So, is there a documentary interrelationship among the synoptic gospels?
Although a few scholars at various times have supported a largely oral solution (e.g., Westcott 1888; Reicke 1986; Linnemann 1992), a strong consensus among scholars has developed that there is indeed a documentary interrelationship between and among each of the synoptic gospels. There are five main, cumulative reasons for this conclusion: • Verbatim agreement. It is rare for two independent reporters of the same event to share more than a few words in common, but the synoptic gospels often feature a substantial number of agreements in their exact words. For example, in one passage about John the Baptist, Matthew and Luke agree for 61 out of 63 Greek words of a presumably Aramaic speech. Generally, the verbatim agreement between Matthew, Mark, and Luke runs about 50% of the words, but, by contrast, their agreement with John in parallel episodes falls to about 10%. • Extensive agreement in order, especially in which the arrangement of material is not strictly chronological but topical o
