Interpreting the Bible in the sixteenth century: John Calvin on the Gospels of Luke and Matthew

John Calvin (1509–1564) wrote commentaries on all biblical books but one, Revelation. Before being published in 1555, his Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists (i.e., on the Books Matthew, Mark, and Luke) matured as lectures to the weekly congregations of the Genevan ministers. They were published in Latin and French almost simultaneously in order to avoid discriminating between an educated audience and the common people.