Good Samaritan - Chronology, Geography I'm currently studying the parable of the Good Samaritan, and I'm wondering why it was chronologically placed in Luke 10 which seems to indicate the encounter with the expert in the law occurred before Jesus entered Jerusalem as king.

The question asked by the expert in the law is "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" and Jesus asks him what his interpretation of scripture is.

The expert replies - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and "Love your neighbour as yourself".

This is the same answer Jesus gave when asked what the greatest commandment was (Matthew 22:35–40 and Mark 12:28–34).

It seems to me there is a connection between the two stories.

In my mind I'd always thought Jesus was the one who originally summed up the whole of the Law in this way.

It makes more sense to me that the parable of the Good Samaritan should sit somewhere in Luke 20 when the authority of Jesus is questioned. It would line up with Mathew and Mark better.

Otherwise are we to assume that Jesus was quoting the expert when he gives his answer in Mathew and Mark?

Doesn't it make more sense that the expert in the law in Luke's good Samaritan had heard Jesus sum the law up in this way - but he wanted more clarification as to who his neighbour was... Therefore the encounter in Luke is more likely to have taken place in Jerusalem?

Or am I simply wrong in thinking there is a connection between these accounts?
Let me make some general points about the scriptures that I hope will help your understanding.


The gospel writers did not necessarily describe everything that Jesus did in chronological order. They grouped teachings according to themes and intent, to convey particular messages.
It is very unlikely that Jesus gave any particular teaching only once. As he traveled around he almost certainly repeated key teachings many times. The gospel writers would not have listed all the times he said a particular thing (why waste ink and paper saying something that was already written). So they may have recorded a saying the first,  second or ninety-ninth time he said it. See above.
The summary of the law may not be unique to Jesus.  Certainly the two parts are both Old Testament quotes,  and the combination may have been known before Jesus.