Originally delivered as one of the Jowett Lectures for 1906, the contents of this booklet emerged during the first quest for the historical Jesus. Somewhat surprisingly, Burkitt discovered that historical criticism increased the historical credibility of the Synoptic Gospels in his estimation. This seventh lecture in the series traces the origin of the authoritative four-fold Gospels to about 150 of the Common Era when they are amply attested together. Positing a three-stage evolution to the canonical Gospels, Burkitt notes that other Gospels did not measure up to the same standard.