Introducing the New Testament
A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey
7. Luke
Chapter Intro Video
Chapter Objectives
This chapter should enable the student to
summarize what modern scholarship has to say about the historical circumstances underlying Luke’s Gospel, including what can be known of the book’s author, audience, sources, and date of composition.
identify distinctive literary features and theological perspectives that mark Luke’s Gospel as different from the other New Testament Gospels.
explicate the significance of the emphatic attention given in Luke’s Gospel to such matters as worship, prayer, food, women, Samaritans, and the poor.
explain how the author of Luke’s Gospel draws upon various Jewish and Greco-Roman models in order to present an image of Jesus as one who fulfills diverse expectations.
describe Luke’s understanding of salvation and indicate how this affects his presentation of the Jesus story.
Chapter Summary
This chapter offers a brief overview of the contents of Luke’s Gospel, followed by discussion of historical background, distinctive features, and major themes.
In terms of historical background, Luke’s Gospel is usually thought to have been written for a general audience of diverse Christian readers a decade or two after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem (70 CE). The author also wrote the book of Acts and may have been a companion of Paul; he is usually thought to have used the Gospel of Mark and the Q document as sources and to have supplemented these through personal research.
The Gospel of Luke contains a great deal of material not found anywhere else in the New Testament, including material in which attention is paid to women, Samaritans, riches and poverty, and the city of Jerusalem. Luke appears to have edited his sources in ways that were intended to improve the linguistic or literary style and to enhance the portraits of Jesus, his disciples, and his family members. Luke also arranged his Gospel structurally, so that it begins with a dramatic and poignant overture (regarding the births of John the Baptist and Jesus) and also features a long central section presenting a journey to Jerusalem as the occasion for much of Jesus’ teaching and ministry.
Worship and prayer receive special attention in Luke’s Gospel. Likewise, an emphasis on food motifs may be suggestive of church contexts in which those stories would be read. Luke shows special concern for outcasts and disadvantaged people and describes the role of Jesus in terms that would be accessible to readers familiar with a wide variety of Jewish and pagan models. Finally, Luke’s Gospel emphasizes the present availability of salvation, claiming the gospel of God liberates people from things that prevent them from experiencing life as God intends.
Study Questions
Identify the basis for the tradition that Luke’s Gospel was written by “Luke the physician, a companion of Paul” and indicate how scholars would evaluate that tradition today.
List at least half a dozen stories that are found nowhere in the New Testament except Luke’s Gospel. What do these stories indicate about Luke’s particular interests and concerns?
Discuss (a) the literary effect of the “infancy narrative” of Luke’s Gospel and (b) the literary effect of the “travel narrative” (that is, the journey to Jerusalem) in Luke’s Gospel. In each case, indicate how Luke has organized his material in a distinctive way and what the purpose of such a scheme might be.
Describe what is meant by “the food motif” in Luke’s Gospel. What might account for such a motif?
Describe (a) the attention given to women in Luke’s Gospel and (b) the attention given to the poor in Luke’s Gospel. What might account for the prominence given to such people in this particular book?
List at least six different images from Jewish or Greco-Roman history that Luke draws upon as “models” for understanding the figure of Jesus. Why does Luke use such a panoply of diverse images?
Discuss the concept of salvation evident in the Gospel of Luke and indicate how this understanding of salvation might have influenced Luke’s narrative of Jesus’ crucifixion.
Video: Salvation Here and Now in Luke
Map: Jesus' Ministry in Luke
Assets
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Hyperlink 7.1. Content Summary: Expanded Overview of the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.2. Authorship of Luke’s GospelDownload
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Hyperlink 7.3. The Community of Luke: Clues from the Gospel and ActsDownload
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Hyperlink 7.4. Distinctive Characteristics of Luke’s GospelDownload
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Hyperlink 7.5. Passages from Mark Omitted by LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.6. The Journey Motif in LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.7. Worship in the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.8. The Last Supper and Other Suppers in the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.9. Jesus as Messiah, Lord, and SaviorDownload
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Hyperlink 7.10. Jesus as the Promised OneDownload
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Hyperlink 7.11. Pagan Images for Jesus in the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.12. Luke’s Use of “Today”Download
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Hyperlink 7.13. The Passion of Jesus in the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.14. Parallel Stories of Jesus and John the Baptist in LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.15. Two Christmas Stories: Similarities and DifferencesDownload
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Hyperlink 7.16. Jesus as Son and Servant in LukeDownload
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Hyperlink 7.17. Luke in the Revised Common LectionaryDownload
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Hyperlink 7.18. Bibliography: The Gospel of LukeDownload
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Box 7.1. Material Unique to Luke’s GospelDownload
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Box 7.2. Luke’s Use of MarkDownload
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Box 7.3. Expanding Mark: How Matthew and Luke Arranged Their GospelsDownload
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Box 7.4. Male/Female Parallels in the Gospel of LukeDownload
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Box 7.5. Salvation in the Gospel of LukeDownload