The Gospels Authorized King James Version

Jesus Christ is the central figure in Western culture, and one of the most influential in all human history. Almost everything we know about him is contained in four narratives of his life, death, and resurrection--the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. This unique edition of the Gospels, in the Authorized King James version, provides readers with all the information they could need to appreciate the theological importance and literary and cultural significance of these great writings. The volume features an illuminating introduction by W. R. Owens, who guides the reader through the four Gospels in turn, highlighting how each offers its own distinctive and memorable portrait of Jesus, and discussing the importance of the 1611 translation and its influence. The book's explanatory notes clarify obscurities and allusions, ranging from aspects of life in first-century Palestine to seventeenth-century phraseology. There are also glossaries of Words and Terms, Persons, and Places, a chronology of the life of Jesus alongside historical events, and a map of Palestine in the time of Jesus.

W. R. Owens is Professor of English Literature at the Open University.