The Forerunner

Matthew 3:1, 'In those days'.

Luke 3:1,2, 'Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,

Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of

Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region

of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and

Caiaphas being the high priests'.

Matthew, the Hebrew writer for the Hebrews, is unconcerned about the

bearing of Gentile rulers upon the date of John's commission, whereas Luke,

the writer for the Gentiles, gives the utmost attention to the Gentile powers

that be.

Matthew 3:1,2, 'Came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of

Judaea, and saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand'.

Luke 3:2,3, 'The word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the

wilderness.  And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching

the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins'.

Here once more the divergence is according to plan.  Matthew, the

writer of the gospel of the King, for the Hebrew Christian, stresses

'repentance in view of the kingdom of heaven'; Luke, companion of Paul, and

writing for the Gentile convert stresses 'the remission of sins'.

Matthew 3:3, 'For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias,

saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way

of the Lord, make His paths straight'.

Luke 3:4-6, 'As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the

prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye

the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.  Every valley shall be

filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the

crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made

smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God'.

It will be seen at once, that Luke could not be satisfied with the

brief quotation made by Matthew.  He must go on until 'the salvation of God'

seen by 'all flesh' is reached, for such a theme coincides with the purpose

of his Gospel.

The Birth of Christ

Matthew 2:1, 'Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the

days of Herod the king'.