Through The Bible

Session #31 – Matthew’s Gospel

October 15, 2003

General Comments on Gospels

In reading or interpreting any writing (ancient or modern), the first step is always to determine what kind or genre of writing it is. [1]

• You don’t read poems like you do history books.

• You read novels with certain expectations (i.e., great story!).

• The same principle applies in reading the biblical story – and in this case, the Gospels.

Gospel Questions:

• What is a Gospel?

• What kind of writing is it?

• Are they intended to be accurate historical records of the life of Jesus?

• Are they theological truths presented in a narrative (story) framework?

• Were the Gospel writers simply compilers of stories or were they authors who shaped the stories?

Major Assumption of the Gospels…

• They are accurate records of the life of Jesus, perhaps from eyewitnesses.

Four different ways of looking at the Gospels…

1. The Gospels are historically reliable records or biographies. This view dominated the 19^th century.

2. The Gospels are a collection of stories that were shaped by the Christian community. This view became popular in early 20^th century.

3. The Gospels are proclamation and not intended to be accurate records of the past.

4. The Gospels are stories written by authors with carefully worked out dramatic plots.

• These four different ways don’t have to be mutually exclusive! Perhaps the best solution is to think of the Gospels as a combination of the four.

The Gospels have two concerns:

1. To tell the story of Jesus.

2. Spell out the significance of Jesus after Easter. [2]

So what are the Gospels?

They seem to be a new genre in which story and significance are held in tension with one another. You not only get the story, but in the story are reasons why the details are important.

Matthew’s Gospel

If Mark was written first, then why is Matthew first in our Bible?

· Matthew has long been the most-used Gospel and its dominant use is the most likely reason for its placement in the canon.

• So, why is Matthew used more widely and extensively than any other Gospel?

Ø Matthew has ordered his Gospel very effectively.

Ø Some of Matthean phrasing is very memorable – i.e., Sermon on the Mount – Matthew 5-7.

Ø Matthew is half again as long as Mark so it contains many more sayings of Jesus.

Ø Matthew widely considered being a disciple of Jesus.

Ø Matthew extensively uses the Old Testament.

Ø Matthew is considered to be the ‘most Jewish’ of the Gospels yet he is also very universalist in some of his wording (Mt. 24.14). Matthew is Jewish, anti-Jewish, and pro-Gentile at the same time! For this reason, Matthew is comprehensive with a wide appeal.

Matthew’s structure

• The entire Gospel of Matthew is framed between the angelic announcement in 1.23, “…his name shall be called Immanuel, which means ‘God with us,’” and the messianic announcement in 28.20, “…lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.”

• The Structure of Matthew dominated by five lengthy sections (excluding the introduction and conclusion)…interspersed with shorter collections of sayings.

Ø Introduction in two parts:

a. Infancy narratives (Matthew 1-2).

Ø It’s interesting to note the genealogy listed in Matthew 1. Two things come to mind: (a) there are women listed in the genealogy and that normally wasn’t done in this culture. The men were usually just listed; and (b) the women listed were not Jewish possibly pointing to Matthew’s message that salvation was for all people.

Ø In 1:17 we have three sets of fourteen generations. Why the breakdown of three sets of fourteen names? One suggestion has been that in Hebrew, each letter of the alphabet has a numerical value in addition to a spelling value. The Hebrew value of ‘David’ is fourteen and so Matthew may be underlining that Jesus was from David’s line.

b. Preaching of John the Baptist (Matthew 3-4).

Ø 1^st major section: Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).

Ø 2^nd major section: Mission discourse (Matthew 10).

§ Matthew 12:25-45 Jesus heals the demoniac, trees known by their fruit, and the sign of Jonah.

Ø 3^rd major section: Collection of Parables (Matthew 13).

§ Matthew 16:21-28 Jesus’ foretelling of his death.

Ø 4^th major section: Instructions for the Community (Matthew 18).

§ Matthew 19:23-30 Jesus’ teaching on what’s possible for God.

§ Matthew 21:28-22:14 Jesus’ kingdom of God teachings.

Ø 5^th major section: Teachings about the future (Matthew 24-25).

Ø Conclusion to the life of Christ: Passion narratives (Matthew 26-28).

General Comments about the different sections of Matthew:

1. At the end of the first four sections (7.28; 11.1; 13.53; and 19.1) the same wording is used to mark the transition from one section to the next. The wording is similar to this statement, “Now when Jesus had finished saying these things…” At the end of the last section, the pattern concludes with Jesus saying, “When Jesus had finished saying all these things…” (the underlining of ‘all’ is my own.).

2. Some have suggested there’s a parallel between Matthew’s five major sections and the first five books of the Old Testament – the Pentateuch. Some have said that Matthew has given his Christian community the messianic equivalent of the Torah. While it may go too far to say that Matthew is providing the church with a new Moses or a new Torah, his Gospel does define Jesus and the church by using symbols familiar to Jewish Christians.

3. The tension between the Jews and Jewish Christians of Matthew’s day reminded Christians, of all types, of the older and better established Jewish tradition. This reminder helped the Christians wrestle with why they worshipped in the way they did and not down the street in the synagogue.

Ø The church Matthew addresses may not have been all Jewish-Christian. But the church does seem to need to define itself in terms of the more dominant Jewish movement. This accounts for the Jewish tone and the hostility toward Jews we see.

Matthew’s relationship to the other Gospels

Ø Graham N. Stanton has said we should think about Matthew as a much expanded and revised 2^nd edition of Mark.

Ø Of Mark’s 662 verses, about 612 of them are found in Matthew.

Ø Matthew has about 230 verses that are in Luke but not in Mark.

Ø Only in Matthew is the word ‘church’ used (16:18; 18:17).

Ø Matthew shortens all of Mark’s narratives, generally needing a third fewer words to tell a parallel story (e.g., Mark 5:1-20 and Matthew 8:28-34).

Ø An example of how Matthew and other Gospel writers use similar stories for a different emphasis: In Luke 15:3-7 the parable of the lost sheep speaks of God’s love for those on the margins of society where in Matthew 18:12-14 the parable is used to encourage Christians to care for the straying member of the community.

Why was Matthew written?

Ø It’s similar to the reason why Mark was written: to set out fully the writer’s understanding and significance of Jesus.

Ø Matthew’s primary purpose is not to lay down a historical record but to address the followers of his own day. Living as the ethical and righteous followers of Jesus seem to be prominent concern.

Ø Matthew writes as a pastor.

Ø One of the distinctive feature of Matthew is the strong anti-Jewish tone.

o Matthew 23 has seven strongly worded woes addressed to the scribes and Pharisees. See especially 23:31ff.

o Judaism as a whole seems to be rejected by Matthew (Matthew 23:37ff).

o Why would Matthew say such harsh things about the Jewish faith? More than likely, Matthew’s community recently parted company completely with Judaism after a period of prolonged hostility.

o The way Matthew phrases and emphasizes his anti-Jewish tone, it seems he, and his community, have felt deeply hurt by the Jews and their strong tone seeks to justify their position.

When was Matthew written?

Ø We think Mark was written shortly after AD 70. If Mark was written first (and most believe it was) then Matthew was written sometime later.

o Some scholars feel the parable of the wedding feast reflects the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. The parable tells how the king (God) has repeatedly sent his servants (the prophets) with an invitation to a marriage feast. Those invited spurned the invitation; some reject and kill the servants. So the king sent troops and destroyed them. Here, the destruction of Jerusalem is linked with Israel’s rejection of Jesus.

Ø Dates between AD 80 and AD 100 seem most probable.

o In AD 115, Matthew 3:15 is cited by Ignatius, the Bishop of Antioch, in his letter to the Smyrneans.

o Since Matthew was known and used in Antioch in AD 115, some have suggested it was written in that city.

o Matthew also used by the Didache, a Christian writing which may have originated in Syria around AD 100.

Who wrote Matthew?

Ø Since the early 2^nd century, Matthew’s name has been attached to the Gospel.

Ø Was it Matthew, the tax collector of Matthew 10:3? It could be but if it was this Matthew, would he have had to rely so heavily on Mark’s Gospel to shape his own? If he were an eyewitness to as many things as the tax collector saw, wouldn’t he have shaped his own Gospel more distinctly?

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[1] Graham N. Stanton, The Gospels and Jesus (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989).

[2] Graham N. Stanton, The Gospels and Jesus (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), p. 29.