Books of the Bible

The Book of Luke

New Testament · The Gospels · Genre: Gospel · Author: Attributed by early tradition to Luke, a physician and companion of Paul · Chapters: 24

Luke is a careful, orderly account of the life of Jesus, written to show that the good news is for everyone, especially the poor, the outsider, and the lost. Warm and full of grace, it treasures Jesus' compassion, his prayers, and his welcome of the least likely.

Start reading: Luke chapter 1

A key verse

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.Luke 19:10 (KJV)

The setting and background of Luke

Luke is the longest of the four Gospels and the first part of a two-volume work continued in the book of Acts. Early tradition ascribes it to Luke, a physician and companion of the apostle Paul, and it is written with unusual literary care, opening with a formal preface explaining that the author has investigated everything carefully to write an orderly account.

The Gospel is marked by its warmth and its emphasis on grace, giving the fullest account of Jesus' birth, showing him constantly at prayer and full of the Spirit, and lingering with special tenderness on the poor, the outsider, the woman, and the sinner. It alone preserves the parables of the good Samaritan and the prodigal son, and its theme is that the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.

Luke was written so that its reader might know the certainty of the gospel, and to show that the salvation Jesus brings is for all people of every nation and station. In the sweep of Scripture, together with Acts it forms the largest contribution to the New Testament by one author, tracing the good news from a manger in Bethlehem to the ends of the earth.

The story and structure of Luke

Luke, traditionally a physician and companion of the apostle Paul, opens his Gospel by explaining that he has carefully investigated everything from the beginning to write an orderly account, so that his reader might know the certainty of what he has been taught. It is the first of a two-part work, continued in the book of Acts.

Luke gives the fullest account of Jesus' birth, filled with songs of praise, the announcement to Mary, the visit to Elizabeth, the shepherds in the fields, and the aged Simeon and Anna in the temple. From the very start he shows a Saviour who comes for the lowly, lifting up the humble and filling the hungry with good things.

Luke's Gospel is especially tender toward those on the margins, the poor, the woman, the tax collector, the Samaritan, and the sinner. It alone preserves the parables of the good Samaritan and the prodigal son, unforgettable pictures of a neighbor's mercy and a father who runs to welcome his returning child, revealing the very heart of God.

More than any other Gospel, Luke shows Jesus at prayer, withdrawing to lonely places, praying before every major moment, and teaching his disciples to pray. The whole Gospel pulses with joy, with the Holy Spirit, and with the celebration that breaks out in heaven over even one sinner who repents.

Luke's theme is summed up in Jesus' own words about a tax collector he came to save, that the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost. The Gospel moves through Jesus' journey to Jerusalem, his death, and his resurrection, and ends with the risen Jesus opening the Scriptures and sending his followers to proclaim repentance and forgiveness to all nations.

The great themes of Luke

Key passages in Luke

Luke in the sweep of Scripture

Luke is the longest of the Gospels and, together with Acts, forms the largest single contribution to the New Testament by one author. Its careful, orderly style and its warm emphasis on grace, prayer, and the outsider have made it beloved across the centuries. Luke shows that the salvation Jesus brings is for all people, of every nation and every station, and its continuation in Acts traces how that good news spread from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth.

Where Christ is in Luke

Luke shows Jesus as the Saviour for all people, who came to seek and to save the lost, welcoming everyone the world overlooks into the joy of God. In him the promises to lift up the lowly and fill the hungry come true, and through his death and resurrection the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to all nations, so that no one is beyond the reach of his compassion.

How to read Luke well

Read Luke to encounter the compassion of Jesus, letting its parables of grace, the good Samaritan and the prodigal son, assure you that he came to seek and to save even you. Learn from Jesus at prayer, and let the joy that runs through the Gospel, the joy of heaven over one sinner who repents, become your own. Above all, hear its theme as a personal word: the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost, and that includes you.

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