Are The Gospel Accounts Reliable?

In order to establish the reliability of the gospel accounts it is necessary to consider when they were written, and who by. If they are eyewitness accounts, we would expect them to appear very early in history, near the life of Jesus, and within the lifetimes of those who claimed to know Jesus. If the gospels were circulated as early as we are about to discover, then other eyewitnesses would have been alive to correct any attempted exaggerations.

In this article we will take a look at some historical and textual evidence that helps us to determine roughly when the gospels were written.

Earlier Than A.D. 250

First on our list is the Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri, which are a group of ancient papyri from Aphroditopolis. They contain eleven manuscripts; three of them are fragments of the New Testament, including the four gospels. They have been dated from 200-250 A.D. It is clear from this discovery that the gospels appeared prior to this, so we can conclude that the gospels were written before 250 A.D.

Earlier Than A.D. 200

The Bodmer Papyri, which are another group of ancient papyri, contain the Gospel of John, and were dated to around 200-225 A.D. As John was the last gospel written, we can reasonably conclude that the other gospels were in circulation by 200 A.D.

Earlier Than A.D. 180

Christian Theologian, Tatian the Assyrian (A.D. 120 -180), was famous for a piece of work, known as ‘Diatessaron’. Diatessaron is basically a paraphrase of the four gospels. For the Syriac Christians, this work became their standard text for nearly 500 years. This demonstrates that the four gospels were already in circulation and well known by the time Tatian took on the task of paraphrasing them for the Syriac Christians.

Earlier Than A.D. 150

Justin Martyr, quotes and alludes to the Gospel of John Chapter 3. This is consistent with the fact that Justin was Tatian’s teacher and would have known what Tatian knew about the existing gospels. Justin’s use of the Gospel of John means we can date the gospels to at least A.D. 150.

Earlier Than A.D. 130

According to Eusebius, Papias of Hierapolis mentioned writings by Matthew and Mark when Papias wrote his five-volume ‘Exposition of the Oracles of the Lord’ around A.D. 130. This is also consistent with the fact that the ‘Ryland’s Papyri’ contains fragments of John’s Gospel, dating to around the same period of A.D. 130. It is reasonable to conclude that the Gospel of John was completed before A.D. 130.

Earlier Than A.D. 120

Polycarp, who was an associate of the Apostle John, became a Bishop of Smyrna in the second century. The only piece of surviving work from Polycarp, is a letter which he wrote to the Philippian Church in A.D. 120. Polycarp quotes from the gospels and other letters of the New Testament in this document. This suggests that the gospels were in circulation and well known prior to A.D. 120.

Earlier Than A.D. 110

Ignatius, who was a Bishop of Antioch in the late first/early second century, wrote several letters around A.D. 110 that quote or allude to the Gospel of Matthew. His letters to Smyrna, Ephesus and Polycarp quote or allude to Matthew 12:33, 19:12 and 10:16. It is clear that Matthew was in circulation by this point.

Earlier Than A.D. 100

The ‘Didache’ or ‘Teaching of the Twelve Apostles’ also quotes from Matthew’s version of the Lord’s Prayer in Didache 8:1. The text is dated around A.D. 100. It is another piece of evidence that shows Matthew was already in circulation and widely recognised by this time.

Earlier Than A.D. 95

Clement, who was either the second or third Bishop of Rome, wrote a letter to the Corinthian Church that is known as 1 Clement. This letter is dated around A.D. 95-96, at the end of the reign of Domitian. Clement uses sections from Matthew’s Gospels in 1 Clement 13:1-2, which establishes that Matthew’s Gospel was in circulation as early as A.D. 95.

Earlier Than A.D. 64

It has been established that the Book of Acts was completed prior to A.D. 64, as the author, Luke, makes no mention about the Jewish war with the Romans that started in A.D. 66, and also says nothing about the destruction of the temple. In addition to this, many of the expressions used by Luke in the Book of Acts are very early and primitive, and fit well into the context of Palestine prior to the fall of the temple. Also, Luke does not mention the martyrdom of James, (A.D. 62), the martyrdom of Paul (A.D. 64), or the martyrdom of Peter (A.D. 65). In fact, Paul is still alive at the end of the Book of Acts. It would be reasonable, therefore, to date the writing of Acts prior to A.D. 64.

Luke was the author of both the Book of Acts and the Gospel of Luke. Both texts contain instructions that tie them together in history. In the Book of Acts, the introduction refers to his ‘former book’, where he ‘wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up to heaven’. Therefore, if the Book of Acts was written prior to A.D. 64, it would be reasonable to conclude that the Gospel of Luke was written in the years prior to this.

Earlier Than A.D. 60

It is widely accepted by scholars that Mark is the earliest gospel, and Mark’s Gospel is quoted by Luke in the gospel he wrote prior to the Book of Acts. This is not a surprise, as Luke told us that he was not an eyewitness but simply a good historian who was consulting the witnesses at the time:

Luke 1:1-4 - Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

It is reasonable to believe that Mark’s Gospel was already in circulation prior to Luke’s investigation. As we have established that Luke’s Gospel was written in the early A.D. 60s, we can assume that Mark’s Gospel was written just prior to that, in the late A.D. 50s or early 60s.

Earlier Than A.D. 55

Even the most sceptical scholars agree that Paul is the author of the letters written to the Romans, the Corinthians and the Galatians, and that these letters were written between A.D. 48 and A.D. 60. The letter to the Romans is usually dated at A.D. 50 and in this letter, Paul proclaims that Jesus is the resurrected “Son of God”, corroborating what the gospels were saying. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul summarises the gospel message and reinforces the idea that this message was the same one that was delivered to him by the apostles. In his letter to the Galatians (mid-A.D. 50s), Paul describes his interactions with these apostles, and says that the meeting occurred at least 14 years prior to the writing of the letter. This means Paul learned about the gospel from eyewitnesses (Peter and James) within 5 years of Jesus’ crucifixion. This is why Paul was able to tell the Corinthians (A.D. 53-57) that there were still many living eyewitnesses who could confirm the resurrection accounts.

Paul’s description of Jesus is consistent throughout the many years he writes to the local churches. There is no slow evolution of Jesus from a mere man to the Son of God, even though his letters span around 15 years. Paul’s description of Jesus is rooted in the gospel description which he obtained from eyewitnesses who knew Jesus personally.

Conclusion

New Testament Scholars are largely in agreement that the gospels were written very early and circulated by the early Christians who read them, quoted them and preserved them for later generations. There is good reason, therefore, to believe that the gospels appeared within the lifetimes of the eyewitnesses who claimed to write them, and consequently this leaves very little room for any legendary or mythological development.