The chronological order of the Gospels written in the Bible is standardized across all modern English translations we read today. However, the correct order of the 4 Gospels has fascinated historians, scholars, theologians, and Christians for around two thousand years.
Below, you will find the official order of the Bible Gospels in the New Testament taken from the consensus of those who study God’s Word followed by a list of the traditions and proposed theories for how the 4 Gospels were written chronologically.
Chronological Order of the Gospels
The chronological order of the Gospels is Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the New Testament of the Bible. The 4 Gospels are arranged in the order when they were written according to Biblical scholar consensus.
Dates the Gospels Were Written
These are the approximate dates the order of the Gospels were written:
The exact dating of the 4 Gospels is difficult because scholars have to rely on historical evidence and scientific methods to establish a probable date for the chronological order of these books in the New Testament.
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John did not date their books on the original manuscripts. And, the internationally accepted Gregorian calendar system which is in use today is not the same as the Biblical Calendar used during the time period of the Gospel authors.
Dating the compositions of the Gospels in the Bible relies on internal evidence such as direct references to historical events and handwriting as well as external evidence like archeological contexts and radiocarbon dates for the written manuscripts. As a result, the consensus for the chronological order of the 4 Gospels is Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Other Theories About the Order of the Gospels Written
Some scholars and theologians have contested the order of the Gospels in the Bible which has led to several schools of thought on the chronology of these books. There is a question as to which books of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) were written first. Not many object that the Gospel of John was the last to be composed.
The word “Synoptic” comes from the Greek word synoptikos, meaning “able to be seen together”. The Synoptic Gospels get their name because these books include many of the same stories, usually in the same sequence, and use similar (or identical) phrasing.
There are four main schools of thought regarding the order in which the Gospels were written: the Jerome Tradition, the Markan Priority Theory, the Clementine Tradition, and the Matthean Posteriority Hypothesis.
Jerome Tradition for Gospel Order
The Jerome Tradition puts the 4 Gospels in this order: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. This tradition represents the consensus among Biblical scholars and theologians today. The Biel ordering tradition is named after Saint Jerome, who was a scholar during the time of Pope Damasus I in Rome (366-384 A.D.). Damasus asked Jerome to translate the entire Bible into Latin, which was written in Hebrew and Greek. This translation would ultimately become the Catholic Church’s official promulgated Latin version of the Bible called the Vulgate.
The Jerome Tradition places each Gospel in the Bible in the chronological order it was understood to have been composed by the original author (known as the “Greek” order). The Gospel order in the Vetus Latinas manuscripts that preceded the Vulgate followed the “Western” book order of placing the two Apostles first (Matthew and John) followed by Luke and Mark.
Markan Priority Theory for the 4 Gospels
The Markan Priority Theory is a hypothesis that the Gospel of Mark was the first of the Synoptic Gospels to be written and was used as a source by the other two authors: Matthew and Luke. One piece of evidence for this theory is that Mark’s Gospel was written in “poor Greek” with bad grammar and word choice. Matthew and Luke’s Gospels were written in well-constructed Greek. Some scholars believe that the other two authors corrected Mark’s errors in language; affirming that Mark’s Gospel must have been composed prior to them.
Clementine Tradition for Written Order
The Clementine Tradition is based on a theory of the writings of Clement of Alexandria (150-215 A.D.). Clement expressed that according to the earliest priests, the first written Gospels were those that contained genealogies. As a result, the Gospels of Matthew and Luke would have been composed before Mark’s Gospel account, resulting in this order: Matthew, Luke, Mark, and John.
Matthean Posteriority Hypothesis
The Matthean Posteriority hypothesis proposes that the Gospel of Mark was used as a source by the author of Luke. Then both of those Gospels were used as sources by the author of Matthew. This hypothesis results in the order of Mark, Luke, Matthew, and John.
Summarizing the Chronological Order of the 4 Bible Gospels
While the chronological order of the Gospels is still update for debate among Biblical scholars and theologians, one fact does remain true — all 4 Gospels were written during the first century, after Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection while eyewitnesses to His ministry were still alive to help record the events.
God’s intended purpose in the Bible Gospels is to proclaim the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ so that we will respond by faith and repentance. And the Synoptic Gospels in question should be seen together as a collective work. As a result, it doesn’t really matter which of the Gospels was written first chronologically from the standpoint of a believer in Christ.
More Chronological Bible Lists
Want to learn more about the chronological order of the Bible? Then browse through these other guides that focus on the Old and New Testament Canons of Scripture.
Biblevise is an online ministry that’s focused on getting people excited about reading the Bible and connecting the Scriptures to their daily lives.
