The Gospel of Matthew
The author
• As with all of the gospels, Matthew’s is
anonymous—the writer does not identify
himself and the authorship is based on 2nd
century tradition.
• The author of Matthew’s gospel is traditionally
connected with Matthew the tax collector who
was one of Jesus’ twelve disciples (Matthew
9:9; 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13) and
is also called Levi (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27–29).
• Many early Church Fathers—including
Irenaeus, Pantaenus, Origen, and Epiphanius—
claimed that Matthew wrote his gospel in
Hebrew, and that it was later translated into
Greek. Eusebius of Caesarea, the 4th-century
Church historian, quotes Papias of Hierapolis,
the early 2nd-century Church Father:
“Matthew wrote the oracles in the Hebrew
language, iand every one interpreted them as he
was able.” Jerome, writing c. A.D. 392, claimed
that a copy of this Hebrew manuscript still
existed in the library at Caesarea.ii
• But there are good reasons think is our Gospel
of Matthew is not the same as the Hebrew book
these writers described. The Gospel itself has
none of the marks of a translation, and quotes
from the Greek version of the Old Testament
(the Septuagint), not the Hebrew. It also seems
very unlikely that an eyewitness to Jesus’
ministry would have copied so much material
from Mark’s gospel and another source that
Luke also used. Perhaps Papias and the other
early Christians were referring to a different
book written by Matthew in Hebrew, and not
gospel we have.
• The general view among scholars is that the
gospel of Matthew was composed by a Greek-
speaking, Jewish-Christian author, probably in
Syria or possibly in Palestine.
Date
• Since Matthew is dependant on Mark, and
Mark’s gospel was written A.D. 66–70, Matthew
has to come sometime after that.
• The general consensus is that Matthew was
written A.D. 85–90.
Themes
• Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecy. Matthew
lists about a dozen direct references to Jesus as
the realization of Old Testament prophecies
(1:22–23; 2:5–6, 15, 17–18, 23; 4:14–16; 8:17;
12:17–21; 13:14–15, 35; 21:4–5; 26:54, 56;
27:9–10).
• The kingdom of heaven. In Matthew Jesus
discourses frequently on God’s kingdom
coming in power. Jesus’ ministry begins and
ends with proclamations of the kingdom of
heaven (3:2; 4:17; 25:1, 14). Matthew is the
only New Testament writer to use the phrase
“kingdom of heaven” (which he does 32 times).
• The church. In Matthew’s gospel Jesus gathers
his people and prepares his apostles to lead
them when he is gone. The word “church”
appears in no other gospel but Matthew’s
(16:18; 18:17), and Matthew contains the only
discourse in the gospels on life and order in the
church (18:1–35).
• Discipleship. In Matthew Jesus teaches
frequently on the nature and calling of
discipleship. The word “disciple” appears 73
times in Matthew, nearly twice as much as it
does in Luke.
• The Law and morality. Matthew frequently
grapples with the relationship between the Law
of Moses and Jesus’ teachings, and the
moral/ethical requirements of being a follower
of Jesus.
Structure
Matthew’s gospel is divided into five books, each
with a narrative followed by a discourse that
concludes with a phrase like “when Jesus had ended
these sayings…” (7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1). The
infancy and atonement narratives serve as a
prologue to and climax of the book.
Prologue: Genealogy and infancy narrative (1:1–
2:23).
• Genealogy (1:1–17).
• Infancy narrative (1:18–2:23).
Book 1 (3:1–7:29).
• Narrative: Jesus’ preparation through baptism
and temptation (3:1–4:25).
• Discourse: The Sermon on the Mount (5:1–
7:29).
Book 2 (8:1–11:1).
• Narrative: Nine stories of Jesus’ miracles (8:1–
9:34).
• Discourse: Missionary instructions (9:35–11:1).
Book 3 (11:2–13:53).
• Narrative: Tension between Israel and Jesus
(11:2–12:50).
• Discourse: The parables of Jesus (13:1–53).
Book 4 (13:54–18:35).
• Narrative: Jesus is the Christ (13:54–17:27).
• Discourse: Instructions on life and order in the
church (18:1–35).
Book 5 (19:1–25:45).
• Narrative: The journey to Jerusalem and the
clash with Jewish authorities (19:1–23:39).
• Discourse: The eschatological sermon (24:1–
25:46).
Climax: Death, resurrection, and commission
(26:1–28:20).
• The crucifixion (26:1–27:66).
• The resurrection (28:1–15).
• The great commission (28:16–20).
Adapted from John P. Meier, “Matthew, Gospel of,” The
Anchor Bible Dictionary 4:622–41.
i
Historia Ecclesiastica 3:24:6; http://bit.ly/HistEccl3-24. See also 3.39:16; http://bit.ly/HistEccl3-39.
ii
De Viris Illustribus 3; http://bit.ly/DeVirIll.