Matthew - Introduction

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NEXT I. Genealogy, Birth, and Childhood (Matthew 1:1–2:23)

Introduction

Author

ALTHOUGH THE AUTHOR DIDN’T identify himself by name in the text, the title of this Gospel includes the name “Matthew” in the earliest existing manuscripts. In addition, several early church fathers (including Papias, Irenaeus, and Origen) attributed authorship to Matthew. Papias also said that Matthew originally wrote the Gospel in Hebrew (what we have today is in Greek).

Many critical scholars today deny that Matthew is the author. They claim that the Greek Matthew that we have does not look like it was translated from Hebrew. If Papias was wrong about that, they argue, he was probably wrong about who wrote it. But there are other scholars who think Matthew could be a Greek translation from Hebrew. Regardless, it wouldn’t necessarily mean Papias was wrong about authorship. The early church unanimously claimed that the apostle Matthew penned the Gospel that bears his name.

There is also internal evidence to support this—that is, evidence within the Gospel itself. Mark 2:14 and Luke 5:27 call the tax collector who became a disciple “Levi.” In Matthew 9:9-13, this man is named “Matthew.” Also, in 10:3, the apostle Matthew is identified as a tax collector, and it may be that he had two names like Simon / Peter.

Though we can’t be absolutely certain, it is best to trust the testimony of the early church and affirm that Matthew wrote this Gospel.

Background

Most—though not all—scholars today think that Matthew used Mark’s Gospel as one of his sources when composing his own Gospel. If this is true, Matthew must have been written after Mark. It is likely that Mark’s Gospel was written sometime in the 50s (see Background discussion on Mark’s Gospel). Matthew, then, could have been written any time beginning in the mid to late 50s. The church father Irenaeus, who wrote in the late second century, claimed that Matthew wrote his Gospel while Paul and Peter were preaching in Rome. This would have been in the early 60s.

Message and Purpose

Matthew was a tax collector, which means he was unpopular. He left everything to follow Jesus after he concluded that Jesus was the Messiah. Matthew was authorized to write the Gospel that bears his name, and its subject is very simple: it’s about the King and his kingdom. Matthew was introducing, especially to Jews, the message that God has sent his King, his Messiah, who would rule as his regent on earth by offering the kingdom to his people. In this sense Matthew is the culmination of all the Old Testament’s anticipation of the Messiah who would come.

The apostle’s concern was giving convincing proof that Jesus was the messianic King whom the Jews were anticipating and whom the world needs so desperately. That’s why he began with Jesus’s genealogy to establish his lineage through David. Matthew also presented Jesus’s kingdom discourses, teaching, and miracles as proof of his messianic claim.

The book winds to a disquieting moment, the crucifixion. If Jesus is the Messiah, how could he be put to death? Thankfully, the scene is followed by the resurrection and the announcement that the King is alive and coming back, and that his kingdom is in this world today. Jesus’s Great Commission at the end of Matthew’s Gospel (28:18-20) means that the book of Matthew is relevant for us as believers today.

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