Four Gospels, One Jesus?: A Symbolic Reading

by Richard A. Burridge

In this very readable book Richard Burridge depicts Jesus through the four Gospel authors' distinctive portraits of him. Without bogging down readers with technical terminology, Burridge brings to bear his research comparing the Gospels with classical biographies and offers a clear interpretation of each Gospel author's portrait. A striking feature is his use of the ancient symbols for the Gospels -- human face, lion, ox, and eagle -- to represent each book's unique picture of Jesus.

This second edition incorporates the latest scholarship on the historical Jesus, a new section on how the Gospels have been read throughout history, and an expanded discussion of how to teach and preach the Gospels through the lectionary. Burridge also tackles the question of how these ancient writings bear on today's hot-button issues of unity and diversity. Four Gospels, One Jesus? will be appreciated by teachers, pastors, students, and other readers wanting to understand Jesus more fully.

" Praise for the first " ""A rare merger of the very best of modern biblical scholarship with a readable and engaging telling of the Gospel portraits of Jesus particularly aimed at a popular audience."
-- Anglican Theological Review " ""A fine introduction to the distinctive portrait of Jesus provided by each of the Gospels. . . . Should prove to be a very helpful window into Gospel scholarship for many readers."
-- Reformed Theological Review " ""An engaging approach to reading each Gospel as a unique portrait of Jesus."
-- Toronto Journal of Theology "

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, Reference, New Testament, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian

216 pages, Paperback

First published November 17, 1994

Reviews

[Jacob Vahle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic and formative for me personally and as I prepare to teach a Gospels class. Helpful to think of each Gospel not as some disparate conflicting account or as part of a bigger puzzle, but instead as it’s own answer to the question “Who is Jesus of Nazareth?” Phenomenal without being too heady.

[John Yelverton · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book starts off really well by explaining how all people have different aspects of themselves, and that some people are more familiar with one aspect than another. This insightful observation starts the author's analysis of the four gospels and how they each delve into a different aspect of Jesus. Unfortunately, he tears down everything that he just built up in a convoluted conclusion about searching for the historical Jesus.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Really clear and accessible even though it is quite theologically dense in content.
Really interesting information about the modern Jewish perspective and the introduction of the temple cursing in 80AD helps to explain one of the seeds of Christian/Jewish division.

Would recommend.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theology incarnates in biography. Boom!

[Daniel Clemence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four Gospels, One Jesus is a book that looks at the four gospels. The argument throughout the book by Burridge is that each of the Gospels has a unique perspective on Jesus. The book is from a Christian perspective but offers a perspective that many particularly from the evangelical tradition would not be used to.

The beginning of the book uses four pictures of Winston Churchill to outline how Churchill could be depicted differently throughout his life. There is a look over how the gospels are put together including Q source and the book affirms the consensus viewpoint that the Bible scholarship. The four creatures from Ezekiel 1:10 are then used to explain the four gospels as a form of hermeneutical interpretation. Matthew is a man, Mark is a lion, Luke is an Ox and Mark is an eagle.

Each of these creatures then is used to outline the thematics of each of the gospels and how they differ. For example, Mark's lion depicts Jesus as abrupt and powerful, with it being crude and focusing on Jesus' acts. By contrast, Luke is focused on the Ox, focusing on Jesus being a servant and dying to save mankind. John's eagle is used to describe the depth of theology and mystery of Jesus and emphasises Jesus' divinity.

What I like about the book is that it doesn't do away with the differences of the depiction of Jesus in the gospels. Lots of Christians try to ignore the differences between the gospels and downplay them, but this book gets to the focus on the differences between the gospels. I also like the references to novels including Lord Of the Rings. It would be great to see comparative literature analysis between the Bible and other books in the form of a Bible study. This book does that.

One of the problems I had with the book mind you was that it wasn't entirely good at explaining the problems between having different accounts in the gospels. It was good at identifying differences between the gospels but not really in explaining why there are differences, what impacts they have on the Christian faith and how a Christian should respond to it. Using my school days, there is a pointing but not much analysis or evaluation. For example, the beginning of chapter 2 around page 35 , there is a look at the genealogy of Jesus that isn't present in Mark's gospel, the book dedicates two sentences explaining why Mark doesn't have the genealogy. Whilst an example, there isn't much depth in the analysis this book makes on the differences as to why they may be different and why this makes an impact.

Referencing is also a bit annoying. There are no footnotes but there is a bibliography so I wouldn't count it as totally useless. I don't think this book is meant for academic study.

A useful book that is helpful for Christians in engaging the differences in the gospels. It is a helpful guide explaining the writings of the authors.

[Rodney Harvill · Rating 4 out of 5]

As Dr. Burridge notes, the Gospels have the form of Greco-Roman biography. While this genre is significantly different from modern biography, both genres share a similar goal, a portrait of the person featured in the biography, and no two biographies of the same person will portray that person in the same way. Dr. Burridge uses the illustration of four portraits of Winston Churchill:

• Churchill in conference with his allies during World War II
• Tee-time at Chartwell, 29 August 1927
• Churchill visiting the soldiers during World War II
• Churchill on holiday in Switzerland in 1946

Each portrait reveals a different aspect of the exact same man. Although the presentations are different, there is no contradiction. In like manner, each of the four Gospels presents Jesus’ ministry, sometimes the exact same events, from a different point of view. For this reason, it is inappropriate to jump to the conclusion that differences between the Gospels constitute a contradiction. That said, such differences warrant further investigation. They might represent evidence for eyewitness testimony, editorial choices by the Gospel writers, etc.

The early church settled on a different image for each Gospel, each one based on one of the faces of the four living beings of Ezekiel 1, a man for Matthew, a lion for Mark, an ox for Luke and an eagle for John. In a semi-literate society where most Christians would have lacked access to written scriptures, these images served as a teaching aid and Dr. Burridge follows the metaphor of each image as he discusses each Gospel.

Dr. Burridge starts out with Mark, possibly because of the consensus view of Markan priority, that Mark was the first gospel written and that Mark was used as a source by both Matthew and Luke. Like a bounding lion, Mark’s narrative maintains an unrelenting and fast-moving pace. Like a lion defending his territory, Mark’s Jesus experiences near constant conflict, with His family, with the religious authorities, and ultimately with the devil himself. When Jesus travels from Galilee to Jerusalem, “the lion comes to his lair – but finds it is a robbers’ den; the king of beasts comes to his throne – but is rejected.” During Jesus’ passion, “the enigmatic figure, so often misunderstood by family and disciples, and opposed by religious and political authorities, shows his power and identity in his final conflict by suffering the ultimate degradation and even abandonment by God himself.” Furthermore, given the questions about the ending of Mark (short ending vs. long ending vs. any ending past 16:8), Mark’s narrative leaves the reader hanging. What happens after the disciples find the tomb empty? In short, Mark’s Jesus bounds onto the scene with no explanation and similarly bounds off the scene in the end.

As presented by Matthew, “Jesus is not just the rabbi, but the human face of God, the revealer who has dominion and authority as the Son of God.” It is Matthew who refers to Jesus as Immanuel, God with us, God’s presence. Matthew starts out by describing Jesus as “the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Furthermore, in Matthew’s gospel, magi from the east come seeking the one who has been born King of the Jews, and when they find the child, they prostrate themselves before Him and present Him with gifts. Jesus fulfills Israel’s history, law and prophets by paralleling Israel’s history with His own life:

• His infancy in Egypt
• His testing in the wilderness
• Teaching Israel from the mountain like Moses

“He is the Teacher, the son of Abraham, the Davidic Messiah-King, the Lord, the Son of God Himself, present with His people.” In the end, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him, and He is with us always, the human face of God.

Luke, on the other hand, presents Jesus as the humble bearer of burdens. Given the low status of women in the ancient world, his emphasis on Elizabeth, mother of John, and Mary, mother of Jesus, is remarkable. He is the only gospel writer who mentions the manger in which Jesus is laid after His birth because there is no room in the inn. There is also the scene in which the angel choir appears to lowly shepherds, who then hurry to see the newborn Jesus. When He is presented to the Lord at the temple, the sacrifice offered is that which had been prescribed for the poor (Lev. 12). So, Luke emphasizes Jesus’ humble background. Furthermore, Jesus starts His public ministry in Nazareth, where he quotes Isaiah 61:1-2:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” (NASB)

In that same sermon, he goes on to mention the widow of Zarephath and Naaman the Syrian, both Gentiles who obtained the Lord’s favor in the time of Elijah and Elisha when the rebellious Israelites failed to gain it. “Luke’s gospel is the journey of salvation; the ox bears the burdens of the poor, the captives and the blind, the oppressed and widows, as it travels beyond local and national concerns to the Gentiles to declare ‘the year of the Lord’s favor.”

At first glance, John appears simplistic. For example, I have noticed how simple the Greek is, a rather stark contrast with Luke’s Greek. The seven signs, seven discourses and seven “I am” sayings are evidence of a well thought-out structure to communicate concepts as lofty as a soaring eagle or as deep as the ocean. “The gospel has often been described as something in which a child can paddle, but an elephant may swim.”

John is known for his high Christology, in which he emphasizes Jesus’ divinity and role in creation. Jesus’ miraculous signs reveal His glory. Not only do Jesus’ “I am” statements point out His divinity, they also tie Him to Old Testament symbology suggesting that Jesus “is the culmination of Israel’s faith and history. Just as the characters in the narrative, the reader is faced with a choice, sight or blindness. Does he look past the surface misunderstandings to survey the spiritual realities from the eagle’s vantage point, or does he remain on the ground, spiritually blind?

Given that the gospels present different aspects of Jesus in different ways, Dr. Burridge is understandably skeptical of trying to harmonize the gospels because such harmonies tend to blur or miss the message entirely. Consider a Christmas nativity scene that include the magi along with the shepherds and Jesus in the manger. Luke uses the shepherds and the manger to emphasize Jesus’ humble origins and immanence while the magi, who worship Jesus and present their gifts to Him later, when Joseph and Mary are staying in a house, emphasize Jesus’ royal birth, His kingship. To mix the metaphors confuses the message.

[Rich Janes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliant book, although scholarly, full of attractive symbolic explanations and useful to readers from many educational backgrounds. The book describes how different paintings of Churchill are a clue to the different perspectives of Jesus in the four Gospels. It challenges our ideas of what genre the Gospels can be categorised as and to whether we should try and combine the Gospels into one account of Jesus’ life.
Richard Burridge applies his extensive research into ancient literature to enhance the way we can use the Gospels to explain the faith by concentrating on the ancient symbols for each Gospel. These symbols help as a memory aid for the themes of each Gospel and can be found in many books including the Book of Kells.
Richard also asks us to consider whether our current understanding of history, biography and truth impedes our opinions about the Gospels.
Very much recommended.

[Matthew Prydden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Burridge endeavors to set out clearly the distinctive characteristics that set each Gospel narrative apart. I feel that although a tremendous amount of research and knowledge went into the preparation of this book, only a relatively small part of that is expressed and seen in the book's final form. In giving a clear, helpful and accessible overview of each of the four gospels this book's greatest strength is shown, but I felt that there was still a lot more that could have been explored, or at least explored in more depth. The references and illusions to the four living creatures are helpful in providing constant and memorable illustrations, even if they are a little bit forced in places (but only in places). A good book, and a helpful book, but I just felt it could have gone on to be so much more.

[Vanda Denton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful study, superbly executed.

Burridge places the gospels in the time of their writing. He expertly discusses the four styles, along with their individual symbolism, whilst making his academic work accessible to all. To achieve this he employs comparison with a modern, familiar subject. By so doing, he unites all four gospels in a manner that anyone can understand. Very highly recommended.

[Richard Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting information not sure I agree

This is a good book for all who are interested in NT and Scholarship on the gospels. But be careful there is probably a liberal bend. Even as seen in the title. Are the gospel symbolic? Or are they historically accurate? The author’s goals are at least noble in that he hopes to help us read the gospels with fresh eyes seeing how they all have one red thread.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting concept, I enjoyed reading as a beginning study into the parallelism or not of the gospels. However I found the style of writing quite ponderous and his reference to secular works, with an assumption that we followed his logic a bit annoying.

[Rowena · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good guide book to read the 4 gospels.

[Tim Norman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great reading and introduction to the themes and styles present in the 4 Gospels.

[Mr]

L

[Joel Banks · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a Christian... Or if you're not... Just read it. Brilliant

[Helen Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book for a class. Accessible and interesting.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four Gospels, One Jesus?
Richard A. Burridge

SPCK (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge)

ISBN:0281047804

Another level, to help you get closer to the real person

How do you read the Bible? I think it can be read in a number of ways, too often we read it just as a reference book, which is not the way it was intended of course. When we study the Bible, we look at all the information we can get to find the context for the stories we're reading about. We try to understand what life was like in Jesus lifetime, we look at who wrote the gospels and when. All this is to help us to get a better understanding of the one Jesus that we a so concerned about learning about and from.

Jesus was a real person, so what was he like? There are some things that we can get from the texts we read. Even a superficial reading will give the impression that Jesus was clearly a charismatic teacher, ans someone who is not afraid of confrontation. I should add that he was also a Jew, with some amazing gifts, who made some astonishing claims. Quite quickly we arrive at the “God, mad or bad?” question, which tells us that Jesus is someone who is difficult to ignore.

To find out more we read the Gospels more carefully and try to understand who the author was, who he was writing for, and where he got his material. That gets us a little closer, but from the texts we still struggle with some of the apparent contradictions. Why are there four accounts? Are they just accounts from different reporters? Can we assume that these 'eye-witness accounts' suffer from the same problems as modern eye-witness accounts? Does that account for the differences? Did it all really happen?

If you're still with me, then you should read Four Gospels – One Jesus. The approach here is to try not only to understand some of the answers to the questions above, but also to understand how early Christian writers and their contemporaries wrote biographies. The approach they use is not the same as 20th Century writers. Each Gospel is examined for its main theme using characterizations from the early church as a base. For example, in Mark, Jesus is a Lion; In John an Eagle. The use of these images is carefully explained, and can be a helpful way of remembering the main themes. For those who are familiar with Lord of the rings, Tolkein is referenced often, sometimes this is a strain, as in the description of the eagles who rescue Frodo and Sam from the mountain. In John, Jesus the Eagle is not under the command of anyone, but G... is clearly being directed by Gandalf, so the analogy breaks down too early.

Overall, this is a helpful book if you are really trying to get closer to the character of Jesus. It generally has an easy style, and is thought provoking, without getting too technical. If, like me, you finish the chapter on John, and ask “How are we ever going to get back to one Jesus now?”, then just read on.

Here are some links that might help:

http://www.eharper.nildram.co.uk/stm/...

http://www.spck.org.uk/cat/show.php/0...

[Cory Shumate]

Burridge does a fascinating job demonstrating that the gospels are to be read as distinct works, not to be interwoven as some amalgamated "master gospel". The four gospels are likened to four pictures of the one historical Jesus, each highlighting different characteristics of his person and ministry. Just as one would not overlay four physical pictures and expect any clarity, neither should the gospels be combined. Rather, they should be used to appreciate what each author viewed as important. The association of each gospel with an ancient portrait (Matthew's human face, Mark's lion, Luke's ox, and John's eagle) provide very intriguing parallels (though not all convincing), and easy ways to jog the memory about what each gospel contributes.

[Brad Hart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't say I was blown away by this book, but I will say that the author presents a unique and clever take on how to better understand each of the four gospels (comparing them to a lion, human, ox and eagle). I enjoyed the analogies but found them to be too simplistic. I could see how a rookie student could oversimplify the Four Gospels and miss out on much of the nuance to be found in each account.

[Peter Mihaere · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. I read it as part of my devotional focus on Jesus over the last couple of months. It's a book that's been sitting on my 'to read' pile for at least three years and enjoyed finally getting to read it outside an academic requirement. I will be adding it to my bookshelf of important books that I need to read again on a semi-regular basis to recalibrate the importance of the unique but different portraits of the one Jesus. I will treat the gospels more maturely in the future because of this book.

[Aaron Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book, had to use as core reading text and discussion topic, the way Burridge portrays the gospels as individual pieces,or separate portraits of one man (Jesus)see chapters on Winston Churchill, then brings them together gave me a better understanding.
did well in my module also.

[William Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good general introduction to the Gospels and the history behind why the four faces of the cherubim are representative of the four Gospels, but not so good on the symbolism of the four faces with the Gospels.

[Jerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

using it with colleagues to teach a year long course on the new testament. It's accessible to laity and offers great highlights of the gospels...not as in depth as raymond brown's intro to the NT.

[Casey Arn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of hard language to keep you interested (which is why it took me 2.5 years to finish this), but a solid idea and illuminated some knowledge of the gospels I didn't previously possess.