Do the evangelists' different portrayals of Jesus contradict one another or are they perfectly compatible and mutually supportive?

Answer 1

A:

The evangelists who wrote the four New Testament gospels are traditionally regarded as being Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, although New Testament scholars longer accept those attributions. There is an important relationship among the four gospels, that provides reasons for their unity where unity exists, and explanations for the differences where there are differences.

The first New Testament gospel to be written was Mark's Gospel, written in Greek Koine around 70 CE. Scholars have established that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke were substantially based on Mark's Gospel, but with some additional sayings material taken from the hypothetical 'Q' document. They have also established that John's Gospel was loosely based on Luke, with some material taken direct form Mark.

With this history of the gospels, it can be expected that the portrayal of Jesus that we find in Matthew and Lukewould be substantially compatible with the portrayal in Markand, to a large extent, this is the case. Because John is a further step removed from Mark and because its author felt more free to alter details and chronology of events, its portrayal is much less compatible and indeed contradictory at times. These contradictions have long been recognised, and Origen, in defending John's Gospel, said "although he does not always tell the truth literally, he always tells it spiritually" (Origen, Commentary on John).

Answer 2

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