1. introduction to lukelogosdocs.s3.amazonaws.com/third-edition/006-luke/001... · 2015. 4. 4. ·...

Lesson&#1&

Introduc/on&

Introduc)on*to*Luke* 1*

In#our#study#of#the#Gospel&according&to&Ma7hew,#we#defined#a#“gospel”#as#a#unique#literary#genre,#an#account#of#the#“good#news”#(Greek#=#

euangelion;&eu#=##“good,”#angelion#=#“message”)#of#the#coming#kingdom#

of#God#and#the#redemp@on#of#humanity#through#the#life,#death,#burial#

and#resurrec@on#of#Jesus#Christ.###

We#noted#that#a#“gospel”#is#not#a#biography#of#a#person,#although#it#does#contain#biographical#informa@on;#it#is#not#an#historical#account#of#a#person,#although#it#is#rooted#in#historical#@me;#it#is#not#a#fic@onal#account#of#a#person,#although#it#does#include#miracles,#wonders#and#a#

large#dose#of#the#supernatural.#Rather,#a&“gospel”&reflects&the&understanding&of#who&Jesus&Christ&is&and&what&he&did,&in&light&of&a&living&faith&tradi/on,&guided&by&the&Holy&Spirit,&30I60&years&aKer&the&events&it&portrays.#


For#the#first#30+#years#of#the#Church#the#“gospel”#spread#

throughout#the#Roman#Empire#by#the#oral#teaching#and#

preaching#of#the#Apostles#and#others.##Only#in#the#midO60s#

or#so#was#the#“gospel”#message#wriQen#down.#Many#

wriQen#“gospel”#accounts#emerged#during#the#first#three#

centuries#of#the#Chris@an#era,#but#common#usage#generally#

applies#the#term#to#the#four#canonical#gospels:##MaQhew,#

Mark,#Luke#and#John.###

In#this#lesson#we#explore#how#the#“synop@c”#Gospels#

(MaQhew,#Mark#and#Luke)#came#to#be#wriQen,#and#we#

examine#Luke’s#posi@on#within#the#synop@c#tradi@on.##

.#


Not#me.##

Introduc)on*to*Luke*

That’s#a#good#

ques@on!#

What#do#we#really#

know#about#the#

historical#Jesus?*

4*

Chris@anity#is#arguably#the#

single#most#important#force#in#

shaping#the#past#2,000#years#

of#western#civiliza@on,#and#

one#may#reasonably#argue#

that#Jesus#of#Nazareth#is#the#

single#most#influen@al#person#

who#ever#lived.##

Yet,#we#know#very#liQle#about#

the#historical#Jesus.#


“Deësis&Mosaic,”&depic/ng&Christ&Pantrocrator&(c.1261),#South&Gallery,&Hagia&Sophia,&Istanbul,&Turkey.#

Photography#by#Ana#Maria#Vargas#


There&is&not&a&single&piece&of&documentary&evidence&from&the&/me&of&Jesus&(4/6&B.C.&–&A.D.&32)&to&suggest&that&he&ever&existed.&

Not#a#birth#cer@ficate.#

Not#a#death#cer@ficate.#

Not#a#leQer.#

Not#a#property#record.#

Not#a#record#of#his#trial.#

Not#a#single#document#with#his#name#

on#it.#

Nothing.#


Apart from the New Testament—written decades after Jesus’ life on this earth—there are only a few references to him.

The most well known are two mentions of him in Flavius Josephus’ Jewish Antiquities. Josephus lived c. A.D. 37-95.


“About&this&/me&there&lived&Jesus,&a&wise&man,&if&indeed&one&ought&to&call&him&a&man.&&For&he&was&one&who&wrought&surprising&feats&and&was&a&teacher&of&such&people&as&accept&the&truth&gladly.&&He&won&over&many&Jews&and&many&of&the&Greeks.&&He&was&the&Messiah.&&&When&Pilate,&upon&hearing&him&accused&by&men&of&the&highest&standing&amongst&us,&had&condemned&him&to&be&crucified,&those&who&had&in&the&first&place&come&to&love&him&did&not&give&up&their&affec/on&for&him.&&On&the&third&day&he&appeared&to&them&restored&to&life,&for&the&prophets&of&God&had&prophesied&these&an99d&countless&other&marvelous&things&about&him.&&And&the&tribe&of&the&Chris/ans,&so&called&aKer&him,&has&s/ll&to&this&day&not&disappeared.”&&

& & & &Jewish&An/qui/es&(18.3.3)#

! ! ! ! ! !#Introduc)on*to*Luke* 9*

Titus#Flavius#Josephus#

#(c.#A.D.#37O95).#

Josephus#men@ons#Jesus#again#in#

passing#when#he#notes#that#the#

High#Priest#Ananias#summoned#

the#Sanhedrin,#the#Jewish#

governing#council#.#.#.#

“and&brought&before&them&the&brother&of&Jesus&who&was&called&Christ,&whose&name&was&James,&and&some&others;&and&when&he&had&formed&an&accusa/on&against&them&as&breakers&of&the&law,&he&delivered&them&to&be&stoned&.&.&.”#

# # #Jewish&An/qui/es&(20.9.1)#

Acts#12#chronicles#the#result#of#

this#incident.#

! ! ! ! ! !#


Josephus,#Jewish#An@qui@es.#

[This&single&manuscript&leaf&on&vellum&is&the&La/n&transla/on&of&Rufinus&of&Aquileia&(11th&century),&listed&for&auc/on&at&Southeby’s,&12/2/2014.]&

A#longer#account#shows#up#in#Tacitus’#

Annals&(c.&A.D.&116),#where#Tacitus#recounts#the#great#fire#in#Rome#under#

Nero:#

“Nero&fastened&the&guilt&and&afflicted&the&most&exquisite&tortures&on&a&class&hated&for&their&abomina/ons,&called&Chris/ans&by&the&populace.&&Christus,&from&whom&their&name&had&its&origin,&suffered&the&extreme&penalty&during&the&reign&of&Tiberius&at&the&hands&of&one&of&our&procurators,&Pon/us&Pilate,&and&a&deadly&supers//on,&thus&checked&for&the&moment,&again&broke&out,&not&only&in&Judea,&the&first&source&of&the&evil,&but&also&in&the&city,&where&all&things&hideous&and&shameful&from&every&part&of&the&world&meet&and&become&popular.”&

& & & &Annals&(25.44.2O8)#


Gaius#Cornelius#Tacitus#

(c.#A.D.#56O117)#

Pliny#the#Younger#

Le7ers&(10.96)#

One#of#the#earliest#nonObiblical#

reports#about#the#Chris@ans#

comes#from#Pliny#the#Younger,#

governor#of#Bithynia#(c.#112#A.D.)##

He#isn’t#quite#sure#how#to#deal#

with#the#Chris@ans,#so#he#writes#

to#the#emperor#Trajan#for#advice#

(Le7ers#10.96).##Pliny#had#interrogated#a#few#Chris@ans,#and#

he#passes#on#to#Trajan#the#

informa@on#he#received:#


Pliny#the#Younger#

(A.D.#61O112)#

“They&maintained,&moreover,&that&the&amount&of&their&fault&or&error&had&been&this,&that&it&was&their&habit&on&a&fixed&day&to&assemble&before&daylight&and&recite&by&turns&a&form&of&words&to&Christ&as&to&a&god;&and&that&they&bound&themselves&with&an&oath,&not&for&any&crime,&but&not&to&commit&theK&or&robbery&or&adultery,&not&to&break&their&word,&and&not&to&deny&a&deposit&when&demanded.&&AKer&this&was&done,&it&was&their&custom&to&depart,&and&to&meet&again&to&take&food,&but&ordinary,&harmless&food&.&.&..&&I&discovered&nothing&else&than&a&perverse&and&extravagant&supers//on.”&

& & & & &Le7ers&(10.96)#


“Eucharis@c#Bread”#(fresco),#3rd#century.#

St.#Callixtus#Catacomb,#Rome.#

A#final#account#of#the#Chris@an#

movement#before#the#end#of#the#

second#century#comes#from#the#

sa@rist#Lucian#of#Samosata.##In#

his#Passing&of&Peregrinus#he#portrays#Peregrinus#as#the#very#

model#of#the#“conman.”##Among#

those#duped#by#Peregrinus#was#a#

group#of#Chris@ans:#

! ! ! ! ! !#


Lucian#of#Samosata#

(c.#A.D.#125O180)#

“It&was&then&he&learned&the&wondrous&lore&of&the&Chris/ans&by&associa/ng&with&their&priests&and&scribes&in&Pales/ne.&&And—how&else&could&it&be—in&a&trice&he&made&them&all&look&like&children;&for&he&was&prophet,&cult&leader,&head&of&the&synagogue,&and&everything,&all&by&himself.&&He&interpreted&and&explained&some&of&their&books,&and&even&composed&many,&and&they&revered&him&as&a&god,&made&use&of&him&as&a&lawgiver,&and&set&him&down&as&a&protector,&next&aKer&that&other,&to&be&sure,&whom&they&s/ll&worship,&the&man&who&was&crucified&in&Pales/ne&because&he&introduced&this&new&cult&into&the&world.”#

# # #Passing&of&Peregrinus&(11O13)##! ! ! ! ! !#


Lucian#of#Samosata.##Opera&Omnia,#1615.###[Auc/oned&at&Bonhams,&10/2/2012.]&

Among#Jewish#wri@ngs,#the#

Talmud#contains#only#a#few#

references#to#Jesus#(Babylonian#

Talmud,#Sanhedrin&43a,#b;#103a;#106b;#107b),#though#later#

censors#may#have#removed#

others.##The#ones#that#do#remain#

are#very#brief#and#omen#veiled.#

If#we#did#not#know#of#Jesus#from#

the#New#Testament,#we#would#

probably#not#recognize#the#

allusions#to#him#in#the#Talmud.#


During#the#first#century#

amer#Jesus’#death,#the#

world#took#liQle#no@ce#of#

what#it#considered#to#be#a#

minor#Jewish#sect.###

For#the#most#part,#Jewish#

and#Hellenis@c#writers#

completely#ignored#both#

Jesus#and#Chris@anity.##


Amer#Jesus’#resurrec@on#he#

said#to#his#Apostles:#

“All&power&in&heaven&and&on&earth&has&been&given&to&me.&&Go,&therefore,&and&make&disciples&of&all&na/ons,&bap/zing&them&in&the&name&of&the&Father,&and&of&the&Son,&and&of&the&holy&Spirit,&teaching&them&to&observe&all&that&I&have&commanded&you.”&

MaQhew#28:#18O20#

And#that#is#precisely&what#they#did.#


Between#A.D.#32#and#the#

mid#60s,#teaching#and#

preaching#about#Jesus#

was#primarily#oral,#with#occasional#leQers,#such#as#

those#wriQen#by#Paul.##

Faith#communi@es#

formed#throughout#the#

Roman#Empire#based#on#

such#teaching#and#

preaching.#*


Virtually#everyone&in#the#early#Chris@an#

communi@es#believed#

that#Jesus#was#crucified,#

buried#and#raised,#and#

that#he#would#return#

again,#ushering#in#the#

Kingdom#of#God.#

And&they&believed&this&would&happen&in&their&

life/me.&&


By#the#midO60s#the#

eyewitness#genera@on#

was#drawing#to#a#close—

either#through#natural#

death#or#persecu@on.##

Jesus#had#not#yet#

returned,#so#it#became#

impera@ve#that#the#oral#

teaching#and#preaching#

about#Jesus#be#wriQen#

down,#lest#it#be#distorted#

or#lost.#&


Thus,#the#wri7en&Gospels#begin#to#emerge#in#the#mid#to#late#60s.#


25*The*Day*of*Atonement*

How the Gospel Spread

1.  For three years (A.D. 29-32) Jesus “went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and curing every disease and illness among the people” (Luke 4: 23).

2.  During his 3-year public ministry Jesus gathered many followers, twelve of whom became his “inner circle,” his Apostles. They lived with him, traveled with him, studied with him: they were eyewitnesses to his public ministry and to his death, burial and resurrection.


3.  After his resurrection, Jesus commissioned his inner circle to go and “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28: 19-20).

4. His Apostles did exactly that, becoming his “witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth [i.e., throughout the Roman Empire]” (Acts 1: 8).


5. Jesus’ Apostles—and other followers—traveled throughout the Roman Empire telling stories about him: they repeated his teaching; they told about his encounters with the religious authorities; and they told about the miracles God performed through him.

6. Over time, this oral teaching and preaching took on a fixed form and shape through repetition: expository teaching (e.g., Sermon on the Mount), parables (e.g., the Prodigal Son); dialectic (argumentation); healing stories; etc.

There#were#many#“gospels”#

wriQen#during#the#1st#and#2nd#

centuries#A.D.,#but#the#gospels#

we#shall#study#are#the#

canonical&gospels:##MaQhew,#

Mark,#Luke#and#John.#

These#are#the#gospels#the#early#

church#believed#were#wriQen#

by#the#Apostles#(MaQhew#and#

John)#or#someone#closely#

associated#with#the#Apostles#

(Mark#and#Luke)—during&the&first&genera/on&of&the&Church.#


MaQhew,#a#tax#collector,#

lem#his#work#to#follow#Jesus#

(MaQhew#9:#9O13).##One#of#

the#twelve#apostles,#he#was#

a#Jew—probably#a#Levite—

and#he#wrote#for#a#Jewish#

audience.###

His#wriQen#gospel#emerges#

some@me#in#the#late#60s.#


Rembrandt.##The&Evangelist&Ma7hew&and&the&Angel&(oil#on#canvas),#1661.##

LouvreOLens#Gallery,#PasOdeOCalais,#France.##

John#Mark,#a#young#man,#was#not#

an#apostle,#but#he#was#on#the#

fringes#of#the#group#that#followed#

Jesus.##He#is#first#men@oned#in#

Acts#12:#12—“When&this&dawned&on&him&[Peter],&he&went&to&the&house&of&Mary&the&mother&of&John,&also&called&Mark,&where&many&people&had&gathered&and&were&praying.”##Mark#was#a#

nephew#of#Barnabas#(Colossians#

4:#10)#and#the#spiritual#son#of#

Peter#(1#Peter#5:13).##


Anonymous.##The&Evangelist&Mark&with&a&Lion&(illumina@on#on#parchment),#1524.##

Library#of#Congress,#Washington,#D.C..##

Luke#was#not#an#apostle—

nor#was#he#a#follower#of#

Jesus#during#his#threeOyear#

public#ministry.##Rather,#

Luke,#the#“beloved#

physician”#was#a#Gen@le,#a#

close#friend#and#traveling#

companion#of#Paul#during#

A.D.#50O68.##Luke#wrote#

both#the#Gospel&according&to&Luke&and#the#Acts&of&the&Apostles.##


Andrea#Mantegna.##Luke&the&Evangelist#[detail#from#

the#St.#Luke#altarpiece]#(tempera#on#wood),#1454.##

Brera#Art#Gallery,#Milan#

John#was#an#apostle,#the#son#of#

Zebedee#and#Salome,#the#brother#of#

James#and#one#of#Jesus’#cousins.##Of#

all#the#apostles,#John#was#the#most#

in@mate#with#Jesus.##He#is#the#

“beloved#disciple”#who#rests#his#

head#on#Jesus’#shoulder#at#the#last#

supper#and#the#one#to#whom#Jesus#

entrusts#the#care#of#his#mother,#

Mary,#as#he#is#dying#on#the#cross.##

Tradi@onally,#John#is#the#author#of#

the#Gospel&according&to&John;#1,&2&&&3&John&and#Revela/on.#


Pieter#Paul#Rubens.##St.&John&(oil#on#panel),#c,#1611.##Prado#Museum,#Madrid.#

MaQhew,#Mark#and#Luke#are#

called#the#synop/c&Gospels:#Syn&=&“together”#(as#in#“synonym”)#

Op/c&=#“seen”#

MaQhew,#Mark#and#Luke#all#draw#

from#the#same#oral#(and#perhaps)#

wriQen#sources.#

John#is#very&different#from#the#

synop@c#gospels,#drawing#on#an#

en@rely#different#set#of#tradi@ons.#


The#Synop@c#Gospels#

MaQhew,#Mark#&#Luke#


New#Testament#Manuscripts#

The#New#Testament#was#wriQen#en@rely#in#koine#Greek,#that#is,#the#“common”#Greek#understood#by#ordinary#people#living#in#

Pales@ne#at#the#@me#of#Jesus.##They#understood#Greek#because#

Alexander#the#Great#had#conquered#the#region#in#331#B.C.,#

establishing#a#long#period#of#Greek#rule#that#lasted#un@l#the#

Roman#general,#Pompey,#conquered#the#area#in#63#B.C.##A#Jew#

living#in#Pales@ne#at#the#@me#of#Jesus#would#have#understood#

Greek,#spoken#Aramaic#as#his#na@ve#language,#and#been#able#to#

read#Hebrew.##Most#would#also#have#had#a#working#knowledge#

of#La@n,#since#they#were#living#under#Roman#rule.#

Although#the#events#in#the#New#Testament#happen#in#the#first#

century#A.D.,#the#manuscripts#that#record#those#events#date#

from#much#later.##Manuscripts#of#the#New#Testament#are#

divided#into#four#types:##papyri,#uncials,#minuscules,#and#

lec@onaries.#


Example#of#a#Papyrus#Manuscript#

This#is#the#oldest#exis@ng#manuscript#of#the#new#Testament,##

a#fragment#of#the#Gospel&according&to&John,#A.D.#125#(John#18:#31O34;#37O38).##John#Rylands#Library,#Manchester,#England.#


Example#of#an#Uncial#Manuscript#

Codex#Sinai@cus,#perhaps#the#most#important#of#the#New#Testament#

manuscripts.##Da@ng#from#the#4th#century,#it#contains#part#of#the#Old#Testament#

and#all#of#the#New#Testament.##Bri@sh#Library,#London.##


Example#of#a#Miniscule#Manuscript#

This#is#a#parchment#manuscript#from#the#10th#century#containing#the#Acts#of#the#

Apostles,#and#the#general#and#Pauline#leQers#(Philemon#10O25#is#shown#above).#

Mt.#Athos,#Greece.#


Example#of#a#Lec@onary#

This#is#a#parchment#codex#containing#a#gospel#lec@onary#dated#A.D.#991.##It#is#

carefully#wriQen#with#elaborate#decora@ve#leQers#in#yellow,#blue,#green#and#

scarlet.##The#text#is#John#19:#10O16#and#MaQhew#27:#3O5.##Va@can#Library.#


So,#how#do#we#know#

that#the#Gospel&according&to&Luke&that#we#have#in#our#Catholic&Study&Bibles&is#what#Luke#actually#wrote,#

given#that#the#earliest#

manuscripts#of#Luke#are#

300O400#years#older#

than#the#events#they#

portray?#


That#is#the#job#of#textual&cri/cism:##

A#textual#cri@c#reconstructs#

ancient#texts#based#upon#the#

manuscripts#that#do#exist.#

Presently#there#are:#

• Over#5,800#complete#or#fragmented#

Greek#New#Testament##manuscripts,#

• Over#10,000#La@n#manuscripts,#and#

• Over#9,300#manuscripts#in#other#

#languages.#

These#manuscripts#date#from#A.D.#

125#to#the#beginning#of#prin@ng,#c.#

1450.##The#vast#majority#date#amer#

the#10th#century#A.D.#


Textual#cri@cs#are#the#

unsung#heroes#of#

biblical#scholarship!#

Textual#cri@cism#requires#a#

profound#knowledge#of#

ancient#languages,#history,#

literature#and#composi@onal#

technique,#as#well#as#

enormously#@meO

consuming,#me@culous#and#

detailed#work.##It#is#both#a#

highly#developed#science#

and#an#art.#


Kurt#Aland,#et#al.,#editors.##The&Greek&New&Testament,#4th#edi@on.##London:##United#Bible#Socie@es,#2001.#


As#we#begin#our#study#of#the#

Gospel&according&to&Luke,#it#is#important#to#remember#that#a#

“gospel”#is#not#a#biography#of#a#person,#although#it#does#contain#

biographical#informa@on;#it#is#not#an#historical#account#of#a#person,#

although#it#is#rooted#in#historical#

@me;#it#is#not#a#fic@onal#account#of#a#person,#although#it#does#include#

miracles,#wonders#and#a#large#

dose#of#the#supernatural.##

Rather#.#.#.#


.#.#.#a#“gospel”#reflects#the#

understanding#of#who#

Jesus#Christ#is#and#what#

he#did,#in&light&of&a&living&faith&tradi/on,&guided&by&the&Holy&Spirit,&30I60&years&aKer&the&events&it&portrays.&


1.   How#does#a#“gospel”#differ#from#other#genres#of#

literature?###

2.   If#the#four#canonical#gospels#emerge#from#30O60#years#

of#oral#tradi@on,#would#the#stories#they#tell#have#

“evolved”#with#the#telling?##If#so,#how?##If#not,#why?#

3.   Although#Jesus#lived#in#a#remote#corner#of#the#Roman#

Empire,#wrote#nothing#and#never#traveled#more#than#

100#miles#from#home,#he#and#his#message#became#a#

global#enterprise#with#2#billion#followers#today.##How#

do#you#account#for#that?#

4.   Why#are#MaQhew,#Mark,#Luke#&#John#in#the#New#

Testament,#while#other#“gospels,”#such#as#the#Gospel#

of#Thomas,#are#not#in#the#canon#of#Scripture?#

5.   How#do#you#know#that#the#Gospel#you#are#reading#is#

what#its#author#or#authors#actually#wrote?#


Copyright#©#2015#by#William#C.#Creasy#

# All# rights# reserved.# No# part# of# this# course—audio,# video,#

photography,# maps,# @melines# or# other# media—may# be#

reproduced#or#transmiQed#in#any#form#by#any#means,#electronic#

or# mechanical,# including# photocopying,# recording# or# by# any#

informa@on# storage# or# retrieval# devices# without# permission# in#

wri@ng#or#a#licensing#agreement#from#the#copyright#holder.#


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