Matthean and Lukan Special Material
A Brief Introduction with Texts in Greek and English
Imprint: Wipf and Stock
For the first time, the Gospel material unique to both Matthew and Luke is brought together into one volume--in both Greek and English. For more than a century, New Testament scholars have asserted that Matthew and Luke drew on sources in addition to Q and Mark during the composition of their Gospels. For convenience, the non-paralleled material in Matthew has traditionally been labeled "M," and the non-paralleled material in Luke has traditionally been labeled "L." We learn only from Matthew, for example, particular stories like Joseph and Mary's escape to Egypt and the Great Commission; from Luke stories like the Prodigal Son and Jesus' appearance on the Emmaus road. Studying the material unique to each Gospel in isolation from their narrative contexts will allow students and scholars alike to engage these stories on their own. In this book, the individual special pericopae from Matthew and Luke are collected and arranged in Greek and English in the order in which they appear in the Greek New Testament. An introductory essay is provided to introduce readers to the Synoptic Problem, the notions of M and L and where they come from, what the parameters are for selection, and the critical debate, so that readers know how the selections were made and what is being asserted by their inclusion. This book will be a wonderful teaching tool for seminary and university professors, and will facilitate student engagement with distinctive Matthean and Lukan stories. It will also be a valuable resource for New Testament scholars doing research on this special material, since having it all in one place will no longer require them to search for the distinctive passages among the larger Gospel narratives.
Brice C. Jones is an ancient historian specializing in papyrology and Early Christianity. He received his PhD in Early Christianity from Concordia University (Montreal) and his MA in New Testament from Yale University. His research on ancient Greek and Coptic manuscripts has been published in major scholarly journals, such as Zeitschrift fur Papyrologie und Epigraphik, Bulletin of the American Society of Papyrologists, Journal of Biblical Literature, Novum Testamentum, and New Testament Studies.
"Matthean and Lukan Special Material provides students and scholars with a concise introduction to the Synoptic Problem, a convenient presentation of the texts (in Greek and in English translation) that may represent the so-called M and L sources, and a succinct and helpful bibliography. Brice Jones has greatly facilitated study of this material, for which all who investigate the Synoptic Gospels will be grateful."
--Craig A. Evans
Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament
Acadia Divinity College
Wolfville, Nova Scotia
"Here students and scholars will find a concise and convenient presentation of the material unique to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke--the so-called Sondergut traditions. Thus Jones enables readers to reconsider traditions that might have belonged to the M and L sources . . . This is a critical scholarly tool, presenting Greek texts with facing English translations in a highly accessible format."
--Paul Foster
Senior Lecturer in New Testament Languages, Literature & Theology
University of Edinburgh
"Brice Jones has compiled a highly useful tool--one of those tools that we all wish that we had had a long time ago! Surprisingly enough, no one had bothered since B. H. Streeter first proposed the existence of unique Matthean and Lukan material to compile [it] in one handy volume. Jones has not only done that, but he has provided a very helpful introduction to the Synoptic Problem and the role that M and L play within it."
--Stanley E. Porter
President and Dean
McMaster Divinity College
Hamilton, Ontario
"I warmly welcome this useful and unique tool from Brice Jones: here students and scholars will be able to access conveniently the Greek and English texts of the distinctive material in Matthew and Luke. Study of these texts will be much easier with this book. Combined with an excellent, lucid introduction to the study of the Synoptic Problem, this is a fine resource. I look forward to using it and to recommending it to others."
--Steve Walton
Professor of New Testament
London School of Theology
Related Titles
