The Four Gospels: History, Differences, and Similarities

Introduction

The Bible is probably the most read and most controversial book in the history of humanity. Much of this controversy can be attributed to the first four books of the New Testament, which are referred to as the four Gospels. The four Gospels chronicle the life of Jesus Christ, including his birth, ministry, death, and resurrection. The purpose of this discussion is to examine these books of the Bible with the aim of solidifying the idea that the Gospels are eyewitness testimonies whose differences and similarities are valuable in exploring and proving the historical life of Jesus Christ on earth.

The Intertestamental Period and Its Historical Context

There is a significant period of time that separates the last of the Old Testament writings from the first of the New Testament writings. This period is referred to as the intertestamental period. During this time there are other accounts of Judaism that were never accepted by Judaism or Christianity as canonical or God-inspired. Two main accounts fit this description: the Apocrypha and the Pseudepigrapha. Although these accounts are not viewed as canonical, many historians have used them to evaluate the Jewish faith during the period in which the books were written.

An evaluation of the Jewish faith during this time is required to gain a full understanding of the Gospels. Such evaluation gives insight into the socioeconomic and political climate that existed prior to the birth and ministry of Christ. Bloomberg further explains that understanding this period is essential: "Religiously, Judaism was transformed into a set of beliefs and practices often quite different from Old Testament religion. And for those inclined to see the hand of providence in history, numerous events occurred that prepared the way for the first-century world to be more receptive to the message of the gospel than in many other periods of history" (Bloomberg).

It is clear that the events that took place during the approximately 400 years between the last book of the Old Testament and the first book of the New Testament helped to shape the environment of the region before the arrival of Christ. This environment was conducive to allowing some to accept Jesus Christ as Messiah while others rejected him and the message that he brought. Bloomberg writes that very little changed in Jerusalem after the death of Artaxerxes. The Persian rulers continued allowing exiled Jews to return to Israel, a policy created by Cyrus in 539 B.C. During this time the Jews became preoccupied with the law, believing that obedience to it would prevent further exile and lead to complete freedom (Bloomberg).

According to Bloomberg, three major events occurred during the Persian period, which took place right after the last of the Old Testament was written. The first two were the formation of the synagogue and the beginning of oral law. The exiles did not have access to a temple in which to worship and offer sacrifices, so they had to congregate in local places — thus the formation of synagogues. In addition, the Jewish people substituted prayers of repentance and good deeds as a means of atonement for iniquity. Bloomberg insists that "They sought to apply the Torah (Law) to every area of life, so that a body of oral tradition — interpretation and application — began to grow up around the written law of Moses to explain how to implement its commandments in new times and places. Both the synagogue and the oral law featured prominently in Jesus' interaction with Judaism centuries later" (Bloomberg).

The third significant event during this time was the establishment of Aramaic as the language used in international dealings and commerce. Bloomberg points out that by the time Jesus walked the earth, it is likely that few Jews spoke Hebrew fluently, as it had become limited to the reading of scripture. Eventually, during the Hellenistic period, the Persians were defeated by the Greeks. During this period, five to seven percent of the population was considered wealthy, nearly fifteen percent was considered middle class, and the rest of the population was composed of struggling craftsmen and laborers (Bloomberg).

Finally, the Roman Empire reigned from 63 B.C. throughout the New Testament period. Although the earlier periods created a certain structure and environment in the region, this period set the stage for the accounts of Jesus given by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The Roman Empire was remarkable in that it spanned vast geographical areas, including portions of Britain, Spain, and France. Bloomberg explains that during this time King Herod had transformed the region; his rule was marked by major building projects, the most notable being the construction of the temple, which was later destroyed by the Roman armies after the death of Christ. A book entitled The Synoptic Gospels: Conflict and Consensus explains that Pontius Pilate was the Roman procurator of Judea from 26–36 C.E., during the earthly ministry of Jesus (Nickle).

Duling and Perrin point out that this period was also marked by a vast business system dominated by international trade, an enforced tax system, and slave labor. In addition, the region was home to "a pluralistic assortment of ethnic peoples, high government officials, merchants, small business people, slaves and minorities" (Duling and Perrin).

All of these events and circumstances shaped the climate of the region. At the arrival of Christ and during his earthly ministry, these conditions made the people of the region more inclined to receive the message of Christ. It is also the environment in which Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were situated when they encountered Christ and witnessed his earthly ministry.

History of the Gospels and Critical Assessments

The Gospels are accounts of the life of Christ given by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. It is believed that Matthew was a tax collector and one of the twelve disciples; Mark was an assistant to Peter; Luke was a friend of Paul; and John was the son of Zebedee and one of the twelve disciples (Nickle).

Much of the controversy about the Gospels has been attributed to the fact that they vary somewhat in their account of the life of Christ. However, historians have noted that these differences do not make the Gospels fraudulent. Instead, the differences are simply accounts of Jesus seen through the eyes of four different men (Bloomberg). This is referred to as theological distinctiveness. Matthew wrote of Christ's humanity, Mark wrote of Christ as prophet, Luke wrote of Christ as priest, and John wrote of Christ as the divine Word of God (Bloomberg).

According to Bloomberg, theologians have historically attempted to harmonize the Gospels: "The most common way of approaching the phenomenon of having four gospels was that of producing a harmony of the four. In other words, a life of Christ was restructured with every text from each gospel fitted into a possible place in one, larger composite whole" (Bloomberg).

Initially the church fathers believed that the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written in that specific order, and that Mark and Luke borrowed from Matthew's account. Others believed that the Gospels were part fact and part fiction. Scholars such as Paulas developed a rationalist approach to understanding the miracles described in the Gospels. For instance, they asserted that the feeding of the five thousand occurred because wealthy people in the crowd, observing the generosity of Jesus and the boy, began to share their own food (Bloomberg).

Throughout the 1800s many scholars sought to interpret the Gospels in a similar manner. Many believed in the existence of Jesus but also believed that the miracles recorded in the Gospels were fabricated and that Jesus was simply a "historical figure" (Bloomberg). By the twentieth century, scholars took a redaction approach, asserting that the authors of the Gospels were merely editors who omitted and included material at will. In the latter part of the twentieth century, the Gospels began to be viewed as literary works complete with plot, characters, and setting (Bloomberg). Such literary criticism asserts that reading the Gospels as literature can be quite valuable: "We recognize their artistic merit — their ability to affect our emotions as well as our intellects — as they captivate, encourage and convict us. We are more sensitive to what is more central and what is more peripheral in individual stories. We understand how they function to create multiple levels of meaning — main themes, subordinate motifs, and elusive echoes to other well-known traditions, not least in the Old Testament. But we run across pitfalls as well. Much literary criticism assumes that the gospels are not necessarily historical or else it plays down theological or religious context. However, these assumptions are not inherent in the method; a well-crafted piece of historical writing also promotes certain ideological concerns in an artistic and aesthetically pleasing way" (Bloomberg).