![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Keith-Long-Bart-Ehrman-Contributor.png\" "\\"Keith")
<\/span><\/p>\nWritten by Keith Long, MDiv<\/a><\/p>\n Author | Pastor | BE Contributor<\/p>\n Verified! See our editorial guidelines<\/a><\/p>\n Verified! See our guidelines<\/a><\/p>\n \nDate written: August 12th, 2022<\/p>\n Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily match my own. – Dr. Bart D. Ehrman<\/p>\n What does the word Gospel mean? <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve got good news, and I\u2019ve got bad news.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Have you ever said this or been on the receiving end of a statement like this? <\/span><\/p>\n I sure have and I’m the type of person who typically likes to hear the bad news first in hopes that the good news will cancel out or help me endure the bad news more easily. <\/span>The method hasn\u2019t failed me yet.<\/strong><\/p>\n The word gospel means good news<\/a> – but it’s a complicated word with a deep history. So let’s explore it now for greater understanding.\u00a0<\/p>\n All of this talk of good news resurfaced an interesting memory from 2020. As we all know this 12-month period was a disaster. The bad news was torturously ubiquitous because of covid and the quarantine<\/em>. Yet in the shadows of this negativity, a YouTube show called \u201cSome Good News<\/a>\u201d garnered over 72 million views and<\/strong><\/span> 2,500,000 subscribers in just two months’ time!<\/strong><\/p>\n Actor John Krasinski hosted the show from his home in Brooklyn and blew people out of the water with his unexpected success.\u00a0<\/p>\n While Krasinski\u2019s show may have demonstrated that \u201cgood news\u201d never goes out of style<\/em> – there was a much bigger success story involving good news….and that’s the Gospel of Jesus Christ.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n NOW AVAILABLE FREE!<\/p>\n Did Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John Actually Write Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John?<\/strong><\/p>\n The New Testament Gospels are anonymous. So why did early Christians say they were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John? And what’s the evidence that they actually did?<\/p>\n __CONFIG_colors_palette__{“active_palette”:0,”config”:{“colors”:{“62516”:{“name”:”Main Accent”,”parent”:-1}},”gradients”:[]},”palettes”:[{“name”:”Default Palette”,”value”:{“colors”:{“62516”:{“val”:”rgb(255, 133, 34)”,”hsl”:{“h”:26,”s”:0.99,”l”:0.5667}}},”gradients”:[]}}]}__CONFIG_colors_palette__ <\/span> GET THE FREE WEBINAR<\/strong><\/span><\/span> <\/a> There’s no denying Krasinski’s numbers were remarkable but his success pales in comparison to sales of the Bible. Did you know over 5 billion copies have been sold worldwide?<\/strong> Countless people have turned to \u201cThe Gospel\u201d for inspiration and comfort in tough times for millennia…<\/span><\/p>\n ….and the pandemic didn’t reduce interest in the good news of the bible.<\/em><\/p>\n “In all 181 million Americans opened their Bible in the past year\u2014up 7.1% from the 169 million adults<\/a> who did so in 2020, according to @americanbible.”\u00a0<\/p>\n But what did \u201cgood news\u201d mean in the ancient world of the Bible? <\/span>Let’s unpack the basics behind the religious word \u201cGospel\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n Let’s check out the Gospel Etymology. In the Bible, Good News = Gospel. Gospel comes from the Greek word <\/strong><\/span>euangelion, which is a compound word made up of the Greek eu meaning \u201cgood\u201d and angelia meaning \u201cmessage.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n The \u201cGood Message\u201d according to the ancient Greek writers was that God acted decisively and permanently for the well-being of humankind through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth<\/a>, who was crucified and \u201craised\u201d in the early part of the first century in Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n The story and message of Jesus are what Christians the world over refer to as \u201cThe Gospel\u201d or \u201cThe Good News.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n This message was composed by four different authors who go by the first names: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The first 4 books or documents, found in that order, make up the New Testament.<\/span><\/p>\n So how many gospels are there?\u00a0<\/p>\n There are four-fold testimonials that illustrate the importance of Jesus and his: <\/span><\/p>\n They also provide a detailed account of his last week alive, including his arrest, torture, and execution, plus various vignettes of him interacting with his followers after his miraculous resurrection post-crucifixion. <\/span><\/p>\n The Gospels tell the story of a child born around 4 BCE named Jesus, who lived in the Israeli village of Nazareth, which was roughly ninety miles north of Jerusalem. <\/span><\/p>\n These four accounts provide readers with insight into Jesus\u2019s alleged actions, both the miraculous and the mundane.<\/strong> They also impart details about things he spoke into existence by way of his conversations, sermons, and prayers.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n Finally, the Gospels provide a guide to the events leading up to his tragic death by crucifixion and his wondrous resurrection and bodily reappearances to his closest followers three days after he was placed into a sealed tomb. <\/span><\/p>\n The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John<\/a> cover a remarkably brief but transformative three-year record of the sayings and doing\u2019s of Jesus and his followers. Moreover, for many Christians, the Good News is not limited to the words <\/span>about <\/span>Jesus in the Bible. For them, Jesus has become The Good News <\/em><\/span>himself<\/span> for he is <\/span>Christ<\/span>, or the \u201c<\/span>The<\/span> Good News\u201d in bodily form.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n As you can see gospel meaning is very important for Christians.<\/p>\n [tqb_quiz id=’11973′]<\/p>\n![\"What](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/What-does-the-word-gospel-mean.png\" "\\"What")
<\/span><\/p>\nGood News Never Goes Out of Style <\/h3>\n
![\"Did](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Did-Matthew-Mark-Luke-and-John-Write-the-Gospels.png\" "\\"Did")
<\/a><\/span> <\/p>\nThe Gospel Of Jesus Christ – Does the Gospel Mean Good News? <\/h2>\n
What Does the Word Gospel Mean In Greek?<\/h2>\n
What Are the Gospels?<\/h2>\n
\n
THe gosple meaning Isn’t simple<\/span><\/a><\/h3>\n
The Gospel: Historical Biography or Messianic Revelation?<\/h2>\n