Edward Adams
Parallel Lives of Jesus - Conclusion
Parallel Lives of Jesus - Conclusion
by SPCK - Edward Adams
Conclusion This book set out to provide an introduction to the four Gospels that respects the unity and individuality claimed for them in the Christian canon. Appropriating a distinction made in narratology, and drawing a comparison with multiple-narrative films and novels, I sho…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 12 The Empty Tomb
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 12 The Empty Tomb
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Empty Tomb None of the four evangelists describes Jesus’ actual resurrection, but they all report the discovery of the empty tomb, and all except Mark recount appearances of the risen Jesus to his followers. The resurrection accounts of the four Gospels are notoriously diffic…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 11 The Death of Jesus
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 11 The Death of Jesus
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Death of Jesus The crucifixion and death of Jesus is the “crucial” event of the shared gospel story, the climactic occurrence to which the whole course of events has been leading. Crucifixion was an excessively cruel and drawn-out mode of execution, designed to shock and inti…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 10 The Transfiguration
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 10 The Transfiguration
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Transfiguration The transfiguration is one of the key episodes in the Synoptic Gospels, occurring in all three. Like the baptism with which it connects, the transfiguration is a onetime event in the pre-passion ministry of Jesus. It is sometimes classed as an epiphany story, …
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 9 The Walking on the Water
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 9 The Walking on the Water
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Walking on the Water The story of Jesus’ walking on the water appears in three of the four Gospels: not, as one might expect, in the three Synoptic Gospels, but in Matthew, Mark, and John. Luke does not include this episode; he moves directly from the feeding miracle to the c…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 8 The Feeding of the Five Thousand
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 8 The Feeding of the Five Thousand
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Feeding of the Five Thousand The feeding of the five thousand is one of the most well-known of the miracles performed by Jesus and the only one that is recorded in all four Gospels.1 It is classed as a “nature miracle,” an action by which Jesus demonstrates his authority over…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 7 Selected Parallel Episodes
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 7 Selected Parallel Episodes
by SPCK - Edward Adams
Selected Parallel Episodes Having considered each Gospel separately, we now bring the “parallel lives” of Jesus into contact with each other as we look at selected common episodes. The exercise will allow us to explore the unity and plurality of the Gospels in a more focused way,…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6c Characterizational Emphases
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6c Characterizational Emphases
by SPCK - Edward Adams
Characterizational Emphases The Fourth Evangelist lays emphasis on the heavenly character of Jesus. Jesus has come from heaven and will return to it (e.g., 3:13, 31; 6:33). He is “from above”; he is “not of this world” (8:23). Jesus comes across as a more detached and other-world…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6b Epilogue
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6b Epilogue
by SPCK - Edward Adams
Epilogue The last two verses of chapter 20 probably constitute the original ending of John’s Gospel: chapter 21 seems to have been added later as an appendix. It recounts a further post-resurrection appearance by Jesus, in which he miraculously enables the disciples to make an ab…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6 The Gospel according to John
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 6 The Gospel according to John
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Gospel according to John The Fourth Gospel shares features of the genre of ancient biography with the Synoptic Gospels (size, structure, narrative focus on one individual). Like the Synoptics, John’s Gospel constitutes an ancient “life” of Jesus. It also has in common with th…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5d The Characterization of the Disciples
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5d The Characterization of the Disciples
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Characterization of the Disciples By no means is Luke oblivious to the failings of the disciples (e.g., 8:22–25; 9:12–13), but his portrait of the disciples is more positive than Mark’s and even Matthew’s.28 This is evident from a comparison of parallel episodes. Luke does no…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5b Jerusalem, Passion, and Resurrection
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5b Jerusalem, Passion, and Resurrection
by SPCK - Edward Adams
Jerusalem, Passion, and Resurrection Finally Jesus arrives at Jerusalem, his goal. Luke narrates the triumphal entry (19:28–38) and the people’s acclamation of Jesus as “the king who comes in the name of the Lord” (19:38). Jesus weeps over the city and foretells its destruction (…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5 The Gospel according to Luke
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 5 The Gospel according to Luke
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Gospel according to Luke Like Matthew, Luke has used Mark’s Gospel in composing his narrative, but whereas Matthew reproduces almost all of Mark, Luke reprocesses only about half of it.1 Like Matthew, Luke augments the core story of Jesus with a birth and infancy narrative an…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 4d The Characterization of the disciples
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 4d The Characterization of the disciples
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Characterization of the disciples Matthew’s portrayal of the disciples is more complimentary than Mark’s.23 Where Mark says that the disciples do not understand Jesus’ words (Mark 4:13; 6:52; 8:21; 9:10), Matthew either has no reference to their lack of understanding or state…
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 4c The Characterization of Jesus
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 4c The Characterization of Jesus
by SPCK - Edward Adams
The Characterization of Jesus Following the pattern of the previous chapter (on Mark), we will look first at Matthew’s christological titles and then at his characterization of Jesus… Taken from Parallel Lives of Jesus by Edward Adams
Parallel Lives of Jesus - 4b Jerusalem, Passion, and Resurrection (21:1–28:20)