After a historiographic preface, Luke gives us: first a history of the birth and infancy of
John the Baptist and Jesus, from Hebrew sources, with an incident from the boyhood of the Saviour
(Luke 1 and 2). Then he unfolds the history of the public ministry in chronological order from the
baptism in the Jordan to the resurrection and ascension. We need only point out those facts and
discourses which are not found in the other Gospels and which complete the Synoptic history at
the beginning, middle, and end of the life of our Lord.^1002
Luke supplies the following sections:
I. In the history of the Infancy of John and Christ:
The appearance of the angel of the Lord to Zacharias in the temple announcing the birth of
John, Luke 1:5–25.
The annunciation of the birth of Christ to the Virgin Mary, 1:26–38.
The visit of the Virgin Mary to Elizabeth; the salutation of Elizabeth, 1:39–45.
The Magnificat of the Virgin Mary, 1:46–56.
The birth of John the Baptist, 1:57–66.
The Benedictus of Zacharias, 1:67–80.
The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, 2:1–7.
The appearance of the angels to the shepherds of Bethlehem, and the "Gloria in excelsis,"
2:8–20.
The circumcision of Jesus, and his presentation in the Temple, 2:21–38.
The visit of Jesus in his twelfth year to the passover in Jerusalem, and his conversation with
the Jewish doctors in the Temple, 2:41–52.
To this must be added the genealogy of Christ from Abraham up to Adam; while Matthew
begins, in the inverse order, with Abraham, and presents in the parallel section several
differences which show their mutual independence, Luke 3:23–38; comp. Matt. 1:1–17.
II. In the Public Life of our Lord a whole group of important events, discourses, and incidents which
occurred at different periods, but mostly on a circuitous journey from Capernaum to Jerusalem
through Samaria and Peraea (9:51–18:14). This section includes—- The following miracles and incidents:
The miraculous draught of fishes, 5:4–11.
The raising of the widow’s son at Nain, 7:11–18.
The pardoning of the sinful woman who wept at the feet of Jesus, 7:36–50.
The support of Christ by devout women who are named, 8:2, 3.
The rebuke of the Sons of Thunder in a Samaritan village, 9:51–56.
The Mission and Instruction of the Seventy, 10:1–6.
Entertainment at the house of Martha and Mary; the one thing needful, 10:38–42.
The woman who exclaimed: "Blessed is the womb that bare thee," 11:27.
The man with the dropsy, 14:1–6.
The ten lepers, 17:11–19.
The visit to Zacchaeus, 19:1–10.
The tears of Jesus over Jerusalem, 19:41–44.
The sifting of Peter, 22:31, 32.
(^1002) For a full analysis of contents see Van Oosterzee, Com., 8-10; Westcott, Introd. to the G., 370-372 (Am. ed.); McClellan,
Com. on N. T., I. 425-438; Farrar, Com., 31-36; Lange, Bibelkunde, 187-193.
A.D. 1-100.