Gospel of the day. Book "gospel" - download for free, read online Gospel of the day

The sacred book of the Christian religion, a record of God's revelations to man received over many millennia. This is a book of divine instructions. It gives us peace in grief, solutions to life's problems, conviction of sin, and the spiritual maturity needed to overcome our worries.

The Bible cannot be called one book. It is a whole collection of books, a library, written under the guidance of God by people who lived in different centuries. The Bible contains history, philosophy, and science. It also includes poetry and drama, biographical information and prophecy. Reading the Bible Gives Us Inspiration It's no surprise that the Bible, in whole or in part, has been translated into more than 1,200 languages. Every year, more copies of the Bible are sold worldwide than any other book.

The Bible truthfully answers questions that have troubled people from time immemorial: “How did man appear?”; "What happens to people after death?"; "Why are we here on earth?"; "Can we know the meaning and meaning of life?" Only the Bible reveals the truth about God, shows the way to eternal life, and explains the eternal problems of sin and suffering.

The Bible is divided into two parts: the Old Testament, which tells about God's participation in the life of the Jewish people before the coming of Jesus Christ, and the New Testament, which gives information about the life and teachings of Christ in all His truth and beauty.

(Greek - “good news”) - the biography of Jesus Christ; books revered as sacred in Christianity that tell of the divine nature of Jesus Christ, his birth, life, miracles, death, resurrection and ascension.

The translation of the Bible into Russian was begun by the Russian Bible Society by the Highest order of the Sovereign Emperor Alexander I in 1816, resumed by the Highest permission of the Sovereign Emperor Alexander II in 1858, completed and published with the blessing of the Holy Synod in 1876. This edition contains the text Synodal translation of 1876, re-verified with the Hebrew text of the Old Testament and the Greek text of the New Testament.

The commentary on the Old and New Testaments and the appendix "The Holy Land in the Time of Our Lord Jesus Christ" are reprinted from the Bible published by the Brussels publishing house "Life with God" (1989).

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1 The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
2 As it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send My angel before You, who will prepare Your way before You.
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins....

1 Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of David, Son of Abraham.
2 Abraham begat Isaac; Isaac gave birth to Jacob; Jacob begat Judah and his brothers;
3 Judah begat Perez and Zehra by Tamar; Perez begat Hezrom; Hezrom begat Aram;
4 Aram begot Abinadab; Amminadab begat Nahshon; Nahshon begat Salmon;...

1. As many have already begun to compose narratives about events that are completely known among us,
2. as those who from the very beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word conveyed to us,
3. then I decided, after a thorough examination of everything from the beginning, to describe to you in order, venerable Theophilus,
4. so that you may know the solid foundation of the doctrine in which you have been instructed....

Evangelist Luke

Introduction to the Books of the New Testament

The Scriptures of the New Testament were written in Greek, with the exception of the Gospel of Matthew, which, according to tradition, was written in Hebrew or Aramaic. But since this Hebrew text has not survived, the Greek text is considered the original for the Gospel of Matthew. Thus, only the Greek text of the New Testament is the original, and numerous editions in various modern languages ​​around the world are translations from the Greek original. The Greek language in which the New Testament was written was no longer the classical ancient Greek language and was not, as previously thought, special New Testament language. It is a spoken, everyday language of the 1st century. according to R. X., spread throughout the world and known in science under the name “common dialect,” yet both the style and turns of speech, and the way of thinking of the sacred writers of the New Testament reveal Hebrew or Aramaic influence.

The original text of the New Testament has reached us in a large number of ancient manuscripts, more or less complete, numbering about 5000 (from the 2nd to the 16th centuries). Until recent years, the most ancient of them did not go back further than the 4th century. according to R. X. But recently many fragments of ancient manuscripts of the New Testament on papyrus (III and even II centuries) have been discovered. For example, Bodmer's manuscripts: John, Luke, 1 and 2 Pet, Jude - were found and published in the early years of the 20th century. In addition to Greek manuscripts, we have ancient translations or versions in Latin, Syriac, Coptic and other languages ​​(Vetus Itala, Peshitto, Vulgata, etc.), of which the most ancient existed already from the 2nd century to A.D.

Finally, numerous quotes from the Church Fathers have been preserved in Greek and other languages ​​in such quantities that if the text of the New Testament were lost and all the ancient manuscripts were destroyed, then experts could restore this text from quotes from the works of the Holy Fathers. All this abundant material makes it possible to check and clarify the text of the New Testament and classify its various forms (so-called textual criticism). Compared with any ancient author (Homer, Euripides, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Cornelius Nepos, Julius Caesar, Horace, Virgil, etc.), our modern - printed - Greek text of the New Testament is in an exceptionally favorable position. Both in terms of the number of manuscripts and the short period of time. separating the oldest of them from the original, and in the number of translations, and in their antiquity, and in the seriousness and volume of critical work carried out on the text, it surpasses all other texts (for details, see: “Hidden Treasures and New Life,” archaeological discoveries and the Gospel , Bruges, 1959, p. 34 ff.).

The text of the New Testament as a whole is recorded completely irrefutably.

The New Testament consists of 27 books. The publishers have divided them into 260 chapters of unequal length for ease of reference and citation. This division is not present in the original text. The modern division into chapters in the New Testament, as in the whole Bible, has often been attributed to the Dominican Cardinal Hugo (1263), who worked it out while composing a symphony to the Latin Vulgate, but it is now thought with greater reason that the division goes back to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton, who died in 1228. As for the division into verses, now accepted in all editions of the New Testament, it goes back to the publisher of the Greek New Testament text, Robert Stephen, and was introduced by him into his edition in 1551.

The sacred books of the New Testament are usually divided into legal (Four Gospels), historical (Acts of the Apostles), teaching (seven conciliar epistles and fourteen epistles of the Apostle Paul) and prophetic: Apocalypse, or Revelation of St. John the Theologian (see Long Catechism of Metropolitan Philateer)

However, modern experts consider this distribution to be outdated: in fact, all the books of the New Testament are both legal and historical teaching, and prophecy is not only in the Apocalypse. New Testament scholarship pays great attention to the precise establishment of the chronology of the Gospels and other New Testament events. Scientific chronology allows the reader to trace with sufficient accuracy through the New Testament the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, the apostles and the primitive Church (see Appendices).

The books of the New Testament can be distributed as follows.

• Three so-called synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and separately, the fourth is the Gospel of John. New Testament scholarship devotes much attention to the study of the relationships of the first three Gospels and their relation to the Gospel of John (synoptic problem).
• The Book of the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of the Apostle Paul ("Corpus Paulinum"), which are usually divided into:
  - Early Epistles: 1 and 2 Thessalonians;
  - Greater Epistles: Galatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Romans;
  - Messages from bonds, that is, written from Rome, where St. Paul was in prison: to the Philippians, to the Colossians, to the Ephesians, to Philimoi;
  - Pastoral Epistles: 1 to Timothy, to Titus, 2 to Timothy;
  - Epistle to the Hebrews;
• Council Epistles ("Corpus Catholicum")
• Revelation of John the Theologian. (Sometimes in the New Testament they distinguish “Corpus Joannicum”, i.e. everything that Apostle John wrote for the comparative study of his Gospel in connection with his epistles and Rev.)

Four Gospels

1. The word "gospel" in Greek means "good news." This is what our Lord Jesus Christ Himself called his teaching (Matthew 24:14; 26:13; Mark 1:15; 13:10; 19:; 16:15). Therefore, for us, the “gospel” is inextricably linked with Him: it is the “good news” of the salvation given to the world through the incarnate Son of God. Christ and His apostles preached the gospel without writing it down. By the mid-1st century, this preaching was established by the Church in a strong oral tradition. The Eastern custom of memorizing sayings, stories, and even large texts helped Christians of the apostolic era accurately preserve the unrecorded First Gospel. After the 50s, when eyewitnesses of Christ's earthly ministry began to pass away one after another, the need arose to write down the gospel (Luke 1:1). Thus, the “gospel” came to mean the narrative of the Savior’s teaching recorded by the apostles. It was read at prayer meetings and in preparing people for baptism.
2. The most important Christian centers of the 1st century. (Jerusalem, Antioch, Rome, Ephesus, etc.) had their own Gospels. Of these, only four (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) are recognized by the Church as inspired, that is, written under the direct influence of the Holy Spirit. They are called “from Matthew”, “from Mark”, etc. (the Greek kata corresponds to the Russian “according to Matthew”, “according to Mark”, etc.), for the life and teachings of Christ are set out in these books by these four sacred writers. Their gospels were not compiled into one book, which made it possible to see the gospel story from different points of view. In the II century. St. Irenaeus of Lyons calls the evangelists by name and points to their gospels as the only canonical ones (Against heresies, 2, 28, 2). Contemporary of St. Irenaeus Tatian made the first attempt to create a single gospel narrative, composed of various texts from the four gospels, the Diatessaron, i.e., the “gospel of the four.”
3. The apostles did not set out to create a historical work in the modern sense of the word. They sought to spread the teachings of Jesus Christ, helped people to believe in Him, to correctly understand and fulfill His commandments. The testimonies of the evangelists do not coincide in all details, which proves their independence from each other: the testimonies of eyewitnesses always have an individual coloring. The Holy Spirit does not certify the accuracy of the details of the facts described in the gospel, but the spiritual meaning contained in them.
   The minor contradictions found in the presentation of the evangelists are explained by the fact that God gave the sacred writers complete freedom in conveying certain specific facts in relation to different categories of listeners, which further emphasizes the unity of meaning and orientation of all four gospels.

Books of the New Testament

• Gospel of Matthew
• Gospel of Mark
• Gospel of Luke
• Gospel of John

Acts of the Holy Apostles

Council Epistles

• Epistle of James
• First Epistle of Peter
• Second Epistle of Peter
• First Epistle of John
• Second Epistle of John
• Third Epistle of John
• Epistle of Jude

Epistles of the Apostle Paul

• Epistle to the Romans
• First Epistle to the Corinthians
• Second Epistle to the Corinthians
• Epistle to the Galatians
• Epistle to the Ephesians
• Epistle to the Philippians
• Epistle to the Colossians
• First Epistle to the Thessalonians
• Second Epistle to the Thessalonians
• First Epistle to Timothy
• Second Epistle to Timothy
• Epistle to Titus
• Epistle to Philemon
• Hebrews

Revelation of John the Evangelist

Bible. Gospel. New Testament. Download the Bible. Download the Gospel of: Luke, Mark, Matthew, John. Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse). Act of the Apostles. Epistle of the Apostles. Download in format: fb2, doc, docx, pdf, lit, isilo.pdb, rb

How to Study the Bible

These tips will help you make your Bible study more fruitful.

1. Read the Bible daily, in a quiet and peaceful place where no one will disturb you. Daily reading, even if you do not read that much each day, is more beneficial than any occasional reading. You can start with 15 minutes a day and then gradually increase the time allotted for Bible reading
2. Set a goal for yourself to know God better and to achieve a deep love for God in your communication with Him. God speaks to us through His Word, and we speak to Him in prayers.
3. Start reading the Bible with prayer. Ask God to reveal Himself and His will to you. Confess to Him the sins that may hinder your approach to God.
4. Take short notes as you read the Bible Write your notes in a notebook or keep a spiritual journal to record your thoughts and inner experiences
5. Read slowly one chapter, or maybe two or three chapters. You can read just one paragraph, but be sure to reread at least once everything you read before in one sitting.
6. As a rule, it is very useful to give written answers to the following questions when understanding the true meaning of a particular chapter or paragraph: a What is the main idea of ​​the text you read? What is its meaning?
7. Which verse of the text expresses the main idea? (Such “key verses” should be memorized by reading them aloud several times. Knowing the verses by heart will allow you to reflect on important spiritual truths throughout the day, when, for example, you are standing in line or riding on public transport, etc. Is there in the text you read is there a promise that I can claim to fulfill? d How will I benefit from accepting the truth in the text? How should I use this truth in my own life, according to God's will? Avoid general and vague statements Try to be clear and specific as possible In your notebook, write how and when you will use the teaching of a particular paragraph or chapter in your life)
8. End your classes with prayer Ask God to give you inner spiritual strength to draw closer to Him on this day Continue to talk to God throughout the day His presence will help you be strong in any situation

Friday of the 2nd week of Pentecost

(Rom.5:17-6:2; Matt.9:14-17)

Gospel of the Holy Apostle Matthew, chapter 9, verses 14-17:

14 Then John’s disciples come to Him and say: Why do we and the Pharisees fast a lot, but Your disciples do not fast?
15 And Jesus said to them, “Can the sons of the bridal chamber mourn while the bridegroom is with them?” But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.
16 And no one puts patches of unbleached cloth on old clothing, for what is sewn again will tear away from the old, and the hole will be even worse.
17 Neither do they put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins break, and the wine flows out, and the skins are lost, but new wine is poured into new wineskins, and both are preserved.

Romans Chapter 5 verse 17 - Chapter 6, verse 2 :

17 For if through the crime of the one death reigned through the one, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.
18 Therefore, just as by one crime there is condemnation for all men, so by one righteousness there is justification for life for all men.
19 For just as through one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so through one man’s obedience many will be made righteous.
20 The law came after, and thus the crime increased. And when sin increased, grace began to abound,
21 that as sin reigned unto death, so grace might reign through righteousness unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 What shall we say? Should we remain in sin so that grace may increase? No way.
2 We died to sin: how can we live in it?

Theophylact of Bulgaria. Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew

(Mf. 9:14-17) Matthew 9:14. Then John’s disciples come to Him and say: Why do we and the Pharisees fast a lot, but Your disciples do not fast?

John's disciples, jealous of Christ's glory, reproached Him for not fasting. Perhaps they wondered how, without heroism, He conquered the passions, which John could not. For they did not know that John was only a man and became righteous because of virtue, but Christ, as God, is himself virtue.

Matthew 9:15. And Jesus said to them, Can the sons of the bridal chamber mourn while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

This time, says the Lord, when I am with My disciples, is a time of joy. By “groom” He means Himself, as betrothing to Himself a new host of people, since the ancient one died, and by “sons of the bridal chamber” - the apostles. There will be a time, he says, when they too, after I suffer and ascend, will fast, enduring hunger and thirst and being persecuted. Showing the imperfection of the disciples, He adds:

Matthew 9:16. And no one puts patches of unbleached cloth on old clothes; for what is sewn again will be pulled away from the old, and the hole will be even worse.
Matthew 9:17. Neither do they pour new wine into old wineskins, otherwise the skins will burst, the wine will flow out, and the skins will be lost. But new wine is poured into new wineskins, and both are preserved.

The disciples, he says, have not yet become strong, but they need indulgence, and the burden of the commandments should not be placed on them. But He said this while teaching the disciples, so that when they teach the world, they too would be lenient. So, fasting is a new patch and new wine, and old clothes and furs are the weakness of the disciples.

Saint Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year

They asked the Lord: why don’t His disciples fast? He answered: because the time has not yet come for them. Then, in a parable speech, he showed that, in general, the severity of external asceticism should correspond to the renewal of the internal forces of the spirit. First, kindle the spirit of jealousy, and then impose severity on yourself, for in this case there is a new inner strength in you that can withstand them with benefit. If, without this zeal, you take up rigor, being carried away either only by the example of others, or by the show of asceticism, then it will not be beneficial. You will hold on to this strictness for a little longer, and then you will weaken and give up. And it will be even worse for you than it was before. Severity without inner spirit is the same as a patch of raw linen on old clothes, or new wine in old wineskins. The patch will fall off, and the hole will become even larger, and the wine will break through the skin, and will disappear on its own, making the skin worthless. This, however, does not mean that strictness is not suitable, but only that it is instilled that it is necessary to start them in order. It is necessary to make sure that their needs come from within, so that they satisfy the heart, and do not only oppress from the outside, like oppression.

MODERN COMMENTS
(Matthew 9:14-17)

Archpriest Alexander Shargunov

“Whoever confesses Me before men, him will I also confess before My Father who is in heaven.”- says Christ. No matter what happens to us, we are always talking about the most essential thing, about our soul. It's about our confession of faith! About confessing faith before people. And that means it is not such a deeply hidden faith from everyone that no one can notice. It is not enough to call ourselves believers when it is completely safe and does not oblige us to anything, and does not change anything in our lives. We are talking about confessing Christ before the court, before those who oppose the faith and try to force us to agree with them, before those who laugh at our faith, who threaten us with punishment or sending us to a “psychiatric hospital,” as was sometimes the case relatively recently in our country. Do we confess Christ before people? Are we living by our faith? At what cost is this given to us? What do we sacrifice for this? Do we really serve Christ God? Or just to ourselves?

“And whoever denies Me before men,- Christ adds, “I also will renounce this before My Heavenly Father.” Again and again we are given to understand that we ourselves are now preparing our final Judgment. The Lord does not separate Himself from anyone except those who separate themselves from Him. He does not deny anyone except those who first began to deny Him. When we talk about the renunciation of Christ, we think about the renunciation of the Apostle Peter, whom the Lord so miraculously forgave after his triple confession of faith and love upon questioning: “Do you love me?” This means that no renunciation can be irreparably disastrous or irrevocable. There is no sin, no matter how grave, that is unforgivable. Subject to repentance and confession of Christ, firm faith that God saves and forgives.

All that is most precious and genuine in the gift of human freedom lies in this ability to say: “I believe” - to the point of shedding blood, if necessary. This is something we must never forget. Until blood is shed! This does not necessarily mean martyrdom. But this often requires from us heroic fidelity to the Lord in the performance of our daily duties, it requires courage in the face of the trials that come to us.

“Do not think that I came to bring peace to earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Our faith is the most demanding and most uncompromising thing on earth. Where there is a compromise with lies, there cannot be peace with God, peace with conscience and with other people. Christ gave His disciples the sword of the word so that they could defeat with it every teaching that rebels against the truth and threatens the eternal salvation of many. God declares war, and who can stand! In this war, the world is always divided into those who accept Christ and those who reject Him. And in this war, a person’s enemies may turn out to be his family.

It may happen that love for a wife or children, for loved ones, will force one to refuse dangerous service, from sacrifice - because there is not enough courage to leave relatives or expose them to danger. It happens that someone does not dare to devote his life entirely to God due to personal attachment to one person. I am reminded of the Gospel parable about those invited to a banquet who always find a reason to say: "Have me renounced." In all circumstances, if we do not want to lose both heavenly and earthly, all the most precious things we have on earth must give way to fidelity to God.

Today's gospel message concludes with a verse taken from the following chapter: “And when Jesus had finished teaching his twelve disciples, he went away from there to teach and preach in their cities.” By performing many miracles, the Lord shows that teaching and preaching must always accompany them and go ahead of them. Healing the sick is the salvation of the body, preaching the truth is the salvation of the soul. The Lord preaches in their cities - in the most populated places. He casts his net where there are most fish.

SERMON OF THE DAY

About wine and furs

Archpriest Vyacheslav Reznikov

One day the disciples of John the Baptist approached the Lord Jesus Christ and asked: “Why do we and the Pharisees fast a lot, but Your disciples do not fast? And Jesus said to them, Can the sons of the bridal chamber mourn while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”

The Lord, of course, would not have answered this way if fasting had been one of the direct provisions of the Mosaic Law, for He observed all this carefully. Fasting is a natural expression of sadness. Direct feeling is like wine, and fasting is like the wineskin necessary to preserve this wine. So David fasted, wanting to save his sick child, and the Ninevites fasted, wanting to return God’s mercy. John the Baptist carried out his ministry in strict fasting. And the Pharisees, who claimed special piety, established regular fasts. Let us remember how the Pharisee in the parable was proud that he fasted twice a week (Luke 18:12). In general, each wineskin contained its own wine. And John’s disciples approached Jesus with their wineskins, suggesting that there was nothing better than this wine, and could not be.

But the Lord spoke about new, new wine, which already exists, and which cannot be poured into old wineskins, because “Otherwise the skins will burst, and the wine will flow out, and the skins will be lost; but new wine is poured into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

The Lord also reminded us that, in addition to wine, there is also a groom, on whom everything at the feast depends. This bridegroom, and this new wine, is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Because only by the truth of His alone - “to all men there is justification for life”; Only by His obedience will “many be made righteous,” and only those who receive from Him the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will “walk in newness of life.” And there can be no sorrow when He comes. But for a while He will leave us, and then the time of sorrow will come again, the time of yearning for Him, who has already betrothed us to Himself.

And all our posts are around our Heavenly Bridegroom. The fast before Christmas is a fast in anticipation of His coming to earth. Great Lent is a fast of our compassion for His suffering for our sins. And when He is given and returned to us in Christmas and Resurrection, there is no fasting. The fast of the holy Apostles is the fast of a soul desiring to serve Him worthily. And the Dormition Fast is the yearning of the soul, wanting to quickly and forever unite with Him. In addition, we fast every Wednesday because on this day the Lord was betrayed and sold to His enemies. We also fast every Friday, because on this day He was crucified and taken away from us. Every resurrection is an experience of great joy when He was returned to us.

Thus, in our fasts and holidays, like in new wineskins, the new wine of joy in God Our Savior is stored. And we are preparing for the final and great meeting, so that together with Him "drinking new wine in the Kingdom of God"(Mark 14:25).

Church calendar. June 28

We read the Gospel together with the Church. June 28

We read the Apostle. June 28

Cartoon calendar. June 28. Saint Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus'

Prophet Amos

This day in history. June 28

The word Gospel in modern language has two meanings: the Christian gospel about the advent of the Kingdom of God and the salvation of the human race from sin and death, and a book presenting this message in the form of a narrative about the incarnation, earthly life, saving suffering, death on the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Initially, in the Greek language of the classical period, the word gospel had the meaning of “reward (reward) for the good news”, “thanksgiving sacrifice for the good news”. Later, the good news itself began to be called that. Later, the word gospel acquired a religious meaning. In the New Testament it began to be used in a specific sense. In several places, the gospel refers to the preaching of Jesus Christ himself (Matt. 4:23; Mark 1:14-15), but most often the gospel is the Christian proclamation, the message of salvation in Christ and the preaching of this message. prot. Kirill Kopeikin Gospel - books of the New Testament, which contain a description of the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is four books named after the authors - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Among the 27 books of the New Testament, the Gospels are considered law-giving. This name shows that the Gospels have the same meaning for Christians as the Law of Moses - the Pentateuch - had for Jews. “GOSPEL (Mark 1:1, etc.) is a Greek word meaning: gospel, i.e. good, joyful news... These books are called the Gospel because for a person there cannot be better and more joyful news than the news of the Divine Savior and eternal salvation. That’s why reading the Gospel in church is each time accompanied by a joyful exclamation: Glory to Thee, Lord, glory to Thee!” Biblical Encyclopedia of Archimandrite Nikephoros

On our website you can download the book "The Gospel in Russian" for free and without registration in fb2, rtf, epub, pdf, txt format, read the book online or buy the book in the online store.

This book is a poetic reading of the holy gospels - the Gospels. These are stories about the life, work, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They devote significant space to explaining the purpose of His appearance on earth, and not simply setting out the historical facts of the life of Jesus Christ. This is especially different from the fourth book, the Gospel of John. The first three Gospels are similar in content, however, each of their authors pursued their own goal - they wrote for their own circle of readers. These first three Gospels, from the Evangelists Matthew, Mark and Luke, are usually called synoptic. *
Since this book is addressed, first of all, to people who are not very deeply familiar with the Bible and, moreover, to millions of people who have never read it at all, I consider it necessary to present here some information about the authors of the Gospels and the time of creation of these books. So:

Gospel of Matthew

The time of creation cannot be reliably determined. Many researchers believe that the Gospel of Matthew was created first. Some consider him second only to Mark. There is no doubt that it was written before the Gospels of Luke and John. The most likely time range of creation is 41–55 years.
The Apostle Matthew preached among a people who had very definite religious ideas about the Messiah. His Gospel is clear proof that Jesus Christ is the true Messiah, prophesied by the prophets, and there will be no other.

Gospel of Mark

The time of creation cannot be reliably determined. Many researchers believe that the Gospel of Mark was created first. Some, following Augustine, consider him second after Matthew. Most researchers agree that it was written before the Gospels of Luke and John. The most likely time of creation is the 50s - 60s of the first century. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, the Gospel was written in the year 43.
The Gospel of Mark has been the subject of an extensive exegetical and critical literature. Most modern scholars believe that the Gospel of Mark was written first. According to the hypothesis, the Gospel of Mark served as the basis for writing the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.

Gospel of Luke

The time of creation cannot be reliably determined. Most researchers believe that it was created later than the Gospels of Matthew and Mark and certainly earlier than the Gospel of John. Perhaps the first phrase of the book - “As many have already begun to compose narratives about events that are completely known among us” - hints at the already created Gospels of Mark and Matthew. Tradition places the creation of the book in the 60s of the 1st century, but many modern researchers believe the more likely range is 70-80. The version about the creation of the book in the 2nd century currently has few supporters. In any case, the question of the time of creation of the Gospel of Luke must be resolved in conjunction with the question of the time of creation of Acts, which is a continuation of this Gospel. Luke emphasizes the universality of the Good News and its openness to all people. It is also noteworthy that the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the Gospel of Matthew begins with Abraham, the ancestor of the Jews; while in the Gospel of Luke from Adam, the ancestor of all people. Luke pays special attention to people and God's love for them. He not only literary accurately describes a wide variety of human characters, but also in a special way emphasizes Christ’s care for ordinary people. It is easy to notice that if in the Gospel of Matthew most of the Savior’s parables are dedicated to the Kingdom of Heaven, then Luke gives many parables focused on people. The author of the Gospel especially emphasizes God's mercy towards the repentant.

Gospel of John

Written in the nineties of the first century AD by the Apostle John, the “beloved disciple” of Jesus Christ, who was later called John the Evangelist. It differs in content from the other three, the so-called. "synoptic" Gospels of the New Testament. According to legend, the disciples of John the Theologian asked their teacher to tell about the life of Jesus what was not included in the Synoptic Gospels. Their notes made up the Gospel of John.

It should be noted that all reference materials, all references and interpretations presented in this book were selected without changing the text from currently existing classical sources: the three-volume edition of the “Explanatory Bible”, St. Petersburg. 1904-1914 edited by professor of theology Alexander Pavlovich Lopukhin. (Second ed. Institute of Bible Translation. Stockholm, 1987); Books by the wonderful Christian writer Archpriest Alexander Men “Son of Man” and others, materials from the Bible Center website:; Materials from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia, etc.
The poetic text of the book is a poetic transcription of the biblical texts set out in the Synodal Russian translation of the four canonical ones, i.e. historically recognized by the Church, the Gospels. Since the events depicted in this book are, as far as possible, described in their chronological sequence and therefore taken from different Gospels, the chapters of the book do not correspond in chapter number to any of the four Gospels. But before each chapter, in small print, its contents are given, indicating the author of the Gospel, the chapter and verses on which it is written. Using these instructions, interested readers can easily open the appropriate passage in the Bible and read the original text.
"Gospel. The Bible in Verse" is my third book of Holy Scripture. The first two books, “Genesis” and “Moses,” were a poetic transcription of the Pentateuch of Moses, the core of the Old Testament. All books are written in the same poetic meter - 9-line stanzas with triple rhyme at the end of each stanza. They are constructed in this way in order to avoid monotony, to give the verse liveliness and some dissimilarity from the usual classical poetic forms, which are most often used by poets writing on biblical themes.
“Why did you write the Bible in verse? – an elderly, deeply religious woman once asked me.
This question, however, did not arise for many people who read the first two books. People, mostly educated - engineers, doctors, teachers. It did not arise for a simple reason: many of them tried, more than once, to delve into the world of the Bible from the original source - the Russian synodal publication. However, the translation language turned out to be too archaic and difficult to read for modern people, and some passages were incomprehensible without appropriate interpretations. So they became familiar with the Holy Scriptures through the Bible verses of these books. We understood a lot. Some became deeply interested and delved into the study of Biblical texts.
Thus, the poetic reading of the Bible serves a single goal - to bring its content and morality closer to contemporaries, to popularize the Bible among many people, primarily people divorced from religion and biblical culture. After all, anyone who reads the Bible can benefit greatly. He acquires knowledge of the history and culture of the ancient world, learns about the teachings and life of Jesus Christ. The origins of modern morality and the origin of many truths and life norms that have become familiar, observed by any worthy person, regardless of his religion and attitude to religion, become more clear to him.
In poetic presentation, biblical texts, while fully preserving the meaning and subtleties of Christian ideology, acquired an artistry closer to modern man, colored by the characteristics of the experiences of the heroes of events, and more vivid descriptions of places and times. However, the author did not allow himself to get carried away by chanting the beauties of nature or the colorfulness of various scenes. Artistic paints were used extremely sparingly and laconically. For the Bible is first and foremost the holy gospel. And the main author’s task is to convey its text to the reader in a form as close as possible to the original text.
The book features engravings by the famous 19th-century French artist Gustave Doré. These well-known, brilliantly executed illustrations of the Bible impress with their romantic mood and most fully correspond to the poetic exposition of the Book of Books.
It is hoped that this book will promote deeper study of the Bible and strengthen understanding and friendship among people for the sake of peace on earth.

In the hand of the Living Christ on almost all icons is a scroll of Scripture: the Lord, the Lord of history, the Lamb slain, crucified and risen - He is the only one who can open all seals, because He is in us and we are in Him. In the light of Easter, our reading of life should be more and more illuminated by the reading of Scripture. The Lord wants to “open our mind to the understanding” of events, to give us the ability to see His living presence in all our deaths, because death is defeated by Him. “Fear not, I was dead, but behold, I am alive forever and ever” (Rev. 1:17-18).

The book of Nehemiah tells that after the return of God's chosen people from the 70-year Babylonian captivity, the priest Ezra reads the Scriptures that had been forgotten during the years of exile. And everyone from sunrise to noon listens to him with tears, in which the joy of finding the Law of God is mixed with sadness for their infidelity, which was the cause of this captivity after a long period of divisions, betrayals and useless compromises with ambitious paganism.

Oh, that today our people, after their no less long and no less terrible captivity, could return to listening to the word of life! However, everything is being done to deprive him of this opportunity not only physically, but most importantly, to make him incapable of perceiving the highest truth. And we, Christians, have been given, by the grace of God, to stand in churches and listen, as if for everyone, to the gospel of the Gospel. We listen to this word with humility and gratitude to the One who speaks personally to each of us. Truly we must listen to the Gospel as if the Lord Himself were present here and speaking to us. Let no one say: blessed are those who could see Him. Because many of those who saw Him participated in His crucifixion, and many of those who did not believe in Him. The same words that came from the mouth of the Lord are recorded in writing to be preserved for us.

Is it possible to love someone without knowing him? To devote every day, at least a little time, to reading the Gospel with prayer means to begin to gradually know and see Christ, just as the apostles saw Him. He Himself is in these words, filled with wisdom, compassion for the misfortune of sinners, holy anger and firmness towards religious businessmen, patient care for disciples who often do not understand the meaning of His words. It is difficult to love the Lord, to truly know Him, without listening to the Word of God, without reading the Holy Gospel - at least for a few minutes every day.

Before beginning the reading of the Gospel during the service, the priest or deacon says: “And we pray that we may be worthy to hear the Holy Gospel of the Lord God.” And what prayer does the priest pray before this: “Shine in our hearts, Lover of Mankind, the imperishable light of Your God-understanding.” And further: “Wisdom, forgive me. Let's hear the Holy Gospel. Peace to all ". And the reading ends, as it begins, with our answer: “Glory to Thee, Lord, glory to Thee.” How do we give glory and praise to the Lord? Words and deeds, our lives? Or do we immediately forget about this word, making it fruitless? What exile from the presence of God will follow this for us? - Worse than Babylon. And in our Fatherland, we, our entire people, may find ourselves in captivity worse than Babylon. The great enemy of God in the world is ignorance of the most important thing; spiritual ignorance is the cause and root of all troubles and evils that poison nations and confuse human souls. Ignorance, aggravated by the powerful organized influence of television and the media, supposedly objectively, without God, covering what is happening in life. How many people who call themselves Orthodox Christians suffer spiritual defeat, becoming easy prey for the enemy, only due to the lack of a firm knowledge of their faith. Ignorance is followed by delusion, the void is filled with blackness. What could be sadder than when ignorance of the word of God makes the world unable to accept the salvation of Christ offered to it!