Wednesday, July 08, 2009

The Holy Spirit and the Scriptures (2) - Differences

Some people worry about difference Jesus words being recorded differently in different gospels. We should remember that preached almost every day for three years. He would repeat the same message numerous times using slightly different wording each time. The different gospels just record the version spoken on different occasions. The Holy Spirit provided these different versions so that we can get a fullest possible understanding of Jesus message.

Translation was also an issue. Peter’s response to Jesus question about who he was is recorded differently in different gospels.

The Christ of God (Luke 9:20)
You are the Christ (Mark 8:29)
You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matt 16:16).
The most likely reason for these differences is that the gospels were written in Greek, whereas Jesus and Peter spoke in Aramaic. The Holy Spirit often needed slightly different Greek versions to get the full meaning of what was spoken in Aramaic. We should be glad for the fuller insight this provides.

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