The Synoptic Gospels refer to the first three gospels of the New Testament – Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The term “synoptic” means “seeing together” and refers to the fact that these three gospels contain many similar stories, teachings, and experiences in the life of Jesus Christ. They are called the Synoptic Gospels because they share a similar view of Jesus’ life and ministry.
The Gospel of Matthew was written around AD 80-90 and has been attributed to the apostle Matthew, who was a tax collector and one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. Matthew’s gospel aims to present Jesus as the Messiah and promised king descended from David. It contains many of Jesus’ teachings, including the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), parables of the kingdom, and five major discourses. Matthew also emphasizes Jesus’ fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
The Gospel of Mark is the shortest gospel and likely the first one written around AD 65-75. Traditionally, Mark has been attributed to John Mark, a companion of the apostle Peter. Mark’s gospel depicts Jesus as the suffering Son of God who came to serve and sacrifice his life as a ransom for many. The gospel moves rapidly from one story to the next, emphasizing Jesus’ actions more than his teachings. Key themes include the kingdom of God, discipleship, and the Messianic secret.
The Gospel of Luke was written around AD 80-90, likely after Matthew and Mark. Luke accompanied Paul on his missionary journeys and his gospel has sometimes been called the “Gospel to the Gentiles.” Luke emphasizes Jesus’ ministry to outcasts and those on the fringes of society. He provides the most complete account of Jesus’ birth, infancy, and boyhood. Luke also includes many parables and stories not found in the other gospels, such as the good Samaritan and the prodigal son.
Together these three gospels provide complementary portraits of Jesus Christ and are called the Synoptic Gospels because they share common approaches, perspectives, and details not found in the Gospel of John. Though each gospel has its unique emphasis and style, the Synoptics focus on many of the same narratives and sayings of Jesus’ life and ministry including:
- John the Baptist and Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:1-17; Mark 1:1-11; Luke 3:1-22)
- Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13)
- The calling of the first disciples (Matthew 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-20; Luke 5:1-11)
- The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12; Luke 6:20-26)
- The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:1-4)
- Jesus’ healings and miracles like feeding the 5,000 (Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17)
- Peter’s confession of Christ (Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-30; Luke 9:18-21)
- Jesus predicts his death and resurrection (Matthew 16:21-28; Mark 8:31-9:1; Luke 9:22-27)
- The transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36)
- Parables like the sower and the mustard seed (Matthew 13; Mark 4; Luke 8)
- Jesus’ final week in Jerusalem (Matthew 21-27; Mark 11-15; Luke 19-23)
- The Last Supper (Matthew 26:17-30; Mark 14:12-26; Luke 22:7-23)
- The arrest, trials, crucifixion and burial of Jesus (Matthew 26-27; Mark 14-15; Luke 22-23)
- Post-resurrection appearances (Matthew 28:8-10, 16-20; Mark 16:14-20; Luke 24:13-53)
Beyond just common narratives, the Synoptic Gospels share general approaches to telling the story of Jesus:
- General chronological outline – Jesus’ birth, baptism, ministry in Galilee, final journey to Jerusalem, passion week, death & resurrection
- Focus on shorter narratives & sayings – Unlike John, the Synoptics contain more brief stories and pithy sayings of Jesus rather than long dialogues and theological discourses.
- Emphasis on Jesus’ teaching – All three Synoptics emphasize Jesus as a teacher with long discourses like the Sermon on the Mount.
- Use of parables – Stories that convey spiritual truths. About 1/3rd of Jesus’ teaching in the Synoptics contains parables.
- “Kingdom of God” central theme – The coming of God’s kingdom on earth is the core of Jesus’ preaching in the Synoptics.
- Simple presentation of Jesus – The Synoptics present Jesus in human terms emphasizing his emotions, humanity, suffering.
While Matthew, Mark, and Luke share so much common material and perspective, each gospel also has its unique themes and purpose:
- Matthew – Jesus the promised Messiah and King for the Jews
- Mark – Jesus the suffering servant and Son of God
- Luke – Jesus the Savior for all people, including outcasts and Gentiles
The extensive similarities between the Synoptic Gospels, as well differences from John’s more interpretive account, have led most scholars to believe that Matthew, Mark, and Luke are interdependent in some literary fashion. The most widely accepted theory to explain the relationship between the Synoptics is Marcan priority. This holds that Mark was the first gospel written and served as a narrative framework and source for Matthew and Luke. Under this theory, Matthew and Luke independently used Mark as a source, editing and adding their own unique material to Mark’s account.
The Marcan priority theory is supported by several lines of evidence:
- Mark is the shortest, simplest gospel with a fast-moving narrative.
- Ninety percent of Mark’s content is found in Matthew, and fifty percent is found in Luke.
- Mark contains less developed theology and Christology compared to Matthew and Luke.
- Mark’s limited perspective of Jesus seems more primitive than the more developed portraits in Matthew and Luke.
Assuming Mark was written first, Matthew and Luke built upon Mark’s narrative framework independently, each adding their own unique content. Matthew likely added teachings like the Sermon on the Mount and structured his gospel around five major discourses. Luke added extensive new material including parables like the good Samaritan and prodigal son. He also expanded on Jesus’ birth narrative. Both Matthew and Luke corrected or revised Mark’s grammar and rough Greek.
In addition to their shared use of Mark, Matthew and Luke also share content that does not exist in Mark. This material, consisting mostly of Jesus’ sayings and teachings, is sometimes called the double tradition (Q source). The extensive word-for-word similarities between Matthew and Luke suggest they had access to a now lost shared source rather than creating this double tradition independently.
In summary, the Synoptic Gospels refer to Matthew, Mark, and Luke, which tell the story of Jesus in similar ways, though each with their own themes and emphases. They share much verbatim agreement in content, language, structure, and sequencing of stories. The Marcan priority theory provides the best explanation for these literary relationships – Mark was written first as a narrative framework, Matthew and Luke independently used Mark adding their own unique material, and Matthew and Luke share additional content from a now lost sayings source called Q.
While the Gospel of John differs greatly from the Synoptics in style and content, together the four gospels provide four unique portraits of Jesus, capturing the fullness and richness of his life, ministry, death, and resurrection. As the inspired Word of God, the Synoptics and John enable readers to encounter Christ and believe in him for salvation. Through them, the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus who he is – the Messiah, the Son of God, the Savior of the world.