Synoptic Gospels synoptic gospels are similar to John: all are composed in Koine Greek, have a similar length, and were completed within a century of Jesus' death. They also differ from non-canonical sources, such as the Gospel of Thomas, in that they belong to the ancient genre of biography, collecting not only Jesus' teachings, but recounting in an orderly way his origins, his ministry and miracles, and his passion and resurrection. In content and in wording, though, the synoptics diverge widely from John but have a great deal in common with each other. Though each gospel includes some unique material, the majority
Gospel of Thomas sayings represent "multiple attestations" and therefore are more likely to come from a historical Jesus than sayings that are only singly attested. The material in the comparison chart is from "Gospel Parallels" by B. H. Throckmorton, "The Five Gospels" by R. W. Funk, "The Gospel According to the Hebrews" by E. B. Nicholson and "The Hebrew Gospel and the Development of the Synoptic Tradition" by J. R. Edwards. Gospel of Thomas The Gospel of Thomas is a non-canonical sayings gospel. It was discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945 among a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi