Matthew writes his gospel to demonstrate that jesus is the messiah, that he has the right to the throne of david as israels true king, and that he is the ultimate fulfillment of gods promise to abraham that his descendants would be a blessing to all the world 1. Authorship of matthews gospel baker publishing group. Having taught that matthew the apostle wrote the first gospel, i find in a new bible that it is generally accepted by scholars today that the author. One valid translation of this passage says the meal took place at home. Pantaenus also confirmed that matthew was the author of the first gospel. Jan 02, 2020 humanly speaking, the bible was written by approximately 40 men of diverse backgrounds over the course of 1500 years. Over the course of the new few weeks, we will discuss the reasons for accepting the traditional viewpoints for new testament authorship. It is a message befitting to the jews soon after jesus death.
While the author of the gospel of matthew is not identified, tradition has long assigned authorship to matthew the apostle. His father, alpheaus probably the same clopas, n 628, was, according to eusebius, a brother to joseph e. The traditional authors of the canonical gospelsmatthew the tax collector, mark the attendant of peter, luke the attendant of paul, and john the son of zebedeeare doubted among the majority of mainstream new testament scholars. If the early fathers are writing about the origin of matthews gospel, they will most naturally mention the first edition in hebrew. The opening chapters describe events surrounding jesus birth in judea, where herod had been appointed king by the romans. Isaiah was a prophet, ezra was a priest, matthew was a taxcollector, john was a fisherman, paul was a tentmaker, moses was a shepherd, luke was a physician. Early christian tradition attributes it to the john mark mentioned in acts, but scholars generally reject this as an attempt to link. There is no evidence for this, but it is the consensus. As to the time of its composition, there is little in the gospel itself to. Jesus evidences the historical literary evidence for jesus. In terms of matthew apostle and evangelist expect to be surprised as to who actually authored the book of matthew along with the debate on the book s authorship that has transpired over the years. This particular argument is very subjective, as are the others.
Matthew was written to greekspeaking jewish christians. The author of matthew did not, however, simply copy mark, but used it as a base, emphasising jesus place in the jewish. Certainly the essential message of matthews gospel was prevalent widely soon after pentecost. He wrote the gospel of christ according to his own plans and aims, and from his own point of view, as did also the other evangelists. Since the times of the early church fathers, the apostle matthew has always been accredited with the authorship of the first gospel canonically. This book is known as the gospel of matthew because it was written by the apostle of the same name. A summary of the gospel according to matthew matthew in s bible.
Introduction to the gospel of matthew study resources. Robert gundry has identified a number of possible references in 1 peter to both the teachings as well as the ministry of jesus. His father, alpheaus probably the same clopas, n 628, was, according to eusebius, a brother to joseph e 79, husband to mary, mother of our lord. While the book of isaiah claims to be written in the 8 th century b. Matthew, he tells us, preached among the jews in palestine. The early church fathers recognized matthew as the author, church history has recognized matthew as the author, and there are many internal clues that point to matthews role in writing his gospel. Jesus has five prominent sermons in matthew, and each ends with some variation of the same transition. A study of matthew, 1518, for additional arguments of the jewish character of both the book and the audience. The heading of the first book of the new testament is in most manuscripts gospel according to matthew. The great church historian, eusebius of caesarea, writes that. Oct 28, 2016 actually, no, because no claim of authorship was technically made in this document the same logic would hold for the book of hebrews so the bottom line.
Commentary on the book of gospel of matthew by matthew. A man named john mark is believed to be the author of the gospel of mark more on that next, and he wasnt an apostle. While matthew did not sign his own name to his gospel, the early church uniformly attested to the apostles authorship of the book. Secondly, the gospel of matthew has a developed christology, which suggests a late. There are at least two lines of evidence that can be rallied to the defense of matthew. Matthew and was composed in greek, probably sometimes after 70 ce, and borrows heavily from the earlier gospel according to mark. Moreover, this study identifies historical writing as an especially revealing place to investigate the complexities of. Their reasons include the assumption that jesus could not. Many modern scholars believe that matthew had to write his gospel after the fall of jerusalem in a.
This summary of the gospel of matthew provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the gospel of matthew. Because of the fulfilled supernatural predictions of isaiah, critics believe that the second half of isaiah chapters. Gospel according to matthew, first of the four new testament gospels and, with. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of bible. Did matthew really write the gospel attributed to him. The author of this book was beyond a doubt the matthew, an apostle of our lord, whose name it bears. Matthews gospel is that it was composed anonymously at around 85 ad. As early as ad 140, a christian named papias wrote that matthew had compiled the sayings of the lord in hebrew presumably before matthew translated them into greek for a larger audience. May 05, 2020 so i dont think ehrmans arguments against the traditional authorship of matthew are compelling. For a discussion of matthews authorship of both a hebrew and greek version of his gospel, go to matthew wrote and published his gospel in hebrew first and later translated it into greek. A third argument against petrine authorship of 1 peter centers on the letters supposed lack of references to the teachings and ministry of jesus.
Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. The life of jesus, how came the bible, the 12, matthew apostle and evangelist to name a few. The style of the book is exactly what would be expected of a man who was once a tax collector. Here are 3 reasons why the apostle matthew wrote the gospel of. The earliest reference to the gospel of matthew is probably in the epistle to the smyrnaeans by ignatius of antioch c. Moreover, this study identifies historical writing as an especially revealing place to investigate the complexities of scribal culture. First, matthew is dependent upon the gospel of mark and mark is normally dated to the late 60s or early 70s.
I dont know of any book that answers the question to which assignment each author had in writing their books, however, we know that matthew was written to the jews, as was hebrews, and galatians was written for gentiles, and mark wrote his gospel which was the apostle peters account to be a quick read about jesus ministry, and so on. The author of matthew wrote for a community of greekspeaking jewish christians located probably in syria antioch, the largest city in roman syria and the thirdlargest in the empire, is often mentioned. We have good reason to believe that matthew is the author of this gospel. But lets look a little deeper and see what arguments we can find in favor of the traditional authorship. Gospel of matthew matthew the apostle matthew was a member of a wealthy galilean jewish family. As a tax collector, wed expect matthew to be more moneyminded. I go into more detail for the authorship, reliability, and claims of the gospels here. The author of the gospel has traditionally been identified with matthew, who according to this gospel is one of jesus twelve disciples see matthew 9. Introduction to the book of matthew learn religions. Many scholars question whether or not matthew was the true author of the first gospel, but there is no way at this current time to be absolutely positive based on historical evidence. Add this to the fact that john the apostle is not mentioned in the book so the argument is that john avoids using his own name and some see the evidence. The gospel of matthew was published first in hebrew aramaic, then in greek. After their departure, mark, the disciple and interpreter of peter, did also hand down to us in writing what had been preached by peter.
Why scholars doubt the traditional authors of the gospels 2017 matthew wade ferguson. The question of when matthews gospel was written is an important one. The new testament begins with the gospel of matthew. Add this to the fact that john the apostle is not mentioned in the book so the argument is that john avoids using his own name and some see the evidence as very strongly favoring the apostle as author. Intro to matthew biblica the international bible society. The account of the call of matthew chapter 9, is followed by that of a meal taken by jesus in the company of publicans and sinners. All three synoptic gospels record an account of jesus calling a tax collector. We will begin with the gospel of matthew today and will then move towards the other three gospels before looking at some of the letters in revelation. The events in the book of matthew take place almost entirely within the vicinity of palestine, an area extending roughly from caesarea philippi in the north to beersheba in the south.
Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible, who published his works in 1706, sixvolume exposition of the old and new testaments 17081710 or complete commentary, provides an exhaustive verse by verse study of the bible, covering the whole of the old testament, and the gospels and acts in the new testament. That makes it highly unlikely that he could have written this book. Thats because jesus predicts the destruction of the temple in matthew 24. Richard bauckham is wrong about matthews authorship. The closest we get to a claim of authorship is at the very end of the book of john, where the author implies that the book was written by the disciple whom jesus loved john 21. He thinks matthew may have had some sort of role in the origins of the gospel attributed to him, accepts the traditional authorship attributions of mark and luke, and attributes the fourth gospel to a close disciple of jesus named john. But there are solid reasons in support of the early churchs unanimous ascription of this book to the apostle matthew, and on close inspection the objections do not appear substantial. Matthew also issued a written gospel among the hebrews in their own dialect, while peter and paul were preaching at rome, and laying the foundations of the church. A unique statement within the book of matthew provides internal evidence to its authorship. Gospel according to matthew, first of the four new testament gospels and, with mark and luke, one of the three socalled synoptic gospels. A key reason pointing to the gospel being written by a scribe is that the gospel was written in greek and that the author is very familiar with the hebrew bible, connecting his five discourses with hebrew scriptures. Many scholars are uncomfortable with the idea that jesus supernaturally predicted the future fall of the temple, or that.
The arguments in favor of an early matthean authorship are laid out herein. However, we also know from history that the earliest members of the church understood matthew to be the author of the gospel that was eventually given his name. Three pieces of evidence have usually been advanced to demonstrate that matthew wrote after 70 c. Authorship since the times of the early church fathers, the apostle matthew has always been accredited with the authorship of the first gospel canonically. Some have argued on the basis of its jewish characteristics that matthews gospel was written in the early church period, possibly the early. It is not known for certain who wrote the book of matthew, traditionally it was believed that it was written by st. France states that if the book was written at this time it was within matthews lifetime, and thus authorship cannot be proven. Gospel according to matthew, first of the four new testament gospels narratives recounting the life and death of jesus christ and, with the gospels according to mark and luke, one of the three socalled synoptic gospels i. Craig evans recently recorded a video where he claims that matthew may have come about in phases. The authorship and the inspiration of matthews gospel. Although some nt scholars doubt the authorship of matthew, there are good reasons to believe that he was, indeed, the author of the first gospel. Who wrote the gospels, and how do we know for zondervan. Book of matthew overview insight for living ministries.
Although the first gospel is anonymous, the early church fathers were unanimous in holding that matthew, one of the 12 apostles, was its author. It tells how israels messiah, rejected and executed in israel, pronounces judgement on israel and its leaders and becomes the salvation of the gentiles. Afterwards, john, the disciple of the lord, who also. Matthew needed to be organized in order to do his job, and the author of the book of matthew appears to be highly organized. In terms of matthew apostle and evangelist expect to be surprised as to who actually authored the book of matthew along with the debate on the books authorship that has transpired over the years. The purpose of matthew seems to argue for the earlier datea time when judaism needed to be confronted with the truth in jesus before the doom that was to befall their worship in 70 a. It was written in greek for a gentile audience, probably in rome, although galilee, antioch thirdlargest city in the roman empire, located in northern syria, and southern syria have also been suggested. In fact, matthew is especially key because it helps us understand how the entire old testament leads up to the promise and the person of jesus christ. In mark and luke he is called by his other name, levi. Matthew the evangelist, one of the 12 apostles, described in the text as a tax collector. The major sections of the gospel are neatly divided into parts.
Authorship of the gospels of matthew and john sacred. Though matthews authorship remains the most defensible position, very little in this commentary depends on it. Matthew the evangelist the tax collector who was a disciple. By the end of the second century virtually the entire church accepted the johannine authorship of the book.
Some suggest that the gospel may have been the product of a group of writers school. Matthew seeks to encourage jewish christians and all. According to the gospel of matthew chapter 9, matthew the taxcollector was a palestinian jew. Scribal authorship and the writing of history in medieval. The authorship of the gospel of matthew the universal testimony of the early church fathers is that matthew the apostle wrote the gospel of matthew in both hebrew and greek. Luke also, the companion of paul, recorded in a book the gospel preached by him. Ii authorship and dating by ancient testimony and tradition a. The book of matthew is most assuredly authored by levi the tax collector, who when he became one of jesus disciples no longer was called levi, but was referred to by jesus by his middle name which was matthew.
How do we know matthew was the author of the gospel of matthew. Richard bauckham is wrong about matthews authorship hes mostly right about gospel authorship issues. However, the results of modern critical studies in particular those that stress matthews alleged dependence on mark for a substantial part of his gospel have caused some biblical scholars to abandon matthean authorship. I recently finished reading brand pitres excellent book the case for jesus which argues quite persuasively for the traditional authorship of the gospels, i. Authorship, audience and genre of the gospel of matthew.
Jun 25, 2019 the gospel of matthew is another structurally significant book in the bible because it helps readers transition from the old testament to the new testament. Other objections to matthews authorship are more speculative. The case for petrine authorship of 1 peter religious. Numerous textual indications point to an author who was a jewish christian. Its alleged dependence on mark and supposedly late composition see date and occasion are given as reasons to doubt matthews authorship. The gospel according to matthew is the first book of the new testament and one of the three synoptic gospels. Because of the fulfilled supernatural predictions of isaiah, critics. Why scholars doubt the traditional authors of the gospels. Matthew, whose name means gift of the lord, was a tax collector who left his work to follow jesus 9. There is only one good news of the great work that god had accomplished by his son, the lord jesus christ, but in his wisdom it needed four different men to make this news of salvation known to the world in written form. The historical case against sidney rigdons authorship of.
Even if his gospel were written in greek by another, even say an amanuensis, this would not negate matthews authorship. Matthew fishers scribal authorship and the writing of history in medieval england demonstrates through several compelling examples that the range of activity we attribute to medieval scribes should be radically widened. The authorship ascribed to the gospels was specifically testified to by the muratorian canon and by irenaeus and they were authenticated by tatians use of them. Despite being penned by different authors over 15 centuries, the bible. Even the title according to matthew kata maqqaion is found in the earliest manuscripts, and was the most highly regarded and quoted of the gospels by the church fathers. The main purpose of the book of matthew was to give proof to jewish believers that jesus christ is the promised messiah.