So, we’ve jumped 400 years. The Greeks have been replaced by the Romans, and the Jews are still the Jews.
Prefaces to synoptic gospels
Matthew 1:1, Mark 1:1, Luke 1:1-4
Preface to John’s gospel
John 1:1-5
Rome the world power 63BC-AD 476
Two genealogies of Jesus Christ
Matthew 1:2-17, Luke 3:23-28
Birth of John the Baptist announced
Luke 1:5-25
Birth of Jesus Christ announced
Luke 1:26-38
The gospels all begin in such different ways - you can tell what they’re going to be like from the start. Matthew starts off by announcing Jesus’ pedigree, Mark plunges straight into the action, Luke is orderly and discursive and John is, John is, out there somewhere.
Then we have the two genealogies. Apart from the fact that they are different. it’s hard to tell much about them. Matthew’s is more stylised and neat - splitting everything up into 14 generations times 3. So the three phases of Jewish life: the Patriarchs, the Kingdom, and the Exile are given equal weight. Luke goes all the way back to God, passing through David and Abraham on the way, and not giving us any additional information either. Matthew points out four women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba, all of whom have interesting stories and who (in some people’s eyes) might not have been the right sort of people to have in your ancestry. The other significant fact is that both point out Jesus is descended from David - the kingly line - so he is a possible candidate for Messiah.
Then we move to two angelic announcements. Gabriel finds Mary more willing than Zechariah to accept the part that they are offered in his plan, but both are suitably prepared for their famous children. Nowhere else in the Bible do we have such interest shown in people’s birth - at least, not since Isaac, who was born so late and after so much uncertainty to Abraham and Sarah. There is definitely a sense of something new stirring.
Prefaces to synoptic gospels
Matthew 1:1, Mark 1:1, Luke 1:1-4
Preface to John’s gospel
John 1:1-5
Rome the world power 63BC-AD 476
Two genealogies of Jesus Christ
Matthew 1:2-17, Luke 3:23-28
Birth of John the Baptist announced
Luke 1:5-25
Birth of Jesus Christ announced
Luke 1:26-38
The gospels all begin in such different ways - you can tell what they’re going to be like from the start. Matthew starts off by announcing Jesus’ pedigree, Mark plunges straight into the action, Luke is orderly and discursive and John is, John is, out there somewhere.
Then we have the two genealogies. Apart from the fact that they are different. it’s hard to tell much about them. Matthew’s is more stylised and neat - splitting everything up into 14 generations times 3. So the three phases of Jewish life: the Patriarchs, the Kingdom, and the Exile are given equal weight. Luke goes all the way back to God, passing through David and Abraham on the way, and not giving us any additional information either. Matthew points out four women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba, all of whom have interesting stories and who (in some people’s eyes) might not have been the right sort of people to have in your ancestry. The other significant fact is that both point out Jesus is descended from David - the kingly line - so he is a possible candidate for Messiah.
Then we move to two angelic announcements. Gabriel finds Mary more willing than Zechariah to accept the part that they are offered in his plan, but both are suitably prepared for their famous children. Nowhere else in the Bible do we have such interest shown in people’s birth - at least, not since Isaac, who was born so late and after so much uncertainty to Abraham and Sarah. There is definitely a sense of something new stirring.
No comments:
Post a Comment