Who Chose the Gospels: The Great Gospel Conspiracy

Who Chose the Gospels?
the Great Gospel Conspiracy

Canon of The New Testament
• The word “Canon” refers to the
collection of New Testament writings in
our Bibles today. This word is derived
from the Greek word “κανων.”
• “A means to determine the quality of
something” Gal 6:16
• “Set of directions or formulation for an
activity,” 2 Cor 10:13, 15, 16.
• In later Christianity the word came to be
understood and associated with the “rule
of faith.”

An Explanation on Dating Terms Used
Centuries CE/AD
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400
1st Century 2nd Century 3rd Century 4th Century

The Father of Conspiracy
•Walter Bauer
• In 1934 Walter Bauer published, Orthodoxy and
Heresy in Earliest Christianity.
• In 1971 Bauer’s work was translated into
English and it began to find its way into
seminaries and University classrooms of the
west.
• Bauer’s work challenged accepted norms and a
new breed of scholars began to adopt the basic
outlines of his thesis.

The Lonely Irenaeus
• Irenaeus of Lugdunum (ca. 180 CE)
• Church leader in Lugdunum Gaul (Lyon,
France).
• Disciple of Polycarp, who was a disciple of
John the apostle.
• Wrote an extensive work against Gnostic
doctrine that was taking root in Gaul and in
Rome, Against Heresies.
• Allegedly, Irenaeus was the first to promote a
four gospel canon (Matthew, Mark, Luke, &
John).

The Lonely Irenaeus
• Irenaeus wrote these oft quoted words in his work Against Heresies;
• “It is not possible that the Gospels can be either more or fewer in
number than they are. For, since there are four zones of the world in
which we live, and four principal winds, while the Church is scattered
throughout all the world, and the "pillar and ground" of the Church is
the Gospel and the spirit of life; it is fitting that she should have four
pillars, breathing out immortality on every side, and vivifying men
afresh.” (AH 3.11.8).
• “For that according to John . . . But that according to Luke . . .
Matthew, again, relates His generation as a man . . . Mark, on the
other hand . . .” (AH 3.11.8).

The Lonely Irenaeus
• Irenaeus wrote about the origins of the four gospels;
• “Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their
own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying
the foundations of the Church. After their departure, Mark, the
disciple and interpreter of Peter, did also hand down to us in writing
what had been preached by Peter. Luke also, the companion of Paul,
recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him. Afterwards, John,
the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did
himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia.” (AH
3.1.1)

Irenaeus The Book Burner
• Elaine Pagels
• Professor of Religion at Princeton
University.
• She has written many best selling
books: The Gnostic Gospels;
Adam, Eve, and the Serpent; The
Origin of Satan; Beyond Belief: The
Secret Gospel of Thomas.
• Claims that Irenaeus ordered
Christians to destroy other gospel
books which were not approved
by him.

• Irenaeus wrote to a colleague, Florinus, who
had fallen in line with a Gnostic group.
“These doctrines, Florinus, to speak mildly,
are not of sound judgment... “
• He does not command Florinus to “burn”
books, but reminds Florinus of Polycarp’s
teaching.
“For, while I was yet a boy, I saw you in Lower
Asia with Polycarp…he would speak of his
familiar conversation with John, and with the
rest of those who had seen the Lord.”

• Irenaeus wrote to Victor, leader of the Church
in Rome about some writings that Florinus had
produced. He did not command these books to
be burned or destroyed.
“The books of these men may possibly have
escaped your observation, but have come
under our notice, I call your attention to
them, that for the sake of your reputation
you may expel these writings from among
you, as bringing disgrace upon you, since
their author boasts himself as being one of
your company.”
• Florinus was portraying himself as orthodox
but was secretly passing off his Gnostic
writings as acceptable.

• Irenaeus actually kept a collection of Gnostic
writings so that he could study their teachings
in detail.
“I have also made a collection of their
writings..” (AH 1.31.2)
• In one place he actually criticized other
Apologists because they had not read and or
understood Gnostic writings enough to
counter their teachings.
“This was the reason that my predecessors—
much superior men to myself, too—were
unable, notwithstanding, to refute the
Valentinians satisfactorily, because they were
ignorant of these men’s system…”
(AH 4.preface.2)

What Can This Tell Us?
• Irenaeus clearly advocated the four canonical Gospels by the end of
the second century (ca. 180 CE).
• Irenaeus believed that these four gospels were authored by the
apostles or their disciples and were faithfully handed down.
• Contrary to popular scholarship, Irenaeus did not command or order
the burning or destroying of rival gospels.
• Irenaeus obtained a collection of heretical writings in order to study
them and understand Gnostic teaching.
• Is Irenaeus the one of his contemporaries to recognize the four
canonical gospels?

The “Co-Conspirators” of Irenaeus

• Lee Martin McDonald
• Former Professor of New
Testament studies and President
of Acadia Divinity College.
• Authority on Biblical Canon.
• Has written, The Biblical Canon,
and coeditor of The Canon
Debate (with James Sanders),
and The World of the New
Testament (with Joel Green).

• Clement of Alexandria (190’s CE)
• An educated Christian Philosopher
who read and studied widely.
• Clement had contact with Gnosticism
that flourished in Egypt in his day.
• He was not averse to consulting other
sources outside of the canonical
gospels.
• Looked for points of agreement
between Christianity and Egyptian
Hellenistic Society.
Alexandria

• Clement of Alexandria
• In his various surviving works he quoted;
• Gospel of the Egyptians ̶ 8 times.
• Gospel of the Hebrews ̶ 3 times.
• Traditions of Mathias ̶ 3 times.
• Clement also quoted and used as sources;
• Epistle of Barnabas, 1 Clement, the Shepherd of Hermas, Sirach,
Tatian’s Against the Greeks, the Preaching of Peter, the Apocalypse
of Peter, and the Sibylline Oracles.

• According to a recent counting of all of his
surviving works, Clement quoted;
• Matthew ̶ 757 times
• Luke̶ 402 times
• John ̶ 331 times
• Mark̶ 182 times
• Total of 1672 references to the canonical Gospels
compared to 14 references to the four
noncanonical “Gospels.”

• He does not quote those noncanonical writings
that modern scholars promote as ancient
contenders for canonical status;
• Gospel of Thomas
• Gospel of Peter
• Egerton Gospel
• Gospel of Judas
• Gospel of Mary

• After quoting from the Gospel of the Egyptians he stated that;
• “In the first place we have not got this saying in the four gospels that have
been handed down to us, but in the Gospel according to the Egyptians”
• And in another place he states that;
• “four gospels that have been handed down to us” (Strom. 3.13.93).
• The Church historian Eusebius, referring to one of Clement’s works that no
longer survives, wrote that he had passed down a tradition of the gospels.
• That Matthew and Luke were written first, then Mark, recording the
preaching of Peter, and John who wrote a “spiritual gospels” (EH. 6.14.5-7).

• Serapion of Antioch
• Church leader at Antioch was asked to
settle a dispute about reading the Gospel
of Peter in the Church at Rhossus, a nearby
town.
• This incident recorded by Eusebius gives a
glimpse into the ancient Church’s use of
Gospels and noncanonical writings.
Antioch

• On an initial visit to Rhossus, Serapion gave his consent
to reading the Gospel of Peter, but upon returning to
Antioch and actually reading the work himself he
condemned it as a work that had “Docetist” views.
• Lee McDonald uses this incident to argue that
Serapion did not deny the orthodoxy of the Gospel of
Peter based on the acceptance of a four gospel canon
but on,
• “a canon of truth that was circulating in the
Churches.”

• Lee McDonald is representative of
scholar’s treatment of this incident;
• 1) Rhossus was requesting to use or
already had been using Gpeter in the
Church as the “sacred text.”
• 2) The initial permission meant
Serapion approved of Gpeter as
scripture and an authentic
document by Peter.
• 3) Serapion banned its use for
doctrinal and not canonical reasons.

• Rhossus was not presenting its sacred text to be acknowledged
alongside, or in place of the four Gospels. Serapion wrote;
• For I myself, when I came among you, imagined that all of you
clung to the true faith; and, without going through the Gospel put
forward by them in the name of Peter, I said; If this is the only
thing that seems to cause dissension, let it be read.” (EH 6.12.4)
• This was a new writing being put forward by a separate group in the
church that was causing division.

• What is the Gospel of Peter?
• It is a popularized re-telling of
Jesus’ passion with fictional
elements added.
• These types of writings were
very popular.
• Think of the Left Behind series.
• A similar circumstance was
happening in Rhossus.

• Serapion wrote a letter entitled Concerning the so-called Gospel according to
Peter. In the beginning of the letter, Serapion wrote;
• “For we ourselves, brothers, receive both Peter and the other apostles as
Christ, but the pseudepigraphal writings (written) in their name we reject,
as having experience in such things, knowing that we did not receive such
writings by tradition.” (EH. 6.12.3-6)
• He did not consider the Gospel of Peter as an “authentic gospel.”
• He knew of writings circulating that were falsely written in the apostles names.
• He did have a collection of writings that were authentically penned by the
apostles and handed down by tradition.
• He recognized these writings as having apostolic authority.

• The Legacy of Theophilus (ca. 175 CE)
• Leader of Antioch Church two generations before Serapion.
• Wrote an apologetic work To Autolycus. In it he wrote;
• “Concerning the justice of which the Law spoke, the teaching of the
prophets and the gospels is consistent with it because all the inspired men
made utterances by means of the one Spirit of God.” (Autol. 3.12)
• Theophilus also complied a harmony of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
• He recognized these gospels as inspired by the Holy Spirit.
• It is likely that Serapion saw these same gospels as “writings received by
tradition.”

• The “Alogi” and “Ebionites”
• These groups were “heretical” groups that were
roughly contemporary with Irenaeus.
• The “Alogi” rejected teachings on the Holy Spirit
and thus rejected John’s Gospel.
• The Ebionites were Jewish followers of Jesus who
did recognize his divinity and thus rejected John’s
gospel and the writings of Paul.
• These groups used some of the gospels, such as
Matthew and Luke and edited others to their
liking.

• The Muratorian Fragment (ca. 170 CE)
• “. . . at which nevertheless he was present, and so he placed [them in
his narrative]. The third book of the Gospel is that according to Luke.
Luke, the well-known physician, after the ascension of Christ, when
Paul had taken with him as one zealous for the law, composed it in his
own name, according to [the general] belief. Yet he himself had not
seen the Lord in the flesh; and therefore, as he was able to ascertain
events, so indeed he begins to tell the story from the birth of John.
The fourth of the Gospels is that of John, [one] of the disciples. . .”

The Muratorian Fragment (ca. 170 CE)
“But Hermas wrote The Shepherd very
recently, in our times, in the city of
Rome, while bishop Pius, his brother, was
occupying the [Episcopal] chair of the
church in the city of Rome.”
• The Muratorian Fragment should be dated
to the last part of the 2nd century.

Lugdunum
Muratorian
Fragment
Irenaeus
Antioch
Serapion
Alexandria
Clement
Second to Third Century CE

Irenaeus and his Co-Conspirators
Centuries CE
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

• Irenaeus was not a loner, Clement in Alexandria, Serapion in Antioch and the
Author of the Muratorian Fragment in Rome all recognize the four gospels.
• Each of these early Church figures speak of these four gospels as being
“handed down” or being “received by tradition” from their forbearers.
• Each of these writers acknowledge that there were other writings in
circulation at the time, none of-which made any serious claims at being
authentic apostolic writings.
• Clement and Serapion reveal that the early Church read fictionalized writings
that dramatized the gospel narratives. Most of these writings were harmless.
• There is no evidence of a conspiracy!

The Proof is in the Papyri

Gospel Best Sellers From Egyptian
Garbage Dumps
• James M. Robinson
• Professor of Religion at
Claremont Graduate
University in California.
• Was a member of the Jesus
Seminar
• A leading Nag Hammadi
scholar.

Garbage Dumps

Garbage Dumps
• Matthew
• P64, 67
• P77
• P103
• P104
• 0171
• Mark
• Luke
• P4
• P75* (Lk & Jn)
• 0171
Non-Canonical Gospels
• Egerton Gospel
• P. Egerton 2 + P. Köln 255
• Gospel of Peter
• P. Oxy. 4009
• P. Oxy. 2949
• P. Oxy. 1
• P. Oxy. 655
• John
• P5
• P52
• P66*
• P75* (Lk & Jn)
• P90
• P108
• P109
• Gospel Harmony
• 0212

Garbage Dumps
• Matthew
• P1
• P101
• P37
• P45
• P53
• P70
• P102
• P. Oxy. 1
• P. Oxy. 654
• P. Oxy. 655
• Gospel of James
• P. Bodmer 5
• Gospel of Mary
• P. Ryl. 463
• P. Oxy. 3525
• Fayum Gospel
• P. Vind. G2325
• John
• P22
• P28
• P39
• P45
• P80
• P106
• P107
• P119
• P121
• 0161
• Mark
• P45
• Luke
• P45
• P69
• P97
• P111

Garbage Dumps
• 2nd Century Papyri
• Canonical to Noncanonical
• 5 to 1
• 3rd Century Papyri
• Canonical to Noncanonical
• 3 to 1
• There is not much change between the 2nd
and 3rd centuries as some scholars claim.

“I saw with my own eyes the places of worship
being thrown down from top to bottom, to the
very foundations, the inspired holy scriptures
committed to the flames in the middle of the
public squares, and the pastors of the Churches
hiding disgracefully in one place or another,
while others suffered the indignity of being
held up to public ridicule by their enemies. . . “
(EH 8.2)

Packaging the Gospels
• The Codex
• Every copy of the Gospels discovered to
date is in the form of a codex.
• But using the form of a codex was against
the cultural norm of the bookroll.
• There are several multiple-Gospel
Codices and one four gospel Codex from
the 2nd-3rd centuries.
• There have been no codices found with a
canonical gospel and a noncanonical
gospel bound together.

Packaging the Gospels
• Four Gospel Synopsis
• A synopsis of the four gospels was compiled by
a man named Ammonius from Alexandria in the
early 3rd century.
• Eusebius wrote that Ammonius;
• “placed similar pericopes of the rest of the
Evangelists alongside Matthew” (Eus. Carp.)
• Eusebius used his work and made a system of
cross references that were used in successive
copies of the gospels for centuries.

Tatian’s Diatessaron
• After living in Rome for awhile Tatian
moved back to Syria where he composed
his Diatessaron.
• Diatessaron means “through the four”
and was a gospel harmony, a single
flowing narrative that combined the
stories from all four canonical gospels
into a single narrative.
• Theophilus of Antioch also compiled a
four gospel harmony a few years earlier
in the city of Antioch.

Tatian’s Diatessaron
• The early Christians viewed the four
gospels not as competing accounts of
Jesus, but as four different perspectives
on Jesus’ life and teaching that
complemented each other.
• This tells us that the four gospels were
widely read and distributed by the early
Church.
• There were no harmonies of any
noncanonical gospels.

Mark & Luke
Ephesus
John Antioch
Alexandria
Matthew

• Contrary to popular claims made by some, such as James Robinson,
papyri of the canonical gospels outnumber noncanonical. And there is
no discernable change in the ratio between canonical and
noncanonical gospels between the 2nd and 3rd centuries.
• Christians were not in a position to control which books people
committed to the garbage dumps—there was no conspiracy.
• The way in which early Christians “packaged” the gospels in codices,
synopses and harmonies show an early acceptance and use of the
four gospels.
• The geographical distribution of manuscript fragments point to an
early and fairly rapid circulation of the four gospels.

Justin Martyr and other “Proto-
Conspirators” of Irenaeus

Justin Martyr (ca. 150 CE)
• Justin taught many years in Rome, Tatian,
who composed the Diatessaron, was one
of his pupils.
• There are three works by Justin existing
today;
• 2 Apologies to the Imperial Authorities.
• And 1 letter to a Jewish friend, Trypho, he
was attempting to win over to the Christian
faith.

Justin Martyr (ca. 150 CE)
“And on the day which is called the
day of the sun there is an assembly of
all those who live in the towns or in
the country, and the memoirs of the
apostles or the writings of the
prophets are read for as long as time
permits. Then the reader ceases, and
the president speaks, admonishing
and exhorting us to imitate these
excellent examples.” (I Apol 67)

Memoirs of the Apostles
• It was common practice only to use writings that the opponent
accepted as authoritative or true.
• In his letter his Jewish friend Trypho, Justin wrote;
• “I have not attempted to establish proof about Christ from the
passage of scripture which are not confessed by you . . . but from
those which are even now confessed by you. . . “ (Dial 120.5)
• In his First Apology Justin wrote;
• “We presume that you who aim at a [reputation for] piety, justice,
or philosophy will do nothing unreasonable” (I Apol 12)

• When Justin used New Testament writings in his Apology, he did
without explicitly mentioning them or by referring to them as
historical documents.
• Justin did not refer to the gospels by their more common Christian
name, but by a name that Graeco-Romans would understand,
“Memoirs of the Apostles.” Romans might then think of Xenophon’s
faithful reminiscences of his master, recorded in his “Memoirs of
Socrates.”
• Justin used the same word as Xenophon to refer to the apostles
reminiscences of Jesus, “απομνημονευματα.”

• Justin defined what these “memoirs” were,
• “For the apostles, in the memoirs which have come by their
agency, which are called gospels, have thus delivered to us what
was enjoined upon them.” (I Apol 63)
• In his letter to Trypho Justin wrote;
• “the memoirs which I say were drawn up by his apostles and those
who followed them.” (Dial 103)
• Matthew and John were written by Jesus’ apostles, Luke and Mark by
those who followed the apostles.

• In his letter to Trypho, Justin wrote;
• “And when it is said that he changed the name of one of the
apostles to Peter; and when it is written in the memoirs of him
that this happened, as well as that he changed the names of two
other brothers, the sons of Zebedee, to Boanerges, which means
sons of thunder. . . “ (Dial 106)
• Justin is referring to the tradition, first mentioned by Papias, that
Mark copied down the preaching of Peter.
• Justin also invited the Emperor to read these writings himself
• “And that these things did happen, you can learn from the
registers (the acta) of what happened un Pontius Pilot” (I Apol
35.9)

• Justin viewed the apostles and their writings as
authoritative divine messengers sent by God;
• “For in Jerusalem there went out into the
world men, twelve in number, and these
illiterate, of no ability in speaking: but by the
power of God they proclaimed to every race of
men that they were sent by Christ to teach to
all the word of God” (I Apol 39.3)
• It is clear that what the apostles taught was the
very word of God.

The Gospels as Public Documents

• Trypho a non-Christian Jew from Ephesus
“I am aware that your precepts in your so-called
Gospel are so wonderful and so great,
that I suspect no one can keep them; for I have
carefully read them” (Dial 10)
• Justin assumed Trypho read the gospels;
“Since you have read, O Trypho, as you yourself
admitted, the doctrines taught by our Saviour, I
do not think that I have done foolishly in adding
some short utterances of his to the prophetic
statements” (Dial 18.1)

• Justin wrote his 1st Apology to Emperor Antoninus Pius
and the Roman Senate as a defense of the Christian
faith and invited them to learn about Christianity . . .
“by looking into our writings” (I Apol 28.1).
• And as we mentioned already, Justin refers to these
writings as “memoirs of the Apostles” and identifies
them as “gospels” (I Apol 66.3).
• It is obvious that the Gospels Justin was using were
easily identifiable by those outside the Christian faith
because they were recognized by most Christians in
Rome and were readily available for anyone to read.

• Crescens was a Philosopher in Rome and critic of
Christianity.
• Justin knew that because of Crescens he would
most likely be arrested and executed (2 Apol 3).
“without having read the teachings of Christ” or,
“if he has read them . . . [he] does not
understand the majesty that is in them.”
(2 Apol 3.3)
• Justin assumed Crescens knew which Gospels were
Christian and that they were easily recognizable
and readily available for reading.

• Celsus was a philosopher and critic of Christianity
who had read and studied the Christian writings
and wrote an attack against Christianity called The
True Word. (160-180CE)
• Origen wrote a response in the 240s CE.
“And again, passing by in silence the proofs of the
divinity of Jesus, Celsus endeavors to cast
reproach upon Him from the narratives in the
Gospel, referring to those who mocked Jesus, and
put on Him the purple robe, and the crown of
thorns, and placed the reed in His hand. From
what source now, Celsus, did you derive these
statements, save from the Gospel narratives?”
(Cels. 2.34)

• Though Origen uses the singular “gospel” he is
clearly referring to more than one written
account.
• Origen declared that Celsus,
“makes numerous quotations from the Gospel
according to Matthew” (Cels 2.34).
• Celsus quoted material from all four Gospels.
• Celsus easily procured these writings and
recognized the four Gospels because the “the
Great Church” (Cels 5.59) and “the great
multitude” (Cels 5.61) used them as scripture.

• Marcion was a teacher in Rome that had left the
“orthodox” Church to found his own movement in
the 140s CE.
• The God of the Old Testament was a lower deity and
his scriptures (OT) were only for Jews and not for
“Christians.”
• Jesus had appeared to teach about a higher, but
previously unknown God. Salvation was of the soul
alone and not the body.
• Marcion wrote his theology in a book called
Antithesis.

• Marcion, in order to buttress his theology created
his own selection of “true” or “canonical” writings.
• Irenaeus wrote that;
“Marcion and his followers have betaken
themselves to mutilating the Scriptures, not
acknowledging some books at all; and, curtailing
the Gospel according to Luke and the Epistles of
Paul, they assert that these are alone authentic,
which they have themselves thus shortened.” (AH
3.12.12)

• Marcion was originally from Sinope
in Asia Minor, in the province of
Pontus.
• His father was the leader of the
Church of Sinope and Marcion
eventually became the leader as an
adult.
• If Christians in Sinope in Asia Minor
were reading Gospels other than
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
Marcion never mentions them.
Sinope

Ephesus
Rome
Justin Martyr
Roman Emperor
Crescens
Celsus
Marcion
Tyrpho
Roman Empire 140s-160s CE
Sinope
Marcion

Early Christian Use of the Gospels
Centuries CE/AD
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

• 30-40 years before Irenaeus, Clement, and Serapion, Christians in
Rome were reading the Gospels (memoirs of the Apostles) alongside
the Old Testament during Sunday worship gatherings.
• Justin wrote his apology to the Roman Emperor fully expecting him to
recognize what were the Christian scriptures and to easily obtain
copies of them and criticized Crescens for not reading them.
• Celsus had access to the Gospels in Rome and recognized them as
Christian (the Great Church) authoritative writings and refuted
Christian teaching from them.
• Trypho read the four Gospels in Ephesus recognizing them as
Christian authoritative writings.

The Search for an “Arch-Conspirator”

The Apostolic Fathers
• The Term “Apostolic Fathers” are a
collection of the earliest extant
Christian writings outside of the
New Testament
• Written by disciples of one or more
of the twelve Apostles.
• Some of these writings can be
dated to a time when some of the
New Testament was still being
written (between 70s-90s CE).

• Polycarp of Smyrna was a disciple of the
apostle John and the teacher of Irenaues.
• He wrote to the Philppians about 110-115 CE.
“So then, let us serve him with fear and all
reverence, just as he himself has
commanded, as did the apostles, who
preached the gospel to us, and the prophets
who announced I advance the coming of
the Lord.” (Pol. Phil. 6.3)
Smryna

• Ignatius of Antioch, disciple of John, and a
prisoner for his faith, ca 110 CE.
• To the Philadelphians he wrote.
“But the gospel possesses something
distinctive, namely, the coming of the
Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ, his suffering,
and the resurrection. For the beloved
prophets preached in anticipation of him,
but the gospel is the imperishable finished
work.” (Ign Phil 9.2)
Antioch

• Clement of Rome wrote to the Corinthian Church ca.80s or 90s CE.
• This letter very likely pre-dates the Gospel of John.
“The apostles received the gospel for us from the Lord Jesus Christ;
Jesus the Christ was sent forth from God. So then Christ is from God,
and the apostles are from Christ . . . Having therefore received their
orders and being fully assured by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus
Christ and full of faith in the word of God, they went forth with the
firm assurance that the Holy Spirit gives, preaching the good news
that the kingdom of God was about to come.” (1 Clem 42.1-3)

Papias, Hearer of John
• Leader of the Church in Hierapolis, born
around 70 CE.
“Papias, a man of the early period, who was
a hearer of John and a companion of
Polycarp, bears witness to these things . . . ”
(EH 3.38.1)
• Traveled around collecting stories and sayings
of the apostels and disciples of Jesus and
wrote them down in a work called The
Expositions of the Sayings of the Lord, which
he wrote in the early 2nd century, which is now
lost.
Hierapolis

“And if by chance someone who had been
a follower of the elders should come my
way, I enquired about the words of the
elders—what Andrew or Peter said, or
Philip, or Thomas or James, or John or
Matthew or any other of the Lord’s
disciples, and whatever Aristion and the
elder John, the Lord’s disciples were
saying. For I did not think that information
from books would profit me as much as
information from a living and abiding
voice.” (EH 3.39.3)

“And the Elder used to say this; ‘Mark, having become
Peter’s interpreter, wrote down accurately everything
he remembered, though not in order, of the things
either said or done by Christ. For he neither heard the
Lord nor followed him, but afterward, as I said,
followed Peter, who adapted his teachings as needed
but had no intention of giving an ordered account of
the Lord’s sayings. Consequently Mark did nothing
wrong in writing down some things as he remembered
them, for he made it his one concern not to omit
anything which he heard or to make any false
statement in them.” (EH 3.39.15)

“So Matthew composed the oracles (λογια) in the
Hebrew language (διαλεκτῳ) and each person
interpreted them as best he could” (EH 3.39.16)
• Papias mentioned Mark and Matthew by name when
the Apostolic Fathers were writing, and thus, they
most likely knew these gospels which were
circulating at that time.
• Mark simply recorded Peter’s preaching without
chronological order.
• Matthew did not necessarily write gospel in Hebrew
but in a Jewish style.

• Papias does not give us any other statements as
to the origins of Luke and John.
• Papias is recorded as knowing and quoting from
the gospels of Luke and John. So he did know
them.
• Papias is the earliest figure that definitively makes
references to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John and
traces, at least Mark and Matthew, all the way
back to the Apostles of Jesus.

Eusebius on John
“And after Mark and Luke had already made the publication of the Gospels
according to them, John, they say, used all the time, a proclamation that was
not written down, and at last came to writing for the following cause. After
the three Gospels which had been previously written had already been
distributed to all, and even to himself, they say that he welcomed them and
testified to their truth, but that there was therefore only lacking to the
Scripture the account concerning things which had been done by Christ at
first and at the beginning of the proclamation. . . . Now they say that on
account of these things, the apostle John was exhorted to hand down in the
Gospel according to himself the time passed over in silence by the first
evangelists and the things which had been done by the Savior at this time.”
(EH 3.24.7-11)

Paul and the Gospel of Luke
• In the last years of Paul’s life, he had left Timothy in the
city of Ephesus in order to teach.
• He wrote 1 & 2 Timothy sometime 65-68 CE.
• Paul wrote in 1 Tim 5:18;
“For Scripture says, ‘You Shall Not Muzzle the Ox
While He is Threshing,’ and ‘The laborer is worthy of
his wages’.”
• He introduces a quotation from the Old Testament
with the phrase “For Scripture says.” This was the
standard way to introduce quotations from the Old
Testament, which would have been viewed by Paul as
Divine revelation.
• He continues from the Old Testament quote
immediately into a quotation from Luke 10:7.

“Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this
house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will
rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And
remain in the same house, eating and drinking what
they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do
not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a
town and they receive you, eat what is set before you.
Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of
God has come near to you.’” (Luke 10:5-9)

“Do I say these things on human authority? Does
not the Law say the same? For it is written in the
Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it
treads out the grain.” . . . . In the same way, the Lord
commanded that those who proclaim the gospel
should get their living by the gospel.” (1 Corinthians
9:9, 14)
• Paul is placing what Jesus commanded on the same
level as the Mosaic Law.
• Jesus’ words, are God’s commands to be followed and
obeyed.

• The Gospels Apparently Chose Themselves!
• The Gospels were penned under the apostle’s authority.
• The apostles were recognized as Jesus’ divinely inspired messengers.
• The Christian community recognized the divinely inspired nature of
these documents the moment they left the hand of their authors.
• These gospels were widely distributed, circulated, and passed down
from generation to generation.
• Official declarations, lists, and collections of these books did not
happen until a few centuries later.

Who Chose the Gospels: The Great Gospel Conspiracy

Recommandé

Recommandé

Contenu connexe

Tendances

Tendances (20)

Similaire à Who Chose the Gospels: The Great Gospel Conspiracy

Similaire à Who Chose the Gospels: The Great Gospel Conspiracy (20)

Dernier

Dernier (20)

Who Chose the Gospels: The Great Gospel Conspiracy