Q, the Earliest Gospel: An Introduction to the Original Stories and Sayings of Jesus

The author of this book, Professor John S. Kloppenborg, was the co-editor of both "The Critical Edition of Q" and "The Sayings Gospel Q in Greek and English." He is therefore in a unique position not only to introduce this initial collection of sayings and stories of Jesus, but to explain both how this reconstruction was formulated, and its importance to an understanding of the philosophy and character of early Christianity. In the course of this discussion, Professor Kloppenborg is also of course concerned to demonstrate how both Matthew and Luke adapted Document Q to suit their own purposes. For example, the beatitudes which Matthew groups in what we term his "chapter five", using the well-known literary device we call "The Sermon on the Mount", were probably originally gathered in Document Q in various places. From Q, they can be rendered as follows: "Blessed are you poor, for God's reign is for you. Blessed are you who hunger, for you will eat your fill. Blessed are you who mourn, for you will be consoled. Blessed are you when they insult and persecute you, and say every kind of evil against you because of the Son of Man. Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. Many prophets and kings longed to see what you see, but never saw it, and to hear what you hear, but never heard it. [Blessed are the humble]. Everyone exalting himself will be humbled, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord." Notice that this list omits the verse promising "the humble and lowly" that they will "inherit the earth", which, in my opinion, can certainly be regarded as a gloss. All told, this introduction to Q is fascinating, informative and superbly researched. I have only two extremely minor reservations. I was surprised that, despite the lengthy discussions and comparisons with the Gospel of Thomas in the text, that Marvin Meyer's book was not listed in "Further Reading". And I was a little amazed the author asserts that the meaning of the very peculiar Greek word "epiousios" is not known. Jerome tells us that it means "super-substantial." My research indicates that the word was a slang term referring to the super-generous or overly generous daily ration of food that an overseer or foreman might receive. See my book,  More Bible Wisdom for Modern Times: Selections from the Early New Testament

I had wanted a book to really explain Q, but one that was written by an academic who thoroughly knew it. Kloppenborg is a Professor of Religion at the University of Toronto who has written extensively on the Gospel of Q, and in this book brings us up to date on what is currently known, as well as what is still unknown on the Gospel of Q. And in this book he does a masterful job of slowly breaking down what is known and what is theory when it comes to this key gospel, which is possibly the earliest document of Christianity and which was directly referenced by the writers of the Gospels of Matthew, Luke, Thomas, and the letters of James.This book is concise enough to keep moving along, but detailed enough to make you have to reread some lines to make sure you are fully comprehending what he is telling you. Kloppenborg gets into discussions about whether Q was in fact oral tradition that was handed down or was it a written document? He shows different sides of the arguments regarding the influences of Q on the Gospels, and why some of them were written differently even though they came from the same source document. He explains how Q talks about Jesus differently from the Gospel of Mark, and therefore sheds light on Jesus in important ways. Kloppenborg explains how early writers of the Gospels wrote their versions of the Gospel of Q slightly differently, creating interpretations based on their audiences, which was something used by scribes and translators at the that time to try to make their version more accessible to the audience it was being written for. This book is a great book for beginning to grasp what is known, and what is still unknown, as it relates to the Q Gospel. He also explains why it is referred to as a Gospel.

interesting

couldn't believe this book is available. I will use this reference and history work to get he knowledge of what it really is.

An excellent treatise on the Book of Q. Not only does this text cover the academic depth justifying Q's existence, but the first half of the text is accessible by the layperson. Unfortunately, as the text progresses, the second half of the work gets "heavy" and is sometimes a bit challenging without extensive knowledge in Greek and New Testament textual criticism. However, this is a great resource for those that wish to have a better understanding of the Synoptic Gospels and the justification for Q.

This is an incomplete exploration of the earliest days of the Jesus movement. The actual existence of such a document in implied but never confirmed with an actual text or fragment thereof. What becomes clear is that what we know of Christianity is largely Pauline and mostly Greek (the Nicean council saw to that). Yet there is a universal feel and the underlying question about what the initial movement really thought and did.We will never have a final answer but the questions are of utmost importance as Christianity moves into its second millennium.

Bought for a friend for her interest in this subject. No complaints. Just a look at a different angle searching for truths!

Very interesting and informative

Great book - opened my eyes and changed my thinking about Christianity.

Still digesting the information - great find - thank you!

Bought for my mom & she said it came in great condition. 👍

The number of pages is written 280. But it's actual number of pages is 170. Please correct in your description.

Ottima introduzione al problema dell'esistenza e della ricostruzione della Fonte dei Loghia; scritta da un'autorità in materia. Con ricostruzione del testo in appendice.