قراءة كتاب The Real Jesus of the Four Gospels

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The Real Jesus of the Four Gospels

The Real Jesus of the Four Gospels

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be with Him and that He might send them forth to preach" (Mark III:14). Both Matthew and Mark give James "the son of Alphaeus," as one of the apostles, but not Levi.

Luke relates that Jesus found Peter, with James and John, his "partners," fishing by the "Sea of Gennesaret" (Galilee), and called them and they followed Him (Luke V:1-11). He omits any mention of Andrew and adds two new incidents, that Jesus "taught the people out of the ship," and that Peter and the others put out their nets and they "inclosed a great multitude of fishes; and their net broke."

A little later Jesus "saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom," and He said to him, "Follow me, and he left all, rose and followed Him" (Luke V:27, 28).

Luke adds here the incident that Levi "made Him a great feast," at which publicans and others sat down, and the scribes and Pharisees rebuked the disciples, saying "Why do you eat and drink with publicans and sinners?" (Luke V:27-32).[19]

At some uncertain time later Jesus called "unto Him His disciples, and of them He chose twelve, whom also He named apostles" (Luke VI:13). Then follow the names, the same as in Matthew and Mark.

John's story is somewhat variant. Jesus' baptism took place at Bethabara, beyond Jordan, in the Decapolis, and some distance both from Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee. Here, on the next day, Jesus meets John and two of His disciples (John I:35, 36). One of these is Andrew, and he brings His brother Simon Peter to Jesus. The two acknowledge Him as the Messiah, and thereafter follow Him (John I:40-42). The following day Jesus finds Philip and makes him one of His disciples (John I:43). There is no further mention of any specific apostles being called by Jesus, although there are constant references to His disciples being with Him (John II:2, 12, 17; III:22; IV:8). There is no specific account of the choosing of the twelve, although the Gospel mentions later that they had been chosen (John VI:67, 70).

In the last chapter of John "Nathaniel of Cana" is mentioned apparently as one of the twelve apostles (John XXI:2), although his name is not in the lists of Matthew, Mark and Luke. He was probably the same Nathaniel who appears earlier in this Gospel (John I:43-51).

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

The Sermon on the Mount is the first discourse by Jesus narrated by Matthew, and is the longest connected discourse to be found in the four Gospels. The place of its delivery is not fixed other than that "He went up into a mountain," but it was probably some elevation of land in Galilee, near Capernaum (Matt. IV:13). The time of its delivery is also not fixed, although it must have been shortly after the baptism by John. Jesus had already done some preaching in Galilee and performed some miracles (Matt. IV:23, 24), but the delivery of the sermon ante-dates all the specific miracles which Matthew relates. The discourse covers three chapters (109 verses) of Matthew's text.

There is, in the four Gospels, no other connected discourse corresponding to the Sermon on the Mount, except in Luke. In Chapter VI he gives a discourse covering twenty-nine verses of his text, which are substantially the same as corresponding verses of the Sermon on the Mount. The place of the delivery of this discourse is not fixed, except that it was on a "plain" (Luke VI:17), probably near Capernaum (Luke VII:1). The time is not fixed, except that Luke's sermon on the plain occurs after a number of miracles and other events (Luke IV:33-44; VI:1-19), while in Matthew's narrative the Sermon on the Mount occurs before these events (Matt. VIII and following).

Some of the verses of this discourse will be found scattered through Mark and John, but a considerable portion of it is entirely lacking. For instance, the "beatitudes" do not appear in either Mark or John.[20]

THE LORD'S PRAYER

In Matthew the Lord's Prayer forms a part of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. VI:9-13).[21]

According to Luke (Luke XI:2-4) it was given to the disciples alone, and not to a multitude, as in Matthew. In Luke it also comes at a much later date than the delivery of the Sermon on the Mount. One verse is slightly different, Luke having, "and forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one who is indebted to us," in place of Matthew's "and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." Luke also omits the last sentence in Matthew's version.

The Lord's Prayer is not found in Mark or John.[22]

THE FIRST MIRACLES

Matthew says, in a general way, that Jesus healed "all manner of sickness" before the delivery of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. IV:23, 24). But the first specific miracles which he describes occurred after that event (Matt. VIII:1-15). The first was the leper, the second the centurion's servant, afflicted with palsy, and the third was the mother of Simon Peter's wife, who was "sick of a fever." Jesus saw and touched the leper and Peter's wife's mother, but the centurion's servant was one of the few cases where the cure was effected in the absence of the patient and without Jesus' seeing him.

The curing of the leper is described by Mark (I:40) and by Luke (V:12). Luke describes the healing of the centurion's servant (VII:1-10), differing only in that the friends of the centurion came to Jesus instead of the centurion in person, as in Matthew.

Mark and Luke both relate the curing of Peter's wife's mother (Mark I:30; Luke IV:38).

John mentions none of these miracles, but, alone of all four evangelists, narrates the miracle at Cana of changing water into wine (John II:1-10), and says that this was Jesus' first miracle (John II:11). He then describes the curing of the sick "son of a nobleman of Capernaum" (John IV:46-53), and says that this was the second miracle "which Jesus did when He was come out of Judæa into Galilee," viz: after His baptism by John (John IV:54). The circumstances of this miracle are quite similar to those of the centurion's servant described by Matthew and Luke, the cure being effected in the absence of the patient.

Matthew next gives the miracle of the stilling of the tempest (Matt. VIII:23-27), which is also found in Mark (IV:35-41), and in Luke (VIII:22-25). This miracle is not found in John.

Then follows the miracle of driving the devils out of the two men of the "country of the Gergesenes," and sending them into a herd of swine which "ran violently down a steep place into the sea and perished in the waters" (Matt. VIII:28-34).

Mark narrates the same miracle as occurring in the country of the Gadarenes, except there is one man instead of two (Mark V:1-20). The sufferings of this man, who is possessed of "an unclean spirit," are described in some detail. The spirit, being asked for his "name," says, "My name is Legion; for we are many." Thereupon he or they beseech Jesus not to send them away out of the country, but: "Send us into the swine, that we may enter

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