Matthew

Chapter 08

The Cleansing of a Leper

1When He came down from the mountain, great crowds followed Him. 2And behold, a lepera came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 3And stretching out His hand, He touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”b

The Centurion’s Servant

5When He had entered , a centurionc came to Him, appealing to Him 6and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, terribly tormented.” 7And He said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8But the centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9For I also am a man under authority,d with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10When Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.e 11And I say to you that many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of the heavens;f 12but the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”g 13And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed in that very hour.

Many Healed at Peter’s House

14And when Jesus came into Peter’s house, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever. 15And He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and began to serve Him. 16When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill, 17to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our weaknesses and carried our diseases.”h

The Cost of Following Jesus

18Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side. 19And a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” 20And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Mani has nowhere to lay His head.” 21Another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” 22But Jesus said to him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”j

The Calming of the Storm

23And when He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. 24And behold, a great stormk arose on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but He was sleeping. 25And they came and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us; we are perishing!” 26And He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea,l and there was a great calm. 27And the men marveled, saying, “What kind of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Two Demon-Possessed Men

28And when He came to the other side, into the m, two demon-possessed men met Him, coming out of the tombs, so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. 29And behold, they cried out, saying, “What do we have to do with You, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?”n 30Now some distance from them a herd of many pigs was feeding. 31And the demons were pleading with Him, saying, “If You cast us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” 32And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the pigs; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and died in the waters.o 33And the herdsmen fled, and going into the city they reported everything, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they begged Him to leave their region.

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Context & Translation Notes

Original Reader Horizon • Lexical & Canonical Mesh

a 8:2 — a leper (λεπρός / lepros) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: λεπρός lepros is a person with λέπρα lepra, the Greek term for the Hebrew צָרַעַת ṣāraʿaṯ, which covered a range of skin diseases and even mold in fabric and walls (Leviticus 13:47; 14:34). It is not limited to modern leprosy (Hansen’s disease). “Make me clean” (καθαρίσαι katharisai) is the language of ritual purity, not only of cure. “Worshiped” renders προσεκύνει prosekynei, the verb TWB translates “worship” throughout Matthew (see the note on Matthew 2:2).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The Law required a person with the disease to live outside the camp and cry “Unclean, unclean” (Leviticus 13:45–46), and prescribed the priest’s inspection and offerings for one who was healed (Leviticus 14:1–32). Miriam was struck with it (Numbers 12:10), and Naaman was cleansed in the Jordan at Elisha’s word (2 Kings 5:14). Cleansing lepers is among the signs Jesus sends to John (Matthew 11:5) and gives His disciples to do (Matthew 10:8).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Josephus says those with the disease were barred from cities (Against Apion 1.281), and a later rabbinic saying counts the leper among those regarded as dead (Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim 64b). Touching such a person made one unclean (Leviticus 5:3). Jesus touches the man before he is cleansed, and instead of uncleanness passing to Jesus, cleansing passes to the man. Matthew places this first after the Sermon: the One who taught with authority now acts with it.

b 8:4 — as a testimony to them (εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς / eis martyrion autois) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: μαρτύριον martyrion is a testimony or evidence. “To them” may mean the priests, who would confirm the cleansing, or the people generally, who would see that Jesus keeps the Law. “See that you tell no one” (ὅρα μηδενὶ εἴπῃς hora mēdeni eipēs) is the first of several commands to silence in Matthew (9:30; 12:16; 16:20; 17:9).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The gift Moses commanded was two birds on the day of cleansing and lambs, flour, and oil on the eighth day (Leviticus 14:2–32). Jesus has just said He came not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17). In Matthew 10:18 the disciples will stand before rulers “as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.”

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Only a priest could declare a person clean and restore him to worship and community life; for a Galilean this could mean the journey to the temple in Jerusalem. By sending the man to the priest, Jesus honors the Law’s procedure and provides public proof of the healing. Interpreters explain the commands to silence in different ways, such as avoiding a merely political messianic enthusiasm or fulfilling Isaiah’s portrait of a Servant who does not cry out in the streets (Matthew 12:16–21).

c 8:5 — a centurion (ἑκατόνταρχος / hekatontarchos) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἑκατόνταρχος hekatontarchos, “commander of a hundred,” was an officer over a unit of about eighty soldiers. His servant is a παῖς pais (8:6, 8, 13), which can mean “boy, child” or “servant”; Luke calls him a slave (δοῦλος doulos, Luke 7:2), and TWB renders “servant.” Jesus’ reply in 8:7 begins with an emphatic “I” (ἐγώ egō) and can also be read as a question, “Shall I come and heal him?”; TWB renders a statement and records the alternative here.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Luke tells the same event, with Jewish elders speaking for the centurion (Luke 7:1–10). Centurions appear at key moments: at the cross a centurion confesses “Truly this was the Son of God” (Matthew 27:54), and Cornelius is the first Gentile household to receive the gospel (Acts 10).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Capernaum lay in the territory of Herod Antipas, whose troops were organized on the Roman model and recruited largely from non-Jews; Roman legions were not stationed in Galilee at this time. The centurion was almost certainly a Gentile (8:10–11). Peter later says it was unlawful for a Jew to visit a Gentile’s home (Acts 10:28), which explains the centurion’s “I am not worthy for You to come under my roof.”

d 8:9 — a man under authority (ἄνθρωπός εἰμι ὑπὸ ἐξουσίαν / anthrōpos eimi hypo exousian) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἐξουσία exousia is authority, the right to command (see the note on Matthew 7:29). The centurion reasons from his own place in a chain of command: because he is under authority, his orders carry the authority of those above him. “Only say the word” (μόνον εἰπὲ λόγῳ monon eipe logō) is literally “only speak with a word,” and in 8:16 Jesus casts out spirits “with a word” (λόγῳ logō).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: “He sent His word and healed them” (Psalm 107:20). The crowds have just marveled that Jesus taught “as one having authority” (Matthew 7:29); the risen Jesus will claim “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). Luke describes a woman bound by “a spirit of infirmity” whom “Satan has bound” (Luke 13:11, 16).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: A Roman soldier understood authority as delegated power: an order from a centurion carried the weight of the emperor behind him. The centurion pictures Jesus as One whose commands carry the authority of God, so distance does not matter. Within the Divine Council worldview, sickness and the spiritual powers associated with it are not independent forces; they answer to the word of the One who holds God’s authority, as the evening healings and exorcisms of 8:16 then show.

e 8:10 — with no one in Israel have I found such faith (παρ᾽ οὐδενὶ τοσαύτην πίστιν ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ εὗρον / par’ oudeni tosautēn pistin en tō Israēl heuron) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἐθαύμασεν ethaumasen, “He marveled,” is said of Jesus only here and in Mark 6:6 (at unbelief). πίστις pistis is faith or trust. NA28 reads “with no one in Israel have I found such faith”; the Majority Text and Textus Receptus read “not even in Israel have I found such great faith” (οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ τοσαύτην πίστιν oude en tō Israēl tosautēn pistin), which matches the wording of Luke 7:9.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The only other person in Matthew praised for “great faith” is also a Gentile, the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:28). In contrast, the disciples are repeatedly “you of little faith” (Matthew 6:30; 8:26), and Nazareth’s unbelief limits His mighty works (Matthew 13:58).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: For Jewish hearers, Israel was the people who knew the true God, and Gentiles were by definition outside the covenant. Jesus’ praise of a Gentile officer, likely in the service of Herod Antipas, would have been startling. TWB follows NA28; the reading “not even in Israel” is best explained as scribes harmonizing Matthew with Luke.

Variant record: main text “with no one in Israel have I found such faith (παρ᾽ οὐδενὶ τοσαύτην πίστιν ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ εὗρον, par’ oudeni tosautēn pistin en tō Israēl heuron)”; alternative “not even in Israel have I found such great faith (οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ τοσαύτην πίστιν εὗρον, oude en tō Israēl tosautēn pistin heuron)”. Witnesses: NA28: main; Codex Vaticanus: main; Majority Text: alternative; Textus Receptus: alternative. Decision: NA28 reading retained.

f 8:11 — recline at table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob (ἀνακλιθήσονται μετὰ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβ / anaklithēsontai meta Abraam kai Isaak kai Iakōb) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἀνακλίνω anaklinō means to recline at a meal, the posture of a formal banquet. “From east and west” (ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν καὶ δυσμῶν apo anatolōn kai dysmōn) means from the ends of the earth. In the context of the Gentile centurion, the “many” are people of the nations.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Isaiah foresees a feast on God’s mountain “for all peoples” (Isaiah 25:6–8). God gathers His people “from the east and from the west” (Psalm 107:3; Isaiah 49:12; 43:5), and His name will be great among the nations “from the rising of the sun to its setting” (Malachi 1:11). The promise to Abraham was blessing for all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3). Revelation calls it “the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Jewish hope pictured the age to come as a great banquet (1 Enoch 62:14, “with that Son of Man they shall eat”; 2 Baruch 29:4–8), and a Qumran text describes the seating at a meal when the Messiah is present (1QSa 2:11–22). Within the Divine Council worldview, the nations had been given over to lesser powers after Babel (Deuteronomy 32:8–9), while Israel remained the Lord’s portion. Jesus announces that people from those nations will now sit at Israel’s own feast with the patriarchs: the nations are being reclaimed.

g 8:12 — the outer darkness (τὸ σκότος τὸ ἐξώτερον / to skotos to exōteron) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἐξώτερος exōteros means “farther out”: the darkness outside the lighted banquet hall. “Sons of the kingdom” is a Semitic idiom for those who belong to it by birth, the expected heirs. “Weeping and gnashing of teeth” (ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων ho klauthmos kai ho brygmos tōn odontōn) expresses grief and anguish; Matthew uses the phrase six times (8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The “outer darkness” returns in the parables of the wedding feast and the talents (Matthew 22:13; 25:30). Jesus later warns that the kingdom will be taken from some and given to a people producing its fruit (Matthew 21:43). Peter says God cast rebellious angels into chains of gloomy darkness (2 Peter 2:4), and Jude calls false teachers wandering stars for whom “the gloom of darkness has been reserved” (Jude 13).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: In 1 Enoch, the leader of the rebellious Watchers is bound and cast into darkness until the day of judgment (1 Enoch 10:4–5), and darkness is the place of the wicked in 1 Enoch 103:8. Jewish hearers would understand the image as exclusion from God’s presence and feast, the fate reserved for the powers in rebellion. That Israel’s own expected heirs could be shut out was the shock of the saying.

h 8:17 — He Himself took our weaknesses and carried our diseases (αὐτὸς τὰς ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν ἔλαβεν καὶ τὰς νόσους ἐβάστασεν / autos tas astheneias hēmōn elaben kai tas nosous ebastasen) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Matthew quotes Isaiah 53:4 from the Hebrew, “surely he has borne our sicknesses (חֳלָיֵנוּ ḥŏlāyênû) and carried our pains (מַכְאֹבֵינוּ maḵʾōḇênû),” rather than the Septuagint, which reads “he bears our sins.” ἀσθένεια astheneia is weakness or illness, and βαστάζω bastazō means to carry or bear. As an Old Testament citation, it is set in capitals.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Isaiah 53 is the fourth song of the Servant of the Lord, who is “pierced for our transgressions” and by whose wounds “we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Peter applies the passage to sins borne on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). Matthew quotes another Servant song in 12:18–21, and Jesus gives His life “as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). Isaiah also foresees the blind seeing and the lame leaping (Isaiah 35:5–6).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Matthew applies Isaiah 53 to Jesus’ healing ministry, before the cross, showing that the Servant’s work touched bodies as well as sins. Later Christian interpreters have debated how far physical healing is included in the atonement: some hold that healing is promised now, others that it is secured by the cross but fully given only at the resurrection. Matthew’s own statement is that Isaiah’s words were fulfilled in these healings.

i 8:20 — the Son of Man (ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου / ho huios tou anthrōpou) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: First use in Matthew of Jesus’ most frequent way of referring to Himself. The phrase reflects Aramaic בַּר אֱנָשׁ bar ʾĕnāš, which can mean simply “a human being” or serve as a modest way of saying “I.” ἀλώπηξ alōpēx is a fox, and κατασκήνωσις kataskēnōsis a roost or nest. The Son of Man, unlike the animals, has no settled home.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Psalm 8:4 and Ezekiel (2:1 and more than ninety times) use “son of man” for a mortal human. Daniel sees “one like a son of man” coming with the clouds of heaven, who receives dominion, glory, and a kingdom that all peoples serve (Daniel 7:13–14). Matthew’s later uses draw on Daniel: the Son of Man has authority on earth (Matthew 9:6) and will come on the clouds (24:30; 26:64).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Daniel 7 is a Divine Council scene: thrones are set, the Ancient of Days takes His seat, and “the court sat in judgment” (Daniel 7:9–10). Riding the clouds was a prerogative of God (Psalm 104:3; Isaiah 19:1), so the human figure who comes with the clouds is given divine rule. The Similitudes of 1 Enoch (chapters 37–71, likely before or around the time of Jesus) also speak of “that Son of Man” seated on a throne of glory to judge. Jesus’ use of the title was both humble and exalted; here He sets the homelessness of His mission beside the glory the title implies.

j 8:22 — let the dead bury their own dead (ἄφες τοὺς νεκροὺς θάψαι τοὺς ἑαυτῶν νεκρούς / aphes tous nekrous thapsai tous heautōn nekrous) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: νεκρός nekros is used in two senses in one saying: the physically dead, and those who are dead in another sense, who do not follow Jesus. ἀκολούθει μοι akolouthei moi, “Follow Me,” is a present imperative: keep following. The man asks to go “first” (πρῶτον prōton); Jesus has just said “seek first the kingdom” (6:33).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Elisha asked to kiss his father and mother before following Elijah and was allowed to (1 Kings 19:20); Jesus asks more. Honoring father and mother is commanded (Exodus 20:12), but “whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37). The high priest and Nazirites were forbidden to bury even their parents, because of their consecration (Leviticus 21:11; Numbers 6:6–7).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Burying one’s parents was among the weightiest duties in Judaism; it overrode other obligations, even reciting the Shema (Mishnah Berakhot 3:1), and the book of Tobit praises it (Tobit 4:3). Some interpreters suggest the father was still alive, or that the request concerned the reburial of bones a year after death, which would mean a long delay. Either way, the saying makes following Jesus outrank even the most sacred family duty.

k 8:24 — a great storm (σεισμὸς μέγας / seismos megas) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: σεισμός seismos means a shaking, and elsewhere in Matthew an earthquake (24:7; 27:54; 28:2); it is not the usual Greek word for a storm. TWB renders “storm” because that is what a shaking of the sea describes in English, and records Matthew’s word here, which links this scene to the earthquakes at Jesus’ death and resurrection. “Being covered” (καλύπτεσθαι kalyptesthai) means the waves were breaking over the boat.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Jonah also slept in a ship during a God-sent storm while the sailors feared death (Jonah 1:4–6); Jesus later calls Himself “something greater than Jonah” (Matthew 12:41). “They went down to the sea in ships … He raised the stormy wind” (Psalm 107:23–25). Sleeping in peace was a mark of trust in God (Psalm 4:8).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: The Sea of Galilee lies about 700 feet (210 meters) below sea level, with hills around it, and cool air rushing down through the valleys can raise violent storms quickly. For Israel and its neighbors, the sea was also the image of chaos and hostile power (Psalm 74:13–14; Isaiah 27:1), and only God could master it. See the next note.

l 8:26 — rebuked the winds and the sea (ἐπετίμησεν τοῖς ἀνέμοις καὶ τῇ θαλάσσῃ / epetimēsen tois anemois kai tē thalassē) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: ἐπιτιμάω epitimaō means to rebuke or command sternly; Matthew uses it when Jesus rebukes a demon (17:18), and Mark uses it at an exorcism (Mark 1:25). γαλήνη galēnē is the stillness of calm water. The disciples’ question “What kind of man is this?” (ποταπός potapos) points the reader to the answer the Psalms give. “You of little faith” repeats Matthew 6:30.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: In the Psalms it is the Lord who rebukes the waters: “At Your rebuke they fled” (Psalm 104:7); “He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up” (Psalm 106:9). “You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, You still them” (Psalm 89:9; compare 107:29). God set the sea its boundary: “Thus far shall you come, and no farther” (Job 38:11). Nahum says, “He rebukes the sea and makes it dry” (Nahum 1:4).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: In Canaanite myth, the storm god Baal battled Yamm, “Sea,” a divine power of chaos. Israel’s Scriptures took up that imagery to proclaim that the Lord alone masters the sea (Psalm 74:13–14; 89:9–10). Within the Divine Council worldview, Jesus does here what only Israel’s God does, using the same word He uses to rebuke demons. The disciples’ fear (8:27) is the right response to discovering who is in the boat with them.

m 8:28 — country of the Gadarenes (τὴν χώραν τῶν Γαδαρηνῶν / tēn chōran tōn Gadarēnōn) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Γαδαρηνός Gadarēnos means a person of Gadara. Manuscripts of Matthew differ: NA28 reads “Gadarenes”; others read “Gerasenes” (Γερασηνῶν Gerasēnōn), the NA28 reading in Mark 5:1 and Luke 8:26; and the Majority Text and Textus Receptus read “Gergesenes” (Γεργεσηνῶν Gergesēnōn). Matthew mentions two men where Mark and Luke focus on one; Matthew also has two blind men in 9:27 and 20:30.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Mark and Luke tell the same event (Mark 5:1–20; Luke 8:26–39). Isaiah describes a rebellious people “who sit in tombs … who eat pig’s flesh” (Isaiah 65:4), a description this scene echoes closely. Contact with a grave made a person unclean (Numbers 19:16). The Decapolis, the league of Greek cities to which Gadara belonged, was among the regions from which crowds came to Jesus (Matthew 4:25).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Gadara (modern Umm Qais) was a Greek city of the Decapolis about six miles (ten kilometers) southeast of the lake, and its territory may have reached the shore; its coins show a ship. Gerasa (modern Jerash) lies about thirty miles from the lake. Origen proposed Gergesa, a site on the eastern shore with a steep slope, often identified with Kursi. All three readings place the event in Gentile territory, where pigs were raised. TWB follows NA28; see the map for the proposed locations.

Variant record: main text “Gadarenes (Γαδαρηνῶν, Gadarēnōn)”; alternative “Gerasenes (Γερασηνῶν, Gerasēnōn) or Gergesenes (Γεργεσηνῶν, Gergesēnōn)”. Witnesses: NA28: main; Codex Vaticanus: main; Old Latin manuscripts: Gerasenes; Majority Text: Gergesenes; Textus Receptus: Gergesenes. Decision: NA28 reading retained.

n 8:29 — Son of God … before the time (υἱὲ τοῦ θεοῦ; ἦλθες ὧδε πρὸ καιροῦ / huie tou theou; ēlthes hōde pro kairou) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: “What do we have to do with You?” renders the idiom τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί ti hēmin kai soi, literally “what to us and to you,” used to reject someone’s claim or interference (Judges 11:12; 1 Kings 17:18). βασανίζω basanizō means to torment, and πρὸ καιροῦ pro kairou “before the appointed time.” The demons, not the men, are speaking, so the words are not colored.

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: The devil had tested Jesus with “If You are the Son of God” (Matthew 4:3, 6); the demons state it outright. Jesus speaks of “the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). Peter and Jude describe rebellious angels kept for judgment (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6), and Revelation pictures the devil tormented forever (Revelation 20:10).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: Second Temple texts taught that evil spirits were permitted to act only until an appointed day of judgment. In 1 Enoch, the spirits of the giants do harm “until the day of the consummation, the great judgment” (1 Enoch 16:1). In Jubilees, the spirits’ chief, Mastema, asks that some of them be left free until the judgment, and God allows a tenth to remain (Jubilees 10:7–9). The demons recognize Jesus as the Judge and fear that the appointed time has come early. Within the Divine Council worldview, the rebellious powers know their sentence; His arrival in their territory means the judgment has begun.

o 8:32 — rushed down the steep bank into the sea (ὥρμησεν πᾶσα ἡ ἀγέλη κατὰ τοῦ κρημνοῦ εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν / hōrmēsen pasa hē agelē kata tou krēmnou eis tēn thalassan) ↩ back to text

Tier 1 — Lexical Anchor: Jesus speaks a single word, ὑπάγετε hypagete, “Go!” κρημνός krēmnos is a steep bank or cliff, and ὁρμάω hormaō means to rush headlong. The herdsmen (οἱ βόσκοντες hoi boskontes) report to the city, and the townspeople ask Jesus to leave their “region” (ὅρια horia, borders).

Tier 2 — Canonical Mesh: Pigs were unclean animals under the Law (Leviticus 11:7; Deuteronomy 14:8). In Luke’s account the demons beg not to be sent into the abyss (Luke 8:31), the deep prison of rebellious spirits, which Revelation describes as sealed over Satan (Revelation 20:3). Mark notes about two thousand pigs (Mark 5:13).

Tier 3 — Historical / Cosmological Horizon: For Jewish readers, the scene moves unclean spirits into unclean animals and then down into the sea, which in Israel’s imagery was the realm of chaos (see the note on 8:24). The townspeople, who counted the loss of their herd, asked Jesus to leave rather than welcome Him (8:34). Within the Divine Council worldview, Jesus enters Gentile land held by hostile powers and drives them out by a word, a preview of the reclaiming of the nations.

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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
    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 You are here
  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
  • country of the Gadarenes Disputed first mentioned 8:28
  • Samaria Identified first mentioned 10:5
  • Sodom Disputed first mentioned 10:15
  • Gomorrah Disputed first mentioned 10:15
  • Chorazin Identified first mentioned 11:21
  • Bethsaida Disputed first mentioned 11:21
  • Tyre Identified first mentioned 11:21
  • Sidon Identified first mentioned 11:21
  • Nineveh Identified first mentioned 12:41
  • Gennesaret Identified first mentioned 14:34
  • Magadan Disputed first mentioned 15:39

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.