The early Christians rightly saw the Gospel of Matthew as important because it has some significant portions of Jesus' teaching that are not included in other gospels, such as a fuller version of the Sermon on the Mount. In the early days of Christianity, many people thought that the Gospel of Matthew was the first written. "It is a remarkable fact that, among the variations in the order in which the Gospels appear in early lists and texts, the one constant factor is that Matthew always comes first." (France) There are many reasons why Matthew belongs first among the gospel accounts. Though most New Testament scholars believe that the Gospel of Matthew was not the first of the four written, it is well placed as the first book of the New Testament. Matthew begins his account of the life of Jesus Christ with the record of the lineage of Jesus from the patriarch Abraham. The Son of David, the Son of Abraham: In this overview of explaining the lineage of Jesus, Matthew clearly and strongly connects him to some of the greatest men in the history of the Old Testament. "We know that he was a tax-gatherer and that he must therefore have been a bitterly hated man, for the Jews hated the members of their own race who had entered the civil service of their conquerors." (Barclay)ī. "Matthew nobly used his literary skill to become the first man ever to compile an account of the teaching of Jesus." (Barclay) We might say that when Matthew followed Jesus, he left everything behind – except his pen and paper. Some think that Matthew was the "recorder" among the disciples and took notes of Jesus' teaching. A tax collector of that day must know Greek and be a literate, well-organized man. As a former tax collector (also called "Levi"), Matthew was qualified to write an account of Jesus' life and teachings. In the entire Gospel of Matthew we have the "record of the history." In Matthew 1:18-2:23 we have the "record of the origins." In Matthew 1:1-17 we have the "record of the genealogy." There is a sense in which each meaning is valid. "The first two words of Matthew, biblos genseos, may be translated 'record of the genealogy,' 'record of the origins,' or 'record of the history'" (Carson). From the statement in the ancient Greek text, it is difficult to tell what the book of the genealogy refers to. ![]() The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ: So, Matthew begins his account of the life of Jesus Christ. The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:Ī. ( Matthew 1:1) Matthew presents his theme in the first verse: Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecy and of Israel's expectation.
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