1600 | Introduction to the Gospels & Acts
Some scholars who grow up in societies with less-developed memory skills challenge this background , arguing that Jesus ’ disciples were unlike all the other disciples we read about in the same period ; these scholars protest that the disciples were uneducated and illiterate . Against this premise several observations may be offered . First , texts about the disciples being “ unlearned ” merely mean that they lacked the training available to the elite , not that they lacked all training . Fishermen made a better living , and probably had somewhat better education , than the majority of people in Galilee ( most people were peasants ). Second , in many cultures memory skills are inversely proportional to literacy — that is , sometimes people who are illiterate have even stronger memories because they cannot simply refer to other sources if they forget them . Finally , ancient sources are clear that memory skills were not limited to the highly educated . Traveling bards who recited all of Homer ’ s poetry by heart were generally not educated , yet few scholars in the modern West could compare with them in their capacity to memorize . This observation also holds true today ; in some places even those who are illiterate can , for example , recite large sections of the Qur ’ an or other writings from memory .
The Gospel writers had a variety of memories , oral sources and written works on which they could draw . Normally memories and oral traditions remain most accurate in the first generation or two , within living memory of eyewitnesses who can communicate and confirm events . In antiquity , as today , writers of histories and biographies would consult eyewitnesses first and foremost . Throughout the first generation , when information about Jesus was becoming widespread , Jesus ’ original disciples plus his brother James remained in positions of leadership in the church ( Gal 1:18 – 19 ; 2:9 ; cf . 1Co 15:5 – 7 ). By the time Luke wrote , he could see his purpose as merely confirming information that was already widely known ( Lk 1:3 – 4 ).
Some scholars protest that some lines of evidence for the accuracy of oral tradition come from only limited circles . Yet almost any claim about evidence we can identify from antiquity is limited ; only a sample of sources have survived . The evidence we do have for accurate tradition , however , is undoubtedly a representative sample . It is widespread among varied settings and virtually all points in the same direction . No responsible scholar would dismiss virtually all the contemporary evidence we do have and then argue the opposite conclusion based on silence .
Jesus ’ Teachings
Various ancient Jewish sages had their own distinctive teaching traits , but other forms of teaching were common among them . They commonly taught in parables very similar to those of Jesus ( see the article “ Parables ,” p . 1692 ); they used riddles to provoke thought ; they used proverbs that often made a particular point without covering all possible exceptions or circumstances ( cf . Pr 26:4 – 5 ); and they often used graphic hyperbole ( rhetorical overstatement ) to reinforce their points . Although Jesus often used the teaching techniques that were common in his day , other traits are distinctive to him , such as the phrase “ truly I say to you .” Most distinctive , of course , are passages where Jesus hints at his deity ( e . g ., Mt 18:20 ; Jn 8:58 ).
Because Jesus addressed especially crowds of poor Galilean farmers as he traveled from place to place , his teachings are not systematic ; instead , they are often meant to provoke thought and make a point , sometimes in a graphic way that holds an audience ’ s attention . For a modern reader to directly convert Jesus ’ words into rules or statements of systematic theology therefore sometimes misses their point . For example , Jesus requires caring for parents in their old age ( Mk 7:9 – 13 ), but summons people to abandon their family responsibilities if need be to follow him ( Mt 8:21 – 22 parallel to Lk 9:59 – 62 ; Mt 10:37 parallel to Lk 14:26 ). Is Jesus pro-family , or is he a home-wrecker ? In fact , Jesus should come before everything else , but “ hating ” one ’ s family ( Lk 14:26 ) is hyperbole , merely a graphic way of making his point .
Hyperbole is common in Jesus ’ teaching . We recognize it in the most obvious cases : for example , ripping out one ’ s eye as a solution to lust ( Mt 5:28 – 29 ), swallowing a camel whole ( Mt 23:24 ), or squeezing a camel through a needle ’ s eye ( Mk 10:25 ). Some suggest that it would be consistent to view some other sayings in the same way — for example , giving up one ’ s only cloak ( Mt 5:40