Navigation

Who is John McRay? Luke's Accuracy as a Historian The Reliability of John & Mark The Three Puzzles Riddle of the Dead Sea Scrolls Conclusion

Luke's Accuracy as a Historian

Luke was a physician and a historian, and he wrote the books Luke and Acts. The question was whether or not his writings could be trusted. Many claim he was very accurate, but the accuracy also caused some dilemmas. The dilemmas, however, were resolved through scientific evidence proving that Luke’s facts were truth.

Number One:
FACT: Lysanias was referred to as the tetrarch of Abilene in 27 A.D.
PROBLEM: Lysanias was not a tetrarch; he was the ruler of Chalcis half a century before.
RESOLUTION: An inscription found from 14 A.D. to 37 A.D. names Lysanias as the tetrarch in Abila.

Number Two:
FACT: Reference to “politarchs” in the city of Thessalonica found.
PROBLEM: There is no evidence of the term “politarch”.
RESOLUTION: An inscription on a first-century arch states, “In the time of the politarchs…”.

Number Three:
FACT: Luke states Jesus walking into Jericho.
PROBLEM: Mark states Jesus walking out of Jericho.
RESOLUTION: Jericho had different locations because the city was destroyed and rebuilt

Luke’s historical reports were very accurate and detailed.