The hypothetical Q source and the Sermon on the Mount

Why invent a source?

Q is helpful for some, though not all, who try to resolve the synoptic problem by giving precedence to the Gospel of Mark. It is not generally required by those who advocate that either Matthew or Luke were the first of the synoptic gospels.

Some theories for the origins of the synoptic gospels require a hypothetical collection of sayings, generally referred to as simply Q. Because of the presence of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew and the Sermon on the Plain in Luke, but the absence of any such sermon in Mark’s Gospel, many proponents of the Two Source Theory envisage that the Q source provided the basic framework of the two sermons. They envisage Luke having based the Sermon on the Plain on material from the Q source, then Matthew drawing on and re-arranging material from Luke.

Deciding what Q might have contained is inevitably a matter of conjecture, however that has not stopped some very competent academics devoting their time to the problem. The following table takes a sermon incident specific look at what four scholars have envisaged in their Q source. From this it comparison it is immediately obvious that, as far as the sermon event’s teaching is concerned, these academics envisage the Q tradition as more-or-less equivalent to the Sermon on the Plain, with the odd variation her and there. Given the current state of scholarship, it is important to consider how the Sermon on the Mount might relate to such a source as Q. However, a detailed comparison of the Sermon on the Mount with the Sermon on the Plain reveals features that suggest that the Sermon on the Mount has to be the earlier of the two. Moreover, the evidence presented the commentary on this site, that the Sermon on the Mount was a coherent and tightly integrated address and directly addressed key issues of Jesus’ early ministry, suggests that a hypothetical source such as Q did not play any part in the Sermon’s origin.

The following section provides a visual summary of the information given elsewhere on this page. Readers with non-visual browsers may wish to skip it.

Summary of sections of the Sermon on the Mount assigned to Q.

Ch 5: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, Ch 6: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, Ch 7: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27.

In the above the verses in colour represent those included in Q by at least one of the authors considered below. The coding is as follows:

One author assigns this verse to Q, three do not;
Two authors assign this verse to Q, two does not;
All four authors agree this verse is part of the Q tradition.

In terms of the Sermon the inferred contents of Q are heavily dependent upon contents of the Sermon on the Plain. However, their scattered disbursal seems rather at odds with the coherently indivisible structure of the Sermon on the Mount, a construct whose rigidity comes from the intersection of three complementary structures, the one a midrash working sequentially through the Mosaic commandments, one a chiasmus centred on the Lord’s prayer, and the third defined by major stylistic blocks within the text. The idea begins to seem rather far fetched, that a collection of independent sayings could conveniently have been fitted together so well.

Sections of the Sermon on the Mount assigned to the Q tradition

Luke	Matthew	Thomas	Mack (1993, 260-1, titles from 81-102)	Kloppenborg (2000, 100)	Miller (1992)	Edwards (1976, xi-xiii)
Luke 6:20a	Matt 5:1-2		QS 7. Introduction	Introduction to the Sermon,	----x----	----x----
Luke 6:20b	Matt 5:3	54	QS 8. On Those who are Fortunate	Beatitudes	Congratulations	Beatitudes
Luke 6:21	Matt 5:6, 4
Luke 6:22	Matt 5:11	58, 68; 69
Luke 6:23	Matt 5:12
Luke 6:24	----x----		----x----	Woes (probably in Q)		----x----
Luke :25	----x----		----x----			----x----
Luke 6:26	----x----		----x----			----x----
Luke 6:27	Matt 5:44		QS 9. On Responding to Reproach (part)	On Retaliation; Generous Giving; Golden Rule	Love of enemies (part)	Love of enemies (part)
Luke 6:28	Matt 5:44
Luke 6:29	Matt 5:39-40
Luke 6:30	Matt 5:42	95
Luke 6:31	Matt 7:12	25
Luke 6:32	Matt 5:46
Luke 6:33	Matt 5:47
----x----	Matt 5:41		----x----	Go the Second Mile (probably in Q)	----x----	----x----
Luke 6:34	----x----		QS 9. On Responding to Reproach (part)	Conclusion	Love of enemies (part)	Love of enemies (part)
Luke 6:35	Matt 5:45		QS 9. On Responding to Reproach (part)	Conclusion
Luke 6:36	Matt 7:1		On making judgements	On mercy and judgement
Luke 6:37	Matt 7:2				On judging	Judging
Luke 6:38	Matt 7:2				On judging
Luke 6:39	Matt 15:14	34	Teachers and students	On self correction	Blind guides
Luke 6:40	Matt 10:24-25		Teachers and students		Blind guides
Luke 6:41	Matt 7:3-5	26	On hypocrisy		On pretense
Luke 6:42	Matt 7:3-5	26	On hypocrisy		On pretense
Luke 6:43	Matt 7:17	43	On integrity		Tree and fruit	Fruits
Luke 6:44	Matt 7:16	45
Luke 6:45	Matt 7:18
Luke 6:46	Matt 7:21		On Practical Obedience	Why Do You Call Me Lord?	Foundations	House on rock
Luke 6:47	Matt 7:24-27			The Two House-Builders
Luke 6:48
Luke 6:49

For the data used to produce the above summaries I am largely indebted to Peter Kirby’s collation and summarisation of work on the contents of Q (Kirby 2001, n.p.).

References

Edwards, Richard A. 1976. A Theology of Q: Eschatology, Prophecy, and Wisdom. Philadelphia, Pa.: Fortress Press.

Kirby, Peter. 2001. “The Contents of Q”. No pages. Cited 29 Nov 2010. Online:http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/q-contents.html.

Kloppenborg, John S. 2000. Excavating Q: The History and Setting of the Sayings Gospel. Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press.

Mack, Burton L. 1993. The Lost Gospel: The Book of Q & Christian Origins. San Francisco, Calif.: HarperCollins.

Miller, Robert J. ed. 1992. The Complete Gospels: Annotated Scholars Version. Sonoma, Calif.: Polebridge Press.