{"id":10693,"date":"2019-09-27T11:22:34","date_gmt":"2019-09-27T16:22:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?page_id=10693"},"modified":"2026-09-14T16:22:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T21:22:00","slug":"the-four-gospel-accounts","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/the-gospel-accounts-a-chronological-harmony\/the-four-gospel-accounts\/","title":{"rendered":"The Four Gospel Accounts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t

The Four Gospel Accounts<\/h1>\n

Reading Assignment:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Matthew 1:1-17
\nMark 1:1
\nLuke 1:1-4; 3:23-38
\nJohn 1:1-18<\/td>\n		Hebrews 1:1-14
\nI John 1:1-4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Did you understand what you read?<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Why do you suppose God had four different accounts of Jesus’ life written?<\/li>\n
  2. \u00a0Using your Bible and any commentary you might have, briefly describe the purpose of the books Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.<\/li>\n
  3. Both Matthew and Luke give Jesus’ genealogy, but they are different. How are they different? Could the purpose of each book help explain why they are different?<\/li>\n
  4. John’s account begins with a description of the Word. Who is the Word? How do you know this?<\/li>\n
  5. Who is the Light in John’s account? Who bore witness to the Light?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\t

    The Four Gospel Accounts<\/h1>\n

    About This Study<\/h2>\n

    My library includes several books that present the harmony of the gospel accounts. Without exception, each uses the book of Mark to determine the order of events. Have you ever wondered why? Not because Mark claims to give an ordered account, but because Mark is the shortest book. People have a tendency to assume that the shortest book is the first book written.<\/p>\n

    But there is a more disturbing reason. There are many so-called biblical scholars who simply cannot accept the notion that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are actual eyewitness accounts of the life of Jesus. The books harmonize too well to be written independently by men, and the notion of inspiration by God is unacceptable to these men. Our society has swallowed the myth that accepting the supernatural is not scientific. Thus, few modern scholars base their work on accepting miracles or inspiration.<\/p>\n

    Instead, scholars chose the book of Mark, the shortest, as the first written account of Jesus’ life. They then explain the consistency of Matthew and Luke’s gospels by stating they plagiarized Mark and added more detail. Because those details differ, they assume Matthew and Luke were written around the same time but independently. Because of John’s emphasis on spiritual matters, they conclude that his book was written last – after the church was well established and early Christians’ beliefs stabilized. To put it bluntly, these scholars believe the Bible evolved.<\/p>\n

    Too often brethren pick up portions of these “scholarly” ideas and incorporate them into their own writings. They accept the miracles and the inspiration, but sometimes pick up the subtler implications of scholarly writings.<\/p>\n

    When I began teaching classes on the gospels, I noted that only Luke claims to be written in chronological order (Luke 1:3). It seems sensible, then, to use Luke as the basis for a gospel chronology and fit the other three accounts around it. Since I couldn’t locate such a list, I composed my own.<\/p>\n

    The Purpose of Each Gospel<\/h2>\n

    Even when a writer doesn’t directly declare his purpose, much can be determined about his purpose by examining what he has written. Small clues can build up to give us a good grasp on why the account was penned.<\/p>\n

    Matthew<\/h3>\n

    Matthew’s account opens with a genealogy of Jesus that starts at Abraham and emphasizes his relationship to Abraham and David. Such a relationship was extremely important to the Jews. To Abraham was the promise of a great nation, Israel, as well as hints of a coming important ruler. David was promised an eternal kingship through his descendants.<\/p>\n

    As we glance through Matthew, we find frequent references to Old Testament prophecies. A frequent phrase in Matthew is “That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet.” Matthew goes out of his way to point out how various events in Jesus’ life fulfilled those prophecies. Matthew also frequently quotes passages from the Old Testament.<\/p>\n

    Matthew sometimes inserts Hebrew or Aramaic words in his Greek account, but he doesn’t always translate the words (for example, raca<\/i>\u00a0in Matthew 5:22).<\/p>\n

    Thus we conclude that Matthew wrote for a Jewish audience to convince them that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah.<\/p>\n

    Mark<\/h3>\n

    Mark’s account contains few references to the Old Testament. When he references Hebrew words or Jewish customs, Mark explains them as if his audience would not necessarily understand them on its own. For example, see Mark 3:17; 5:41; 7:1-4. Thus it is believed that Mark’s account was aimed toward a Roman audience.<\/p>\n

    Papias, writing around 140 A.D., stated, “This also the Elder [John] used to say. Mark, having become Peter’s interpreter, wrote accurately all that he remembered, though he did not [record] in order that which was either said or done by Christ. For he neither heard the Lord nor followed Him; but subsequently, as I said, [attached himself to] Peter, who used to frame his teaching to meet the [immediate] wants [of his hearers], and not as making a connected narrative of the Lord’s discourses. So Mark committed no error as he wrote down some particulars just as he recalled them to mind. For he took heed to one thing – to omit none of the facts that he heard and to set nothing falsely in [his narrative of] them.” See I Peter 5:13.<\/p>\n

    Mark’s account focuses on Jesus’ deeds. Mark’s account is filled with words such as “straightway” or “immediately.” Mark’s account mentions that Jesus is so busy that he and the disciples do not have time to eat. Mark shows Jesus as a man of action, power, and authority. Compared with the other accounts, Mark records more of Jesus’ miracles and fewer of Jesus’ discourses. Mark records a variety of miracles to show the breadth of Jesus’ power.<\/p>\n

    Luke<\/h3>\n

    Where Mark is associated with Peter, Luke is a companion of Paul (Colossians 4:14). Luke and Acts are an extended historical account of Jesus’ life and the early church. Both are addressed to a man named Theophilus (Luke 1:3 and Acts 1:1). Theophilus literally means “friend of God.” This meaning has led some to wonder whether Luke was addressing a specific individual or a general person who is a friend of God.<\/p>\n

    Luke’s account specifically states his intention to record an orderly account (Luke 1:1-4). The Greek word in verse 3, translated as “order,” is\u00a0kethexes,<\/i> which means in chronological or sequential order. Luke also states that his account is based on eyewitness accounts (Luke 1:2). He frequently refers to people who remembered the events (Luke 1:66; 2:19, 51).<\/p>\n

    Much of Luke’s account emphasizes Jesus’ humanity. He is often referred to as the “Son of Man.” And Jesus’ sympathy toward men, especially the downtrodden, is pointed out for us.<\/p>\n

    Like Mark, Luke translates various Hebrew terms, explains Jewish customs, and at times gives Greek names in place of Hebrew names. Because of this and because the account is addressed to Theophilus (a Greek name), it is believed that Luke’s account is aimed toward a Greek audience.<\/p>\n

    John<\/h3>\n

    John’s account begins with a powerful prologue discussing the deity of Jesus (John 1:1-14). He clearly states that the purpose of the account was to instill faith in the reader (John 20:30-31). Thus, John’s account is aimed toward Christians. His account focuses on the deep discourses that Jesus had with his disciples, especially toward the end of his life on earth. Over half of John focuses on Christ’s last few days. John’s account also lays out abundant proof that Jesus was divine.<\/p>\n

    The Lineage of Jesus (Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38)<\/h2>\n

    Both Matthew and Luke give a chronology of Jesus’s ancestors. They differ because they were recorded for different audiences and purposes. Some point out the differences to claim that there are contradictions, but think about the number of ancestors you have: two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, etc. Any list of ancestors selects a particular path through the broad possibilities to emphasize a particular point.<\/p>\n

    Matthew’s gospel proclaims that Jesus is the Anointed (Christ in Greek or Messiah in Hebrew). He then proves that Jesus was the long-awaited king. In Genesis 22:17-18, God told Abraham, “I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice<\/i>” (English Standard Version – selected for its accurate reflection of the Hebrew pronouns in this passage.) God also promised David. “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever<\/i>” (II Samuel 7:12-13). Thus, it was important to prove that Jesus descended from Abraham and David, as Matthew’s account does. Without this proof, all other evidence that Jesus was the Messiah would be worthless to the Jews.<\/p>\n

    Matthew’s chronology is divided into three sections of fourteen names each. The first section shows that David descended from Abraham. The second traces the kingship from David to the last of his descendants to rule in Israel, Jeconiah or Coniah. Three kings are left out between Joram and Uzziah. Jewish chronologies sometimes left out insignificant individuals, especially when they needed to make an overall point. Matthew appears to keep the three segments even, with fourteen names each, to make memorization easier. Leaving the names out does not alter Matthew’s point.<\/p>\n

    Of the last king, Jeconiah, Jeremiah prophesied, “As I live,” says the LORD, “though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet on My right hand, yet I would pluck you off; and I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of those whose face you fear-the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the hand of the Chaldeans. So I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country where you were not born; and there you shall die. But to the land to which they desire to return, there they shall not return. Is this man Coniah a despised, broken idol-A vessel in which is no pleasure? Why are they cast out, he and his descendants, And cast into a land which they do not know? O earth, earth, earth, Hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: ‘Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days; for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah’<\/i>” (Jeremiah 22:24-30). This prophecy troubled those who knew the Law. The kingship passed through Jeconiah, but God stated that none of his descendants would rule.<\/p>\n

    In the third segment, Matthew explains this apparent discrepancy by showing that the kingship passed to Joseph, Mary’s husband. Though Jesus was not Joseph’s biological son, he was Joseph’s son by his marriage to Mary. Being the eldest, the kingship would pass on to him. Thus, by Matthew’s account, Jesus is the legal heir to the throne of David without incurring the curse placed on Jeconiah’s descendants.<\/p>\n

    Luke’s account traces Jesus’ lineage backward from Mary to Adam. Thus, Luke establishes Jesus’s connection to humanity. It also connects Jesus to the prophecy made to Eve, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel<\/i>” (Genesis 3:15). This lineage also includes Abraham and David, but through a different son of David – Nathan instead of Solomon. Thus, God’s promises to Abraham and David that their seed would lead to the Messiah literally came true. In fact, it would be nearly impossible for any other individual to be both a physical descendant of Abraham and David and the legal heir to David’s throne.<\/p>\n

    What else can we learn from these prophecies? First, God always keeps His promises, no matter how long it might appear to man. It was about two thousand years from the promise to Abraham to the fulfillment in Christ; roughly four thousand years since the promise made to Eve. Even though it seemed God contradicted His promises, He still made it happen.<\/p>\n

    Second, we learn that sin is not inherited. Jesus’s ancestry is filled with men and women who sinned, yet he was born without sin (II Corinthians 5:21). Nor is godliness inherited. Jeconiah came from David’s lineage. In that same lineage, we find the wise king Solomon raising the foolish king Rehoboam. Hezekiah had Manasseh for a son, and Jeconiah’s father was Josiah. Godly parents don’t guarantee godly offspring.<\/p>\n

    The Significance of Jesus (John 1:1-14)<\/h2>\n

    John’s account begins in the distant past, to the very beginning: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made<\/i>” (John 1:1-3). Thus, John makes it clear that Jesus is not just a great man, a moral leader, or a respected rabbi. Jesus, as the Word, existed at the beginning. He was with God, he was God, and he was fully involved in creating the world. In the creation account, when we are told “God said,” John tells us that this was Jesus working in the creation of the world.<\/p>\n

    Calling Jesus the Word also tells us a bit about the nature of Jesus. His purpose is to communicate the will of God. Therefore, we find Jesus involved in revealing God to mankind (John 14:9; 17:25-26).<\/p>\n

    John then tells us that Jesus is also the Light. Light also reveals. “But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light<\/i>” (Ephesians 5:13). John introduces us to the conflict: Jesus came into the world to reveal God to mankind, but the dark world rejected the revelation and the messenger. Most translations use the word “comprehend” or “understand” in verse 5, but this is not an accurate translation. “The word comprehend, with us, means to understand. This is not the meaning of the original. The darkness did not receive or admit the rays of light; the shades were so thick that the light could not penetrate them; or, to drop the figure, men were so ignorant, so guilty, so debased, that they did not appreciate the value of his instructions; they despised and rejected him.” [Albert Barnes, New Testament Commentary<\/i>]. A. T. Robertson states that “overcame” would be a better translation. In other words, the Light continued to shine despite the efforts of Darkness to overcome it.<\/p>\n

    John, the Baptizer, came to prepare the way for the Light’s entrance into the world. The writer John makes sure that we do not confuse John with the actual Light. John’s function was to be a witness to the Light, but he was not the Light himself.<\/p>\n

    Therefore, we reach the sad irony of the situation. Jesus created the world. He entered his own creation to bring the world an understanding of God. But his own creation rejected him.<\/p>\n

    The good news, though, is that it was not a complete rejection. Those who did accept Jesus and his message were made God’s children on the basis of belief – not by physical birth as was found under the Old Testament. Yet, a birth was involved; a birth as the result of the will of God. Jesus discusses this at length with Nicodemus in John 3.<\/p>\n