LIEUT. -COL. G. MACKINLAY, ON SOME LUCAN PEOBLEMS. 193 



Omission at the beginning of the Ministry is a feature common 

 to all the Synoptic Gospels. 



The second, or Luke (B), narrative is indicated by the middle 

 horizontal band in the diagram. It begins immediately after the 

 end of Luke (A), at Luke xi, 1, as indicated by the dotted 

 arrows which follow a serpentine course. It goes back 

 to the same time as the beginning of Luke (A), to the 

 Sermon on the Mount in the early summer of a.d. 27. 

 It also leads on in regular, through interrupted, sequence from 

 its beginning until its close with the Parable of the great 

 Supper, ending at Luke xiv, 24 — some little time nearer to the 

 Crucifixion than the ending of Luke (A) narrative. An open 

 space is observable in this band also, indicating a greater 

 Omission between the verses 21 and 22 in Luke xiii of all that 

 is contained in Mark iv, 33, to ix, 50,* during the twelve months 

 winter a.d. 27-8 to winter a.d. 28-9. 



There are thus three considerable Omissionsf in the Lucan 

 account of the Ministry ; but no hint whatever is given in the 

 text of their employment. It is only by induction and 

 comparison with the other gospels that we know that Omissions 

 have been made. The first of these is also made by both 

 Matthew and Mark,J but they both indicate that some period of 

 time had elapsed because they refer to the imprisonment of 

 John the Baptist. But Luke makes no such reference — an 

 instance of the hidden method which he not unfrequently employs. 



The third, or Luke (C), narrative is indicated by the lowest 

 and shortest of the three horizontal bands in the diagram. It 

 begins immediately after the end of Luke (B), at Luke xiv, 25, 

 as indicated by the dotted arrows which follow a serpentine 

 course. It only goes back to about the time of the Transfigura- 

 tion (autumn A.D. 28). It leads on in regular uninterrupted 

 chronological sequence to the end of the Gospel. It will be 

 noticed that the right hand part of this band is narrowed ; this 

 indicates the resumption of the single narrative. Luke (C) 

 concludes at the end of Luke xx, at a time nearly coinciding 

 with the ending of Luke (B). The single narrative then 

 continues from the beginning of Luke xxi, audit leads on to the 



* See also Matt, xiii, 34, to xviii, 35, and John vi, 1, to x, 39. 

 t Between verses 13 and 14 of Luke iv. 



17 5, 18 IX. 

 . 21 „ 22 „ xui. 

 X „ „ 11 „ 12 of Matt. iv. 



„ „ 13 „ 14 of Mark i. 



O 



