Author of " Responsive Services," "Robert Mimpriss; A Memoir," &e., and late SAN FRANCISCO: THE "OCCIDENT" PUBLISHING COMPANY. 1886. 69854 [Any erroneous references to Chapters and Verses in the Gospels found in the headings of Chapters in this work, may be corrected by compari- Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1886, by SAMUEL SLOCOMBE, in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. Gift of Hicks - Judd Co TRIBUNE PRINTING CO., Printers, San Luis Obispo, Cal. PREFACE. The earthly life of Jesus Christ is without doubt the most ennobling theme of Bible study. By that life was kindled the noblest moral forces that the world has known, and the diffusion of the knowledge of its great facts and principles is still an essential condition of the moral reformation of mankind. But the study of that life is no such simple matter as many imagine. A complete picture of Christ as He lived on earth is not to be drawn from any one, two, or three of the Gospel records. The narratives of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are all so far supplementary to each other that whoever would get a complete view must study them all, and study them together. But, except to the Bible student who is well equipped and has ample leisure, a comparative study of the four Gospels considered as so many parts or phases of one biography is an intricate task. For example, to know the order of time in relation to the events of Christ's life often throws a wonderful light upon His example and teaching; yet at many points that order is only discovered after long and diligent research and careful generalization. At some points, too, when the best has been done there is room left for diversity of opinion. On the other hand, not only general readers of the New Testament but also most Bibleclass teachers, theological students, and ministers of the Gospel find it necessary to be as economical as possible of time, labor, and books. The following blended arrangement of the four Gospels is the result of an earnest effort to aid all such students of the Bible, by bringing into a focus the best light of modern thought and research upon the order of all events recorded in the four Gospels. Gradual preparation for it has occupied the leisure hours of several years, and included the reading of most of the Lives of Christ, Harmonies of the Gospels, and other writings of specialists upon the subject that have been published during the last thirty years. To what extent the result is satisfactory remains to be proved by those brethren whom I am striving to serve in a practical way by the publication of this volume-brethren who need not elaborate critical disquisitions, including lengthy lists of pros and cons, but the practical outcome of such disquisitions, brought down to the minimum of space and cost. The basis of the text of this volume is practically the Revised Version (American), modified by a few verbal changes adopted from among criticisms of that Version which have appeared during the last five years, and by the use of initial capitals in all nouns and pronouns applied to Christ. The object in these respects has been to provide as accurate a text as possible, freed from needless archaisms, and to destroy the possibility of confusion as to the references meant in the uses of the words "he," "him," etc. An Appendix supplies a series of brief notes upon difficult points in the history, chiefly chronological, prefaced by a few hints upon some of the "Characteristics of the Gospels." The notes are nowhere meant to be exhaustive or controversial, but simply explanatory, or indicative of the reason for adopting a particular course in the presence of conflicting views. |