The Life of Christ

The eternal Word, through whom all things were made

John opens before Genesis 1: the Word was with God and was God, and became flesh and dwelt among us. The incarnation is a beginning for His human life, not for the Son.

John 1:1-18

The genealogies: son of David, son of Abraham, son of Adam

Matthew traces the royal line down from Abraham through David; Luke traces back up to Adam, the son of God. Both run through David.

Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38

Foretold: 2 Samuel 7:12-16

Herod the Great rules Judea as king under Rome

An Idumean appointed by the Roman Senate. Able, ruthless, and fiercely protective of his throne.

Matthew 2:1

Caesar Augustus reigns as the first Roman emperor

The decree that moves Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem comes from him.

Luke 2:1

Herod begins rebuilding the temple

Forty-six years into the work, the leaders mention it to Jesus at His first Passover. That remark is one of the anchors for dating the ministry.

John 2:20

Gabriel announces John’s birth to Zechariah in the temple

Luke 1:5-25

Foretold: Malachi 4:5-6

Gabriel announces Jesus’ birth to Mary

Conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary.

Luke 1:26-38

Foretold: Isaiah 7:14

Mary visits Elizabeth; the Magnificat

Luke 1:39-56

John the Baptist is born and named

Luke 1:57-80

An angel tells Joseph to take Mary as his wife

Matthew 1:18-25

Born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger

Born before Herod’s death in 4 BC, most likely c. 6–5 BC. Our calendar’s AD 1 was miscounted by a monk in the sixth century.

Luke 2:1-7; Matthew 1:25

Foretold: Micah 5:2

Angels announce Him to shepherds

Luke 2:8-20

Circumcised and named Jesus

The name the angel gave: He will save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).

Luke 2:21

Presented in the temple; Simeon and Anna

The offering of two birds marks a poor family (Leviticus 12:8).

Luke 2:22-38

The magi worship the newborn King

They find Him in a house, not a stable, possibly months after the birth. Herod’s ’two years old or under’ fits that gap.

Matthew 2:1-12

Foretold: Numbers 24:17

The flight into Egypt

Matthew 2:13-15

Foretold: Hosea 11:1

Herod kills the boys of Bethlehem

Matthew 2:16-18

Foretold: Jeremiah 31:15

Herod the Great dies; his kingdom is split among three sons

Archelaus gets Judea and Samaria, Herod Antipas gets Galilee and Perea, Philip the northeast. Archelaus’s cruelty is why Joseph settles in Galilee instead.

Matthew 2:19-22; Luke 3:1

The family settles in Nazareth

Nazareth was an obscure village. When Matthew says the prophets foretold that ’he would be called a Nazarene’ (Matthew 2:23), he sums up their theme of a despised Messiah rather than quoting a single verse.

Matthew 2:19-23; Luke 2:39-40

Archelaus deposed; Judea becomes a Roman province under a prefect

A census of Judea under Quirinius provokes the revolt of Judas the Galilean. Luke calls the census at Jesus’ birth the ’first’ (Luke 2:2), which many take to set it apart from this one; how the two relate is still debated.

Acts 5:37

Annas serves as high priest

Deposed by Rome but still the power behind the office. Five of his sons and his son-in-law Caiaphas follow him.

John 18:13; Luke 3:2

At the temple for Passover, in His Father’s house

The only story Scripture gives from His boyhood, and the first words of His it records.

Luke 2:41-50

Grows in wisdom and stature; works as a carpenter

Submissive to Joseph and Mary. Mark names four brothers and mentions sisters.

Luke 2:51-52; Mark 6:3; Matthew 13:55

Augustus dies; Tiberius becomes emperor

The reign Luke uses to date John’s ministry.

Luke 3:1

Caiaphas serves as high priest

Annas’s son-in-law; his eighteen years in office imply a working understanding with the Roman governors.

Matthew 26:3; John 11:49-51

Pontius Pilate becomes prefect of Judea

Luke 3:1

John the Baptist begins preaching repentance

Luke dates it in the fifteenth year of Tiberius (Luke 3:1), the key to the chronology.

Matthew 3:1-12; Mark 1:1-8; Luke 3:1-18; John 1:19-28

Foretold: Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1

Baptized by John; the Spirit descends, the Father speaks

Luke gives His age here: ’about thirty years of age’ (Luke 3:23).

Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-23; John 1:32-34

Tempted by the devil forty days in the wilderness

Where Israel failed for forty years, He stands for forty days, answering each temptation from Deuteronomy.

Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13

John points to Him: the Lamb of God

John 1:29-34

First disciples: Andrew, Peter, Philip, Nathanael

An earlier meeting than the call by the sea; these men return to their nets for a time.

John 1:35-51

Water turned to wine at a wedding: the first sign

John 2:1-11

A few days in Capernaum with His family and disciples

John 2:12

First Passover of the ministry: He drives the traders from the temple

John places a temple cleansing here; the Synoptics place one in the last week. Most harmonies read them as two events.

John 2:13-25

Foretold: Psalm 69:9

Nicodemus comes by night: you must be born again

John 3:1-21

Ministry in the Judean countryside; John says He must increase

John 3:22-36

Herod Antipas imprisons John the Baptist

For condemning Antipas’s marriage to Herodias, his brother’s wife (Mark 6:17-18). Josephus names the fortress of Machaerus.

Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14; Luke 3:19-20

The woman at the well; many Samaritans believe

He tells her plainly what He tells few in Judea: I who speak to you am He.

John 4:1-42

An official’s son healed at a distance: the second sign

John 4:43-54

Begins preaching in Galilee: the kingdom of heaven is at hand

Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:14-15

Rejected in the synagogue at Nazareth

He reads Isaiah 61 and says it is fulfilled today; His hometown tries to throw Him off a cliff.

Luke 4:16-30

Foretold: Isaiah 61:1-2

Makes His home in Capernaum

Matthew 4:13-16

Foretold: Isaiah 9:1-2

Calls Peter, Andrew, James and John from their nets

Luke tells it with the great catch of fish.

Matthew 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-20; Luke 5:1-11

Casts out an unclean spirit in the synagogue

Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37

Heals Peter’s mother-in-law, and the whole town at sundown

Matthew 8:14-17; Mark 1:29-34; Luke 4:38-41

First preaching tour of Galilee

Matthew 4:23-25; Mark 1:35-39; Luke 4:42-44

Touches and cleanses a leper

Matthew 8:2-4; Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16

Forgives and heals a paralytic let down through the roof

The first open clash with the scribes: who can forgive sins but God alone?

Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26

Calls Matthew (Levi) the tax collector

Matthew 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32

Heals a man lame 38 years at the pool of Bethesda

At an unnamed feast (John 5:1). If it was a Passover, the ministry spans four Passovers; if not, three. Harmonies differ on where it falls.

John 5:1-47

Lord of the Sabbath: grain fields, and a withered hand restored

The Pharisees and the Herodians begin plotting how to destroy Him (Mark 3:6).

Matthew 12:1-14; Mark 2:23-3:6; Luke 6:1-11

Chooses the Twelve after a night of prayer

Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John the sons of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus (Luke’s Judas son of James), Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.

Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:12-16; Acts 1:13

The Sermon on the Mount

Luke’s sermon ’on a level place’ shares most of its material; many harmonies treat the two as one occasion. See the Beatitudes study.

Matthew 5-7; Luke 6:17-49

A centurion’s servant healed at His word

Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10

Raises a widow’s only son at Nain

Luke 7:11-17

John asks from prison: are you the one who is to come?

Matthew 11:2-19; Luke 7:18-35

Foretold: Isaiah 35:5-6

A sinful woman anoints His feet at a Pharisee’s table

Luke 7:36-50

Second tour of Galilee, with the women who supported Him

Mary Magdalene, Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, Susanna, and many others.

Luke 8:1-3

Accused of casting out demons by Beelzebul

He warns of the blasphemy against the Spirit and offers only the sign of Jonah.

Matthew 12:22-45; Mark 3:20-30

Parables by the sea: the sower, the weeds, the mustard seed

A turn in method: parables reveal to disciples and conceal from the hardened.

Matthew 13:1-52; Mark 4:1-34; Luke 8:4-18

Foretold: Isaiah 6:9-10

Calms the storm on the sea

Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25

Delivers the man possessed by Legion

Gentile territory east of the sea; Matthew tells of two men.

Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39

Raises Jairus’s daughter; heals the woman who touched His cloak

Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56

Two blind men see; a mute man speaks

Matthew 9:27-34

Rejected at Nazareth a second time

Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6

Sends out the Twelve two by two

Matthew 9:35-11:1; Mark 6:7-13; Luke 9:1-6

Herod Antipas has John the Baptist beheaded

Antipas, troubled by reports of Jesus, wonders whether John has risen.

Matthew 14:1-12; Mark 6:14-29; Luke 9:7-9

Feeds the five thousand

The only miracle before the resurrection told in all four Gospels. John notes the Passover was near (John 6:4).

Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14

Walks on the water

Matthew 14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52; John 6:16-21

I am the bread of life; many disciples turn back

Peter answers for the Twelve: You have the words of eternal life.

John 6:22-71

What defiles: tradition against the commandment of God

Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23

Heals the daughter of a Gentile woman

Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30

Heals a deaf man: Ephphatha, be opened

Mark 7:31-37

Feeds the four thousand

Matthew 15:32-39; Mark 8:1-10

Heals a blind man at Bethsaida in two stages

Mark 8:22-26

Peter confesses: You are the Christ

The hinge of the Synoptic Gospels.

Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-30; Luke 9:18-21

First prediction of His death and resurrection

From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must suffer.

Matthew 16:21-28; Mark 8:31-9:1; Luke 9:22-27

Transfigured before Peter, James and John

Moses and Elijah speak with Him of His departure (Luke 9:31). Tradition says Mount Tabor; many think Mount Hermon, near Caesarea Philippi, fits the setting better.

Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36

Heals a boy the disciples could not help

Matthew 17:14-20; Mark 9:14-29; Luke 9:37-43

Second prediction of His death

Matthew 17:22-23; Mark 9:30-32; Luke 9:43-45

The temple tax and the coin in the fish’s mouth

Matthew 17:24-27

Who is the greatest; forgiving seventy-seven times

Matthew 18:1-35; Mark 9:33-50

Sets His face to go to Jerusalem

Rejected by a Samaritan village on the way. Harmonies differ on whether this departure comes before or after the Feast of Booths.

Luke 9:51-56

The cost of following Him

Matthew 8:19-22; Luke 9:57-62

At the Feast of Booths: living water, the light of the world

It ends with ’before Abraham was, I am’ and stones taken up against Him (John 8:58-59). The account of the woman caught in adultery (7:53-8:11) is absent from the earliest manuscripts.

John 7:1-8:59

Sends out the seventy-two

Luke 10:1-24

The parable of the good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37

At the home of Martha and Mary

Luke 10:38-42

Teaches the disciples to pray

Luke 11:1-13

Gives sight to a man born blind

John 9:1-41

I am the good shepherd

John 10:1-21

At the Feast of Dedication: I and the Father are one

Dedication is Hanukkah, the winter feast of the temple’s rededication in 164 BC.

John 10:22-39

Withdraws across the Jordan; many believe

John 10:40-42

Heals a woman bent over for eighteen years

Luke 13:10-17

Herod wants to kill you; His lament over Jerusalem

He calls Antipas ’that fox’ and keeps to His course.

Luke 13:31-35

Heals a man with dropsy on the Sabbath

Luke 14:1-6

The lost sheep, the lost coin, the prodigal son

Luke 15:1-32

The rich man and Lazarus

Luke 16:19-31

Raises Lazarus four days dead

I am the resurrection and the life (John 11:25).

John 11:1-44

The council plots His death; Caiaphas prophesies

Caiaphas says it is better that one man die for the people, and John says he spoke truer than he knew. Jesus withdraws to Ephraim.

John 11:45-54

Ten lepers cleansed; one returns, a Samaritan

Luke 17:11-19

Marriage and divorce; the children blessed; the rich young ruler

Matthew 19:1-30; Mark 10:1-31; Luke 18:15-30

Laborers in the vineyard

Matthew 20:1-16

Third prediction; the request of James and John

The Son of Man came to give His life as a ransom for many.

Matthew 20:17-28; Mark 10:32-45; Luke 18:31-34

Blind Bartimaeus receives his sight

Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43

Zacchaeus; the parable of the minas

The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.

Luke 19:1-27

Mary of Bethany anoints Him for burial

John dates it six days before the Passover; Matthew and Mark tell it later, beside Judas’s bargain, by topic rather than by day.

John 12:1-11; Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9

Enters Jerusalem on a donkey to the crowd’s hosannas

He weeps over the city as He comes (Luke 19:41-44).

Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; John 12:12-19

Foretold: Zechariah 9:9; Psalm 118:26

Curses the fig tree; drives the traders from the temple

Mark puts the cleansing the day after the entry; Matthew tells it with the entry.

Matthew 21:12-19; Mark 11:12-19; Luke 19:45-48

Foretold: Isaiah 56:7; Jeremiah 7:11

In the temple: His authority questioned, and every question answered

The two sons, the wicked tenants, the wedding feast; Caesar’s coin; the resurrection; the great commandment; David’s son and Lord; the woes on the scribes and Pharisees; the widow’s two coins.

Matthew 21:20-23:39; Mark 11:20-12:44; Luke 20:1-21:4

The Olivet Discourse: the temple’s fall and His return

Matthew 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 21:5-36

Greeks ask to see Him; the Father’s voice from heaven

Now is the hour for the Son of Man to be glorified.

John 12:20-50

Judas agrees to betray Him for thirty pieces of silver

Mark sets the plot two days before the Passover (Mark 14:1); the Gospels do not name the day of the bargain itself.

Matthew 26:14-16; Mark 14:10-11; Luke 22:3-6

Foretold: Zechariah 11:12-13

The Last Supper: He washes their feet and gives the bread and cup

Judas goes out into the night; Peter’s denial is foretold.

Matthew 26:17-35; Mark 14:12-31; Luke 22:7-38; John 13:1-38

The Upper Room Discourse and His prayer for His people

The way, the truth, and the life; the vine and the branches; the promise of the Spirit; the high priestly prayer.

John 14-17

Prays in Gethsemane; betrayed with a kiss and arrested

Even here He heals: the ear of the high priest’s servant (Luke 22:51).

Matthew 26:36-56; Mark 14:32-52; Luke 22:39-53; John 18:1-12

Tried before Annas, Caiaphas and the council; Peter denies Him

Condemned for saying He is the Christ, the Son of God, who will sit at the right hand of Power.

Matthew 26:57-27:1; Mark 14:53-15:1; Luke 22:54-71; John 18:13-27

Before Pilate, then Herod Antipas, then Pilate again

Pilate finds no guilt and yields to the cry ’you are not Caesar’s friend’ (John 19:12). Barabbas is released; Herod and Pilate become friends that day (Luke 23:12). Judas hangs himself (Matthew 27:3-10).

Matthew 27:2-31; Mark 15:1-20; Luke 23:1-25; John 18:28-19:16

Crucified at Golgotha; darkness from noon; He dies

The third hour to the ninth (Mark 15:25, 33-34). Seven sayings from the cross: Luke 23:34, 43; John 19:26-27; Matthew 27:46; John 19:28, 30; Luke 23:46. The temple curtain is torn in two.

Matthew 27:32-56; Mark 15:21-41; Luke 23:26-49; John 19:17-37

Foretold: Psalm 22; Isaiah 53

Buried by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus

Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42

Foretold: Isaiah 53:9

The tomb sealed and guarded

Matthew 27:62-66

The stone rolled away; the tomb empty; angels: He is risen

The longer ending of Mark (16:9-20) is absent from the earliest manuscripts, and is not used here.

Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-10

Foretold: Psalm 16:10

Appears to Mary Magdalene

John 20:11-18

Appears to the other women

Matthew 28:9-10

The guards are paid to say the body was stolen

Matthew 28:11-15

Walks with two disciples to Emmaus, opening the Scriptures

Luke 24:13-35

Appears to Peter

Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5

Appears to the disciples, Thomas absent

He shows His hands and side, and eats before them.

Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-25

Appears again with Thomas: my Lord and my God

John 20:26-29

A miraculous catch at the Sea of Galilee; Peter restored

Three times: do you love me? Feed my sheep.

John 21:1-23

On a mountain in Galilee: the Great Commission

Perhaps the same occasion as His appearing to more than five hundred at once (1 Corinthians 15:6).

Matthew 28:16-20

Appears to James, then to all the apostles

1 Corinthians 15:7

Ascends into heaven from the Mount of Olives

He blesses them as He goes, and the angels promise He will come again in the same way.

Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:3-11

Foretold: Psalm 110:1; Daniel 7:13-14

Pentecost: the Spirit poured out; three thousand baptized

Where the Gospels end and Acts begins.

Acts 2:1-41

Foretold: Joel 2:28-32