![]() ![]() It contains admonitions important to disciples of Christ, such as the importance of doing the Father's will ( Mat 7:21-23) and observing all that Jesus commanded ( Mat 28:20). It contains lengthy discourses especially beneficial to those in the church, such as the sermon on the mount ( Mat 5-7), the many parables ( Mat 13), and the Olivet discourse ( Mat 24-25). It foretells its beginning ( Mat 16:18), and describes some of the life in the church ( Mat 18:15-17). It is the only gospel which mentions the word "church". ![]() Thus it appears to have been written with a Jewish audience in mind. It's organization is mostly topical, as opposed to strictly chronological (a common style in Jewish literature). We've noted its frequent appeal to OT prophecies. One could therefore say that the theme is: He quotes from almost every book in the OT, and twelve times he identifies OT prophecies as fulfilled in the life of Jesus ( Mat 1:22 2:15, 23 4:14 5:17 8:17 12:17 13:14, 35 21:4 27:9). This is evidenced by Matthew's frequent appeal to OT Messianic prophecies. The gospel appears written to Jews, designed to prove that Jesus is the Messianic king of Old Testament (OT) prophecy. It is traditionally dated in the late 50s or early 60s A.D. Clement of Alexandria said that the presbyters who succeeded each other from the beginning declared that "the gospels containing the genealogies (Matthew and Luke) were written first" ( Eusebius, Historia Ecclesiastica, VI, 14). Eusebius states that this was done when Matthew left Palestine and went to preach to others ( Historia Ecclesiastica, III, 24). Irenaeus says it was written when Peter and Paul were preaching in Rome ( Against Heresies 3.1.1). A close associate of Jesus during His ministry, Matthew's gospel is a first hand account, unlike Luke who depended upon other eyewitnesses ( Luk 1:1-4). He was chosen to be one of the twelve apostles ( Mat 10:2-3). Matthew, surnamed Levi, had been a tax-collector, one of Jesus' earliest disciples ( Mat 9:9 Mar 2:14). The apostolic origin and canonical rank of the gospel of Matthew were accepted without a doubt by the early church ( ISBE). The writings of the early church fathers reveal that it was the most frequently quoted and perhaps the most widely read gospel during the first two centuries of the church's history. "When we turn to Matthew, we turn to the book which may well be called the most important single document of the Christian faith, for in it we have the fullest and the most systematic account of the life and the teachings of Jesus." (William Barclay) The book of Matthew has always occupied a position of high esteem in the faith and life of the church:
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