Summary

Having completed a detailed analysis (Beginning with the question: Who Was Marcion?) of the most likely content of Marcion's Gospel of the Lord (Mcg), including a verse-by-verse discussion (Marcion’s Gospel, Compared Verse by Verse With Luke), it is necessary to summarize the overall picture this gives us, not only as to the content of Mcg, but also the likely content of the copies of Luke on which both Tertullian and Epiphanius depended for their comparisons. However, to put this whole analysis into context it is important to examine the differences between Mcg and Luke in detail. This website has so far examined these differences on a verse-by-verse basis, but the picture that emerges when taking an overall view still remains to be seen. Because Epiphanius summarizes the differences between Mcg and Luke 1:1 – 5:13 in a manner very different to the way he deals with the rest of Marcion's gospel, it is convenient to split this ‘overall’ view of Mcg at the same boundary:

Marcion's Gospel up to Luke 5:13: What do Tertullian and Epiphanius tell us about the early chapters of Mcg?

Following these verses both Tertullian and Epiphanius fall into a consistent 'pattern' in their comments on Marcion's gospel: Tertullian comments exclusively on the direct interactions between Jesus and other people, ignoring the details of any scene-setting (e.g. the details of Jesus' movements) and what else other people were doing around him. In contrast Epiphanius simply records in detail the exact differences that he saw between his texts of Mcg and Luke.

Epiphanius: Omissions After v. 5:13: The 25 places where Mcg did not contain text that Epiphanius saw in Luke.

Epiphanius: Differences After v. 5:13: The 12 places where Mcg contained text different to that seen in Luke by Epiphanius.

Tertullian: Omissions and Differences: The 7 other places where Mcg contained text different to that expected by Tertullian.

Other Differences: 17 places where Tertullian quotes text in Mcg that he does not note as a difference, but is different to what we see in Luke.

Tertullian vs. Epiphanius: How much of Luke was not present in Mcg? The differences between what Tertullian and Epiphanius report.

If you wish to skip the above discussions, go directly to the Conclusions

If you have any comments, questions, suggestions, etc. regarding Marcion or my analysis please email me at davidinglis2@comcast.net