Matthew wishes to emphasize that theJewish tradition should not be lost in a church that was increasingly becominggentile.[5][6] The gospel reflects the struggles and conflicts betweenJewish Christians and the other Jews, particularly with its sharp criticism of the scribes, chief priests andPharisees,[7] presenting the view that theKingdom of Heaven has been taken away from them and given instead to the church.[8] It emphasizes Jesus’s role as theSon of David,Son of Man, andSon of God, and frames his teachings, miracles, and parables to reflect bothJewish law and the emerging Christian church. Structured around alternating narratives and discourses—including theSermon on the Mount,parables, and instructions for discipleship—it culminates in thePassion,Resurrection, and theGreat Commission.
The predominant scholarly view is that the gospel was written in the last quarter of the first century by an anonymous Jew familiar with technical legal aspects of scripture, though the traditional attribution still has conservative defenders.[9][10][11] It is possible the gospel incorporates a source written by the disciple.[12][13][10] Most scholars think Matthew used theGospel of Mark and the hypothetical sayings GospelQ (which consists of the material Matthew shares in common withLuke),[14][15] and is the product of the second generation of the Christian movement, although it draws on the memory of the first generation of thedisciples of Jesus.[16][17] Alternative hypotheses that posit direct use of Matthew by Luke or vice versa without Q are increasing in popularity within scholarship.[18][19]
Papyrus𝔓4, fragment of a flyleaf with the title of the Gospel of Matthew,ευαγγελιον κ̣ατ̣α μαθ᾽θαιον,euangelion kata Maththaion. Dated to late 2nd or early 3rd century, it is the earliest manuscript title for Matthew.
According to church tradition originating withPapias of Hierapolis (c. 60–130 AD),[20] it was written by Matthew, the companion of Jesus, but the large majority view the gospel as an anonymous composition instead,[10][9] though the "traditional authorship still has its defenders."[21] It is possible that the gospel incorporates a lost prior source attributable to Matthew.[13][22][11] Most modern scholars hold that it was written in the last quarter of the first century by a male Jew who stood on the margin between traditional and nontraditional Jewish values and who was familiar with technical legal aspects of scripture being debated in his time.[23][24][b] Others scholars, such asN. T. Wright[25] andJohn Wenham,[26] hold there are problems with dating Matthew late in the first century, and argue that it was written in the 40s–50s AD.[c] Whether the Gospels were composed before or after 70 AD, according to Bas van Os, the lifetime of various eyewitnesses that includes Jesus's own family through the end of theFirst Century is very likely statistically.[27]Markus Bockmuehl finds this structure of lifetime memory in various early Christian traditions.[28]
The majority of scholars believe that Mark was thefirst gospel to be composed and that Matthew and Luke both drew upon it as a major source for their works.[15][29] The author did not simply copy Mark but used it as a base, emphasizingJesus's place in the Jewish tradition and including details not found in Mark.[30] This does not necessarily show a linear approach of continual development and addition only, as some of whatPaul the Apostle says is more similar to Matthew's details.[31][32] Matthew could have depended on Mark through oral tradition or used memorization rather than simply copying.[33][34] Alan Kirk praises Matthew for his "scribal memory competence" and "his high esteem for and careful handling of both Mark and Q", which makes claims the latter two works are significantly different in terms of theology or historical reliability dubious.[35][36]
Matthew has 600 verses in common with Mark, which is a book of only 661 verses. There are approximately 220 verses shared by Matthew and Luke but not found in Mark. TheTwo-source hypothesis considers this a second source, a hypothetical collection of sayings which scholars refer to asQ.[37][38][14] This view allows for a further body of tradition known as theM Source. This may represent a separate source, or it may come from the author's church, or he may have composed these verses himself.[29]Michael Goulder argued that virtually all non-Markan material in Matthew were authorial creations, but modern advocates of the Farrer hypothesis have abandoned the idea that Matthew invented most of the content in the double tradition.[39] A growing number of scholars support alternative hypotheses, such as theFarrer hypothesis and theMatthean Posteriority hypothesis, which argue for Luke's direct usage of Matthew and Matthew's dependence on Luke, respectively, and dispense with Q.[40][41] The author also had the Greek scriptures at his disposal, both as book-scrolls (Greek translations ofIsaiah, thePsalms etc.) and in the form of "testimony collections" (collections of excerpts), and the oral stories of his community.[42] Many of the quotations of the scriptures in Matthew are more closely matched with theMasoretic,[43] leading many scholars to believe that the author could understandHebrew.[44]
Most scholars view the gospel of Matthew as a work of the second generation of Christians, though it draws on the memory of the first generation of Jesus's disciples.[45] For these early Christians the defining event was thedestruction of Jerusalem and theTemple by the Romans in 70 AD in the course of theFirst Jewish–Roman War (66–73 AD); from this point on, what had begun with Jesus of Nazareth as a Jewishmessianic movement became an increasingly gentile phenomenon which would evolve in time into a separate religion.[17] The author appears to have written for a community of Greek-speaking Jewish Christians located probably in Syria;Antioch, the largest city in Roman Syria and the third largest city in the empire, is often proposed.[46] Other scholars hold that thehistorical Jesus had already predicted that the Jerusalem Temple would be destroyed.[47]
The community to which Matthew belonged, like many 1st-century Christians, was still part of the larger Jewish community.[48] The relationship of Matthew to this wider world of Judaism remains a subject of study and contention, the principal question being to what extent, if any, Matthew's community had cut itself off from its Jewish roots.[49] It is evident from the gospel that there was conflict between Matthew's group and other Jewish groups, and it is generally agreed that the root of the conflict was the Matthew community's belief in Jesus as the Messiah and authoritative interpreter of the law, as one risen from the dead and uniquely endowed with divine authority.[50]
The divine nature of Jesus was a major issue for the Matthaean community, the crucial element separating theearly Christians from their Jewish neighbors; while Mark begins withJesus's baptism andtemptations, Matthew goes back to Jesus's origins, showing him as theSon of God from his birth, the fulfillment ofmessianic prophecies of theOld Testament.[51] The titleSon of David, used exclusively in relation to miracles, identifies Jesus as the healing and miracle-working Messiah of Israel sent to Israel alone.[52] AsSon of Man he will return to judge the world, an expectation which his disciples recognize but of which his enemies are unaware.[53] AsSon of God, God is revealing himself through his son, and Jesus proving his sonship through his obedience and example.[54]
Unlike Mark, Matthew never bothers to explain Jewish customs, since his intended audience was a Jewish one; unlike Luke, who traces Jesus's ancestry back to Adam, father of the human race, he traces it only to Abraham, father of the Jews. Burkett argues that "M" consists of material from his own community that strictly kept toJewish law and refers to a "church" (ecclesia), an organized group with rules for keeping order.[55] According to Senior, M may represent a separate source, material from the author's church, or his own composition.[29] Writing from within a Jewish-Christian community growing increasingly distant from other Jews and becoming increasingly gentile in its membership and outlook, Matthew put down in his gospel his vision "of an assembly or church in which both Jew and Gentile would flourish together".[56]
Matthew, alone among the gospels, alternates five blocks of narrative with five of discourse, marking each off with the phrase "When Jesus had finished"[57] (seeFive Discourses of Matthew). Some scholars see in this a deliberate plan to create a parallel to the first five books of the Old Testament; others see a three-part structure based around the idea of Jesus asMessiah, a set of weekly readings spread out over the year, or no plan at all.[58] Davies and Allison, in their widely used commentary, draw attention to the use of "triads" (the gospel groups things in threes),[59] andR. T. France, in another influential commentary, notes the geographic movement fromGalilee to Jerusalem and back, with the post-resurrection appearances in Galilee as the culmination of the whole story.[60] An 'eleven' sectioned structure is also recognized, where the sections alternate between narrative and teachings in a 1,2,3,4,5,C,5',4',3',2',1' arrangement (and the parables of the Kingdom take central place). In this reading, the sections comprise 'fourteens' of units of text, where in the first and last units of the gospel the writer provides these numbers, 'threes', 'fourteens' and 'eleven', as a reading check.[61]
Prologue: genealogy, Nativity and infancy (Matthew 1–2)
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the words "The Book of Genealogy [in Greek, 'Genesis'] of Jesus Christ", deliberately echoing the words of Genesis 2:4[62] in theSeptuagint.[d] The genealogy tells of Jesus's descent fromAbraham andKing David and the miraculous events surroundinghis virgin birth,[e] and the infancy narrative tells of themassacre of the innocents, theflight into Egypt, and eventual journey toNazareth.
First narrative and Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 3:1–8:1)
Following the genealogy, birth and infancy of Jesus, the first narrative section begins.John the Baptist baptizes Jesus, and the Holy Spirit descends upon him. Jesus prays and meditates in the wilderness for forty days, and is tempted bySatan. His early ministry by word and deed in Galilee meets with much success, and leads to theSermon on the Mount, the first of the discourses. The sermon presents the ethics of thekingdom of God, introduced by theBeatitudes ("Blessed are..."). It concludes with a reminder that the response to the kingdom will have eternal consequences, and the crowd's amazed response leads into the next narrative block.[63]
From the authoritative words of Jesus, the gospel turns to three sets of threemiracles interwoven with two sets of twodiscipleship stories (the second narrative), followed by a discourse on mission and suffering.[64] Jesus commissions theTwelve Disciples and sends them to preach to the Jews, perform miracles, and prophesy the imminent coming of the Kingdom, commanding them to travel lightly, without staff or sandals.[65]
Third narrative and discourse (Matthew 11:2–13:53)
Opposition to Jesus comes to a head with an accusation put forward by the Pharisees that his deeds are done through the power of Satan.[66] Jesus in turn accuses his opponents ofblaspheming the Holy Spirit. The discourse is a set ofparables emphasizing the sovereignty of God, and concluding with a challenge to the disciples to understand the teachings as scribes of theKingdom of Heaven.[67] (Matthew avoids using theholy word God in the expression "Kingdom of God"; instead he prefers the term "Kingdom of Heaven", reflecting the Jewish tradition of not speaking the name of God).[68]
Fourth narrative and discourse (Matthew 13:54–19:1)
The fourth narrative section reveals that the increasing opposition to Jesus will result inhis crucifixion in Jerusalem, and that his disciples must therefore prepare for his absence.[69] The instructions for the post-crucifixion church emphasize responsibility and humility. This section contains the twofeedings of the multitude (Matthew 14:13–21[70] and 15:32–39)[71] along with the narrative in which Simon, newly renamed Peter (Πέτρος,Petros, 'stone'), calls Jesus "the Christ, the son of the living God", and Jesus states that on this "bedrock" (πέτρα,petra) he will build hischurch (Matthew 16:13–19).[72]
Jesus travels toward Jerusalem, and the opposition intensifies: he is tested by the Pharisees as soon as he begins to move toward the city, and when he arrives he is soon in conflict with the Temple's traders and religious leaders. He teaches in the Temple, debating with the chief priests and religious leaders and speaking in parables about the Kingdom of God and the failings of the chief priests and the Pharisees. TheHerodian caucus also becomes involved in a scheme to entangle Jesus,[73] but Jesus's careful response to their enquiry, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's", leaves them marveling at his words.[74]
The disciples ask about the future, and in his final discourse (theOlivet Discourse) Jesus speaks of the coming end.[75] There will be false Messiahs, earthquakes, and persecutions, the sun, moon, and stars will fail, but "this generation" will not pass away before all the prophecies are fulfilled.[65] The disciples must steel themselves for ministry to all the nations. At the end of the discourse, Matthew notes that Jesus has finished all his words, and attention turns to the crucifixion.[75]
Conclusion: Passion, Resurrection and Great Commission (Matthew 26:2–28:20)
The events of Jesus's last week occupy a third of the content of all four gospels.[76] Jesusenters Jerusalem in triumph and drives the money changers from the Temple, holds aLast Supper, prays to be spared the coming agony (but concludes "if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done"), and is betrayed. He is tried by the Jewish leaders (theSanhedrin) and beforePontius Pilate, and Pilate washes his hands to indicate that he does not assume responsibility. Jesus is crucified as king of the Jews,mocked by all. On his death there is an earthquake, the veil of the Temple is rent, and saints rise from their tombs.Mary Magdalene andanother Mary discover the empty tomb, guarded by anangel, and Jesus himself tells them to tell the disciples to meet him in Galilee.
After the resurrection the remaining disciples return to Galilee, "to the mountain that Jesus had appointed", where he comes to them and tells them that he has been given "all authority in heaven and on Earth." He gives the Great Commission: "Therefore go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you". Jesus will be with them "to the very end of the age".[77]
Christology is the theological doctrine of Christ, "the affirmations and definitions of Christ's humanity and deity".[78] There are a variety of Christologies in the New Testament, albeit with a single centre—Jesus is the figure in whom God has acted for mankind's salvation.[79]
According toChristopher Tuckett, Matthew has taken key Christological texts from Mark, but has sometimes changed the stories found in Mark, giving evidence of his own concerns.[80] James Barker argues that older scholarship has exaggerated the importance of the evangelists’ theological aims, with ancient rhetoric explaining many differences in the gospels instead.[81] The titleSon of David identifies Jesus as the healing and miracle-working Messiah of Israel (it is used exclusively in relation to miracles), and the Jewish messiah is sent to Israel alone.[52] AsSon of Man he will return to judge the world, a fact his disciples recognize but of which his enemies are unaware.[53] AsSon of God he is namedImmanuel ('God with us'),[82] God revealing himself through his son, and Jesus proving his sonship through his obedience and example.[54]
Matthew's prime concern was that the Jewish tradition should not be lost in a church that was increasingly becoming gentile.[5] This concern lies behind the frequent citations of Jewish scripture, the evocation of Jesus as the new Moses along with other events from Jewish history, and the concern to present Jesus as fulfilling, not destroying, the Law.[83] Matthew must have been aware of the tendency to distort Paul's teaching of the law no longer having power over the New Testament Christian intoantinomianism, and addressed Christ's fulfilling of what the Israelites expected from the "Law and the Prophets" in an eschatological sense, in that he was all that the Old Testament had predicted in the Messiah.[84]
The gospel has been interpreted as reflecting the struggles and conflicts between the evangelist's community and the other Jews, particularly with its sharp criticism of the scribes and Pharisees.[7] It tells how Israel'sMessiah, rejected and executed in Israel, pronounces judgment on Israel and its leaders and becomes the salvation of thegentiles.[85] Prior to the crucifixion of Jesus, the Jews are referred to asIsraelites—the honorific title of God's chosen people. After it, they are calledIoudaios (Jews), a sign that—due to their rejection of the Christ—the "Kingdom of Heaven" has been taken away from them and given instead to the church.[8]
The divine nature of Jesus was a major issue for the community of Matthew, the crucial element marking them from their Jewish neighbors. Early understandings of this nature grew as the gospels were being written. Before the gospels, that understanding was focused on the revelation of Jesus as God in his resurrection, but the gospels reflect a broadened focus extended backwards in time.[51]
According to Beaton, Matthew is a creative reinterpretation of Mark.[86]Mark Goodacre writes that Matthew does not “vanquish or supplant” Mark but understands his predecessor correctly in key ways.[87] Michael Barber argues that Matthew provides a plausible portrayal of Jesus, whileDale Allison finds Matthean interpretation and redaction of Mark as a path instead of an obscurement of theHistorical Jesus.[88] Matthew stresses Jesus's teachings as much as his acts,[89] and makes subtle changes in order to stress his divine nature: for example, Mark's "young man" who appears at Jesus's tomb becomes "a radiant angel" in Matthew.[90] The miracle stories in Mark do not demonstrate the divinity of Jesus, but rather confirm his status as an emissary of God (which was Mark's understanding of the Messiah).[91]
There is a disagreement over chronology between theSynoptics and John: Matthew, Mark and Luke feature one trip to Jerusalem at the end of Jesus’ ministry, where there is anincident in the Temple, climaxing with the crucifixion on the day of thePassover holiday.John puts the Temple incident early in Jesus's ministry, has several trips to Jerusalem, and puts the crucifixion before the Passover, on the day when the lambs for the Passover meal were being sacrificed.[92][93] Dale Allison is inclined to favor John’s chronology, though with caution,[93] whileSanders defends the shorter Synoptic timeline.[94] However, there are also verses such as Mark 14:49 and Matthew 23:37 that are often viewed as hints of a longer ministry.[93] Ancient writing practices involved such chronological displacement and changes, with even reliable biographers includingPlutarch displaying them.[95]
The early patristic scholars regarded Matthew as the earliest of the gospels and placed it first in the canon, and the early Church mostly quoted from Matthew, secondarily from John, and only distantly from Mark.[96]
^The book is sometimes called theGospel according to Matthew (Greek:Κατὰ Ματθαῖον/Μαθθαῖον Εὐαγγέλιον,romanized: Katà Mat(h)thaîon Euangélion), or simplyMatthew.[2] It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt."[3]
^This view is based on three arguments: (a) the setting reflects the final separation of Church and Synagogue, about 85 AD; (b) it reflects the capture of Jerusalem and destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 AD; (c) it uses Mark, usually dated around 70 AD, as a source. (SeeR. T. France (2007),The Gospel of Matthew, p. 18.) France himself is not convinced by the majority—see his Commentary, pp. 18–19. Allison adds that "Ignatius of Antioch, the Didache, and Papias—all from the first part of the second century—show knowledge of Matthew, which accordingly must have been composed before 100 CE. (See e.g. Ign., Smyrn. 1; Did. 8.2.)" See Dale Allison, "Matthew" in Muddiman and Barton's The Gospels (Oxford Bible Commentary), Oxford 2010, p. 27.
^Wenham holds that later dates are based on (a) a belief that the apocalyptic passages in the Synoptics refer to past events rather than future; and (b) a misreading of Irenaeus as claiming that Matthew wrote after Peter and Paul preached in Rome.
^France, p. 26 note 1, and p. 28: "The first two words of Matthew's gospel are literally "book of genesis".
^France, p. 28 note 7: "All MSS and versions agree in making it explicit that Joseph was not Jesus' father, with the one exception of sys, which reads "Joseph, to whom was betrothed Mary the virgin, begot Jesus."
^Wright, N. T.; Bird, Michael F. (2019).The New Testament in its world: an introduction to the history, literature, and theology of the first Christians. London : Grand Rapids, Michigan: SPCK; Zondervan Academic. pp. 582–584.ISBN978-0310499329.OCLC1128988591.
^Hurtado, Larry (2013). "Interactive Diversity: A Proposed Model of Christian Origins".The Journal of Theological Studies.64 (2):445–462.doi:10.1093/jts/flt063.
^Ferda, Tucker (2024).Jesus and His Promised Second Coming: Jewish Eschatology and Christian Origins. Eerdmans. pp. 521–522.ISBN9780802879905.
^Derico, Travis (2018).Oral Tradition and Synoptic Verbal Agreement: Evaluating the Empirical Evidence for Literary Dependence. Pickwick Publications, an Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers. pp. 368–369.ISBN978-1620320907.
^Kirk, Alan (2019).Q in Matthew: Ancient Media, Memory, and Early Scribal Transmission of the Jesus Tradition. T&T Clark. pp. 148–183.ISBN978-0567686541.
^Kirk, Alan (2019).Q in Matthew: Ancient Media, Memory, and Early Scribal Transmission of the Jesus Tradition. T&T Clark. pp. 298–306.ISBN978-0567686541.
^Rodriguez, Rafael (2017). "Matthew as Performer, Tradent, Scribe".Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus.15 (2–3): 203.doi:10.1163/17455197-01502003.
^Ferda, Tucker (2020). "Doubling Down: Zechariah's Oracle, Judah's Blessing, and the Triumphal Entry in Matthew".The Journal of Theological Studies. New Series.71 (2):466–512.doi:10.1093/jts/flaa088.
^Goodacre, Mark (2008).Biblical Interpretation in Early Christian Gospels. T&T Clark. pp. 74, 84.ISBN978-0567041944.
^Allison, Dale C. Jr. (2023). Foreword.The Historical Jesus and the Temple: Memory, Methodology and the Gospel of Matthew. By Barber, Michael Patrick. Cambridge University Press. pp. x, 238.ISBN978-1-009-21085-0.
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