Gospel

A term commonly used for the first four books of the Christian Greek Scriptures. These books provide a historical account of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.

The word “gospel” is derived from the old English godspel, which means “good news; good tidings.” In some Bible translations, “gospel” is used to render the Greek word eu·ag·geʹli·on, meaning “good news.” (Mt 4:23; 24:14; Mr 1:14) As used in the Bible, the gospel, or good news, refers to the message about the Kingdom of God and of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.

Mark’s account begins with the words: “The beginning of the good news about [or, “the gospel of”] Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Some scholars believe that this may have been the reason why the term “gospel” came to be used to describe all four accounts.

Although none of the Gospel writers identified themselves as such, there is substantial evidence that these books were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John respectively. The first three of these books are sometimes called synoptic (meaning “like view”) because they have a relatively similar approach to documenting what Jesus said and did. However, God allowed each of the four men to write in a way that reflected his individual personality.