Matthew

About Matthew

Matthew tells the story of Jesus for readers steeped in the Old Testament, opening with a genealogy that ties Him to Abraham and David and repeatedly showing how His life fulfills the prophets. It gathers Jesus' teaching into five great blocks, including the Sermon on the Mount, and presents Him as Immanuel, God with us, and the promised King. Standing first in the New Testament, Matthew is the bridge between the two testaments, ending with the risen Jesus sending His followers to make disciples of all nations.

Written by

Early church tradition names Matthew, the tax collector who became one of the twelve apostles, as the author, though the Gospel itself is anonymous and many scholars hold the question open.

When

Most scholars date Matthew between about AD 60 and 90, with some arguing for a date before the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70 and others after.

Themes

• Jesus fulfills the Old Testament
• The kingdom of heaven
• Jesus the promised King
• The Sermon on the Mount
• Making disciples of all nations

Key verses

• Matthew 1:21-23And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
• Matthew 5:17¶ Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
• Matthew 28:18-20And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. ¶ Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.