Rather, he plainly states, So Matthew composed the oracles in the Hebrew language and each person interpreted them as best he could (in Eusebius, h.e. Third, Matthew Wanted to Tell Others about Christ. The Calling of Matthew is an episode in the life of Jesus which appears in all three synoptic gospels, Matthew 9:9-13, Mark 2:13-17 and Luke 5:27-28, and relates the initial encounter between Jesus and Matthew, the tax collector who . Perhaps they did so because Levis call narrative closely resembled the summons of the first four apostles to discipleship in Mark 1:1620 and Alpheus was already remembered as the father of one of the apostles in Mark 3:18. He was a man of moderate wealth, the only one of any means belonging to the apostolic corps. Jesus speaking or understanding Greek is the least controversial of the three. Matthews relics were reputedly discovered in Salerno (Italy) in 1080. H. Gundry, 287291; James R. Edwards, The Hebrew Gospel and the Development of the Synoptic Tradition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009), 35; Shanks, Papias, 12529, 195; Bauckham, Eyewitnesses, 214. (1) Repetition of names in the list after David, some of which appear to be anachronisms, possibly suggesting that this list had its own history. Because of that, Levi later threw a party at his house and invited his sinner friends to meet Jesus. Jesus sent out 70 Disciples to preach His Good News. There were 12 men chosen to be disciples of Jesus Christ. Even Jesus acknowledges the hatred people had for tax collectors: " If they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector" (Matthew 18:17). It is beyond the scope of this paper to determine why Matthew was substituted for Levi. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994), 166; Hagner, Matthew 113, 238; Carson, Matthew, 224; Ben Witherington III, Matthew (Macon: Smyth & Helywys, 2006), 197; Osbourne, Matthew, 334; Powers, Progressive Publication, 2829. [14] For the theory that Matthew was either the founder of a putative Matthean community or the source of their traditions, see Pesch, Levi-Matthus, 56; Gundry, Old Testament, 184; Hill, Matthew, 5354, 173; Gnilka, Matthusevangelium, 1.331; Davies and Allison, Matthew VIIIXVIII, 2.99; Hagner, Matthew 113, xlvi; John Nolland, The Gospel of Matthew, NIGTC (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 3-4; Witherington III, Matthew, 5, 29; Craig S. Keener, The Gospel of Matthew: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009), 40; Bauckham, Eyewitnesses, 111. Early Christian CommunionWine or Mingled Wine? Beth: And it's in a chapel with two other paintings by Caravaggio all about Matthew. Legend differs as to the scene of his missions and as to whether he died a natural death or a martyrs. In this post, let us take a deeper . Impossible!"[3]. [41] Contra Edwards, Hebrew Gospel, 8 and Petri Luomanen, Recovering Jewish-Christian Sects and Gospels (Leiden: Brill, 2012), 12326. [13] The thesis that the first canonical Gospel was published under the name of a pseudonym is defended by George D. Kilpatrick, The Origins of the Gospel according to St. Matthew (Oxford: Clarendon, 1946), 13839. prol.) Jesus came with some of His disciples. Acts 1:1-2 appears to tie the two books to the same author. [16] This English translation of the Greek text is taken from Michael W. Holmes, editor, The Apostolic Fathers: Greek Texts and English Translations (rev. From the place where he collected taxes near the Sea of Galilee (probably on the outskirts of Capernaum), Matthew may often have heard Jesus speak and must have known about his many miracles. At the same time, opposition against Jesus was growing stronger, especially from the religious . But go and learn what this means: I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners. Matthew 9:9-13, Matthew is the ONLY one of the Gospel writers who uses his changed name from Levi to Matthew. My theory is that for one thing John and Peter were closer to Jesus. 3.39.1, 15), which subtly contrasts with an exclusive interest in the Lords logoi or sayings (3.39.14). had his name changed from Levi to Matthew likely by Jesus Himself who changed Simons name to Peter.(Matt. [29] Baum, Ein aramischer Urmatthus, 262. The Calling of St. Matthew, by Vittore Carpaccio, 1502. He called us when all we had was need. One did not give up collecting taxes for the Romans on a whim and expect to ever return. Assuming that the identification of Matthew with Levi is correct, Matthew (probably meaning Yahwehs Gift) would appear to be the Christian name of Levi (called by Mark Levi the son of Alphaeus), who had been employed as a tax collector in the service of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee. The next disciple that Jesus called was Levi (Matthew). Levi - who the Bible tells us was also named Matthew - was a Jew and a tax collector. Hence, Mark listened to Peters chreiai or anecdotes about the Lords sayings and deeds (cf. Based on Papiass title. Supported by: 6.25.4; Epiphanius, Pan. Because Levi's occupation was one that earned distrust and contempt everywhere, the scribes of the Pharisees criticized Jesus on seeing him eat with tax collectors and sinners, whereupon Jesus answered, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners" (Mark 2:15-17). It is touching that Matthew, gift of Yahweh loved his new name, probably given to him by Jesus. [47] Luomanen, Jewish-Christian Sects, 103119; Kok, Gospel According to the Hebrews, 4143; Gregory, Gospel according to the Hebrews, 1417; 4352. 30.1; Jerome, Matt. Matthew had a lucrative, though dishonest, tax collecting business for the occupying Roman government. Jerome may have anticipated that he would track down the Gospel according to the Hebrews in Pamphilus library in Caesarea (cf. He was honored that His Lord considered him such a gift, But as Levi he had immediately joined his life to Jesus and His Mission. Levi's work was to take the money. Volume I: Introduction and Commentary on Matthew IVII, ICC [Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1988], 1.12) acknowledge the difficulties in determining whether a text was a translation in the ancient world and the Patristic tradition about Matthew even persuaded an accomplished textual critic like Origen. All the names for our week days come from Roman and Norse/Anglo-Saxon gods. nor any utilization of the first-person voice to present Matthews perspective on the unfolding events (contra Acts 16:1017; 20:515; 21:118; 27:137; 28:116; Gos. Matthew was saying, Jesus IS the fulfillment of Old Testament predictions of our coming Messiah, Anontied One. He is called the Son of David nine times in the Gospel of Matthew. Corrections? Krzinger and Gundry re-read the Papian fragment through the lens of rhetorical categories. [5] On the other hand, after scrutinizing the onomastic data compiled by Tal Ilan,[6] Richard Bauckham makes it clear why these examples may be irrelevant to this case: "[I]f Matthew and Levi were the same person, we should be confronted with the virtually unparalleled phenomenon of a Palestinian Jew bearing two common Semitic personal names (Matthew: ninth most popular, 62 occurrences; Levi: seventeenth most popular, 25 occurrences). The best way to think about the Greek language during the time of Jesus is to think about modern-day English. Jesus ate a meal at Levi's house and . James E. Crouch; Hermeneia (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001), 32n.12; Ian Boxall, Matthew through the Centuries (Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell, 2019), 31, 172. They kept it for themselves and became very rich. Tax collectors were not very respected people in Jesus' time because many of them stole from the people. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Band: Evangelien und Verwandtes. 4.9). [4] When Origen of Alexandria searched for a parallel for why Saul was surnamed Paul in the preface of his Commentary on Romans, he pointed out that the same individual appears under different names in Matthew 9:9 and Luke 5:27 (PG 14.836). Epiphanius and Jerome later confused the traditional account of the authorship of Matthews Gospel with the origins of the Gospel according to the Hebrews. He was thirty-one years old and married and had four children. http://www.brentcunningham.org/?p=316 Nevertheless, it is conceivable that the two verses in Matthew 9:9 and 10:3 were the basis for why this Gospel was later ascribed to Matthew. [1] Regardless of how this name change is explained, this toll collector may have been trained in accounting and documenting records and may have been functionally bilingual or trilingual in order to converse with travellers moving between the territories of Philip and Antipas. As a result, those who reject the academic consensus on Markan priority are often the most open to Papiass claim. Krzinger and Gundry insist that dialektos would be preceded by an article if a language was intended (cf. On the other hand, the oldest quotations from the Gospel according to the Hebrews were not attributed to a named author (e.g., Clement, str. The debate over the authorship of Matthews Gospel usually focuses on the replacement of Levi, the son of Alphaeus, with Matthew (Matt 9:9; contra Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27) and the addition of the descriptor the toll collector after Matthews name (Matt 10:3; contra Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13). Because Levis occupation was one that earned distrust and contempt everywhere, the scribes of the Pharisees criticized Jesus on seeing him eat with tax collectors and sinners, whereupon Jesus answered, I came not to call the righteous, but sinners (Mark 2:1517). The meaning in Hebrew of the word day always means a 24 hour period of time. In Matthew, because of the use of Q and Matthew's theological organization, there is stress on Jesus as teacher, his sharpening or radicalizing of the Law in an eschatological context; and Jesus is presented not in secret but as an openly proclaimed Messiah, King, and Judge. [38] For the latter view, see France, Evangelist and Teacher, 64-66; Bauckham, Eyewitnesses, 224. [17] Additionally, specialists on the Synoptic Problem generally hold that Matthews Gospel reproduced over 90 percent of Marks content, improved Marks grammar and style, and edited out Marks transliterated Aramaic terms. Mark 3:18). There are a number of Patristic and Medieval quotations that purportedly derive from a text that was commonly dubbed as the, James R. Edwards has revived the older position that Matthew was the author of the, Conversely, Papias may not have known the. Ein Beitrag zur Lsung eines alten Problems ZNW59 (1968): 4056; Mark Kiley, Why Matthew in Matt 9:913Biblica65.3 (1984): 34751; Michael J. Kok, Re-naming the Toll Collector in Matthew 9:9: A Review of the Options JGAR (forthcoming). T/F, 5. This English translation of the Greek text is taken from Michael W. Holmes, editor, Matthew Black, The Use of Rhetorical Terminology in Papias on Matthew and Mark. ill. 3; Tract. Tax collectors were rich people. After Jesus grants Peter the keys to the kingdom (see below), Jesus explains . Mark 16:1). Some scholars believe that the tax-collector simply had two names, one in Greek (Matthew) and the other in Hebrew (Levi). Saint Matthew's decision lives on into eternity and benefited not millions . [2] B. 30.13.45), indicating that it was published in Greek at the outset. This is not a solitary occurrence within Matthews Gospel: the evangelist inserted the mother of the sons of Zebedee into one pericope (Matt 20:20; cf. Matthew was obviously a small mokhes because he himself was sitting in the tax office as Jesus passed through the outskirts of Capernaum. 29.9.4; 30.3.7; 30.13.2; 30.14.3) and Jerome (Epist. [3] Powers, Progressive Publication, 29 (emphasis original). In both instances, certain copyists of Marks Gospel were unaware of the conflation of Levi with Matthew in Matthew 9:9 and 10:3, yet still turned the character in Mark 2:14 into an apostle. Jennie Ebeling --Department of Archaeology and Art History, University of Evansville, Copyright 2000-2023 The Bible and Interpretation| All Rights Reserved |The University of Arizona | Developed bySBS Tech At worst, they were charlatans, sycophants, and brutes (cf. As a tax collector, Matthew . They were dishonest and were also seen as. [15], The Original Language of Matthews Gospel, Unlike the modern deductions about Matthews level of literacy, Papias did not presuppose Matthews facility in Greek. Both Eusebius and Epiphanius missed Irenaeuss point that schismatics rejected the fourfold Gospel canon and selected one of the four Gospels, but their doctrines were refuted by the very Gospels that they privileged. Jesus came to give us the same choice he gave . Dan. Gundry takes the referent to be the expositors who expounded on Matthews text. 1/27/2013 09:47:39 pm. had his name changed from Levi to Matthew likely by Jesus Himself who changed Simon's name to Peter. Follow me, Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Ward Powers enthusiastically endorses this line of reasoning in the following bold claim: "To have this evidence about the apostle Matthew his background, training, and employment in the Roman administration; his response to the call to follow Jesus; his appointment to the role and responsibility of apostle and to believe that he would. The task of the present article is to explain these two variations in . We soon discover the difference between the man and the rock. Acts 1:19; 2:6, 8; 21:40; 22:2; 26:14);[22] Krzinger enlists Irenaeus in support of his reading of Papias, despite the fact that Irenaeus used the article when affirming that Matthew wrote to the Hebrews in their dialektos (cf. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Warren Carter underscores how Papiass erroneous supposition served to underline the antiquity of this gospel and link it to the apostles.. Sextus Julius AfricanusWhy Did The Magi Come ? The Bible shares in the book of Acts, that the betrayal and arrest of Jesus were foretold long ago by the Holy Spirit. If these are all references to the same James, that would make James son of Alphaeus the author of the Book of James and one of the three men Paul called "pillars" of the church. But let's hear Matthew's own account of his calling: Why is Matthew called Levi? When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners? On hearing this, Jesus said,It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. [17] W. D. Davies and Dale C. Allison (A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on The Gospel According to Saint Matthew. Mark 3:18). And many followed him ( Mark 2:15 ). As Jesus was having a meal in Levi's home, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with Jesus and his disciples . Luz, Matthew 17, 80. Matthews Gospel has more quotations from and allusions to the Old Testament than any other New Testament author. There are sayings (Matt 13:3643) and stories. Matthew's Gospel was written in approximately A.D.___, before the destruction of Jerusalem. How come only five disciples of Jesus Christ wrote books in the New Testament? He is mentioned in Matthew 9:9. Slaves Were Lifeless Tools in the Ancient World, Meaning of Names, Places & Things in the Bible, Gardens and the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics, The Roman Phalanx & Hannibals Pincer Movement. Aelius Theon, Prog. [32] The diversity of text-forms evident in Matthews biblical citations and allusions, however, disproves the notion that the evangelist was reliant on one testimonium source.
