Who was Luke?

Who is the Luke in Scripture?

• Luke was a Gentile (Colossians 4:11-14). Jerome and Eusebius tell us Luke was from Antioch in Syria.
• We do not know how he was converted, but it’s probably he was converted by the Apostle Paul.
• He was a doctor (Colossians 4:14) and a historian.
• “Luke/Lucanus” was a slave name and many Roman slaves were physicians. Luke could have been a freed slave.
• He wrote both the Gospel that bears his name and the book of Acts. Many scholars think he wrote them while in Rome with Paul during Paul’s first imprisonment.
• Luke joined Paul on his second missionary journey in Troas (note the “we” in Acts 16:10-16). Luke remained in Philippi after Paul left (note “they in Acts 17:1).
• Luke rejoined Paul when Paul passed through Philippi on his way to Jerusalem at the end of his third missionary journey (note the pronouns in Acts 20:5-6).
• It appears Luke traveled with Paul from this time on.
• Luke stayed with Paul as Paul awaited execution in a Roman prison (2 Timothy 4:11).
• Some traditions claim Luke died by martyrdom between 75-100 AD. Other traditions claim he died a natural death and was buried in Bithynia.

Luke in Scripture

Col 4:14  Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.

2Ti 4:11  Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry.

Phm 1:24  and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

Luke refers to his journeys with Paul in:

• Acts 16:10-17
• Acts 20:5-15
• Acts 21:1-18
• Acts 27:1-28:16

Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

• McClinktock & Strong: Luke
• International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Luke
• Bridgeway Bible Dictionary: Luke
• Easton’s Bible Dictionary: Luke
• Fausset’s Bible Dictionary: Luke
• Holman Bible Dictionary: Luke
• Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible: Luke
• Kitto’s Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature: Luke, the Evangelist
• Morrish Bible Dictionary: Luke, Lucas
• Nutall Encyclopedia: Luke
• Luke, means “luminous, white” – Hitchcock’s Bible Names

More: Gospel of Luke Resources

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