Four-Color Synopsis
Four-Color Synopsis Each synoptic gospel is divided by pericope into separate sections according to divisions of Huck's and Throckmorton's synopses. Each section has the Greek text in three parallel columns in canonical order, and in order to faciliate the presentation of relevant parallel the Huck sections are broken down if the parallel synoptic text is out of sequence within a section. The Greek text of each column is color coded according to the following assignments:
| Synoptic Gospel | Matthew | Mark | Luke |
|---|---|---|---|
| Color | Blue | Red | Green |
| English Example (NRSV) |
9:17 Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved. |
2:22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins. |
5:37 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. 38 But new wine must be put into new wineskins. |
In each column, the color black denotes that its text is literally shared by the other two Evangelists. The presence of a color belonging to another gospel means that the text is shared by only that gospel. Text in the same color pertaining to that gospel indicates unique material to that gospel. For example, red text in Matthew's column indicates textual agreement with Mark only; green text with Luke only; and blue text means uniquely Matthew wording. Similarly, blue text in Mark's column means that material shared only with Matthew. The minor agreements of Matthew and Luke against Mark can easily be found by looking for green text in Matthew's column (on the far left) or blue text in Luke's column.
In addition to exact matches, the color coding will also indicate partial matches if the Evangelists use a different inflected form of a word by having the stem and the ending colored appropriately.
| Pericopes | Matthew | Mark | Luke |
|---|---|---|---|
| §§ 1-17 Beginning of the Ministry | 3: 1- 4:25 | 1: 1- 1:39 | 3: 1- 5:11 |
| §§ 18-44 Sermon on the Mount | 5: 1- 7:29 | ||
| §§ 45-57 Early Galilean Ministry | 8: 1- 9:34 | 1:40- 2:22 | 5:12- 5:39 |
| §§ 58-68 Missionary Instructions | 9:35-11:30 | ||
| §§ 69-89 Galilean Ministry | 12: 1-12:50 | 2:23- 3:35 | 6: 1- 8: 3 |
| §§ 90-104 Parables of the Kingdom | 13: 1-13:52 | 4: 1- 4:34 | 8: 4- 8:21 |
| §§ 105-120 Two Feeding Cycles | 13:53-16:12 | 4:35- 4:21 | 8:22- 9:17 |
| §§ 121-136 Two Passion Prediction Cycles | 16:13-18:35 | 4:35- 9:50 | 9:18- 9:50 |
| §§ 137-186 The Travel Narrative | 9:51-18:14 | ||
| §§ 187-195 Third Passion Prediction Cycle | 19: 1-20:34 | 10: 1-10:52 | 18:15-19:27 |
| §§ 196-212 Days in Jerusalem | 21: 1-23:39 | 11: 1-12:44 | 19:28-21: 4 |
| §§ 213-230 The Synoptic Apocalypse | 24: 1-25:46 | 13: 1-13:37 | 21: 5-21:38 |
| §§ 231-253 The Passion Narrative | 26: 1-28:10 | 14: 1-16: 8 | 22: 1-24:12 |
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