Feast of the Holy Family, Year C

COMMENTARY1ST READINGRESPONSORIAL2ND READINGGOSPELPARALLELS
DR. BRANT PITRE

Mass Readings Explained

Jesus enters into his identity as the messianic Son of God.

1 Sm 1:20-22, 24-28 – One of the interesting things is that in Jewish tradition, not the Bible, but in Jewish tradition, the boy Samuel was 12 years old when he went into the tabernacle and was called by God, heard that voice, and began to prophesy. So for example, Josephus, the First Century Jewish historian, in his book The Antiquities of the Jews, says this about the boy Samuel when he was 12 years old; listen…

SOURCE: Mass Readings Explained by Dr. Brant Pitre.

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AGAPE BIBLE STUDY

The Perfection of the Human Family Reflected in the Holy Family

God instituted marriage and the family when He created the first man and woman (Gen 1:27; 2:21-24).  He blessed marriage and the family and endowed both with their necessary function for the common good of its members and the benefit of society, giving us the family as a refuge in a hostile world.

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Both marriage and family have had an essential role in God’s plan for humanity’s salvation.  Throughout salvation history, marriage and the family protected the “promised seed” of Genesis 3:15 from which the Redeemer-Messiah was destined to come to rescue humanity from sin and death.  The line flourished in the families of the descendants of Seth, son of Adam and Eve, and his descendant Abraham and his wife, Sarah.  Their son Isaac continued the line of the “promised seed” in his marriage to Rebekah as God continued the Abrahamic covenant through their son Jacob-Israel.  St. Matthew and St. Luke traced that family line in Jesus’ genealogy in the Gospel of Matthew 1:1-18 and the Gospel of Luke 3:23-38.  It culminated in the Holy Family of Joseph and Mary of Nazareth, and Mary’s son, conceived by the Holy Spirit, the “promised seed” sent to undo the work of Satan (1 Jn 3:8) who is the Redeemer-Messiah, Jesus Christ.

In the ecclesial community, we experience the Christian family which constitutes a specific revelation and realization of that which is called the “domestic Church.”  The Christian family is a communion of persons in the Body of Christ; it is “a sign and image of the communion of the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit” (CCC 2205).  In the procreation and raising of children in the Christian family, we reflect the Father’s work of creation and become His partners in the flow of salvation history.  The spiritually re-born children of God in the Christian family continue to have a mission to fulfill in salvation history.  God calls every Christian family to partake of the prayer and sacrifice of Jesus Christ and to complete His mission to evangelize within the family and outside the family to the human families in the world.

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.
Navarre Bible, et alia

Catholic Commentary on Sunday Readings (PDF)

SOURCE: Bible study program at St. Charles Borromeo (Picayune, MS) courtesy of Military Archdiocese. Sources include The Jerome Biblical Commentary, The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, and The Navarre Bible, and others.
Dr. Kieran J. O’Mahony, OSA

Hearers of the Word

Portable Commentary

EXCERPT #1: INITIAL OBSERVATIONS (GOSPEL)

GOSPEL: Initial observations

Jesus in the Temple is a story unique to Luke’s gospel. Luke may well be using a source here (for example, there seems to be no awareness of the virginal conception in the story). Rather than an innocent reminiscence, the story bears the marks of post-Easter composition.

This deceptively simple tale serves several purposes of the evangelist.

  1. It reminds us of the Jewishness of Jesus and his family.
  2. It fulfils one of the conventions of ancient biography: childhood prodigies.
  3. It begins the portrait of Jesus as a prophet and as a reader of Scripture.
  4. It portrays Jesus as a human being, experiencing the ordinary development from childhood onwards. (
  5. It shows Jesus himself taking “ownership” of all the things said of him thus far in the Infancy Narrative of Luke.

All five elements are significant for Luke. He is very likely writing against what we may call proto-Marcionism, that is the desire to uproot Jesus from his Jewish matrix, and behind that a desire to dismiss Judaism as somehow surpassed and superseded. He may also be countering the beginnings of Apollinarianism, evident in other non-canonical accounts of Jesus’ childhood. Typically, these so emphasise the divinity of the child Jesus that he seems hardly human. There is a considerable contrast, for example, with the Infancy Gospel of Thomas (quoted below; you can find it here: http://www.gnosis.org).

SOURCE: HEARERS OF THE WORD by Dr. Kieran J. O’Mahony, OSA

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EXCERPT #2: THE PURPOSE OF THE STORY

The Purpose of the Story

Two observations may help us grasp more clearly the purpose of the story.

Firstly, it does show a concentric pattern as follows:

  • A The family goes to Jerusalem (Lk 2:41-42)
  • B Jesus remains, unobserved (Lk 2:43)
  • C The parents’ search (Lk 2:44-46a)
  • D Jesus among the teachers (Lk 2:46-47)
  • C* The parents’ reproach (Lk 2:48)
  • B* Jesus replies, misunderstood (Lk 2:49-50)
  • A* The family returns to Nazareth (Lk 2:51a)

In such a layout, the focus falls on Jesus as source of wisdom, a characterisation which will continue through the Gospel as Jesus interprets the Scriptures on his own authority (Luke 4:1-13; 4:16-21; 7:26-27; 10:25-28; 20:17-18; 20:37-38; 20:41-44; 24:25-27, 32; 24:44-47).

Secondly, the climax in terms of plot must fall on B*, when Jesus makes his transparently enigmatic response. The complication in v. 43 leads to this climax in the form of dialogue and thus the emphasis really falls on the future career of the child prodigy.

SOURCE: HEARERS OF THE WORD by Dr. Kieran J. O’Mahony, OSA

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AN ECUMENICAL BIBLICAL COMMENTARY (BIBLE STUDY)
RICHARD NIELL DONAVAN

Sermon Writer

GOSPEL EXEGESIS

  • LUKE 2:41-52. JESUS VISITS THE TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM
  • LUKE 2:41. HIS PARENTS WENT EVERY YEAR TO JERUSALEM
  • LUKE 2:42-45. WHEN THEY DIDN’T FIND HIM
  • LUKE 2:46-47. ALL WHO HEARD HIM WERE AMAZED
  • LUKE 2: 48-51. HIS PARENTS WERE ASTONISHED
  • LUKE 2:52. AND JESUS INCREASED….
SOURCE: Richard Niell Donavan, a Disciples of Christ clergyman, published SermonWriter from 1997 until his death in 2020. His wife Dale has graciously kept his website online. A subscription is no longer required.

Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14

Show reverence for God by honoring your parents

  • The Book of Sirach is among the group of writings known as Wisdom Books.
  • Today’s reading focuses on the duties of children toward their parents.
  • Children are to honor their parents as God had ordained through Moses at Mount Sinai.

SOURCES: Content adapted from Our Sunday VisitorThe clipart is from the archive of Father Richard Lonsdale © 2000 which may be freely reproduced in any non-profit publication.

The Book of Sirach is among the group of writings known as Wisdom Books

🔴 CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT

IN BRIEF

INTRO: Writing less than 200 years before Jesus, Sirach defended Judaism’s wisdom against pressure from dominant Greek ideas. Here he names care for elders as a cultural and spiritual treasure.

HISTORICAL SITUATION: Sirach is a very late book (around 180 B.C.E.), when compared with the books of Moses or the prophets. By this time in Israel’s history, the great theological battles about monotheism are over, the kings have come and gone, and the Exile is a distant memory. The prophets have been silent for a long time, and many Jews are living in cities where pagans are the majorities.

In these circumstances, writers asked how one should live a good life, what moral and spiritual choices should one make, what behavior is honorable in a religious person?
Respecting and caring for elders is one of those honorable behaviors. The author depicts it as a way to get right with God, too.

SOURCE: LectorPrep.org — Used with permission.

Today’s reading focuses on the duties of children toward their parents.

RELATED: Ten Commandments

God sets a father in honor over his children;
a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.

🔴 CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT

Children are to honor their parents as God had ordained through Moses at Mount Sinai.

My son, take care of your father when he is old;
grieve him not as long as he lives.
Even if his mind fail, be considerate of him;
revile him not all the days of his life;

🔴 CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT

kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
firmly planted against the debt of your sins
—a house raised in justice to you.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHILDREN AND PARENTS

The focus of the inspired writer of the Book of Sirach in this passage is the relationship between children and parents based on the fourth of the Ten Commandments to honor one’s father and mother (Ex 20:12 and Dt 5:16). Of all the Ten Commandments, it is the only one that contains a blessing and an implied warning. Sirach lists the blessings that belong to those who fear offending God by honoring their parents, and he begins by saying that it is God who gives parents authority over their children (verse 2). The blessings in verses 3-6 and 14 for giving honor and respect to one’s parents include:

  • Whoever honors his/her father makes atonement for sins (verses 3 and 14).
  • Whoever glorifies his/her mother lays up reward in heaven (verse 4).
  • Whoever honors his/her father will have good relationships with his or her children (verse 5).
  • God will hear the prayers of those who honor their fathers because the sin of disrespecting one’s father in violation of the 4th commandment will not be a barrier (verse 5).
  • Whoever glorifies his/her father will enjoy a long life (verse 6; cf., Ex 20:12 and Dt 5:16).
SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.
DUTIES OF GRATITUDE TO PARENTS

Jesus recalls these duties of gratitude to parents in Mark 7:10-12.  The Church teaches:

“The divine fatherhood is the source of human fatherhood; this is the foundation of the honor owed to parents.  The respect of children, whether minors or adults, for their father and mother is nourished by the natural affection born of the bond uniting them.  It is required by God’s commandment” (CCC 2214; also see 2215-19).

And in another passage, the writer of the Book of Sirach admonishes: With all your heart honor your father, and do not forget the birth pangs of your mother.  Remember that through your parents you were born, what can you give back to them that equals their gift to you? (Sir 7:27-28).

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.
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Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5

Response: Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

PILGRIMAGE JOURNEYS TO THE TEMPLE

Ps 128:5 suggests the singing of the psalm during pilgrimage journeys to the Jerusalem Temple where a priest welcomed them and pronounced a blessing over them. Zion is the symbolic name for the Church of the Sinai Covenant. This psalm then is concerned with instruction and blessings for people making a religious pilgrimage to the Temple of God.

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.
FEAR OF THE LORD

“Fear of the Lord” in Ps 128:4 is the same thing as the desire to please God by keeping His commandments (Ps 128:1). St. Hilary of Portieres wrote:

“For us, fear of the Lord is part of love, and its expression in the practice of perfect charity: obey the counselor of God, hold fast to his commandments, trust in his promises” (Tractatus super Psalmos, 128.1-3).

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.

The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.

BLESSING OF CHILDREN/FAMILIES

The psalmist declares that children are a gift from God, and in Ps 128:2-4 he describes blessings based on happiness in the family. The psalm ends with a blessing formula invoking the Lord God in His Temple on Mt. Zion where the many families of the united family of the covenant people come to worship the Lord God (Ps 128:5-6).

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.

Colossians 3:12-21

Serve the Lord by loving one another

  • The reading from Colossians reminds Christians of their duties toward one another, both in their immediate family and in the wider community.
  • Paul instructs family members to remain faithful to the demands of their life-situation.
  • In all relationships, forgiveness, love and a positive attitude should prevail.

SOURCES: Content adapted from Our Sunday VisitorThe clipart is from the archive of Father Richard Lonsdale © 2000 which may be freely reproduced in any non-profit publication.
IN BRIEF

INTRO: Earlier chapters of this letter explain how baptism makes Christians into a new creation in Christ. This chapter explains how the recreated person should now live.

HISTORICAL SITUATION: Prior chapters of Colossians have explained how the Christian is made a new creation by baptism into Christ. The letter winds up, as Paul’s letters often do, with ethical exhortations. He’s saying, in effect, “Because you’re recreated, here’s how you should now behave.”

SOURCE: LectorPrep.org — Used with permission.

The reading from Colossians reminds Christians of their duties toward one another, both in their immediate family and in the wider community. 

RELATED: Charity (Practice)

And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.

🔴 CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT

IN BRIEF: The Virtue of Charity

Baptism, in which the Christian receives the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit, calls for the resolution to lead a life that is in imitation of the life of Christ. That commitment leads to an exterior transformation in our dealing with our families, friends and even strangers.

The virtues of that new life that St. Paul lists are all expressions in one form or another of charity or “love in action”; it is the belt “that binds everything together in perfect harmony” (verse 14).

Without love, the other virtues would fall apart, and the supernatural gift of charity/active love could not survive. The realization then comes to us that these acts of love that we perform are not ours alone but works generation by Christ through us.

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.

Paul instructs family members to remain faithful to the demands of their life-situation. In all relationships, forgiveness, love and a positive attitude should prevail.

BETWEEN HUSBAND AND WIFE

In verses 18-21, Paul addresses the family relationship that begins with the bond of love and respect between husband and wife. He has already taught that they are equal in their relationship to God (Gal 3:28); it was a revolutionary statement for its time when women had very few legal rights and were considered inferior to their husbands. In verse 18, he asks that wives recognize the leadership role of their husbands, but he also defines their mutual respect by asking a greater burden on the husband’s part because God calls him to put his wife first and to demonstrate his love for her by his actions.

Children are called upon to be obedient to their parents in every way. This demonstration of love is pleasing to God who is the divine Father and who expects obedience from all His human children. Finally, he urges fathers not to use their leadership in the family to bully their children but to encourage them. His advice is as sound today as it was when Paul taught the Christian community at Colossus in the first century AD.

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.
IN REGARD TO CHILDREN

Children are called upon to be obedient to their parents in every way. This demonstration of love is pleasing to God who is the divine Father and who expects obedience from all His human children.

Fathers are not to use their leadership in the family to bully their children but to encourage them. This advice is as sound today as it was when Paul taught the Christian community at Colossus in the first century AD.

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.

Luke 2:41-52

The boy Jesus stays behind in the Temple

  • In today’s Gospel, the Holy Family is on a pilgrimage from their hometown of Nazareth in Galilee to Jerusalem in Judea.
  • It is the feast of Passover, one of the high feast days on which devout Jews came to the temple to celebrate.
  • Luke stresses in the story of Jesus in the temple that even Jesus’ parents only come to know Jesus’ divinity and his connection to his heavenly Father, through the gift of faith.

SOURCES: Content adapted from Our Sunday VisitorThe clipart is from the archive of Father Richard Lonsdale © 2000 which may be freely reproduced in any non-profit publication.

In today’s Gospel, the Holy Family is on a pilgrimage from their hometown of Nazareth in Galilee to Jerusalem in Judea.

Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem
for the feast of Passover,
and when he was twelve years old,
they went up according to festival custom.

RELATED VIDEOS

It is the feast of Passover, one of the high feast days on which devout Jews came to the temple to celebrate

RELATED:  Three Pilgrimage Festivals

FEASTS OF PASSOVER AND UNLEAVENED BREAD

The feasts of Passover and Unleavened Bread took place during an eight-day period in the early spring as a required memorial of the Exodus redemption (Ex chapter 12; Lev 23:4-14; Num 28:16-25).  The feast of Unleavened Bread (Nisan 15-21st) began at sundown on the day of the Passover sacrifice and was one of the three “pilgrim feasts” in which every man of the covenant who was thirteen years and older was required to appear before God’s altar with his sacrifices (Ex 23:14-17; 34:18-23; Dt 16:16-17; 1 Chron 8:13).  In the first century AD, the two feasts were celebrated as though they were one feast lasting eight days and were referred to simply as “the Passover.”  It was a joyous time and many families made the journey to Jerusalem, like the Holy Family on this occasion.

Jesus was twelve years old when He made the journey (verse 41).  Biblical scholar Joachim Jeremias writes “… the Talmud speaks of thirteen years as the border-line for the fulfillment of the law.  Luke 2:42 is not in contradiction with this rule; the twelve-year-olds were brought on the pilgrimage in order to get them used to the event which would become a duty the next year” (Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, page 76).

SOURCE: Michal E. Hunt’s Agape Bible Study. Used with permission.

Jesus is separated from Mary and Joseph.

After three days they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
listening to them and asking them questions,
and all who heard him were astounded
at his understanding and his answers.

VIDEO DRAMATIZATIONS

Luke stresses that even Jesus’ parents only come to know Jesus’ divinity and his connection to his heavenly Father, through the gift of faith.

“Why were you looking for me?

Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
But they did not understand what he said to them.

🔴 CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT

JOHN J. PILCH

Jesus in the Temple

Male maturity in the Mediterranean world entails becoming liberated from the female control that characterizes early childhood.


DR. ELEANOR STUMP

Tempted But Without Sin

“Why have you done this to us?” This is the question that must be impressed upon all those who disturb the unity of the human family.

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Used with the permission of Pastor James Wetzstein at www.agnusday.org.

Gospel ParallelsLk 2:41-52

SOURCE: Click anywhere above to go to para-gospel.com which uses the Biblia web services from Logos Bible Software. © Jeremy Beckham 2014. Text above is from the American Standard Version (1901) of the bible which can be used without copyright permission.

Table can be sorted by clicking on the headings in the top row.

Event Type Matthew Mark Luke John
1 Pre-existence of Christ misc John 01:01–18
2 Genealogy of Jesus nativity Matthew 01:01–17 Luke 03:23–38
3 Birth of John the Baptist nativity Luke 01:05–25
4 Annunciation nativity Luke 01:26–38
5 Visitation of Mary nativity Luke 01:39–56
6 Birth of Jesus nativity Matthew 01:18–25 Luke 02:01–07
7 Annunciation to the shepherds nativity Luke 02:08–15
8 Adoration of the shepherds nativity Luke 02:16–20
9 Circumcision of Jesus nativity Luke 02:21
10 Infant Jesus at the Temple nativity Luke 02:22–38
11 Star of Bethlehem nativity Matthew 02:01–02
12 Visit of the Magi nativity Matthew 02:01–12
13 Flight into Egypt nativity Matthew 02:13–15
14 Massacre of the Innocents nativity Matthew 02:16–18
15 Herod the Great‘s death misc Matthew 02:19–20
16 Return of the family of Jesus to Nazareth youth Matthew 02:21–23 Luke 02:39–39
17 Finding Jesus in the Temple youth Luke 02:41–51
18 Ministry of John the Baptist misc Matthew 03:01–12 Mark 01:01–08 Luke 03:01–20 John 01:19–34
19 Baptism of Jesus misc Matthew 03:13–17 Mark 01:09–11 Luke 03:21–22 John 01:29–39
20 Temptation of Jesus misc Matthew 04:01–11 Mark 01:12–13 Luke 04:01–13
21 Marriage at Cana miracle John 02:01–11
22 First Temple Cleansing ministry John 02:13–25
23 Jesus & Nicodemus ministry John 03:01–21
24 Return of Jesus to Galilee ministry Matthew 04:12–12 Mark 01:14–14 John 04:01–03
25 Exorcism at the Synagogue in Capernaum miracle Mark 01:21–28 Luke 04:31–37
26 The Growing Seed parable Mark 04:26–29
27 Rejection of Jesus ministry Matthew 13:53–58 Mark 06:01–06 Luke 04:16–30
28 First disciples of Jesus ministry Matthew 04:18–22 Mark 01:16–20 Luke 05:1-11 John 01:35–51
29 Miraculous draught of fishes miracle Luke 05:01–11
30 Beatitudes sermon Matthew 05:02–12 Luke 06:20–23
31 Young Man from Nain miracle Luke 07:11–17
32 The Two Debtors parable Luke 07:41–43
33 The Lamp under a Bushel parable Matthew 05:14–15 Mark 04:21–25 Luke 08:16–18
34 Expounding of the Law sermon Matthew 05:17–48 Luke 06:29–42
35 Seventy Disciples ministry Luke 10:01–24
36 Discourse on ostentation sermon Matthew 06:01–18
37 Parable of the Good Samaritan parable Luke 10:30–37
38 Jesus at the home of Martha and Mary ministry Luke 10:38–42
39 The Lord’s Prayer ministry Matthew 06:09–13 Luke 11:02–04
40 The Friend at Night parable Luke 11:05–08
41 The Rich Fool parable Luke 12:16–21
42 Samaritan Woman at the Well ministry John 04:04–26
43 The Birds of Heaven ministry Matthew 06:25–34 Luke 12:22–34
44 Discourse on judging sermon Matthew 07:01–05 Luke 06:41–42
45 Discourse on holiness sermon Matthew 07:13–27
46 The Test of a Good Person sermon Matthew 07:15–20 Luke 06:43-45
47 The Wise and the Foolish Builders parable Matthew 07:24–27 Luke 06:46–49
48 Cleansing a leper miracle Matthew 08:01–04 Mark 01:40–45 Luke 05:12–16
49 The Centurion’s Servant miracle Matthew 08:05–13 Luke 07:01–10 John 04:46–54
50 Healing the mother of Peter’s wife miracle Matthew 08:14–17 Mark 01:29–34 Luke 04:38–41
51 Exorcising at sunset miracle Matthew 08:16–17 Mark 01:32–34 Luke 04:40–41
52 Calming the storm miracle Matthew 08:23–27 Mark 04:35–41 Luke 08:22–25
53 Gerasenes demonic miracle Matthew 08:28–34 Mark 05:01–20 Luke 08:26–39
54 Paralytic at Capernaum miracle Matthew 09:01–08 Mark 02:01–12 Luke 05:17–26
55 Calling of Matthew ministry Matthew 09:09 Mark 02:13–14 Luke 05:27–28
56 New Wine into Old Wineskins parable Matthew 09:17–17 Mark 02:22–22 Luke 05:37–39
57 Daughter of Jairus miracle Matthew 09:18–26 Mark 05:21–43 Luke 08:40–56
58 The Bleeding Woman miracle Matthew 09:20–22 Mark 05:24–34 Luke 08:43–48
59 Two Blind Men at Galilee miracle Matthew 09:27–31
60 Exorcising a mute miracle Matthew 09:32–34
61 Commissioning the twelve Apostles ministry Matthew 10:02–04 Mark 03:13–19 Luke 06:12–16
62 Not peace, but a sword ministry Matthew 10:34–36 Luke 12:49–53
63 Messengers from John the Baptist ministry Matthew 11:02–06 Luke 07:18–23
64 Paralytic at Bethesda miracle John 05:01–18
65 Lord of the Sabbath ministry Matthew 12:01–08 Mark 02:23–28 Luke 06:01–05
66 Man with withered Hand miracle Matthew 12:09–13 Mark 03:01–06 Luke 06:06–11
67 Exorcising the blind and mute man miracle Matthew 12:22–28 Mark 03:20–30 Luke 11:14–23
68 Parable of the strong man parable Matthew 12:29–29 Mark 03:27–27 Luke 11:21–22
69 Eternal sin ministry Matthew 12:30–32 Mark 03:28–29 Luke 12:08–10
70 Jesus’ True Relatives ministry Matthew 12:46–50 Mark 03:31–35 Luke 08:19–21
71 Parable of the Sower parable Matthew 13:03–09 Mark 04:03–09 Luke 08:05–08
72 The Tares parable Matthew 13:24–30
73 The Barren Fig Tree parable Luke 13:06–09
74 An Infirm Woman miracle Luke 13:10–17
75 Parable of the Mustard Seed parable Matthew 13:31–32 Mark 04:30–32 Luke 13:18–19
76 The Leaven parable Matthew 13:33–33 Luke 13:20–21
77 Parable of the Pearl parable Matthew 13:44–46
78 Drawing in the Net parable Matthew 13:47–50
79 The Hidden Treasure parable Matthew 13:52–52
80 Beheading of John the Baptist ministry Matthew 14:06–12 Mark 06:21–29 Luke 09:07–09
81 Feeding the 5000 miracle Matthew 14:13–21 Mark 06:31–44 Luke 09:10–17 John 06:05–15
82 Jesus’ walk on water miracle Matthew 14:22–33 Mark 06:45–52 John 06:16–21
83 Healing in Gennesaret miracle Matthew 14:34–36 Mark 06:53–56
84 Discourse on Defilement sermon Matthew 15:01–11 Mark 07:01–23
85 Canaanite woman’s daughter miracle Matthew 15:21–28 Mark 07:24–30
86 Deaf mute of Decapolis miracle Mark 07:31–37
87 Feeding the 4000 miracle Matthew 15:32–39 Mark 08:01–09
88 Blind Man of Bethsaida miracle Mark 08:22–26
89 Confession of Peter ministry Matthew 16:13–20 Mark 08:27–30 Luke 09:18–21
90 Transfiguration of Jesus miracle Matthew 17:01–13 Mark 09:02–13 Luke 09:28–36
91 Boy possessed by a demon miracle Matthew 17:14–21 Mark 09:14–29 Luke 09:37–49
92 Coin in the fish’s mouth miracle Matthew 17:24–27
93 Bread of Life Discourse sermon John 06:22–59
94 The Little Children ministry Matthew 18:01–06 Mark 09:33–37 Luke 09:46–48
95 Man with dropsy miracle Luke 14:01–06
96 Counting the Cost parable Luke 14:25–33
97 The Lost Sheep parable Matthew 18:10–14 Luke 15:04–06
98 The Unforgiving Servant parable Matthew 18:23–35
99 The Little Children ministry Matthew 18:01–06 Mark 09:33–37 Luke 09:46–48
100 The Lost Coin parable Luke 15:08–09
101 Parable of the Prodigal Son parable Luke 15:11–32
102 The Unjust Steward parable Luke 16:01–13
103 Rich man and Lazarus parable Luke 16:19–31
104 The Master and Servant parable Luke 17:07–10
105 Cleansing ten lepers miracle Luke 17:11–19
106 The Unjust Judge parable Luke 18:01–08
107 Pharisee and the Tax Collector parable Luke 18:09–14
108 Divorce and celibacy ministry Matthew 19:1-15
109 Jesus and the rich young man ministry Matthew 19:16–30 Mark 10:17–31 Luke 18:18–30
110 Jesus and the woman taken in adultery ministry John 08:02–11
111 The Workers in the Vineyard parable Matthew 20:01–16
112 Jesus predicts his death ministry Matthew 20:17–19 Mark 10:32–34
Mark 08:31
Mark 09:31
Luke 18:31–34
113 The Blind at Birth miracle John 09:01–12
114 Son of man came to serve ministry Matthew 20:20–28 Mark 10:35–45
115 The Good Shepherd ministry John 10:01–21
116 Blind near Jericho miracle Matthew 20:29–34 Mark 10:46–52 Luke 18:35–43
117 Raising of Lazarus miracle John 11:01–44
118 Jesus and Zacchaeus ministry Luke 19:02–28
119 Palm Sunday ministry Matthew 21:01–11 Mark 11:01–11 Luke 19:29–44 John 12:12–19
120 Second Temple Cleansing ministry Matthew 21:12–13 Mark 11:15–18 Luke 19:45–48
121 Cursing the fig tree miracle Matthew 21:18–22 Mark 11:12–14
122 Authority of Jesus Questioned ministry Matthew 21:23–27 Mark 11:27–33 Luke 20:01–08
123 The Two Sons parable Matthew 21:28–32
124 The Wicked Husbandmen parable Matthew 21:33–41 Mark 12:01–09 Luke 20:09–16
125 The Great Banquet parable Matthew 22:01–14 Luke 14:16–24
126 Render unto Caesar… ministry Matthew 22:15–22 Mark 12:13–17 Luke 20:20–26
127 Woes of the Pharisees ministry Matthew 23:01–39 Mark 12:35–37 Luke 20:45–47
128 Widow’s mite sermon Mark 12:41–44 Luke 21:01-04
129 Second Coming Prophecy ministry Matthew 24:01–31 Mark 13:01–27 Luke 21:05–36
130 The Budding Fig Tree parable Matthew 24:32–35 Mark 13:28–31 Luke 21:29–33
131 The Faithful Servant parable Matthew 24:42–51 Mark 13:34–37 Luke 12:35–48
132 The Ten Virgins parable Matthew 25:01–13
133 The Talents or Minas parable Matthew 25:14–30 Luke 19:12–27
134 The Sheep and the Goats parable Matthew 25:31–46
135 Anointing of Jesus ministry Matthew 26:01–13 Mark 14:03-09 Luke 07:36–50 John 12:02-08
136 Bargain of Judas misc Matthew 26:14–16 Mark 14:10–11 Luke 22:01-06
137 The Grain of Wheat ministry John 12:24–26
138 Last Supper ministry Matthew 26:26–29 Mark 14:18–21 Luke 22:17–20 John 13:01–31
139 Promising a Paraclete ministry John 16:05–15
140 Gethsemane misc Matthew 26:36–46 Mark 14:32–42 Luke 22:39–46
141 The kiss of Judas passion Matthew 26:47–49 Mark 14:43–45 Luke 22:47–48 John 18:02-09
142 Healing the ear of a servant miracle Luke 22:49–51
143 Arrest of Jesus passion Matthew 26:50–56 Mark 14:46–49 Luke 22:52–54 John 18:10–12
144 Sanhedrin Trial of Jesus passion Matthew 26:57–68 Mark 14:53–65 Luke 22:63–71 John 18:12–24
145 Blood curse passion Matthew 27:24–25
146 Carrying the cross passion Matthew 27:27–33 Mark 15:20–22 Luke 23:26–32 John 19:16–17
147 Crucifixion of Jesus passion Matthew 27:34–61 Mark 15:23–47 Luke 23:33–54 John 19:18–38
148 Myrrhbearers res app Matthew 28:01 Mark 16:01 Luke 24:01
149 Empty tomb res app Matthew 28:02-08 Mark 16:02-08 Luke 24:02–12 John 20:01–13
150 Resurrection of Jesus res app Matthew 28:09–10 Mark 16:09-13 Luke 24:01-08 John 20:14–16
151 Noli me tangere res app John 20:17–17
152 Road to Emmaus appearance res app Luke 24:13–32
153 Resurrected Jesus appears to Apostles res app Luke 24:36–43 John 20:19–20
154 Great Commission res app Matthew 28:16–20 Mark 16:14-18 Luke 24:44–49 John 20:21–23
155 Doubting Thomas res app John 20:24–29
156 Catch of 153 fish miracle John 21:01–24
157 Ascension of Jesus res app Mark 16:19 Luke 24:50–53
158 Dispersion of the Apostles misc Matthew 28:19-20 Mark 16:19-20
The table is based on the list of key episodes in the Canonical Gospels. The episode structure within the table is based on Edward Robinson’s A Harmony of the Gospels in Greek((William Newcome (1834), Edward Robinson (ed.), A harmony of the Gospels in Greek, in the general order of Le Clere & Newcome, with Newcome’s notes: Printed from the text and with the various readings of Knapp, Gould and Newman)) as well as Steven L. Cox and Kendell H Easley’s Harmony of the Gospels.((Steven L. Cox; Kendell H. Easley (2006), “Analytical Outline of the Harmony”, HCSB Harmony of the Gospels, B&H Publishing, p. xviii, ISBN978-0805494440)). The chart was obtained from Wikipedia and is posted here for convenience.((https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel_harmony))