The Gospel of Matthew…

Ok, better buckle up because this post is going to be deep and difficult, so pay attention boys and girls.

The Plot of Matthew’s Gospel is one of conflict. Between those who think the things of God and those who do not. How is this conflict resolved? With the death of Jesus. There are, in this gospel, whispers of the Old Testament or the Hebew Scriptures. In the first chapters of Matthew Jesus is called Emmanuel.

Matthew 1:22-23

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

This is an Echo from the Book of Isaiah 7:13-14:

Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

There is a structure to the Gospel of Matthew:
1. The Sermon on the Mount
2. The Discourse to the Disciples
3. The Parabolic Discourses
4. The Discourse to the community
5. The Eschatalogical Discourses

Mt. 1:1 – 4:16 The figure of Jesus the Messiah
Mt. 4:17 – 16:20 The ministry of Jesus the Messiah/Israels repudiation of Jesus
Mt. 16:21 – 28:20 The journey of Jesus the Messiah to Jerusalem

The Plot, once again is those people polarized around the idea of those who think about the tings of God and those who do not. Jesus is in conflict with others, the Jewish authority and even the disciples. When Jesus tells Peter of his coming death Peter takes on the role of [satan] Satan in the bible, is a role that an individual can have. He is an adversary or opponent.

Mt. 16:21-23
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

In The Gospel of Matthew, from the Romans perspective, Jesus is seen as a criminal because of his insurrection [The King of the Jews]. The Romans kill Jesus like a common criminal, what is his crime, He is the King of the Jews. There could only be one king, Caesar. But God vindicates Jesus in the resurrection.

Matthew’s Jesus:
1. Jesus knows God as Father
2. He understands himself to be God’s unique son Mt. 21:37-38
3. Jesus plays a role in the history of salvation Mt. 21: 23-43
4. Jesus as builder of the Ecclesia – The Church Mt. 16:18-19

Who is Jesus? The Messiah, The Son of David, The Son of Abraham

The wise men called him The King of the Jews. John the Baptist called him the coming one. The One to brring final judgment.

Mt. 3:10-12

The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

He [Jesus] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with FIRE!!! This is not a mistake. Fire is an addition from Mark’s Gospel. Fire is cleaning, judging, purifying.

Jesus as “Son of God” you have to look at the context of the story as it is written.

Here is where we get into some deep thoughts. When I now read the first two chapters of The Gospel of Matthew I ask a few questions. Was Jesus born in Bethlehem or is it implied by the author? When the Magi come upon Jesus, how old is he? Then Joseph took his family and fled to Egypt, How did Herod know to call for the killing of children 2 and under? I give you the biblical text to read, notice the time shifts which I will highlight for you:

The Birth of Jesus Christ
Mt. 1:18-25, 2:1-23

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Matthew 2

The Visit of the Magi

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

(The time it took for the Magi to find Jesus, and news to reach Herod) Time Shift here. It is said that Jesus was not an infant at the time that the Magi came upon him, but more like  2 years of age, because that is the age that Herod gives the kill order.

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
” ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

The Escape to Egypt

When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more.”

The Return to Nazareth

After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.”

So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

Matthew 2: 10-12 – There are three time shifts in this passage. In the Infancy story, the Three Kings, the Magi and Herod’s order.

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Mt. 4:13 Capernaum becomes Jesus home base and then his home town. “Jerusalem” is the “Holy City” 4:5 and 27:53 The “Desert” is a shadow of end times, expectations and cleansing. The synagogue is a meeting place, a place of worship, and a location for education. The “Sea” is a place of great peril. Destruction of Humans and animals. The “Temple” is the House of God, a worship space where sacrifices are made. The “Mountains” are places of revelation, where a prophet receives from God some revelation. The mountains are Theological symbols. “The Sermon was delivered on the Mount!” Moses went up to the “Mount” to commune with God.

The implied author of Matthew is a reliable author. He is on the side of those who thin about the things of God. The narrator is reliable and omniscient. The narrator is above and beyond the story. He is with Jesus in the desert, He is with the disciples in the boat on the sea, He is with Peter when he denies Jesus three times He is omniscient – He knows the thoughts of the scribes (9:3) and he knows (26:39) the private prayers of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The author gives comments on the genealogy and uses quotation formuals from the Old Testament. “As it was written by the prophets.” He feels the need to explain certain words like Immanuel, Golgatha (27:33) and the Scream of Jesus on the Cross (24:46).

The author addresses the reader (24:15) “Let the reader understand…” The reader is out side the narrative. (27:8) and (27:15) The reader lives past the resurrection and beyond.

There is literary artistry in this Gospel. He (Matthew) is a Theologian. Jesus is the Son of God, Jesus is the new Moses. (23). Matthew has something against Jewish leaders. He considers the Church as a New Israel. Because the old Israel fails. The leaders do not recognize Jesus, the new Israel needs a new prophet and Jesus is the one.

“Out of Egypt I have called my Son.” Jesus comes back and is the accomplishment of prophecy. Moses in the desert – parallel of the preservation of Jesus and Moses. “Those who wanted to kill you are dead.” Exodus 4:19, there is an intertextual echo. Hosea 11:1. Israel is the son.

The infancy narrative is theological as compared to Luke’s theological constructed text. The infancy narratives were written after the fact based on who Jesus was. Jesus’ baptism – is a symbol related to Israel’s baptism (topology) the story of Israel in the desert.

Isaiah 42:1 – From the Septuagint “Servant” is Israel.

In the Temptation story How many days is Jesus in the desert (40). How many years did Israel wander in the desert? (40 years). How many days was Moses on the Mountain? (40 days). In the Old Testament Israel fails, as does Moses. He does not enter the promised land. But Jesus Succeeds where they have failed.

Jesus quotes Deuteronomy in the Temptation story. Deut 6:13, 16, 8:3

The Sermon on the Mount is given on a mountain, In Luke it is given in a valley. The Mountain is a strong Theological tool. Mt 5:20 / Jeremiah 3:31-34

The Transfiguration 17: 1-9 / Exodus 34:29-30, 35 Moses is transfigured as Jesus is transfigured. Deuteronomy 18:15 One day God will send a prophet like me and you shall listen to him.

Mt. 26 – The Last Supper / The Septuagint Exodus 24:8 There is resonance between Jesus and Moses.

The Great Commission: Mt. 28:18-20 Moses career ends on a mountain. Deut 3:1. Jesus is on the mountain and promises to be with the disciples, there is a guarantee of Jesus’ presence.

When Moses gives the people to Joshua – Joshua chapter 1 says that “the angel of the Lord would be with Joshua.”

October 20, 2008 | Categories: Academic writings, Alchemy, All About Me, Christianity, Church, Community, Faith, God, Judaism, Ministry, Montreal, Pastoral Ministries, Religion, Scripture, Spiritual Direction, Theology, Writers | Leave A Comment »