Exegesis and Sermon: A Comparison of Bede's Commentary and Homilies on Luke

Abstract

The Venerable Bede (672/673–735) composed fourteen homilies based upon pericopes from the gospel of Luke as well as a complete verse-by-verse exegesis of this same book. Examination of the vocabulary, syntax and structure of these homilies and exegesis shows portions to be strikingly similar, one having been derived from the other. Analysis of how related passages from one work have been altered to fit the other reveals much about the purposes and intended audiences of each.