Digital Logos Edition
McKnight critiques various interpretive methods and suggests how students with some knowledge of Greek can benefit from different analyses.
Careful study of the synoptic Gospels can be a life–transforming experience. Yet for many, such study is unexciting because they fail to take the required time, they simply do not know how to study the synoptic Gospels, or they do not have the necessary background to guide them through various passages. This book is intended to help students formulate principles and methods for studying the synoptic Gospels.
“Second, redaction criticism is concerned with the theological motivation for these alterations” (Page 84)
“Synopses, on the other hand, place parallel accounts of the same event or saying side by side so that the reader can compare similarities and dissimilarities word by word. Thus, whereas a harmony is normally concerned with constructing a life of Jesus by facilitating a broad comparison of events, the intention of a synopsis is the careful comparison of words.” (Pages 40–41)
“Miracle stories are stories in which a miracle is the central thrust and is often described in detail” (Page 75)
“The term motif is used for a theological idea or theme which permeates an author’s presentation.” (Page 109)
“Fourth, form criticism assumes that these oral traditions were passed on according to some basic laws of transmission” (Page 73)