The study examines bioi by two Greco-Roman authors (Plutarch and Philostratus), two Jewish authors (Philo and Josephus), and finally, the Third Gospel, in the light of the progymnastic topic lists, arguing that all the bioi employ topic lists as a compositional template, guiding the narrative in its overall structure and content. The study shows, moreover, that the Third Evangelist employs the lists with rhetorical skill comparable to the most educated of the biographers surveyed, Plutarch and Philo.