was written by Luke. He does not claim to have been an eye-witness of our Lord's ministry, but to have gone to the best sources of information within his reach, and to have written an orderly narrative of the facts (Luk 1:1-4). The authors of the first three Gospels, the synoptics, wrote independently of each other. Each wrote his independent narrative under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. View

 Each writer has some things, both in matter and style, peculiar to himself, yet all the three have much in common. Luke's Gospel has been called "the Gospel of the nations, full of mercy and hope, assured to the world by the love of a suffering Saviour;" "the Gospel of the saintly life;" "the Gospel for the Greeks; the Gospel of the future; the Gospel of progressive Christianity, of the universality and gratuitousness of the gospel; the historic Gospel; the Gospel of Jesus as the good Physician and the Saviour of mankind;" the "Gospel of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man;" "the Gospel of womanhood;" "the Gospel of the outcast, of the Samaritan, the publican, the harlot, and the prodigal;" "the Gospel of tolerance." The main characteristic of this Gospel, as Farrar (Cambridge Bible, Luke, Introd.) remarks, is fitly expressed in the motto, "Who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil" (Act 10:38; Luk 4:18). Luke wrote for the "Hellenic world." This Gospel is indeed "rich and precious." View

 Luke's style is more finished and classical than that of Matthew and Mark. There is less in it of the Hebrew idiom. He uses a few Latin words (Luk 12:6; 7:41; 8:30; 11:33; 19:20), but no Syriac or Hebrew words except sikera, an exciting drink of the nature of wine, but not made of grapes (Lev 10:9), probably palm wine. View

 (Luk 4:22; with Col 4:6.) (Luk 4:32; with 1Cr 2:4.) (Luk 6:36; with 2Cr 1:3.) (Luk 6:39; with Rom 2:19.) (Luk 9:56; with 2Cr 10:8.) (Luk 10:8; with 1Cr 10:27.) (Luk 11:41; with Tts 1:15.) (Luk 18:1; with 2Th 1:11.) (Luk 21:36; with Eph 6:18.) (Luk 22:19,20; 1Cr 11:23-29.) (Luk 24:46; with Act 17:3.) (Luk 24:34; with 1Cr 15:5.) View