The Synoptic Gospels

Dr. Allen Black and Bob Turner discuss Allan Barr’s Diagram of Synoptic Relationship. The Synoptic Gospels are Matthew, Mark, and Luke, which follow the same general timeline in telling the story of Jesus and contain a lot of the same material.

“Q” is the name scholars give to the material that is in Matthew and Luke, but not in Mark.

This diagram was published in 1938 and has been out of print for many years. This copy hangs in the library at Harding School of Theology.

Dr. Allen Black is the dean of HST and Professor of New Testament. He has been at HST since 1983, and teaches the Gospels, Hebrews, 1 Peter, and New Testament Exegesis. Black has served as Adult Education Minister at the Highland Church of Christ for over 35 years.

Bob Turner preaches twice each month at the Church of Christ at White Station in Memphis. He has been with HST since 2009. He publishes a newsletter of curated resources for ministers called Footnotes. Subscribe here.

Harding School of Theology (HST), a seminary in Memphis, TN, has been equipping ministers since 1958. Accredited by the Association of Theological Schools, and offering degree programs at the master’s and doctoral levels, HST equips Christian leaders to higher standards of ministry scholarship and challenges them to a deeper faith in God. Combining academic rigor and interpersonal connections, HST emphasizes student engagement in ministry as they study. HST is associated with Churches of Christ, is part of the Stone-Campbell Movement, and is part of Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.