Synoptics starts his works in Galilee,
walking around Galillee and its surroundings, and then continues his journey to Jerusalem and
ends his life and works in Jerusalem. 10 In the three gospels the course of the life of Jesus and his
activity are presented in a similar fashion. The results of the similarity of how the writers of the
Gospel structure their Gospel can be seen as below:

Mathew Mark Luke

(Infancy Narratives) 1-2 ------- 1-2
Introductory stories 3:1-4:11 1:1-13 3:1-4:13
Ministry in Galilee & surroundings 4:12-18:35 1:14-9:50 4:14-9:50
Journey to Jerusalem 19-20 10 9:51-19:28
Ministry in Jerusalem 21-25 11-13 19:29-20:38
Passion 26-27 14-15 22-23

8
Frederick Gast, “Synoptic Problem” In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, ed, Raymond E. Brown,
Joshep A. Fitzmyer and Roland E. Murphy (Bangalore: Theological Publication, 2002), 587.
9
Frederick Gast, “Synoptic Problem” In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary…623.
10
Frederick Gast, “Synoptic Problem” In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary…682.

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Resurrection 28 16 24
3.1.3 Similarities in LANGUAGE:
Apart from similarities in contents and structure, there are also similarities in the Greek
words and terms which Mathew, Mark and Luke used (rarely found in other Greek literature).
Many passages show agreement in language or wording. The words of Jesus are often reported in
identical Greek. Sometimes all the three agree on an OT quote that is different from both MT and
LXX. The three Gospel also agreed when using quotation from the Old Testament. They all have
similar rare construction of sentences in Greek, and many sentences with similar expression
word by word.11(Mat 23:37-39 and Lk 13:34-35)
3.2 Differences or Dissimilarities:
It is evident that the three Gospels recoded and contain the same words and deeds of
Jesus. However, there are also differences and dissimilarities among the Gospel of Mat, Mark
and Luke.
3.2.1 Differences in CONTENTS:
It has been mentioned earlier that there are materials which can only be found in Mark, or
in Mathew, or in Luke. Even when they narrate the same event, sometimes the details of the
story are different. For example, the Lord’s Prayer and the Beatitudes in Mathew and in Luke.
Sometimes some events are recounted by only two of the evangelists, and some passages are
proper to only one Gospels. 12
3.2.2 Differences in STRUCTURE:
Although in general there is agreement in the arrangement of the Gospel materials, it
much be noted that there are some differences. Mathew and Luke start with the Infancy
Narratives, but Mark with the proclamation of John the Baptist. Even when they narrate the same
story, the length or the structure of the story are not the same. For example, Jesus' journey to
Jerusalem (Mark 1 chapter, Mat 2 chapters, Luke 10 chapters).
3.2.3 Differences in LANGUAGE:
New Testament scholars agreed upon the theory that there is literary interdependence
among the three Gospels writers, meaning that one Gospel influences the other, or that one
Gospel depends on the other.13 However when observe it can be certain that the Greek which

11
D.A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament (Michigan:
Zondervan Publishing House, 2005), 28-29.
12
Robert H. Stein, The Synoptic problem: An Introduction…37-38.
13
Robert H. Stein, The Synoptic problem: An Introduction…80

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Mark uses is rather simple and sometimes with grammatical mistakes and mixed with Latin
words. Mat’s Greek is better than Mark’s but it is sometimes influenced by Aramaic/Hebrew.
Luke’s Greek is the best, of a literary nature, and often corrects the grammatical mistakes in
Mark.
4. Unique character of the three Gospels:
4.1 Mathew
The Gospel of Matthew has long been the most popular of the four canonical Gospels.
The Gospel was written by Matthew (also called Levi), a former tax collector and one of Jesus’
twelve disciples (Mark 3:18; Matt 9:9; 10:3; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13).14 Matthew’s intended
audience was probably a relatively well-to-do city church made up mostly of educated Jews who
already believed Jesus was the Messiah, but who disagreed amongst themselves about the import
of the Law. Several features of the Gospel suggest that it was written for a Jewish audience. For
example, unlike Mark, Matthew does not explain Jewish customs (compare Matt. 5:1-9 to Mark
7:1-13); he portrays Jesus as a new Moses and Jesus’ teachings as a new Torah; he cites the
Hebrew Scriptures and refers to OT figures often, usually in order to demonstrate that Jesus
fulfills Jewish prophecy.15 Matthew’s Gospel has a strong Jewish character.
The Gospel according to Mathew is a theologically mature piece, dealing with complex
topics like eschatology, a mission to all nations, salvation history, ecclesiology, and how the
commandments of Jesus relate to the Mosaic Torah. Matthew’s Jesus is a king, set against the
“kings of the earth” (Matt. 17:25). The word “Christ” means “Anointed One.” Matthew’s Jesus is
also a teacher – a rabbi – and his disciples are learners. In Matthew, Jesus is a master storyteller:
he often tells parables as a teaching tool, especially to describe the kingdom of heaven. Peter
plays an especially prominent role in Matthew: this is the only place we find the story of Peter
trying to walk out to Jesus on the water (14:28-31). Matthew also infamously vilifies the leaders
of the Jewish people, particularly the Pharisees.16
4.2 Mark
The Gospel of mark is attributed to Mark as the author. He was the follower and
interpreter of Peter and usually identified as John Mark. In his opening sentence Mark declared

14
D.A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament..79.
15
D.A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris, An Introduction…95.
16
The Gospel of Matthew, https://divinity.yale.edu/sites/default/files/sections-introduction.pdf Accessed on
4th may 2020, 6 PM

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his intention of writing “the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” The reason for composing
the Gospel is speculative. It is agreed that the reason why Mark would have constructed his
Gospel may have been to encourage the Christians in Rome who would have been under
persecution instigated by Caesar Nero.17

Unlike the other Gospel mark Gospel is known as the Gospel of action. A glance at the
content of this gospel shows that for the writer movement is more fascinating than discourse. The
Gospel is sparse and brief compared to the others. It has no genealogy or stories about Jesus’
birth. Others important passage like the Beatitudes, Lord’s Prayer, are missing in Mark’s Gospel.
After a brief prologue the author go straight to the narration of the ministry of Jesus. 18 Mark
emphasizes Jesus’ deeds over his words (as compared to the other Gospels). Miracle stories take
up a greater part of the total book and are told in greater detail. Mark’s story is dominated by
Jesus’ passion. The plot to kill Jesus formed already in 3:6 (cf. with Matt. 12:14; Luke 19:47).
The gospel also mentioned three predictions of the passion (8:31; 9:31; 10:33–34).The Gospel is
marked by a sense of eschatological urgency. (1:14, 13:30; cf. 9:1). The Gospel also has a special
interest in Galilee because the first half of this Gospel is devoted to Jesus’ ministry in Galilee.19
Mark Gospel identified Jesus as Son of God, Son of man and The redeemer. 20
4.3 Luke:
Luke’ Gospel is the longest book in the New Testament and it includes a good deal of
material not found elsewhere. Most critics agree that Luke was the author of this very Gospel.
Luke was a physician (Col. 4:14) and a travel companion of the apostle Paul. He wrote this
Gospel and its sequel, the book of Acts. The earliest possible date of Luke–Acts is immediately
after the events that Luke recorded in Acts 28, which would have been c. A.D. 62. Both Luke
and Acts are addressed to “Theophilus” (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1), about whom nothing more is
known. Luke’s broader audience consisted primarily of Gentile Christians like Theophilus who
had already “been taught” (Luke 1:4) about Jesus.21

17
Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1990),
18
Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction
19
http://cdn.bakerpublishinggroup.com/processed/esource-assets/files/348/original/hyperlink-06-
02.pdf?1417059141
20
Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction
21
D.A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris, An Introduction…

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 The important characteristics of Luke Gospel are the Gospel Universalism, its
comprehensive range, interest in social outcast. It depicted Jesus as the universal savior of all. In
the gospel of Luke, there is a great emphasis on the message of universal salvation or the
salvation for all. 22 Related to the universal salvation of Christ, the gospel of Luke lays much
emphasis on the excluded, the marginalized and the forgotten categories in the society.23 The
theme of mercy and forgiveness are prominent throughout the gospel of Luke. Jesus is constantly
concerned with helping the poor, the sinners and the outcast. Besides, the Holy Spirit also
features prominently throughout the gospel of Luke-Acts. Luke is occasionally referred to as the
evangelist of the Holy Spirit or pneumatologist evangelist.24 Looking at the literary style Luke is
evidently an elegant writer with a deep mastery of Greek language (Lk 1, 1-4) and in the
Septuagint Greek (Lk1, 5-2, 52).Moreover, Luke has managed to organize his materials
creatively and narrates his stories in a creative and artistic fashion. 25

22
Raymond E Brown, Introduction to the New Testament Christology ( NY: Paulist Press, 1994), 103.
23
Mark Allan Powell, Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey
(Grand Rapid: Baker Books, 2009), 161.
24
Joseph A Fitzmyer, The Gospel according to Luke: Introduction, Translation, and Notes (Michigan:
Doubleday, 1985), 53.
25
Jerome Kodell, The Gospel According to Luke (Collegeville, Minnesota The Liturgical Press, 1983). 25.

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Bibliography:

Brown, Raymond E. An Introduction to the New Testament. New york: Doubleday, 1997.

Brown, Raymond E. Introduction to the New Testament Christology. NY: Paulist Press, 1994.

Carson, D.A. Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris. An Introduction to the New Testament.
Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 2005.

Fitzmyer, Joseph A. The Gospel according to Luke: Introduction, Translation, and Notes.
Michigan: Doubleday, 1985.

Gast, Frederick. “Synoptic Problem” In The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Edited by
Raymond E. Brown, Joshep A. Fitzmyer and Roland E. Murphy. Bangalore: Theological
Publication, 2002.

Guthrie, Donald. New Testament Introduction. Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1990.

Holdsworth, William West. Gospel Origin. London: Duckworth &Co, 1913.

Kodell, Jerome. The Gospel According to Luke.Collegeville, Minnesota The Liturgical Press,
1983.

Lalfakmawia, H. Joseph. Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels. Kolkata: SCEPTRE, 2013.

Myers, Allen C., ed. “Synoptic Problem.” The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary. 1997.

Powell, Mark Allan. Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological
survey. Grand Rapid: Baker Books, 2009.

Stein, Robert H. The Synoptic problem: An Introduction. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1994.

Webliography:

The Gospel of Matthew, https://divinity.yale.edu/sites/default/files/sections-introduction.pdf

http://cdn.bakerpublishinggroup.com/processed/esource-assets/files/348/original/hyperlink-06-
02.pdf?1417059141