Despite describing the same events in the life of Jesus Christ, the Gospels of the New Testament often have visible differences in accounts by the apostles. Despite many Christians attempting to harmonize the various accounts, which some consider to be a wrong approach since literary and historic conventions of modern day did not apply at the time of their writing (Petersen). Differences may arise due to the human factor such as memory or perceptions of unique events as well as compositional devices and techniques. However, when compared and overlaid with each other, the Gospels can offer a full picture of events, often with little contradiction.
One of the differences in translation focuses on the story of a sinner woman anointing of Jesus. The key differences remain in the actions of the woman and her description. While Mark talks about the anointing of the head and does not directly identify the woman as a sinner, Luke talks about the anointing of the feet and the conversation openly suggests the woman sins significantly. For Mark, this story seemed as more of an indication of Jesus’ love for the poor and a prediction of His passing. Luke gave it much more significance, which not only condemned Simon’s judgmental attitude and a lack of response to His message, but the fact that the woman is forgiven because she loves since He meets her with acceptance and Jesus acknowledges and accepts that love with a declaration of forgiveness (Muddiman and Barton 154). Mark’s account focuses on recognition by the woman and valuing Jesus before in the context of his upcoming death. Meanwhile, Luke highlights that Jesus is inclusive of everyone, even those considered outsiders or sinful, having a chance at redemption through faith.
Another important passage that is different is when Jesus’ mother and brothers send for Him when he is preaching to a multitude of people. In Mark’s account, Jesus answers by asking “Who is My mother, or My brothers?” (Mark 3.33). In Luke’s account, he says “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it” (Luke 8.21). In Mark’s account, the relationship is excluded, while for Luke, it is extended. According to Muddiman and Barton, “translations of the saying that make Jesus claim that his natural relations are the ones who are already doing this [hear the word of God] depend upon a somewhat forced reading of the Greek (155). Luke’s Gospel is described as for the underprivileged, due to Jesus’ invitation and inclusion of neglected classes, including women, the poor and others – everyone following the faith and God’s will (257).
Each Gospel is different in the narrative shape, its depiction of Jesus and theological understandings of various events. For Mark, Jesus was a hidden and suffering Son of God, while for Luke, Jesus was a martyr prophet and a merciful innocent savior. While Jesus is only passively mentioned as a prophet by Mark, in Luke, there is a theme developing that He is called a prophet by others (Imperato 31). Mark focused strongly on discipleship of Jesus, embedded in servitude and respect, while Luke greatly explores aspects of forgiveness of and salvation, a path for human growth. Mark’s Gospel is considered to be the first one and the oldest. It is believed that Luke may have used Mark as a source, but also chose to edit it in some ways to create a clearer narrative. Furthermore, Luke may not only have had a different perspective on the events but chose to expand on them based on theological elements.
Works Cited
Imperato, Robert. Portraits of Jesus: A Reading Guide. University Press of America, 2008.
Muddiman, John, and John Barton, editors. The Gospels (Oxford Bible Commentary). Oxford University Press, 2010.
Petersen, Jonathan. “Why Are There Differences in the Gospels?: An Interview with Michael R. Licona.”BibleGateway Blog. Web.
The Bible. Authorized New King James Version, Thomas Nelson, n.d. Web.