The visitors felt they should have been awarded a second spot-kick moments later after Oxlade-Chamberlain appeared to foul Suarez, but their appeals were dismissed by referee Howard Webb.
Daniel Sturridge spurned two excellent chances to put Liverpool ahead in the first five minutes, first drawing a near-post save from Lukasz Fabianski after racing onto Gerrard's slide-rule pass.
The England striker then squandered an even clearer opportunity, gathering a scooped pass from Suarez and rounding Fabianski, only to shoot into the side netting with his weaker right foot.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said that his side's demolition at Anfield had made them "nervous" during their mid-week 0-0 draw with Manchester United, but they were not cowed by Liverpool's bright opening.
Instead they took the game to the visitors, and after Liverpool goalkeeper Brad Jones had tipped a Per Mertesacker header over the bar, they took the lead in the 16th minute.
Liverpool could only partially clear a free-kick, allowing Mesut Ozil to send the ball back into the box from the right, and when Yaya Sanogo's volley was blocked by Gerrard, Oxlade-Chamberlain stroked the loose ball home.
Podolski could have doubled Arsenal's lead when he blazed over following a raid by Ozil, but Suarez provided a reminder of Liverpool's threat late in the half with a half-volley that Fabianski scrambled away.
The Uruguayan was at it again early in the second period, bamboozling Laurent Koscielny and testing Fabianski with a low shot, but barely a minute later Arsenal doubled their lead.
Oxlade-Chamberlain was the creator, exchanging passes with Ozil on the right flank and then charging powerfully to the byline before cutting the ball square for Podolski to clip a shot beneath Jones.
Suarez and Sturridge each threatened to pull a goal back, with Ozil working Jones with a low drive at the other end in between, before Podolski's trip on Suarez allowed Gerrard to score from the penalty spot.
As evening fell and the tension in the stadium mounted, Fabianski had to save at Sturridge's feet and Liverpool were then denied what appeared a clear penalty when Oxlade-Chamberlain felled Suarez.
The England midfielder took a swing at the ball and missed, clattering Suarez with his boot and sending him crashing to the deck, but Webb awarded a goal-kick.
Suarez shot straight at Fabianski as the visitors continued to push for an equaliser, while Daniel Agger gave Arsenal a late scare when he beat Fabianski to a Gerrard free-kick, only to head the ball wide.
The forward scored his fifth league goal of the
season on Sunday to continue a fine run of form in the absence of
Cristiano Ronaldo
Carlo Ancelotti says he is no longer surprised by the brilliance of Jese Rodriguez after the Spain Under-21 star scored again in Real Madrid's 3-0 win over Getafe.The 20-year-old now has five goals to his name in La Liga this season and continues to impress as Cristiano Ronaldo serves a three-match suspension.
"Jese Rodriguez is no longer a surprise anymore. He is already an important player for us and he is playing well," Ancelotti said after the game.
Karim Benzema and Luka Modric scored the other two goals on Sunday, with second-placed Madrid's latest victory moving them level on points with leaders Barcelona and third-placed Atletico Madrid.
And Ancelotti revealed a satisfaction with the manner in which his side are playing, with the Primera Division title race shaping up to be the fiercest in years.
"The team is more solid and confident. We play naturally and things are working out for us. We have to continue like this," the Italian added.
"I think we started the second half well. We had chances to score but Getafe started to play with more intensity."
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