2, 3. What external and internal evidence points to the physician Luke as writer of this Gospel?

² Although Luke is nowhere named in the account, ancient authorities are agreed that he was the writer. The Gospel is attributed to Luke in the Muratorian Fragment (c. 170 C.E.) and was accepted by such second-century writers as Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria. Internal evidence also points strongly to Luke.

So the Gospel account was probably written by Luke in Caesarea about 56-58 C.E., after he returned with Paul from Philippi at the end of Paul’s third missionary journey and while Paul was waiting two years in prison at Caesarea before being taken to Rome for his appeal. Since Luke was there in Palestine, during this time he was well situated to ‘trace all things from the start with accuracy’ concerning the life and ministry of Jesus.

5. From what sources may Luke have ‘traced with accuracy’ the events of Jesus’ life?

⁵ Luke was not, of course, an eyewitness of all the events he records in his Gospel, not being one of the 12 and probably not even a believer until after Jesus’ death. However, he was very closely associated with Paul in the missionary field. (2 Tim. 4:11; Philem. 24) So, as might be expected, his writing shows evidence of Paul’s influence, as can be seen by comparing their two accounts of the Lord’s Evening Meal, at Luke 22:19, 20 and; 1 Corinthians 11:23-25. As a further source of material, Luke could have referred to Matthew’s Gospel. In ‘tracing all things with accuracy,’ he would be able personally to interview many eyewitnesses of the events of Jesus’ life, such as the surviving disciples and possibly Jesus’ mother, Mary. We can be sure that he left no stone unturned in assembling the reliable details.

9. What prophecy of Jesus, recorded by Luke, had a remarkable fulfillment in 70 C.E.?

⁹ Luke also points out how the prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures were accurately fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He quotes Jesus’ inspired testimony on this. (24:27, 44) Further, he accurately records Jesus’ own prophecies concerning future events, and many of these have already had remarkable fulfillments in all their foretold detail. For example, Jerusalem was surrounded by siegeworks of pointed stakes and perished in a frightful holocaust in 70 C.E., just as Jesus foretold. (Luke 19:43, 44; 21:20-24; Matt. 24:2) The secular historian Flavius Josephus, who was an eyewitness with the Roman army, testifies that the countryside was denuded of trees to a distance of about ten miles [16 km] to provide stakes, that the siege wall was four and a half miles [7.2 km] long, that many women and children died from famine, and that more than 1,000,000 Jews lost their lives and 97,000 were taken captive. To this day, the Arch of Titus in Rome portrays the Roman victory procession with spoils of war from Jerusalem’s temple.e We can be sure that other inspired prophecies recorded by Luke will be just as accurately fulfilled.