Introduction to the Study of The Holy Quran — Page 43
43 to the other Gospels, the admission of these disciples took place. The time also at which the admission took place according to John is not the time given by the other Gospels. The other Gospels put the time about two months later. (v) In John (4:3 and 43-45) we are given to understand that the native place of Jesus was Judaea, and that Jesus, believing that a Prophet is not honoured in his native place, left it for Galilee where he was much honoured. But, in contradiction to this, in Matthew (13:54-58), Luke (4:24) and Mark (6:4) we are told that the native place of Jesus was not Judaea but Galilee. Not honoured in Galilee, he said, no Prophet had been honoured in his own place. (vi) In John (3:22-26 and 4:1-3) we are told that even before John was put in prison, Jesus had started preaching his Message and baptizing people. But in Matthew (4:12-17) and Mark (1:14-15), we are told that Jesus started preaching after John’s imprisonment. (vii) According to Luke (3:23) Joseph, the husband of Mary, was the son of Heli; but according to Matthew (1:16) he was the son of Jacob. (viii) According to Luke (3:31) Jesus descended from David through Nathan but Matthew (1:6) traces the ancestry of Jesus through Nathan’s brother, Solomon the King. (ix) In the genealogy given by Matthew we have from Joseph to Abraham 41 persons, but in the genealogy given by Luke we have 56 persons. Besides this, the names also in the two genealogies do not correspond. (x) In Luke (24:50-51) we are told that Jesus was carried up into heaven at Bethany. But in The Acts (1:12) we read that the ascension took place on a mount called Olivet. (xi) Luke (24:21-29, 36 and 51) says that on the day on which Jesus rose from the dead, or the night following, he ascended to the sky. But in The Acts (1:3) we read that Jesus ascended to the sky 40 days after he rose from the dead. (xii) In Matthew (10:10) we read that Jesus told his disciples to provide "nor script for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes nor yet staves", but Mark (6:8- 9) says that Jesus told his disciples that they should take nothing for their journey save a staff only. Mark, however, admits that Jesus ordered the disciples to be shod with sandals. From this it appears that according to Matthew, Jesus forbade the wearing even of shoes and the carrying of staves but according to Mark the disciples had orders to carry staves and to wear shoes. Superstitions in the Gospels A study of the New Testament shows that it is not free from the element of superstition. (i) In Mark (1:12-13) we have: