Matthew
The King and His kingdom: Jesus is Israel’s promised Messiah, the Son of David, offered to the nation and rejected.
Matthew stands at the head of the New Testament as the bridge from the Old. Its first verse—“The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham”—connects Jesus to the two great covenants of Israel’s history. Matthew quotes or alludes to the Old Testament more than any other Gospel and repeatedly says, “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet.”
Everything in Matthew presents a King. Wise men come seeking Him that is born King of the Jews; John the Baptist announces that the kingdom of heaven is at hand; the King issues the constitution of His kingdom in the Sermon on the Mount; He displays His credentials in miracles and sends the twelve to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. But the leaders reject Him, attributing His works to Beelzebub (chapter 12). From that point He speaks in parables of the kingdom in its mystery form (13), turns toward the cross, and pronounces woes on the scribes and Pharisees (23).
The book ends with the rejected King risen from the dead, claiming all power in heaven and in earth, and sending His disciples to all nations. The kingdom offered to Israel was postponed, not cancelled; the King will return in power and glory to sit on the throne of His glory (25:31).
Writer: Matthew, also called Levi
Written: Probably in the AD 60s, before the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.
Name: Matthew means gift of God.
Title and authorship
Matthew (Maththaios) means “gift of God” or “gift of Jehovah.” He is called Levi in the parallel accounts (Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27).
Matthew, a publican called from the receipt of custom, wrote the Gospel bearing his name. The title and the unanimous testimony of believers from the beginning attribute it to him. As a tax collector he was trained in keeping accurate and detailed records, and his personal association with Christ fitted him to write it.
Historical background
Judea and Galilee under Roman rule and Herodian kings, from the birth of Christ about 5–4 BC to His resurrection and commission about AD 33. The Gospel was probably written in the AD 60s, before the destruction of Jerusalem; phrases such as “unto this day” (27:8; 28:15) show some time had passed.
Jewish readers familiar with the Old Testament, shown that Jesus is the promised King; the final commission reaches to all nations.
Herod the Great
Herod, an Idumean made king of the Jews by Rome, ruled from 37 to 4 BC. He rebuilt the temple on a grand scale and murdered even members of his own family when he felt threatened. His massacre of Bethlehem’s infants fits his known character. Since he died in 4 BC, Christ was born about 5–4 BC.
Publicans
Tax collectors bought the right to collect Roman taxes and profited by charging more. Jews regarded them as traitors and extortioners and ranked them with sinners and harlots. That Christ called Matthew from the tax booth to be an apostle shows the reach of His grace.
Parties in Israel
Four groups opposed the kingdom in different ways: the Pharisees, strict legalists (“go back”); the Sadducees, priestly aristocrats who denied the resurrection (“go ahead”); the Essenes, separatists who withdrew into the wilderness (“go away”); and the Zealots, political activists (“go against”).
Key passages
Matthew 1:1
Son of David (the throne) and son of Abraham (the promise): the King and the Seed.
Matthew 23:37–39
Jerusalem’s rejection, and the King’s promise that they will see Him again when they say, “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
Matthew 28:18–20
The risen King, possessing all power, commissions His disciples to teach all nations.
Outline
1–4 · The King presented
Genealogy, birth, baptism, and temptation establish Jesus’ identity and credentials.
5–10 · The King’s authority
Kingdom teaching, mighty works, and the sending of the Twelve display his authority.
11–25 · Rejection and kingdom instruction
Opposition intensifies; parables and prophetic teaching explain the kingdom and the King’s return.
26–28 · The King crucified and risen
The passion and resurrection lead to the commission to make disciples.
Original language
βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν (basileia ton ouranon, G932) — “kingdom of heaven”
Found 32 times, only in Matthew. It is the literal, physical kingdom promised in the Old Testament, when heaven rules on earth through the Son of David (Daniel 2:44; 7:14). It is distinguished from the kingdom of God, which is spiritual and entered by the new birth (John 3:3; Romans 14:17).
Χριστός (Christos, G5547) — “Christ”
“Anointed,” the Greek translation of the Hebrew Mashiach. Peter’s confession, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (16:16), is the turning point of the disciples’ understanding.
πληρόω (pleroo, G4137) — “fulfil”
To fill up or complete. Matthew’s formula “that it might be fulfilled” appears about a dozen times, showing that Jesus’ life filled up what the prophets had written.
ἐκκλησία (ekklesia, G1577) — “church”
A called-out assembly. Matthew alone among the Gospels uses the word, in 16:18 (future: “I will build my church”) and 18:17. The Church was yet future when Christ spoke.
Ἐμμανουήλ (Emmanouel, G1694) — “Emmanuel”
“God with us,” from Isaiah 7:14. Matthew opens with God with us (1:23) and closes with “I am with you alway” (28:20).
Doctrinal study
The offer and postponement of the kingdom
John the Baptist, Jesus, and the twelve all preached “the kingdom of heaven is at hand” to Israel (3:2; 4:17; 10:7). When the nation’s leaders rejected the King (12:24), He turned to parables explaining the kingdom in its mystery form during His absence (13:11). The disciples’ question in Acts 1:6 shows they still expected a literal kingdom, and Christ did not deny it—only its timing.
The Olivet discourse
Matthew 24–25 answers the disciples’ questions about the destruction of the temple, the sign of Christ’s coming, and the end of the world. The abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:27), the great tribulation, and the Son of man coming in the clouds describe the seventieth week and the Second Coming. The discourse is addressed to Israel in the land (“flee into the mountains”).
Rightly dividing Matthew
Matthew is transitional. Some instructions were for Israel under the Law and the kingdom offer (10:5–6; 23:2–3), some anticipate the Tribulation (24:13), and some are timeless. Church doctrine should not be pulled from Matthew without comparing it with the epistles written to the Church.
Commentary notes
The kingdom from start to finish
A King’s genealogy (1); wise men seeking a King (2); a king (Herod) seeking to kill Him (2:16); a forerunner announcing the kingdom (3); the kingdoms of the world offered by the devil (4:8); the constitution of the kingdom (5–7); the credentials of the King (8–9); the King’s ambassadors (10); the King rejected (11–12); the kingdom in mystery (13); the King’s title on the cross (27:37); and the King risen with all power (28).
Five discourses
Matthew arranges Christ’s teaching in five great discourses, each ending with “when Jesus had finished these sayings”: the Sermon on the Mount (5–7), the mission of the twelve (10), the parables (13), the discourse on humility and forgiveness (18), and the Olivet discourse (24–25).
Women in the genealogy
Matthew’s genealogy names four women besides Mary: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba (“her that had been the wife of Urias”). Sinners and Gentiles are found in the King’s line—a testimony to grace.
Christ in the book
- The Son of David, the King of the Jews (1:1; 2:2; 27:37)
- Emmanuel, God with us (1:23)
- The Son of man coming in the clouds (24:30; 26:64)
- The Judge seated on the throne of His glory (25:31)
Applications
Historical
- Matthew presents the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, the Jewish Messiah, from the perspective of a King: His birth, ministry, rejection, death, burial, and resurrection, and His commission to His followers.
- The narrative traces Jesus’ earthly ministry through the response of Israel and its leaders. Old Testament promises supply its historical background.
Doctrinal
- The plan and offer of the kingdom of heaven to Israel. Although Israel rejected the King and His kingdom, its “constitutional” details—the Sermon on the Mount, the Olivet discourse—will be in force when He returns. Matthew must be read with attention to the audience of each command.
- The kingdom of heaven is the promised earthly reign of the Messiah from David’s throne. Israel’s rejection of the King does not cancel God’s covenant purposes for the nation.
- Matthew’s position in the transition from the Old Testament calls for careful attention to the audience of each command and promise.
Devotional
- The Jews rejected their Messiah even though they possessed the Scriptures, because they trusted what they thought instead of what the Scriptures said. Every believer must guard against the same danger.
- Familiarity with Scripture carries a responsibility to receive its teaching obediently. Matthew’s account of opposition to Christ warns against allowing religious expectations to govern the interpretation of God’s word.
- The King’s authority claims obedience in character, service, and the making of disciples.
Answering the critics
Most scholars hold the “two-source” theory: Matthew copied Mark and a hypothetical sayings source called “Q,” and so the apostle Matthew was not the author.
No manuscript of “Q” has ever been found; it is a scholarly construction invented to explain the similarities between the Gospels. Bible believers give the Bible the benefit of the doubt and accept the unanimous testimony of the early believers that the publican Matthew wrote the Gospel bearing his name. Similar accounts are expected from eyewitnesses of the same events, guided by the same Spirit (John 14:26).