THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

The Story of Matthew

The Man of St Matthew

Our next step is an overview of Matthew similar to our overview of Mark: without going into great detail, we need to examine how has Matthew used the story of Mark and then what features are special to him in his adaptation of the story. We will have to look around the Gospel in order to discover how Matthew has organised and arranged his story. This is always helpful because increases our familiarity with the Gospel.

First, we have to establish that Matthew is using the same framework as the Gospel of Mark as I have been suggesting. Compare therefore Mt 4,17 with Mk 1,11; Mt 16,16 & 17,5 with Mk 8,29 & 9,7; Mt 27,46.54 with Mk 15,34.39.

We can note that unlike Mark, Matthew begins his Gospel with two chapters about the birth and childhood of Jesus. Then, at the end of the Gospel, he gives a more detailed account of the resurrection (contrast Mk 16,1-8 with Mt 28).

Now, compare Mt 1,23 and Mt 28,20 as the framework of the whole Gospel. What does this tell us about the evangelist's message?

Highlights of the Gospel of Matthew

There are two other features of the Gospel about which we need to explore as we begin our reading.

For the first, look at Mt 7,28; 11,1; 13,53; 19,1; 26,1.
You will see that these verses are all conclusions, so where is the beginning which leads to each of these five statements? How can we describe what comes in between?

For the second, look at: Mt 4,8; 5,1; 14,23; 15,29; 17,1; 24,3; 28,16.
What scenes are introduced by this setting? Consider what might be the significance of this particular setting, taking Exodus 19 as the clue.

Time now for a look at my response

Comparing Matthew with Mark

We will be comparing the two Gospels frequently as we go along because they are so similar and yet so different. Here are a few comparisons which will help us as we begin.

Now have a look at my response.

Conclusion

Our investigations have shown us that Matthew is good at organising his story. He is perhaps less of a story teller than Mark and more of a teacher.

Having therefore prepared ourselves with this initial overview, we are now ready to begin our reading of the Gospel. As will be our usual practice, we start with an overview of the first chapter.