PREFACE,

CHRISTIAN READER.

A large decorative woodcut initial 'D' featuring floral motifs and a small landscape scene within the letter's counter.

The sweetness found in investigating the life of our Savior Original: "Salighmakers," a term meaning "bringer of salvation" or "Savior." was a constant encouragement and sustenance to me in this work; and just as those who labor in the gold mines face great hardships, yet are so comforted by finding those precious treasures that they value their labor little, so it was with me in this task. Truly, the Apostle spoke rightly in 2 Timothy 2:6: The farmer who tills the field shall be the first to enjoy its fruits. I well believe that men of greater gifts and experience would not have found this such a difficult task, but I speak according to my own circumstances and ability. It was also no small motivation for me to begin this work seeing that the four Evangelists—who described these things so holily and with such great certainty—are held in suspicion by some for inconsistency, or at least for obscurity. This is because certain stories, sayings, and events seem to differ somewhat due to variations in timing and circumstances. However, in this work, one shall find the Evangelists entirely innocent of this; one will find nothing in them but a sweet, clear, and melodious Harmony Harmony: A "Gospel Harmony" is a theological work that seeks to reconcile the four different accounts of Jesus' life into a single, chronological timeline. when each thing is brought into its proper order and time. Thus, these four Evangelists are with great reason compared in Ezekiel Chapter 1 to four wheels, which appear as a single wheel, being driven by a living wind; where one stands, the other stands also; where one turns, the other turns as well; where one is lifted up or lowered, that always happens together with the others. This was also true of the four accompanying Living Creatures The author refers to the "Four Living Creatures" (Tetramorph) from the vision of the prophet Ezekiel, which tradition often associates with the four Gospel writers., having four different faces: one like a Man, another like a Lion, the third like an Ox, and the fourth like an Eagle,