An Overview of the Gospel of Luke

What do you know about the Gospel of Luke? Learn more about this Gospel with the brief overview below.

Who Wrote the Gospel of Luke?

The Gospel of Luke is technically anonymous. The idea that Luke is the author turns upon several converging lines of evidence.

The name “Luke” appears three times in the NT: 2Tm 4:11; Phm 24; Col 4:14. Luke was an associate of the apostle Paul and was a physician. In Col 4 he is mentioned separately from those “of the circumcision” (see 4:10-11). The tradition of the church holds that Luke was a Gentile.

The man who wrote the gospel also wrote the book of Acts (see Ac 1:1-3), and he was a traveling companion of Paul (see the “we” passages (Ac 16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1–28:16). The account of the institution of the ordinance of communion (Lk 22:19, 20) is similar to Paul’s (1Co 11:23-25), supporting the traditional view of the author of the third gospel. He appears to have a special interest in Jesus’ healing ministry (compare Lk 4:38 to Mt 8:14 and Mk 1:30), and the language of Luke/Acts is that of someone educated and familiar with the Septuagint (the ancient Gk. translation of the Hebrew Scriptures). Of Paul’s coworkers Luke best fits the profile of the author of Luke/Acts.

Early church fathers such as Irenaeus (c. 185, Against Heresies, III.i.1); Tertullian (c. 200, Against Marcion, IV.ii); Origen (c. AD 230, in Eusebius Ecclesiastical History, IV.xxv.3-6); and Jerome (c. AD 400, De Viris Illustribus VIII) consistently attribute the third Gospel to Luke. The Muratorian Canon (c. AD 180) attributes “The third book of the gospel” to “Luke, that physician” (cf. Walter L. Leifeld, “Luke,” EBC, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein [Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984], 8:799; Darrell L. Bock, Luke: 1:1-9:50, BECNT [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1994], 5).

When Was the Gospel of Luke Written?

There is no mention of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans (AD 70) in either Luke or Acts. If Luke and Acts were written at approximately the same time it probably would have been no later than Paul’s first Roman imprisonment (ca. AD 60–63). The book does not mention the persecution of Nero (AD 64), nor does it mention the martyrdom of James (AD 62). At the outset of his gospel Luke admitted that he used sources (since he himself was not an eyewitness to the events in the gospel). He may have used the Gospel of Mark (written as early as the AD 50s). From these considerations a composition date of AD 60–61 is most likely.

What Are the Purpose and Themes of the Book of Luke?

Luke’s purpose in writing his gospel was (see the Prologue 1:1-4): (1) to provide an “orderly account” of the events of the life of Christ; (2) to show how those events “connect” to the church; (3) to spread the saving truth about the Lord Jesus Christ to all nations (cf. 24:47).

Bock notes, “Four issues were particularly problematic in the church of Luke’s time” (Bock, Luke, 1, 2). (1) Gentile inclusion in salvation; (2) the largely negative response to Jesus by the Jewish nation; (3) how “the person and teaching of a crucified Jesus fits into God’s plan” (Bock, Luke, 2); (4) what are believers in this new community (disciples who follow Jesus) to be? “Luke-Acts says Jesus is Lord of all, so salvation can go to all” (Bock, Luke, 3). The major theme of Luke’s gospel, however, revolves around a simple question, “Who is Jesus?” Nearly every strand of the narrative is related to this question and its vitally important answer—Jesus is the Messiah (Christ).