Matthew

Writer, date, and audience

The narrative never names its own writer. Church tradition associates the Gospel with the apostle Matthew. Papias, as preserved by Eusebius, spoke of sayings arranged in a Hebrew or Aramaic language, but whether that report describes the surviving Greek Gospel remains disputed. Many modern scholars regard the present work as the composition of an unnamed Jewish Christian who drew on Mark and reshaped other Jesus traditions. J. C. Fenton and F. W. Beare, quoted by Early Christian Writings, place its composition after Jerusalem's destruction in 70 CE; roughly 80–90 CE is a common proposed range. Earlier dating and the traditional attribution still have advocates.

The extant work is in Greek, yet it assumes considerable knowledge of Jewish scripture and custom. Its likely readers faced questions about how allegiance to Jesus related to Israel's inherited law and story. Some scholars propose Antioch in Syria as its place of composition, though the location cannot be proved from the text. Yale's study guide emphasizes the way episodes of Jesus' activity alternate with extended speeches. This pattern offers a community both a narrative of his life and sustained instruction for teaching, conduct, and mission.

The shape of twenty-eight chapters

Chapters 1–2 introduce Jesus through ancestry and childhood; 3–4 bring John the Baptist, baptism, testing, and the start of public activity. The Sermon on the Mount fills 5–7. Healing, calls to follow, and directions to the twelve occupy 8–10. Questions about Jesus and kingdom parables dominate 11–13. Chapters 14–18 move through signs, disputes, Peter's confession, and teaching for the community. The journey toward Jerusalem and arguments there run through 19–23; warnings about upheaval, watchfulness, and judgment follow in 24–25. Chapters 26–28 recount the meal, arrest, death, empty tomb, and final commission. The divisions follow this edition's complete set of twenty-eight chapters.

Narrative settings give each discourse its force. The teaching in chapters 5–7 is followed by encounters and healings; the mission speech of chapter 10 comes after a description of needy crowds; the instructions in chapter 18 follow a dispute about status. Treating the long speeches as isolated sayings would conceal how the author has placed them within a developing story.

Themes and places to read

Jesus' identity is tied to Israel's past in the genealogy at 1:1–17 and the scriptural reference at 2:15. The kingdom of heaven shapes the blessings at 5:3–12 and the small beginnings pictured in 13:31–33. The relationship between Jesus and Torah is explicit at 5:17–20, then tested by the interpretations that follow. Mercy becomes practical in 9:13 and 25:35–40, where attention to those in need matters. Community conflict and forgiveness appear together at 18:15–20 and 18:21–22. The risen Jesus widens the mission at 28:18–20.

The book's sharp disputes also require historical care. Chapter 23 attacks religious leaders, yet Matthew belongs to an argument about the meaning of Israel's law and the identity of its messiah. The polemic should be read as part of that setting, not turned into a verdict on Jewish people generally. Such care allows both the Gospel's Jewish roots and the tensions faced by its early readers to remain visible.

Summary by parts

1–2: The genealogy places Jesus in the lines of Abraham and David. The birth story then turns to Joseph, who decides what to do after receiving a dream. Visitors from the east seek the child and speak to Herod. Warned of the danger, they take another route home; Joseph takes the family to Egypt when Herod orders the killing of boys in Bethlehem. After Herod dies, further guidance brings them back, and they settle in Nazareth rather than Judea. Scriptural references frame these movements, while the plot also depicts the threat posed by a ruler to a vulnerable family (1:18–25; 2:13–22).

3–4: John calls people to repent and baptizes Jesus in the Jordan. Jesus then enters the wilderness and answers three temptations with words from scripture. Following John's arrest, he begins preaching in Galilee, calls fishermen to accompany him, and travels among the villages. He teaches, announces the kingdom, and heals many kinds of illness. The solitude of his testing gives way to crowds gathering from a broad area. These opening chapters establish both the claims made about his identity and the public work that will be described in the following episodes and speeches (3:13–17; 4:18–25).

5–7: Jesus teaches on a mountain, beginning with blessings for the poor in spirit, mourners, peacemakers, and those who suffer for righteousness. He calls his listeners salt and light, then discusses the Law through examples involving anger, oaths, retaliation, and enemies. Giving, prayer, and fasting are examined with attention to motives rather than display. Teaching about money and anxiety leads to warnings against careless judgment and empty profession. The closing images of paths, trees, and houses distinguish hearing from doing. The crowd's reaction brings the long speech to an end and returns the reader to Jesus' encounters on the road (5:3–12; 6:9–13; 7:24–29).

8–10: Coming down from the mountain, Jesus meets a leper, a centurion, and many sick people. A storm interrupts a lake crossing; other encounters involve possessed men, a paralytic, and a tax collector named Matthew. Shared meals and questions about fasting expose disagreement over his conduct. Further healings lead to a description of distressed crowds. Jesus appoints the twelve and sends them with directions about where to go, what to carry, and how to respond to welcome or rejection. The mission speech also anticipates persecution and urges courage. It ends by valuing even a cup of water given to one of the messengers (8:1–4; 9:35–38; 10:40–42).

11–13: Imprisoned John sends followers to ask whether Jesus is the expected one. Jesus points to what they see and hear. He then speaks about cities that have not responded and invites the burdened to come to him. Disputes over Sabbath conduct and healing deepen the conflict. When his family seeks him, he describes a family constituted by doing God's will. Beside the sea he tells stories of a sower, weeds, mustard seed, yeast, hidden treasure, a pearl, and a net. Some explanations are given privately to disciples. The return to his hometown ends with rejection, so questions about identity accompany the parables rather than disappearing after them (11:2–6; 12:46–50; 13:31–33).

14–18: News of John's death precedes a meal for a large crowd and a crossing during which Peter tries to walk on the water. Arguments about purity are followed by a Canaanite woman's request, healings, and another shared meal. Peter identifies Jesus as messiah but protests when Jesus predicts suffering. The transfiguration and a child's healing come before another prediction of death. A dispute over rank prompts Jesus to place a child among the disciples. He then speaks about seeking someone who strays, confronting a wrong within the community, and forgiving repeatedly. A story about a servant who refuses to forgive a debt closes the instruction (14:13–21; 16:13–23; 18:21–35).

19–23: On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus answers questions about marriage, welcomes children, and meets a wealthy questioner. Stories about laborers and teaching on service accompany another prediction of his death. After healing blind men, he enters Jerusalem, acts in the temple, and faces challenges to his authority. Stories about sons, tenant farmers, and wedding guests extend the dispute. Opponents ask about taxation and resurrection; another question concerns the greatest commandment. Jesus answers and later denounces the conduct of scribes and Pharisees before lamenting Jerusalem. These arguments take place within the Jewish world portrayed by the Gospel and should be read in that setting (19:13–15; 21:12–17; 22:34–40).

24–25: Leaving the temple, Jesus predicts its destruction. On the Mount of Olives he responds to questions about what lies ahead, naming conflict, deception, suffering, and signs while insisting on watchfulness. The contrast between a faithful servant and an abusive one makes waiting a question of conduct. Stories of bridesmaids with lamps and servants entrusted with property develop responsibility during an absence. In the final judgment scene, treatment of hungry, thirsty, displaced, sick, and imprisoned people distinguishes the groups. The speech joins expectation to action; it does not hand the reader a simple schedule of events (24:1–3; 25:14–30; 25:35–40).

26–28: Leaders plan Jesus' arrest, and Judas agrees to hand him over. A woman anoints Jesus; at the last meal he speaks of betrayal and death. In Gethsemane he prays while his companions sleep. He is arrested and questioned, and Peter denies him. Pilate turns him over for crucifixion, and the narrative follows his death and burial by Joseph of Arimathea in a guarded tomb. Women who come to the grave find it empty and receive news that Jesus has risen. The disciples finally meet him in Galilee and are commissioned to teach people of all nations. The closing words connect that mission with his continuing presence (26:26–29; 27:57–66; 28:16–20).

Reception

Christians received Matthew among the four New Testament Gospels. Its opening place in many Gospel collections and its extensive teaching material made it especially useful for communal reading and instruction. Scholars find indications that Christian writers in the early second century already knew it. Judaism does not receive it as part of the Hebrew Bible. Historically, however, its quotations and arguments illuminate the varied Jewish and Jesus-following communities of the first century.

Sources

• The Catholic Encyclopedia, Gospel of St. Matthew (1911).
• J. C. Fenton e F. W. Beare, reunidos por Early Christian Writings, Gospel of Matthew (1963–1981).
• Harold W. Attridge e Michal Beth Dinkler, The Gospel of Matthew, Yale Bible Study (2020).