Matthew Introduction

Welcome Prayer Song Silence Matthew 2026 Verse by Verse Introduction January 11th 2026 MATTHEW, Son of Alpheus, also known as Levi was by birth a Jew. He appears to have been a tax-gatherer who worked for the Romans and in scripture are called publicans. In order to collect the taxes, the publicans employed subordinates (according to Luke 5:27; 15:1; 18:10) and many of them were skimmers and extortioners who embezzeled funds from the tax paying public over which they gathered. In the Apostolic Record these taxes were paid back to the Romans, and were regarded by the Jews as a very heavy burden. Because the tax collectors for the Romans were often Jews they were hated and were spoken of badly. In Luke 7:34 Yeshua is accused of being a friend of “publicans and sinners." Interestingly, Yeshua uses the reputation of the publicans and their moral standing a few times in ministry for instance in Matthew five He says, Matthew 5:46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And in Matthew 21:31-32 Yeshua said to the pharisees “verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him. Matthew, like the other apostles of Christ, was a native of Galilee but we do not know the tribe from which he originated. According to the text Matthew was sitting at was called the custom house in or near the city of Capernaum, and Yeshua spotted him and invited Matthew to follow Him. The Gospel of Mark tells us that before leaving off that Matthew held a party in his own house, where Christ and several of his disciples were present along with many other tax-collectors, many ostensibly of poor repute in the community and the Pharisees watched as they celebrated together. Perhaps hosting a party was the custom but it seems that Matthew took this occasion of calling his family and colleagues together in order to give a respectable farewell but to also introduce them to meeting the Messiah. After being called to follow Him and so doing, Yeshua later made Matthew one of his trusted twelve who was with Him for three solid years witnessing all He said and taught. After the ascension of Christ, he was at Jerusalem and received the Spirit of the Risen Lord on the day of Pentecost. Of the five apostles who stories about being called is detailed in scripture, Matthew, along with Andrew, Peter, and the two sons of Zebedee, is one of them so it seems he was somehow unique. We do not know what happened to Matthew after Pentecost, including how how or when he died but there aren’t any rumblings that he was martyred. He just disappeared into the annuls of biblical history. When reading Matthews Gospel account, it is said that Matthew stands out differently from the others because he presents Yeshua as the promised King and Messiah fulfilling Old Testament prophecy. For this reason it is believed that Matthew was targeting a primarily Jewish audience as seen by an extensive reference to Old Testament scripture and by structuring Yeshua’s teachings into five major discourse “blocks if you will” (like the Sermon on the Mount) therefore almost making is a "manual" of the Messiah which is distinct from Mark's “action focus,” of Christ, Luke's universal humanism focus, and John's divine focus. Therefore, Matthew differs from the others in audience & theme (because, again – and remember this) it was written primarily for Jewish Christians to help prove Yeshua was the long-awaited Messiah and King. We find that the first ten chapters of Acts have a similar audience focus, Hebrews for sure, James, Jude and Revelation. And again Matthew heavily emphasizes Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecy, with more direct quotes and allusions than any other Gospel, connecting Yeshua’s life to Israel's history. In that vain Yeshua is depicted by Matthew as a new lawgiver, bringing a new covenant, similar to how Moses led Israel into the first. This approach caused Matthew to present much of his insights in grouped discourses that the other Gospels do not do nearly as much Some of Matthews uniqueness of content includes the story of Jesus and Peter paying the temple tax and a genealogy tracing back to Abraham. Matthew also has an emphasis on the Kingdom as a means to show that Yeshua was offering it to Israel first but faced rejection and opens us up to then Paul leading into a brief Church age before His return. In essence, Matthew provides a distinctly Jewish-Christian perspective, framing Yeshua as the King who fulfills ancient promises, making it a rich resource for understanding Jesus' messianic identity and His particularly pointed teachings on kingdom living and life. I think covering this Gospel now is a great follow up to our recently covering the books of the Pentateuch, Job and Psalms. Interestingly, the Old Testament covenant was merely called, The Covenant before the advent of Christ and were later, even by Paul, called the Old to distinguish it from what has become known as “the Christian Scriptures,” called the New Covenant and or the better covenant but (here’s an important idea) not so much because it was a new agreement, but it was more of a renewal of the old, in which the spirit, object, and design of that primitive covenant were more clearly and fully manifested and made complete by the real article, or Christ Himself. So in the former Old Covenant we have numerous allusions and symbols and types picturing and depicting the fulfillment or shall we say, the materialization of all things by Christ. This leads us to an oft-used couplet in the Apostolic Record that helps us see Him fulfilling and completing the whole thing in Himself. What couplet is that? The words, “but now.” Here are a few big ones – Speaking of God dealing with ingnorance of people before Moses gave the law, Luke writes in Acts 17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: And Paul writing in Romans 3:21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Or listen to what Paul says to the Jewish believers of Christ in Rome when he wrote Romans 6:20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. (or you could not be righteous because the Law made you sinful and he asks) 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And again in Romans 7:6 where Paul writes, (how I wish I could scream this to anyone who somehow thinks we still live by written laws) But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. Or the fact that Paul wraps Romans up with the following Romans 16:25-27 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Yeshua the Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, 26 But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: (not law) 27 To God only wise, be glory through Yeshua the Christ for ever. Amen. Speaking of the Resurrection Paul wrote in 1st Corinthians 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. Referencing the Gospel going to the Gentile, Paul says to them in his epistle to the believers at Ephesus – Ephesians 2:1-8 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. Then adds, at verse 13 But now in Christ Yeshua ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. Then in Ephesians 5:8 speaking to the same audience says, For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: Speaking of the great mystery that Paul adds was kept hidden in old Testament times, Paul says in Colossians 1:26, Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: Writing to the Jews in that day we get a tremendous time stamp from the author who write to them/then in Hebrews 2:8, Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. Meaning, ha Satan was not yet, at the time of that writing, in His absolute control. Of course, comparing Christ and His material manifestation and victory through it to the former economy of pictures, types and shadowy allusions to the real thing the writer of Hebrews says in chapter 8 – listen closely to these verses folks for after speaking of high priests under the Law, the writer adds Hebrews 8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; 2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. 3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: 5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount. 6 ¶ But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. 8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: 9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: 11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. 12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. 13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away. Proving that the age they were in, the world that they were in was coming to a close forevermore , the writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 9:26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. . . . literally TYING the end of that world to His putting away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Then speaking to the end of everything about that former economy coming to an end, the writer of Hebrew adds at chapter 12:26-27 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And these words, “Yet once more,” signifies the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Before letting this sidebar go, let’s look at what Peter said using the couplet, but now when he wrote in 1st Peter 2:9-10 to his gentile readers, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, “but are now the people of God:” which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Besides what Peter says here, which is so significant, there is an allusion here to the passage in Hosea 2:23 which says, "And I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God." Why am I pointing this out? Because is proves a point some people do not realize about the Apostles use of the scripture (Old Testament) – they use it to their liking sometimes and NOT because the passage they site originally meant how the Apostle uses it. Here, Peter uses the Hosea passage to speak of the Gentiles receiving mercy, but Hosea was the passage more specifically refers to the reception of one portion of the Israelites into favor after God had rejected them. In other words, the language of the prophet Hosea would exactly express what Peter wanted to assign to the Gentiles and he therefore uses it without intending to say that this was its original application. When this practice – used by Paul too and other writers – is discovered, it makes even smart men like Bart Erhman lose faith. We may encounter Matthew doing the same thing in this study as he appeals so often to the Old Testament text - so be on the look out. Then title of the four Gospels in most Greek Manuscripts is and in the printed additions is “euaggelion kata matyaion (Matthew) markon (Mark) loukan (Luke and John) ioannhn.”And so we call them the four “Gospels” a play on the words Good and or God and the angloSaxon word Spellion, which is where we get the word spell, as in putting letters together to form words. So, the God or Good of God is spelled out in these narratives. How did the English word, Gospel come from the Greek word, euaggelion? Eu means good, and aggelia means “a message,” so therefore, Matthew’s Gospel is good news especially to the Jews. One main point about these Gospels is that while they may have had direct purpose to the people in that day, they are (in my estimation) four of the five books of the Apostolic Record that do not say that they were written only to the believers then. So, of all the books of the Apostolic Record, the Four Gospels and Acts appear to have no written limitation on its audience whether by time, place or culture. If we wanted to be literal, we could actually say that the Gospels and Acts are the only books of the Apostolic Record NOT limited to that day and age by the writer themselves with a few possible exceptions in a couple of Paul’s Epistles . As an interesting aside, and as typical for human beings, the Anglo Saxon Spellian also can mean in English, a spell, as in a magical form of influence over people and some more humanist scholars have tried to make the God or Good Spell mean that they have a hidden power to change the course of some readers thinking. Additionally, some manuscripts have added the word, Saint before the writers names. This is an error and if ever included should refer to the Gospel itself and not the writer. In this case, The Gospel of Saint Matthew should actually read, the Holy Gospel according to Matthew. But you know people, right? The fact of that matter is anciently the word holy was never applied to the narrative nor to the narrator so in reality the title should simply read, The Gospel according to Matthew. Some modern critics contend that Matthew was written about 61 CE, or between this and 65. Others, that it was written as early as 41, or about the eighth year after the ascension. One of the best views on the dating of Matthew is from Johan Michaelis in 1790 has proposes a compromise saying that Matthew wrote his gospel in Hebrew about the 8th year after the ascension of our Lord or 41 AD; and that the translation of it into Greek was made about 61 AD or later. I personally reject the idea that ANY book of the Apostolic Record was written after 69 AD contrary to modern higher criticism. There is also a divide on the original language the book was written – Hebrew or Greek. All we do know is the earliest translations were in Greek very early on. Some people make a big deal about the amount of time that went by before some or all of the writers of the Apostolic record wrote. In response to this they seem to forget the fact that There was a superabundance of the Holy Spirit poured out on them in that day, And the Christ Himself said to them before his passion John 14:25-26 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. 26 But the parakletos, which is the Holy spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. And it doesn’t matter if they wrote 10000 years later. If God could raise the dead I am sure He can bring remembrance to the living. With that, let’s cover one last thing in this our introduction to Matthew and that is the differences between the genealogies found here compared to Luke. Because they each wrote for different theological purposes Matthew and Luke provide different genealogies for Yeshua. Matthew traces Joseph's royal line through Solomon, which emphasizes Yeshua’s as the Jewish Messiah and rightful king (from Abraham to Jesus), while Luke traces His lineage through Mary going all the way back to Adam, and highlighting Yeshua's universal humanity as Savior for the world. Matthew's focuses on kingship, while Luke's emphasizes universal salvation, by referring to different sons of David (Solomon vs. Nathan) and tracing back to humanity's origin. So, from verses 1-17 Matthew focuses on His royal, legal lineage of Joseph, his righteful human stepfather and goes from Abraham through David's son Solomon out to Joseph, showing Jesus as heir to David's throne. Matthew also organizes his genealogy into three sets of 14 generations, potentially for symbolic emphasis and again the purpose was to present Yeshuas as the promised Jewish Messiah, the King of Israel. Luke's Genealogy (Luke 3:23-38) focuses on his biological lineage, often through Mary, demonstrating Jesus's connection to all humanity. He also starts instead of from Abraham at Adam and moves out to Yeshua, again to emphasizing His gift of universal salvation from sin and death. Where things get all jacked up is Luke traces His line through David's son Nathan, and not Solomon – therefore these two will never be reconciled. So the most common explanation is Matthew records Joseph's line (legal/royal) and Luke records Mary's line (biological). There is also a Leverite Marriage angle that suggests Joseph had two fathers; one biological and one through levirate marriage (where a brother marries his deceased brother's widow), resulting in different legal/biological fathers. Bottom line? both Gospel writer used genealogy to support their unique theological message about Jesus's identity and mission, making the differences intentional rather than errors. So, lets wrap today up reading through the first 17 verses of chapter 1 of Matthew. The book of the genealogy of Yeshua the Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. PO This is an account of the ancestors of Yeshua (called the) Christ. In Hebrew, the Greek term, Christos, is Messiah and means, the anointed. Anciently, kings and priests were anointed with oil emblematically setting them apart from the rest. Therefore, to anoint means to consecrate or set apart from the rest. In the most literal sense, Yeshua of Nazareth was the anointed one - the “set apart from the rest” one, as a king and priest. (see, Leviticus 4:3; 6:20; Exodus 28:41; 29:7; 1st Samuel 9:16; 15:1; 2nd Samuel 23:1.) To establish his heritage right off the bat Matthew writes that Yeshua was the son of David and, the son of Abraham – and then he goes forward to prove it. (Abraham, see, Genesis 12:3; 22:18; Galatians 3:16. David, see, Psalm 132:1o-11; Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5; Matthew 22:42; John 7:42; Acts 2:30; 13:23; Romans 1:3) 2Abraham fathered Isaac; and Isaac fathered Jacob; and Jacob fathered Judas and his brethren; Right here we read the Tribe Yeshua came from and of the twelves it was Judah. He was not able to even enter the holiest place of the Material temple standing in that day as His tribal genealogy was not from Levi. 3And Judah fathered Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares fathered Hezrom; and Hezrom fathered Ram; Do you remember the story of how Judah fathered the twins Phares and Zara? Remember who Thamar was? It was Judah’s daughter in law who pretended to be a harlot and Judah went in unto her and she conceived playing that role. What’s wild is it was not entirely unlawful for Judah to go in unto a prostitute in that day – but that is another story. 4And Ram fathered Amminadab; and Amminadab fathered Nahshon; and Nahshon fathered Salmon; 5And Salmon fathered Boaz of Rahab; and Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth; and Obed fathered Jesse; 6And Jesse fathered David the king; and David fathered Solomon by the wife of Uriah; Let’s just talk about some of the women mentioned here, shall we? I maintain that they were good women who faced some tough times and they include, in the genealogy of Christ – Tamar: Deceived Judah to secure her place in the lineage, highlighting God working through unconventional situations. Rahab: A Canaanite prostitute who sheltered Israelite spies, showing God's inclusion of Gentiles. Ruth: A Moabite (Gentile) who showed loyalty and married Boaz, an ancestor of David, bringing Gentile inclusion into the royal line. Bathsheba: David's adulterous partner, emphasizing the brokenness and sin within the royal line that Yeshua Himself would redeem. And finally, his young mother Mary - a young Jewish woman who consented to God's miraculous plan, representing faith and courage and was shamed by her submission to Him. Being the father of three daughters, one granddaughter and one on the way, I have always, though I have been inappropriate with some of the women in my past, admired women, have always seen them as typifying the very life and suffering of Christ Himself, and do not think it a mistake that at least two of his three best friends on earth were sisters, and the one who saw Him first was also a woman. 7And Solomon fathered Rehoboam; and Rehoboam fathered Abijah; and Abijah fathered Asa;8And Asa fathered Jehoshaphat; and Jehoshaphat fathered Joram; and Joram fathered Uzziah; 9And Uzziah fathered Jotham; and Jotham fathered Ahaz; and Ahaz fathered Hezekiah; 10And Hezekiah fathered Manasseh; and Manasseh fathered Amos; and Amos fathered Josiah; 11And Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time they were exiled to Babylon: Between verses 11 and 12 we have the Nation of Israel being taken into Babylonian captivity with a low point being told through the actions of another one of Yeshua’s forefathers, Jechoniah. 12And after they were exiled to Babylon, Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel; and Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel; 13And Zerubbabel fathered Abiud; and Abiud fathered Eliakim; and Eliakim fathered Azor; 14And Azor fathered Zadoc; and Zadoc fathered Achim; and Achim fathered Eliud; 15And Eliud fathered Eleazar; and Eleazar fathered Matthan; and Matthan fathered Jacob; 16And Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Yeshua was born, who is called Christ. 17So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the exile into Babylon to Christ fourteen generations. And we will continue on in Matthew next Sunday, 8 am MTN. Join us at ten as we offer up what we are calling Sunday Schooled, a topical teaching of biblical principles important today – in our opinion. Questions/Comments Prayer