The Critical Edition of Q

The existence of Q (simply defined as the non-Markan material common to Matthew and Luke) as a document in the earliest churches was first hypothesized by C. H. Weisse in 1838. The existence, character, and significance of Q as a document from the earliest churches has further been developed since then by numerous scholars, including the two groundbreaking Fortress Press books by John S. Kloppenborg Verbin: The Formation of Q (1987) and Excavating Q (2000).Q remains a subject of heated debate. The Q material consists mainly of sayings of Jesus, but begins with some sayings of John the Baptist. For the most part narratives are missing; most conspicuously of all is the Passion Narrative.