Matthew

Chapter 02

The Magi from the East

1Now after Jesus was born in of in the days of Herod the king,a behold, magib from the east arrived in , 2saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star at its risingc and have come to worship Him.”d 3And when Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4and gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5And they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written through the prophet: 6‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’e”

7Then Herod secretly called the magi and ascertained from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” 9And having heard the king, they went on their way; and behold, the star which they had seen at its rising went before them until it came and stood over the place where the child was. 10And when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary His mother, and falling down they worshiped Him; and opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts: gold and frankincense and myrrh.f 12And having been warned in a dreamg not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

The Escape to Egypt

13Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Get up, take the child and His mother, and flee to , and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child to destroy Him.” 14So he got up and took the child and His mother by night and departed to Egypt, 15and was there until the death of Herod, to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”h

The Killing of the Children in Bethlehem

16Then Herod, seeing that he had been mocked by the magi, became exceedingly furious, and he sent and killed all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its region, from two years old and under,i according to the time that he had ascertained from the magi. 17Then was fulfilled what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

18“A voice was heard in ,weeping and great mourning,Rachel weeping for her children;and she would not be comforted, because they are no more.”j

The Return to Nazareth

19But when Herod had died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, 20“Get up, take the child and His mother, and go into the land of ; for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”k 21So he got up and took the child and His mother and came into the land of Israel. 22But when he heard that Archelausl was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there; and having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of , 23and came and settled in a town called , so that what was spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, that He would be called a Nazarene.m

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Context & Translation Notes

Original Reader Horizon • Lexical & Canonical Mesh

a 2:1 — Herod the king (Ἡρῴδου τοῦ βασιλέως / Hērōdou tou basileōs) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: βασιλεύς basileus means “king.” Matthew calls Herod “the king” (2:1, 3, 9) at the very moment the magi seek one “born King of the Jews” (2:2): one king was appointed, the other born. “In the days of” (ἐν ἡμέραις en hēmerais) is the dating formula of Old Testament narrative (compare Ruth 1:1).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The title “King of the Jews” does not appear again in Matthew until the passion: Pilate’s question (27:11), the soldiers’ mockery (27:29), and the charge over the cross (27:37). Luke dates John’s birth “in the days of Herod, king of Judea” (Luke 1:5). Herod’s son Antipas executes John the Baptist (Matthew 14:1–12), and his grandson Agrippa I persecutes the church (Acts 12:1–23).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Herod the Great, an Idumean, was named king of the Jews by the Roman Senate in 40 BC (Josephus, Antiquities 14.385) and ruled from 37 to 4 BC. He rebuilt the temple on a grand scale and built Caesarea, Masada, and the Herodium near Bethlehem, and he was notorious for killing rivals, including his wife Mariamne and three of his sons. Since Herod died in 4 BC by the most common reckoning, Jesus was born about 6–4 BC; the BC/AD calendar, fixed centuries later, is off by a few years.

b 2:1 — magi (μάγοι / magoi) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: μάγος magos comes from an Old Persian word for a member of the Median and Persian priestly class. By the first century it covered astrologers, dream interpreters, and sages, and it could also mean a sorcerer, as with Simon (Acts 8:9) and Bar-Jesus (Acts 13:6, 8). TWB keeps “magi”: “wise men” hides the priestly and astrological sense, while “magicians” would give the negative sense that Matthew does not intend. The text gives no number and does not call them kings.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Daniel was made chief over the wise men of Babylon (Daniel 2:48; 5:11), and the Greek versions of Daniel name magi among them (Daniel 2:2, 10). Balaam, a seer brought “from the east” (Numbers 23:7), foretold that “a star shall come out of Jacob” (Numbers 24:17). Psalm 72:10–11 and Isaiah 60:3–6 picture kings and nations bringing gifts to Israel’s king.

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Herodotus describes the magi as a Median tribe who served as priests and interpreted dreams (Histories 1.101, 107, 132). Later Christian tradition made them three, from the three gifts, and kings, from Psalm 72 and Isaiah 60; their names Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar appear only centuries later. Matthew’s point lies elsewhere: Gentile outsiders recognize and honor the Messiah, while Jerusalem’s leaders, who know the Scriptures, stay at home.

c 2:2 — His star at its rising (τὸν ἀστέρα … ἐν τῇ ἀνατολῇ / ton astera … en tē anatolē) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἀστήρ astēr is a star or other bright heavenly body. ἀνατολή anatolē means a rising, especially of a heavenly body, and by extension the east. In 2:1 the plural (ἀνατολῶν anatolōn) gives the direction, “from the east”; here the singular with the article is an astronomical expression, “at its rising,” so TWB does not render “in the east.” In 2:9 the star goes before the magi and stops over a house, behaving unlike any fixed star or planet.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Balaam’s oracle uses the same root: “a star shall rise (ἀνατελεῖ anatelei) out of Jacob, and a scepter out of Israel” (Numbers 24:17, Septuagint). Jesus calls Himself “the bright morning star” (Revelation 22:16; compare 2 Peter 1:19). Israel was warned not to worship the heavenly host (Deuteronomy 4:19; see the TWB note on Genesis 1:16); here a star serves God by leading Gentiles to the king.

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Within the Divine Council worldview, stars were closely associated with heavenly beings: “the morning stars” stand in parallel with “the sons of God” (Job 38:7), the stars fight from heaven (Judges 5:20), and the seven stars “are the angels of the seven churches” (Revelation 1:20; compare 9:1). The Enochic “Animal Apocalypse” pictures the fallen Watchers as stars falling from heaven (1 Enoch 86:1–3). A star that moves, leads, and stops therefore reads naturally as an agent of God, and early writers such as Ignatius describe it as outshining every other star and overthrowing magic (To the Ephesians 19). Others have proposed natural phenomena, such as a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in 7 BC or a comet; TWB records these as readings.

d 2:2 — worship (προσκυνῆσαι / proskynēsai) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: προσκυνέω proskyneō means to prostrate oneself, bow down, or pay homage, and is used both of homage to kings and of worship of God. Some translations render “pay Him homage” here. TWB renders “worship” because Matthew frames the act as more than courtly respect: the magi fall down before the child (2:11), and Matthew uses the same verb for the disciples’ response to Jesus (14:33; 28:9, 17). Herod’s promise to “worship” (2:8) is false.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: In the temptation Jesus answers, “You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve” (Matthew 4:10, quoting Deuteronomy 6:13), so the verb carries weight in Matthew. “All kings shall bow down before him” (Psalm 72:11) uses it in the Septuagint. In Revelation an angel refuses it: “Worship God” (Revelation 22:8–9).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Prostration before the king was standard Persian court ceremony (Herodotus 1.134), and Alexander the Great’s attempt to require it from Greeks caused open protest. Magi from the east would have known the gesture as royal homage; Matthew’s readers, who knew that worship belongs to God alone (4:10), would see more in it.

e 2:6 — a ruler who will shepherd My people Israel (ἡγούμενος, ὅστις ποιμανεῖ / hēgoumenos, hostis poimanei) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ποιμαίνω poimainō means to shepherd, tend, or rule, the royal shepherd image. The quotation combines Micah 5:2 [MT 5:1] with 2 Samuel 5:2 (“you shall shepherd My people Israel”). Matthew’s “by no means least” turns Micah’s “too little to be among the clans of Judah” around: the town once small is now great because of the ruler born there. Where Micah’s Hebrew has “clans” (אַלְפֵי ʾalpê), the same consonants can be read “chiefs” (אַלּוּפֵי ʾallûpê), which Matthew’s “rulers” reflects. Per TWB’s citation rule the quotation is in capitals; “My” refers to God, who speaks in 2 Samuel 5:2.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Micah’s ruler “shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord” (Micah 5:4). God promises “one shepherd, My servant David” (Ezekiel 34:23). The crowds in John know the Messiah comes “from Bethlehem, the village where David was” (John 7:42). Jesus calls Himself the good shepherd (John 10:11) and has compassion on crowds “like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: The chief priests and scribes answer at once, which suggests the link between Micah and the Messiah was already familiar; the Aramaic Targum on Micah 5:1 reads, “from you the Messiah shall come forth before Me.” Combining passages into one quotation was a recognized Jewish practice: a Qumran text called Testimonia (4Q175) strings together passages from Deuteronomy and Numbers in the same way.

f 2:11 — gold and frankincense and myrrh (χρυσὸν καὶ λίβανον καὶ σμύρναν / chryson kai libanon kai smyrnan) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: λίβανος libanos is frankincense, the resin of the Boswellia tree (Hebrew לְבוֹנָה ləḇônâ); σμύρνα smyrna is myrrh, the resin of the Commiphora tree (Hebrew מֹר mōr). Both were costly products of the incense trade. The three gifts gave rise to the tradition of three magi.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Isaiah 60:6 foresees nations bringing “gold and frankincense” and proclaiming the praises of the Lord; Psalm 72:15 brings gold of Sheba to the king. Frankincense belonged to the holy incense (Exodus 30:34) and myrrh to the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:23). Myrrh returns at the end: wine mixed with myrrh is offered at the cross (Mark 15:23), and Nicodemus brings myrrh for Jesus’ burial (John 19:39).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Frankincense and myrrh came from southern Arabia and the Horn of Africa by caravan, and Roman writers such as Pliny the Elder describe their trade and high value. Early Christian readers gave the gifts symbolic meanings: gold for a king, frankincense for God, myrrh for death (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.9.2). Matthew does not explain them; their link to Isaiah 60 and Psalm 72 presents the nations bringing tribute to Zion’s king.

g 2:12 — warned in a dream (χρηματισθέντες κατ᾽ ὄναρ / chrēmatisthentes kat’ onar) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: χρηματίζω chrēmatizō in the passive means to receive a divine warning or instruction (also 2:22; Luke 2:26; Hebrews 8:5; 11:7). κατ᾽ ὄναρ kat’ onar, “in a dream,” occurs in the New Testament only in Matthew: five times in the infancy account (1:20; 2:12, 13, 19, 22) and once of Pilate’s wife (27:19).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: God warns outsiders in dreams to protect His chosen: Abimelech regarding Sarah (Genesis 20:3) and Laban regarding Jacob (Genesis 31:24). God speaks to prophets in visions and dreams (Numbers 12:6), and Joseph son of Jacob is the great dreamer of Genesis (Genesis 37:5–11; 40–41).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: In both Jewish and Greco-Roman settings, dreams were an accepted channel of divine communication, and whole handbooks on interpreting them circulated. Magi in particular were known as dream interpreters (Herodotus 1.107–108). Matthew’s infancy account is framed by these dream revelations: God guides events step by step while a hostile king plots.

h 2:15 — Out of Egypt I called My Son (ἐξ Αἰγύπτου ἐκάλεσα τὸν υἱόν μου / ex Aigyptou ekalesa ton huion mou) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Matthew follows the Hebrew of Hosea 11:1 (וּמִמִּצְרַיִם קָרָאתִי לִבְנִי ûmimmiṣrayim qārāʾṯî liḇnî) rather than the Septuagint, which reads “I called his children” (τὰ τέκνα αὐτοῦ ta tekna autou). In Hosea “My son” is Israel. Matthew cites the verse at the flight into Egypt, before the return, so it frames the whole episode. Per TWB’s citation rule the quotation is in capitals.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: God calls Israel “My firstborn son” (Exodus 4:22–23), and Hosea 11 goes on to describe Israel’s unfaithfulness. At Jesus’ baptism God declares “This is My beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17), and in the wilderness Jesus, tested for forty days, answers from Deuteronomy where Israel had failed in its forty years (Matthew 4:1–11).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Hosea looked back to the exodus rather than forward to a Messiah, so Matthew’s “fulfill” (πληρόω plēroō) here means more than prediction: Israel’s story is taken up and completed in Jesus, the Son who relives Israel’s journey. Jewish readers already treated the exodus as the pattern for future deliverance (Isaiah 43:16–19; 51:9–11). Egypt was a natural refuge: Philo claims that a million Jews lived there in his day (Against Flaccus 43).

i 2:16 — killed all the boys … from two years old and under (ἐνεπαίχθη … ἀνεῖλεν πάντας τοὺς παῖδας / enepaichthē … aneilen pantas tous paidas) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἐμπαίζω empaizō means to mock or make sport of. TWB renders “he had been mocked” rather than “tricked” because Matthew uses the same verb when Jesus is mocked by soldiers and chief priests (20:19; 27:29, 31, 41). παῖς pais in the masculine plural means boys. The age limit is set by the time Herod learned from the magi (2:7).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Pharaoh ordered every Hebrew boy killed (Exodus 1:16, 22), and Moses alone was spared; the parallel continues in 2:20. The grief of Bethlehem is answered by Jeremiah’s Rachel (2:18).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: No other ancient source records this event. Its scale would have been small, since Bethlehem was a village with perhaps a dozen or two boys of that age. It fits what Josephus records of Herod’s last years: he executed three of his sons and, as he lay dying, ordered the leading men of Judea killed so that there would be mourning at his death (Antiquities 17.174–181). Interpreters differ on the event’s historicity, some emphasizing its fit with Herod’s character and others the shaping influence of the Moses story; TWB records both.

j 2:18 — Rachel weeping for her children (Ῥαχὴλ κλαίουσα τὰ τέκνα αὐτῆς / Rhachēl klaiousa ta tekna autēs) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Matthew quotes Jeremiah 31:15 (Septuagint 38:15) freely. NA28 reads “weeping and great mourning” (κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὀδυρμὸς πολύς klauthmos kai odyrmos polys); the Majority Text and Textus Receptus add “lamentation and” (θρῆνος καὶ thrēnos kai), matching the Septuagint of Jeremiah. Matthew’s formula also changes here: “then was fulfilled,” not “in order to fulfill” (compare 27:9), so the text does not say the massacre happened in order to fulfill Scripture.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Rachel, mother of Joseph and Benjamin, died and was buried “on the way to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem” (Genesis 35:19; 48:7), though 1 Samuel 10:2 places her tomb in Benjamin. Ramah was where the exiles were gathered in chains for Babylon (Jeremiah 40:1). Jeremiah’s next words turn to hope: “Keep your voice from weeping … your children shall come back to their own country” (Jeremiah 31:16–17), in the chapter that promises the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Jeremiah pictured Rachel, the ancestral mother, weeping over her exiled descendants. Matthew hears the same grief in Bethlehem’s mothers, but readers who knew Jeremiah 31 would also hear its promise of return and a new covenant. TWB follows NA28’s shorter reading, which is supported by the earliest manuscripts; the longer reading is best explained as scribes conforming Matthew to the Septuagint.

Variant record: main text “weeping and great mourning (κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὀδυρμὸς πολύς)”; alternative “lamentation and weeping and great mourning (θρῆνος καὶ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὀδυρμὸς πολύς)”. Witnesses: NA28: main; Codex Sinaiticus: main; Codex Vaticanus: main; Majority Text: alternative; Textus Receptus: alternative. Decision: NA28 reading retained.

k 2:20 — those who sought the child’s life are dead (τεθνήκασιν … οἱ ζητοῦντες τὴν ψυχήν / tethnēkasin … hoi zētountes tēn psychēn) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: τεθνήκασιν tethnēkasin is a perfect, “have died, are dead.” The plural “those who sought” is notable because only Herod has died. ψυχή psychē here means “life” (compare the TWB note on Genesis 1:20). The wording is nearly identical to the Septuagint of Exodus 4:19, where God tells Moses in Midian, “all those who sought your life are dead.”

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Moses fled from Pharaoh (Exodus 2:15) and returned after his death (Exodus 4:19–20); Jesus flees from Herod and returns after his. God promised a prophet like Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15; Acts 3:22), and Matthew continues the pattern when Jesus teaches on a mountain (Matthew 5:1).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Jewish retellings of Moses’ birth add details that make the parallel closer: Josephus says a sacred scribe warned Pharaoh of a coming deliverer, and Amram received a dream about his son (Antiquities 2.205–216). First-century readers who knew these stories would hear Jesus’ infancy, with its alarmed king, massacre, and guiding dreams, as a new Moses story.

l 2:22 — Archelaus (Ἀρχέλαος / Archelaos) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Matthew says Archelaus was “reigning” (βασιλεύει basileuei), though Augustus gave him only the lesser title of ethnarch, not king. “Withdrew” (ἀνεχώρησεν anechōrēsen) is Matthew’s recurring verb for moving away from danger (2:12, 13, 14, 22; 4:12; 12:15; 14:13).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Herod’s other sons appear later: Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee (Matthew 14:1; Luke 3:1; 23:7), and Philip (Luke 3:1). Many interpreters connect Jesus’ parable of the nobleman who traveled to receive a kingdom while his citizens sent a delegation against him (Luke 19:12–27) with Archelaus’s own journey to Rome.

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Herod’s will divided his kingdom: Archelaus received Judea, Samaria, and Idumea; Antipas, Galilee and Perea; Philip, the territories to the northeast. Archelaus began his rule by killing about three thousand people in the temple at Passover (Josephus, Antiquities 17.213–218), and Augustus deposed him in AD 6 after complaints from his subjects, after which Judea became a Roman province. Joseph’s fear matches Archelaus’s reputation, and Galilee lay outside his rule.

m 2:23 — He would be called a Nazarene (Ναζωραῖος κληθήσεται / Nazōraios klēthēsetai) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Ναζωραῖος Nazōraios means “Nazarene,” one from Nazareth (also 26:71; Acts 24:5). The words appear in no Old Testament book, and Matthew attributes them to “the prophets,” plural, unlike his other fulfillment formulas, which suggests a theme rather than a single text. TWB therefore renders them as indirect speech (“that He would be called”), without quotation marks or capitals.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The main proposals can work together. The name echoes נֵצֶר nēṣer, the “branch” from the stump of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1), a messianic title (compare צֶמַח ṣemaḥ, “Branch,” Jeremiah 23:5). It may recall the Nazirite (נָזִיר nāzîr), one consecrated to God (Judges 13:5, 7), though Jesus did not keep a Nazirite vow (Matthew 11:19). Nazareth’s obscurity (“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” John 1:46) also fits the prophets’ picture of a despised servant (Isaiah 53:3).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Nazareth was a small village in Lower Galilee, unmentioned in the Old Testament, Josephus, or the Mishnah. An inscription from Caesarea listing the villages where priestly families settled after AD 70 names it. Jesus’ early followers were called Nazarenes (Acts 24:5), and Hebrew and Syriac speakers continued to call Christians by that name.

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Book InsightsMatthew

Author

Matthew, also called Levi, the tax collector whom Jesus called to follow Him and who became one of the Twelve (9:9; 10:3; compare Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27). The Gospel does not name its author, but the evidence for Matthew is strong:

  • Unanimous early testimony. Every ancient manuscript that preserves a title reads “According to Matthew” (Κατὰ Μαθθαῖον Kata Maththaion), and no other author was ever proposed. Papias, bishop of Hierapolis in the early 2nd century A.D., wrote that “Matthew compiled the sayings (λόγια logia) in the Hebrew language” (quoted by Eusebius, Church History 3.39.16). Irenaeus (c. A.D. 180), Origen, Eusebius, and Jerome all name Matthew.
  • Clues in the text. Only this Gospel calls the converted tax collector “Matthew” (9:9) and lists him as “Matthew the tax collector” (10:3), a humble self-reference. It has the most interest in money: the temple tax (17:24–27), the coin of the tribute (22:19, where Matthew alone uses the technical term νόμισμα nomisma), and talents and debts (18:23–35; 25:14–30). A tax collector would have been literate and used to keeping careful records, probably in Greek as well as Aramaic.
  • Matthew first. In John Wenham, Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke (1991), John Wenham argues that the early church’s order is correct: Matthew wrote first, then Mark, then Luke. Clement of Alexandria reported that “the Gospels containing the genealogies were written first” (Eusebius, Church History 6.14.5), which places Matthew and Luke before Mark, and every early writer who names an order puts Matthew first.
  • One shared teaching, with some borrowing. Wenham’s own model is “an oral theory with some measure of successive dependence.” All three Gospels draw on the Jerusalem catechesis, the apostles’ carefully taught oral account of Jesus’ words and deeds. On top of that shared teaching, Mark made some use of Matthew, and Luke made some use of both Matthew and Mark. On this view the hypothetical source Q is unnecessary, and each Gospel is an independent witness to the apostolic preaching.

Papias’s report that Matthew wrote “in the Hebrew language” is read by many who hold Matthew’s priority as evidence of an earlier Hebrew or Aramaic edition, followed by the Greek Gospel we have; others take it to describe a Hebrew style of writing or a collection of sayings.

Other views — What Papias meant

Papias’s words are debated. Some take them to mean Matthew first wrote a Hebrew or Aramaic Gospel that was later translated into the Greek we have. Others think he meant a collection of Jesus’ sayings rather than this Gospel. Still others read “in the Hebrew language” as “in a Hebrew style.” Our Greek Matthew does not read like a translation, and it often quotes the Old Testament from the Septuagint.

Other views — The Synoptic Problem

Most scholars today explain the shared material in Matthew, Mark, and Luke differently from Wenham:

  • Two-Source Hypothesis (the majority view): Mark wrote first. Matthew and Luke each used Mark plus a lost collection of Jesus’ sayings called Q, from the German Quelle (“source”). Material found only in Matthew is often labeled M.
  • Farrer Hypothesis: Mark wrote first, Matthew used Mark, and Luke used both, so no Q is needed.
  • Two-Gospel (Griesbach) Hypothesis: Matthew wrote first, Luke used Matthew, and Mark combined both. Wenham charts what this would require in Mark 1:1–13: Mark switching between Matthew, Luke, and his own words every few words, a process he finds implausible (pp. 13–15).

Supporters of Mark’s priority point to Mark’s rougher Greek, which Matthew and Luke seem to smooth, and to Matthew’s inclusion of nearly all of Mark. No manuscript of Q has ever been found. Many conservative scholars hold Mark’s priority and still affirm the apostle Matthew as author.

Other views — An unnamed Jewish-Christian author

Many critical scholars hold that the Gospel was written by an unknown Jewish believer, perhaps a scribe trained for the kingdom (13:52), and later attached to Matthew’s name. They argue that an eyewitness apostle would not have relied on Mark, who was not one of the Twelve.

Audience

Primarily Jewish believers, along with Jews being invited to believe. Matthew assumes his readers know the Law, the Prophets, and Jewish customs. He leaves customs unexplained that Mark explains for Gentiles (compare 15:2 with Mark 7:3–4), and traces Jesus’ line back to Abraham. Out of reverence he usually says “kingdom of heaven” rather than “kingdom of God.” Yet the Gospel looks outward from the start, with Gentile magi at the cradle (2:1–12), and ends with the command to make disciples of all nations (28:19).

Date Written

c. A.D. 40–65, before the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in A.D. 70. Conservative scholars hold two main positions within that range.

c. A.D. 50–65. Matthew writes as though the temple is still standing: he includes instructions about offering gifts at the altar (5:23–24), paying the temple tax (17:24–27), and swearing by the temple (23:16–22). Twice he says something remains “to this day” (27:8; 28:15). Jesus predicts the temple’s fall (24:1–2), but the Gospel never reports it as having happened. Many conservative scholars, including those who hold that Matthew used Mark, place the Gospel in this period.

c. A.D. 40 (John Wenham). Those who hold Matthean priority often place it earlier still, in the A.D. 40s or 50s. Wenham reaches c. A.D. 40 by working back from Acts:

  • Acts was finished in A.D. 62. It ends with Paul two years under house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:30–31) and says nothing of his death (c. A.D. 67), the great fire of Rome and Nero’s persecution (A.D. 64), the outbreak of the Jewish War (A.D. 66), or the fall of Jerusalem (A.D. 70).
  • Luke came before Acts (Acts 1:1). Wenham dates Luke to about A.D. 54 and identifies Luke with “the brother whose praise is in the gospel” (2 Corinthians 8:18), in a letter he dates to A.D. 56.
  • Mark came before Luke, about A.D. 45, from Peter’s preaching in Rome. Wenham reads Peter’s escape from Herod Agrippa I to “another place” (Acts 12:17, A.D. 42) as his journey to Rome.
  • Matthew came first, about A.D. 40, before the persecution under Herod Agrippa I scattered the apostles from Jerusalem in A.D. 42 (Acts 12:1–17). Eusebius says Matthew wrote for the Hebrews when he was about to leave them to preach to others (Church History 3.24.6).

Source for Wenham’s dates: John Wenham, Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke (1991), Chronological Table, pp. xxv–xxvi.

Other views — Critical dating (c. A.D. 80–90)

Many critical scholars date Matthew after A.D. 70. They reason that Matthew used Mark, usually dated around A.D. 65–70, and that the parable of the king who “burned their city” (22:7) looks back on Jerusalem’s fall. They also point to sharp conflict with synagogue leaders (23:34), which they place in the decades after the war. Conservative scholars respond that 22:7 uses the common language of ancient warfare and judgment (compare Judges 1:8; Isaiah 1:7), not specific details of A.D. 70, and that predictive prophecy should not be ruled out in advance.

Location Written

Judea, most likely Jerusalem. Wenham, following the early tradition, places Matthew’s writing in the land of Israel for Jewish believers before the apostles left Jerusalem.

  • Early testimony. Irenaeus says Matthew wrote “among the Hebrews” (Against Heresies 3.1.1), and Eusebius says he wrote for them before leaving to preach to others (Church History 3.24.6).
  • The audience. The Gospel assumes readers who know Jewish customs without explanation (compare 15:2 with Mark 7:3–4), care about the temple and the Law, and need answers to questions raised by the synagogue.

Other views — Other proposed places

Many scholars, conservative and critical, suggest Syrian Antioch, a city with a large Jewish population and an early church of both Jews and Gentiles (Acts 11:19–26). Ignatius, bishop of Antioch (c. A.D. 110), is the earliest writer to show clear knowledge of Matthew. Galilee, Caesarea Maritima, and Phoenicia have also been suggested.

Purpose

To show that Jesus is the promised Messiah (Χριστός Christos), the Son of David and Son of Abraham (1:1). He fulfills the Law and the Prophets and brings the kingdom of heaven near. Matthew also trains disciples in how to live under that kingdom, and sends them to make disciples of every nation.

Matthew does this through two patterns. Ten times he introduces an Old Testament text with a fulfillment formula such as “this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet” (1:22; 2:15, 17, 23; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; 21:4; 27:9). He also gathers Jesus’ teaching into five great discourses, each closing with “when Jesus had finished” (7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1). Many readers see an echo of the five books of Moses:

  • The Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5–7)
  • Instructions to the Twelve (chapter 10)
  • Parables of the kingdom (chapter 13)
  • Life in the community (chapter 18)
  • The Olivet Discourse, on the end of the age (chapters 24–25)

Historical Problem Being Addressed

Jewish believers faced a hard question. If Jesus is Israel’s Messiah, why did Israel’s own leaders reject Him and hand Him over to be crucified? And why were Gentiles now streaming into the people of God? Believers were being opposed in the synagogues (10:17; 23:34) and needed to know that following Jesus was not abandoning the faith of Abraham and Moses, but its fulfillment. Matthew answers that the rejection itself was foretold. Jesus came not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it (5:17), and Abraham’s family was always meant to bless the nations (8:11; 28:19).

Through the Original Readers’ Eyes

Matthew’s first readers lived in a land ruled by Rome through Herod’s family and Roman governors (2:1, 22; 27:2), worshiping in synagogues and arguing over how to keep the Law. Several things they knew shape how they heard this Gospel:

  • Hope for a Son of David. Many Jews longed for a king who would restore Israel. The Psalms of Solomon (1st century B.C.) pray for “the son of David” to purge Jerusalem of Gentiles and rule in righteousness (Psalms of Solomon 17). Some Qumran texts expect both a royal and a priestly messiah (1QS 9:11). Matthew’s Son of David heals the blind and lame (21:14) and dies under the charge “King of the Jews.”
  • The Son of Man. Daniel 7 pictures one like a son of man receiving everlasting dominion. The Similitudes of Enoch (1 Enoch 37–71, whose date is debated) speak of a heavenly Son of Man who judges from a glorious throne. Readers who knew these texts would hear Jesus’ favorite self-designation as a claim to that throne (19:28; 25:31).
  • Caesar’s claims. Augustus was called “son of god” (divi filius), and an inscription from Priene (9 B.C.) calls his birthday the beginning of “good news” (εὐαγγέλια euangelia) for the world. A Gospel announcing a different King, a different Son of God, and a different kingdom would have sounded like a rival claim.
  • Pharisees, scribes, and synagogues. The disputes over Sabbath, purity, oaths, and tithing (chapters 12, 15, 23) were live questions for Jewish communities. Matthew’s readers needed to know how Jesus’ followers related to the Law and to the synagogue leaders.

Among the early church, Matthew quickly became the most quoted Gospel. The Didache (late 1st or early 2nd century) gives the Lord’s Prayer in a form very close to Matthew’s (Didache 8:2), and Ignatius of Antioch (c. A.D. 110) shows knowledge of it. It was placed first in the New Testament, as the bridge from Israel’s Scriptures to the gospel.

Key Words

Kingdom of heaven: βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν basileia tōn ouranōn

The phrase appears more than thirty times in Matthew and nowhere else in the New Testament. Following Jewish reverence for God’s name, “heaven” stands for God Himself, so it means the same as “kingdom of God,” which Matthew also uses a few times (12:28; 19:24; 21:31, 43).

Fulfill: πληρόω plēroō

Ten times Matthew introduces an Old Testament text with a fulfillment formula (1:22; 2:15, 17, 23; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; 21:4; 27:9), and Jesus says He came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (5:17). In Matthew, fulfillment means more than prediction coming true: Israel’s story and Scripture reach their goal in Jesus.

Righteousness: δικαιοσύνη dikaiosynē

Jesus is baptized “to fulfill all righteousness” (3:15), and His disciples must hunger for righteousness (5:6), have a righteousness greater than that of the scribes and Pharisees (5:20), and seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness (6:33). It names the life that matches God’s will.

Key Verses

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17 (TWB)

The main key verse: Jesus came not to abolish the Law or the Prophets but to fulfill them. The whole Gospel unfolds this claim.

Matthew 16:16

Peter’s confession, the turning point of the Gospel: Jesus is the Messiah (Χριστός Christos), the Son of the living God.

Matthew 28:18–20

The Great Commission: the risen Jesus, with all authority in heaven and on earth, sends His disciples to make disciples of all nations, and promises to be with them always, echoing “Immanuel, God with us” (1:23).

Outline

Matthew alternates narrative with five major blocks of teaching, each ending with “when Jesus had finished” (7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1).

  1. The coming of the King 1:1–4:25
    1. Genealogy, birth, and infancy 1:1–2:23 You are here
    2. John the Baptist, the baptism, and the temptation 3:1–4:11
    3. Ministry in Galilee begins 4:12–25
  2. First discourse: the Sermon on the Mount 5:1–7:29
  3. Mighty works: ten miracles 8:1–9:38
  4. Second discourse: sending out the Twelve 10:1–11:1
  5. Growing opposition 11:2–12:50
  6. Third discourse: parables of the kingdom 13:1–53
  7. Peter’s confession and the road to the cross 13:54–17:27
  8. Fourth discourse: life in the community 18:1–19:1
  9. In Judea and Jerusalem 19:2–23:39
  10. Fifth discourse: the Olivet Discourse 24:1–25:46
  11. Death and resurrection; the Great Commission 26:1–28:20

Christ in the Book

Matthew presents Jesus above all as the King.

  • The Son of David, heir to the throne promised in 2 Samuel 7:12–16 (1:1; 9:27; 12:23; 20:30–31; 21:9).
  • The Son of Abraham, the seed through whom the nations are blessed (1:1; compare Genesis 12:3; 22:18).
  • Immanuel, “God with us” (1:23, quoting Isaiah 7:14). The Gospel ends where it began: “I am with you always” (28:20).
  • The Messiah, the Son of the living God, as Peter confesses at Caesarea Philippi (16:16), where TWB renders Χριστός Christos as “Messiah.”
  • The new Moses: spared as an infant from a king’s slaughter (2:13–18; compare Exodus 1:22–2:10), called out of Egypt (2:15, quoting Hosea 11:1), and teaching from the mountain (5:1).
  • The Son of Man of Daniel 7:13–14, who receives dominion and comes on the clouds (24:30; 26:64).
  • Greater than the temple, Jonah, and Solomon (12:6, 41–42).
  • The Servant of Isaiah, who carries our sicknesses and brings justice to the nations (8:17; 12:17–21).
  • The humble King riding into Jerusalem (21:5, quoting Zechariah 9:9), crucified under the charge “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews” (27:37).
  • The risen Lord with all authority in heaven and on earth (28:18).

The Divine Council Worldview in the Book

What is the Divine Council Worldview?

The Divine Council Worldview reads Scripture the way its first readers did. The Lord, God Most High, presides over a heavenly assembly of spiritual beings, called “sons of God,” “holy ones,” and “gods” (אֱלֹהִים ʾĕlōhîm) (Psalm 82:1; Psalm 89:5–7; 1 Kings 22:19–22; Job 1:6). He alone is Creator, and none of them is like Him (Psalm 89:6; Exodus 15:11). Some of these beings rebelled: in Eden, before the flood, and at Babel, after which the nations were placed under lesser powers while the Lord took Israel as His own portion (Deuteronomy 32:8–9). The rest of Scripture tells how God reclaims the nations through the Messiah. Not every interpreter reads these texts this way; where views differ, they are noted.

Matthew presents Jesus’ ministry as the beginning of God’s campaign to take back the nations from the powers that rebelled at Babel. The kingdom of heaven advances against an opposing kingdom.

  • The kingdoms of the world (4:8–9). The devil offers Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world and their glory” if He will worship him. On a Divine Council reading, the offer is real because the nations had been placed under other powers (Deuteronomy 32:8–9; compare Luke 4:6; John 12:31). Jesus refuses to receive the nations from the rebel and quotes Deuteronomy: “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve” (4:10).
  • Binding the strong man (12:28–29). Jesus’ exorcisms show that “the kingdom of God has come upon you.” He enters Satan’s house, binds the strong man, and plunders it.
  • The gates of Hades (16:13–18). Peter confesses Jesus as the Messiah at Caesarea Philippi, at the foot of Mount Hermon. A cave there held a shrine to the god Pan and was thought to be a gateway to the underworld, and Jewish tradition remembered Hermon as where the rebellious sons of God of Genesis 6 came down (1 Enoch 6:6). There Jesus promises that “the gates of Hades will not prevail” against His church.
  • The high mountain (17:1–8). Six days later Jesus is transfigured on “a high mountain.” Many scholars think this was Hermon itself, given its height and nearness to Caesarea Philippi; tradition since the 4th century has favored Mount Tabor.
  • Their angels (18:10). The little ones have angels who “always see the face of My Father in heaven,” a picture of heavenly beings attending God’s presence.
  • The Son of Man and the thrones (19:28; 26:64). Jesus draws on Daniel 7, where thrones are set up, the court sits, and one like a son of man receives the dominion over the nations (Daniel 7:9–14). He promises the Twelve that they will sit on twelve thrones, so that redeemed humans share in God’s rule.
  • The devil and his angels (25:41). The eternal fire was “prepared for the devil and his angels,” not originally for people.
  • All authority, all nations (28:18–20). The risen Jesus claims “all authority in heaven and on earth” and sends His disciples to make disciples of “all the nations” (πάντα τὰ ἔθνη panta ta ethnē), the very nations once given over at Babel.

Divine Council notes in the chapters translated so far

How the Book Connects to Other Books

  • Genesis: Matthew opens with “the book of the genealogy” (βίβλος γενέσεως biblos geneseōs, 1:1), the same wording the Septuagint uses in Genesis 2:4 and 5:1. A new beginning is announced in the language of the first one.
  • 2 Chronicles and Malachi: In the order of the Hebrew Bible, the Scriptures close with 2 Chronicles, which opens with genealogies and ends with an invitation to go up to Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 36:23). Matthew opens with a genealogy. In the Christian order, Malachi’s promise of Elijah (Malachi 4:5) leads into John the Baptist, whom Jesus identifies as that Elijah (11:14; 17:12–13).
  • The Prophets: Matthew quotes or echoes the Old Testament more than any other Gospel, including Isaiah 7:14 (1:23), Micah 5:2 (2:6), Hosea 11:1 (2:15), Jeremiah 31:15 (2:18), and Zechariah 9:9 (21:5).
  • Mark and Luke tell much of the same story (see the Synoptic Problem under Author), and John complements them with Jesus’ ministry in Judea.
  • Acts carries out the Great Commission (28:18–20), beginning in Jerusalem and reaching the nations (Acts 1:8).
  • James echoes the Sermon on the Mount more closely than any other letter (compare 5:3 with James 2:5; 5:11–12 with James 1:2; 5:34–37 with James 5:12; 7:7 with James 1:5).
  • Revelation: the Son of Man coming with the clouds (24:30; Revelation 1:7) and the kingdom of the world becoming the kingdom of our Lord and of His Messiah (Revelation 11:15).

TWB Translation Decisions

The main rendering decisions made so far in Matthew. Each one with a study note links to it.

“Messiah” for Χριστός

TWB renders Χριστός Christos as “Messiah” throughout, showing that it is a title (“Anointed One”) rather than a surname. The notes show the Greek wherever it matters.

Speech colors

Jesus’ words are printed in red and God the Father’s in blue (for example, the voice from heaven at the baptism, 3:17). The words of ordinary angels, such as the angel who speaks to Joseph in dreams (2:13, 19–20), are not colored.

Old Testament quotations in capitals

Direct quotations of the Old Testament are printed in capitals, so readers can see where Matthew is citing Scripture (for example, Micah 5:2 at 2:6 and Hosea 11:1 at 2:15).

Read the full note →

“Magi” (2:1)

Rather than “wise men,” which hides their priestly and astrological role, or “magicians,” which gives a negative sense Matthew does not intend.

Read the full note →

“His star at its rising” (2:2)

Not “in the east”: the singular with the article is an astronomical expression for a star’s rising.

Read the full note →

“Worship” (2:2, 11)

For προσκυνέω proskyneō, rather than “pay homage,” because Matthew uses the same verb for the disciples’ worship of Jesus (14:33; 28:9, 17).

Read the full note →

“He had been mocked” (2:16)

Rather than “tricked,” to keep the link with the mockery of Jesus at His trial and crucifixion, where Matthew uses the same verb.

Read the full note →

“That He would be called a Nazarene” (2:23)

Rendered as indirect speech, without quotation marks or capitals, because the words are not found in any one Old Testament book.

Read the full note →

Textual Notes

Base text: Nestle-Aland, 28th edition (NA28). Where the Majority Text or Textus Receptus reads differently, the notes record both readings and the manuscripts behind them.

The doxology of the Lord’s Prayer 6:13

“For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” is found in the Majority Text and the Textus Receptus but not in the earliest manuscripts, including Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus. A shorter doxology appears in the Didache (8:2), which shows it was used in worship very early. TWB follows NA28 and records the longer reading in the note.

Verses not found in the earliest manuscripts 17:21

Three verses found in the Majority Text and Textus Receptus are absent from the earliest manuscripts: 17:21 (“this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting”), 18:11 (“the Son of Man came to save the lost”), and 23:14 (on devouring widows’ houses). Each closely matches a verse in another Gospel (Mark 9:29; Luke 19:10; Mark 12:40), and most scholars think scribes added them from there. Supporters of the Majority Text regard them as original. TWB follows NA28 and records each in the notes.

“Without cause” 5:22

The Majority Text and Textus Receptus read “whoever is angry with his brother without cause” (εἰκῆ eikē). The earliest manuscripts lack the phrase, which softens Jesus’ saying. TWB follows NA28.

The spear at the cross 27:49

Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus add that a soldier pierced Jesus’ side with a spear before He died, wording that closely matches John 19:34. NA28 places it in the apparatus, judging it an early addition from John.

Textual notes in the chapters translated so far

Contested Questions

Major questions on which careful readers and Christian traditions disagree. TWB states each view fairly and does not take a side, per the Master Specification Record.

What is “this rock” in Matthew 16:18?
Peter, with a continuing office

Jesus plays on Peter’s name (Πέτρος Petros, “rock”) and builds the church on him, giving him the keys (16:19). Catholic teaching sees this office continued in Peter’s successors, the bishops of Rome.

Peter, as the first apostle

The rock is Peter himself, as the leading apostle and first preacher (Acts 2; 10), without a line of successors. Held by many Protestant scholars today.

Peter’s confession of faith

The rock is the truth Peter confessed, that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God (16:16). Common in Orthodox and in much Protestant teaching; Orthodox tradition also sees every bishop as sharing Peter’s ministry.

Christ Himself

The rock is Christ, the one foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11; compare 1 Peter 2:4–8). Augustine argued for this reading in some of his writings.

What does the exception for “sexual immorality” allow (5:32; 19:9)?
Divorce and remarriage after adultery

Sexual unfaithfulness (πορνεία porneia) breaks the marriage, so the innocent party may divorce and remarry. Held in most Protestant traditions.

Separation without remarriage

A valid sacramental marriage cannot be dissolved; the exception allows separation, or applies to unions that were never valid marriages (the basis of annulment). Catholic teaching.

Remarriage permitted by pastoral mercy

Marriage is meant to be lifelong, but the church may permit a second marriage after divorce as an act of mercy (οἰκονομία oikonomia). Orthodox practice.

A narrow case

πορνεία porneia refers to unfaithfulness during betrothal (as Joseph suspected of Mary, 1:19) or to marriages within forbidden family relationships (Leviticus 18; Acts 15:29).

When is the Olivet Discourse (chapter 24) fulfilled?
In A.D. 70

Most of the discourse was fulfilled when Rome destroyed Jerusalem and the temple, within “this generation” (24:34). Held by preterist interpreters.

At the end of the age

The discourse describes events still future, before Christ’s return. Held by futurist interpreters.

Both

The fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 fulfills the near prophecy and foreshadows the final judgment at Christ’s return. Held by many interpreters across traditions.

Did Mary have other children (1:25; 13:55)?
Mary remained a virgin

“Until” (1:25) does not imply anything afterward, and Jesus’ “brothers” (13:55) were relatives. Catholic and Orthodox teaching, and held by Luther and other early Reformers. Orthodox tradition sees them as Joseph’s children from an earlier marriage; Catholic tradition, following Jerome, as cousins.

Mary and Joseph had other children

“Until” most naturally implies a normal marriage afterward, and the brothers and sisters named in 13:55–56 were younger children of Mary and Joseph. Held by most Protestants today.

Places in the Book

  • Babylon Identified first mentioned 1:11
  • Bethlehem Identified first mentioned 2:1
  • Judea Identified first mentioned 2:1
  • Jerusalem Identified first mentioned 2:1
  • Egypt Identified first mentioned 2:13
  • Ramah Identified first mentioned 2:18
  • Israel Identified first mentioned 2:20
  • Galilee Identified first mentioned 2:22
  • Nazareth Identified first mentioned 2:23
  • the wilderness Identified first mentioned 3:1
  • the Jordan Identified first mentioned 3:5
  • Capernaum Identified first mentioned 4:13
  • Zebulun Identified first mentioned 4:13
  • Naphtali Identified first mentioned 4:13
  • Sea of Galilee Identified first mentioned 4:18
  • Syria Identified first mentioned 4:24
  • Decapolis Identified first mentioned 4:25
  • the mountain Location unknown first mentioned 5:1
  • Gehenna Identified first mentioned 5:22

The map shows unlabeled physical relief, with no modern borders or names. Hollow pins mark proposed sites for disputed places; places of unknown location are not pinned. This list grows as more chapters are translated.

The conservative view is given first; other views follow where scholars differ. Status: draft, version 0.7.0, updated 2026-10-10.