Sectional Analysis

There is no parallel with what follows immediately in Luke (4:16-30) and hereafter the QM school must admit a surd in the theory of order; for this episode is transposed in order from Mark and put AFTER a series of in Luke that they are put BEFORE in Mark. Such arrangement of material is fully permissible within an ancient compositional paradigm, but as Matthew at almost the same place scrambles order (8:14-17, Peter's mother in law being healed, in transposed into this set of Galileean scenes), how can Marcan prioritists claim that Matthew's different order makes him prior to Mark, while Luke's different order allows him to remain posterior to Mark? They should rather take the clue that an argument from order by itself is no argument at all.

The oral original of this portion at any rate was likely very simple. Matt's appeal to Isaiah is obviously redactive.

It is beyond our scope to discuss why Luke contains more details than Mark and Matt; it may be that Mark and Matt report stylized versions of the calling of the first disciples for easy memory, and that Luke sought more information about the turning point in the lives of the disciples. Yet clearly Mark has eyewitness touches: the small net, and below, the "bit" distance and the presence of hired servants. There is also a clear hint here of Mark being later than Matthew in originality. Mark's use of the word "gospel" (here and later on) to refer to the benefits of Jesus' death and resurrection (as opposed to the advent of the kingdom) is used elsewhere only in the epistles and in Acts 15 and after. This reflects a later developmental use of the word which it seems odd for a later-writing Matthew to pass up. The strength of this argument is evident in that QM theorists have been forced to resort to a theory of an earlier Mark (unattested in any record) that did not use "gospel" this way. [Neville, 192-3]

Ur-Matthew Reconstruction

having heard But the Jesus that John was-delivered-up He-withdrew into the Galilee. From then began the Jesus to-proclaim and to-say Repent! has-drawn-near For the kingdom of heaven. walking-about And the Jesus beside the sea of Galilee saw two brothers Simon the being-called Peter and Andrew the brother of-him casting net into the sea. they-were For fishers. And He-says to-them Come after me and I-will-make you fishers of men. they And at-once forsaking the nets followed him. And going-on from-there he-saw other two brothers James the son Zebedee and John the brother of-him in the boat with Zebedee the father of-them mending the nets of them and he-called them. they And at-once forsaking the boat and the father of-them followed him.

This leads to the parallel between Mark 1:21-28 and Luke 4:31-37. Since I have no beef with the idea of Luke using Mark, there will be no analysis, but in our paradigm this is acceptably understood as supplemental eyewitness testimony by Peter that was not in Ur-Matthew, or else as something Matthew skipped to make more room for teachings. Indeed it is possible that Matt has (again, using perfectly legitimate compositional methods for the day) had the story as it now is in Ur-Matthew, but to make room, transposed this demoniac into the story of one man possessed by a devil (8:28ff).