When called by Jesus, Matthew immediately left his tax collection booth and followed the Lord ( Matthew 9:9 ). Certain scholars believe that Matthews Gospel has internally referenced evidence that ties it to Matthews profession, which might suggest that he was the biblical author. Matthew was a tax collector. He becomes an active follower/disciple of Jesus. Its possible that out of respect, friendship, or deference, Matthew used Peters account for consistencys sake. Matthew the Apostle was the author of one of the four gospels included in the New Testament of the Bible. It comes from the Greek word evangelion, meaning good news. These four writers proclaimed the good news of Jesus Christ with their writings. There is very little information available about this apostle. Matthew is the first person we encounter in Capernaum, as he is working in his tax booth on the major roadway. St Matthew became a saint because he was one of the four gospel writers, and one of Jesus helpers, and also St Matthew preached the Good News, even after Jesus was crucified What did St. His mother was also there for her Jewish religious ritual of Purification or Cleansing. Revealing Christ is our current series where we are delving further into the Scriptures of Matthew 15:29 17:23, where Peter declared Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of God, and where Peter, James, and John witnessed Jesus transfiguration. Jesus had not informed them when or where His death and resurrection would take place; all He had told them was that it was coming, that it was essential, and that He was fully committed to the mission. Synopsis. 4 Hurley believes "the foundation-stone of Jesus's attitude toward women was his vision of them as persons to whom and for whom he had come. However, this does not rule out the possibility that Matthew wrote this gospel as well. Irenaeus, who lived from about 130 AD to 202 AD, made a similar claim in Against Heresies: Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church., However, Papias statement is actually pretty ambiguous. Kilburn. 66 He wore clothing made of camel's hair and ate locusts and wild honey ( Matthew 3:4 ). However, because males began working at a young age maybe as early as 12 that would be regarded unacceptable today, it is possible that estimating their ages would be a suitable solution. *shrug*. He didnt dither, and he didnt even bother to glance back. For example, the Book of Matthew is one of these. Why was Jesus regarded odd by the establishment? You see, Matthew was a member of the Republican Party. Matthew is one of the Four Evangelists, as the term suggests. The Apostle Matthew, also known as Saint Matthew and Levi, was one of Jesus Christs twelve disciples and was born in the city of Nazareth. When tax collectors came to be baptized by John the Baptist, they said, Teacher, what shall we do? and he told them: Collect no more than you are authorized to do (Luke 3:1213). Jesus encountered Matthew at a tax booth in Capernauma city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Tax collectors were held to a low standard of responsibility. I promise you that this will never happen to you (Matthew 16:22 ESV). MATTHEW 9:9-13 MARK 2:13-17 LUKE 5:27-32. After seeing this final miracle, the king and his kingdom of man-eaters come to realize the one true God and place their trust in Jesus as their Savior. He was a "wilderness man," a man who from childhood had lived " in the wilderness until the day he was revealed to Israel " ( Luke 1:80 ). Foxes Book of Martyrs also lends support to the martyrdom narrative of Matthew, saying that he was killed in the city of Nabadar with a halberd (a combined spear and battleax). Including parallel passages, there are just seven mentions of him in the entire Bible. And despite his position as a religious outsider, Jesus gave him a prominent position within what would eventually become the largest religion in the world. Levi did this promptly. Matthew 9:9-13 is a Bible verse that describes the life of Jesus. The Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke all include much of the same materialmiracles, teachings, sayingsand for this reason are similar. Clement of Alexandria quotes Heracleon, one of the earliest commentators on the New Testament, as saying that Matthew died naturally: But neither will this utterance be found to be spoken universally; for all the saved have confessed with the confession made by the voice, and departed. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. And in the Lords Prayer, Matthew makes a curious substitution. Did Jesus encourage the apostles to break the Sabbath? 17 Six days later, Jesus took Peter, James, and John the brother of James up on a high mountain. Matthew was saying, Jesus IS the fulfillment of Old Testament . The children had a forceful mother called Salome, who insisted on arranging where they would sit at the dinner table with Jesus. We know that John lived until about AD 96 or 97, which is about 66 years after Jesus died. Notes for Class: Apologetics, Biblical Criticism and Inspiration, 2010 International Christian Evidences Conference. One, it means that if most of the disciples are apprenticing at their trades when called, as in the case of James and John working in the family fishing business, they must have been older than 15. Answer Neither the Bible nor any other source specifies the ages of any of Jesus initial twelve apostles. Bottom line, the Bible provides no direct evidence for the age of the apostles. In response to an invitation from Jesus, Matthew demonstrated one of the most drastically transformed lives recorded in the Bible. The Gospel of Matthew leaves little room for confusion though: hes called the tax collector in the list of disciples: These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. Matthew 10:24. The Bible tells us that Peter had a wife when Jesus cured his mother-in-law, according to Matthew 8:14-15. Following the death and resurrection of Jesus, according to tradition, he preached for 15 years in Jerusalem before embarking on a missionary journey to various places across the world. In the words of Heracleon, the apostle died as a result of natural circumstances. According to the Gospel of John, Jesus' mission to the Jews was highlighted by seven miraculous signs. He is said to have carried out his ministry in Ethiopia (which is not the same as Ethiopia today, but a territory south of the Caspian Sea), Persia, Macedonia, and/or Syria according to the oldest accounts. How did Luke know what Jesus said in the garden if the apostles were asleep? His message was revolutionary. However, they all ultimately offer a different portrait of Jesus. 2023 Proven Way God has the ability to utilize anybody to assist him in his job. Lon has been on the Board of Jews for . The end. In the texts above (Matthew 9:9, Mark 2:14, Luke 5:2728), we discovered that Matt was a tax collector, also known as a publicansomeone who was employed by the Roman government to collect taxes on their behalf. If the brothers were grown men, Salomes obstinacy would be quite incomprehensible. Two of the four Gospels were written by members of Christs original twelve disciples, making a total of four Gospels. Historical documents are not more sure of anything more exact. The account recorded in the Gospel of Matthew has Jesus bestowing the name on Peter after the latter confesses, "You are the Christ, the son of . It is reasonable to assume that John was at least 20 years old at the time of the crucifixion, given his ability to care for Jesus mother (John 19:2627). You are the Christ, the Son of God, Peter responded when Jesus went further and asked who the disciples believed He was (Matthew 16:16 ESV). It is supposed that Jesus, as he did in other cases, gave Levi another name, Matthew, meaning "gift of Yahweh." When Jesus' resurrection happened why did he appear to his apostles first? 1 When he had finished praying, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley. Some argue that Matthews role as an eyewitness is evidence that he didnt write the Gospel of Matthew. The only people who saw more of who Jesus was and what he was capable of were Peter, James, and John. Matthew travels extensively with Jesus and the apostles. Or at least much younger than their Master. Why? Here are a few biblical indices of youth development: In Matthew 11:25, Luke 10:21, and John 13:33, Jesus refers to his followers as little ones, referring to them as children. These cookies do not store any personal information. Over 30,000 video lesson and teaching resources are available in one convenient location. Because Matthew's original purpose was to prove to his Jewish brethren that Jesus is their Mashiach/Messiah, he included in his Gospel nine proof texts from the Old Testament which Jesus fulfilledMatthew 1:22,23; 2:15; 2:17,18; 2:23; 4:14-16; 8:17; 12:17-21; 13:35; 27:9,10. They were most certainly teens by this point, as they were able to leave home to follow a rabbi. No other disciples wives are ever mentioned. With the exception of his fathers name being Alphaeus and the possibility that his original given name was Levi, we know nothing about Matthews life before he became a disciple (student) of Jesus Christ. Tax collectors earned a reputation for telling people they owed more than they did and pocketing the difference. Additionally, we can assume Jesus' age through the Book of John in which three Passovers are recorded (John 2:13, 6:4, 11:55). Theyd be told to collect a specified amount of money, but they could tell people they owed a different amount, and they had no power to dispute it. Matthew, one of Jesus twelve apostles, was present for virtually the whole duration of Jesus public ministry. St. Peter was a fisherman by trade. And despite the fact that the church has long considered him the author of the Gospel of Matthew, little else was ever recorded about him. They had already formed a negative opinion of Jesus, but now he was associated with the lowest strata of Hebrew society. These two gentlemen were brothers. You may come to the conclusion that the others were minors and hence did not have to pay. As an example, Levi becomes Matthew, which is taken from the Hebrew word meaning gift of Yahweh. Matthew is a fascinating character for theologians and historians since he was not a well-liked individual in his day. The Matthew recorded in the gospels as being a disciple of Jesus would of course have met him. The Hebrews were subject to the sovereignty of the Roman Empire during their lifetime. But thats not the case for the Acts and Martyrdom of St. Matthew. Gold and silver are only mentioned once in Mark, and four times in Luke. But what we do havethe gospelsshows us that Matthew was one of Jesus most powerful examples of the forgiveness God offers everyone. 4 Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here. Our website has teaching material for children of all aged - starting with the church nursery (age 0-1 years old), toddlers (age 2-3 years old), preschool (age 4-5 years old), young elementary (age 6-8 years old), older elementary (age 9-10 years old), and preteen youth ministry groups (age 11-12 years old). When it comes to the Apostle Matthew, theres not much to go on. Major Themes As a Jew, entering this profession amounted to a betrayal of his people, which was difficult to swallow. Of fact, this group of young Jewish men were not recognized as Christians when they arrived. The betrayal and execution of Jesus would be gruesome, with beatings, blood, and a crucifixion among the many horrors that would befall him. There are several possible explanations for this difference. Logos Bible Software 10 review: Do you REALLY need it? All rights reserved. Lets get ready. After that, the Son of Man will be handed up to the chief priests and scribes, who will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles to be ridiculed, flogged, and crucified, after which he will be resurrected on the third day. Jesus and His followers had embarked on a journey to the city of Jerusalem from Galilee. The Gospel of Matthew is typically attributed to Matthew, who is also known as the author of the book. In most cases, a young mans discipleship instruction under the supervision of a rabbi begins between the ages of 13 and 15. There would be no such thing as a half-hearted belief. They would be instructed to collect a specific amount of money, but they would be able to convince individuals that they owed a different amount, and they would have no ability to contest the amount they said they owed. Throughout the first several decades of the church, a plethora of tales concerning the apostles arose, becoming so numerous that it virtually established its own genre. These accounts so closely parallel each other that its hard to imagine they arent speaking of the same person. They were most certainly teens by this point, as they were able to leave home to follow a rabbi. Jeremiah 23:5-6 He would be David's kingly heir. The wealthier they were, the worse it was considered that they were. On the other hand, before he met Jesus, Matthew was greedy. Scripture refers to the offering of a pair of doves or . Except for one, all of them were most likely bachelors. Others have speculated that Matthew was a bit older than the others because he had a fairly important position as a tax collector. The disciples were most likely not middle-aged men, as shown in historical films and even in the most recent television miniseries, The Bible, which is currently showing. The precise ages of Jesus followers are not specified in the Bible; nonetheless, it is probable that they were all between the ages of 13 and 30 at the time they followed Jesus. When Jesus entered Peter's house in Luke 4:38-43 it appears to not be the first time he met Peter. Tax collectors were sinners by trade, lying and cheating their way into riches and robbing from even the poorest among their people. If they were males, this would be considered a bit disrespectful, regardless of how radical or mild the rabbi is! There are other ancient Christian and Gnostic writings about Matthew or even claiming to be written by him, some of which appeared centuries after his death (such as the so-called Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew.). (Of course, the ages are approximate.) This is supported by the educational tradition of the period. Peter was the only one who had been married that was known to have existed. First and foremost, here are some short facts. Jesus messes up the system the religious leaders had created. Jesus would have entered into ministry when he reached the age of thirty. But after that, the consistent picture of the disciples is of an older Peter and James with long beards, some gray hair, or balding heads, clearly middle aged, and clearly older than their strapping young Rabbi. . How the disciples could be living and writing about the events of Jesus life as late as 95-100 A.D. He was anti-religious in his views. But go and learn what this means: I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners. Matthew 9:12. The date of his death is unknown. So, how old were they when they died? He also worked as a missionary, bringing the good news to people in different parts of the world. This tax collector was reviled for who he was, but Jesus loved him for who he was. In Exodus 30:14-15, we read that every male over the age of 20 was to pay a tax to maintain the Sanctuary or Temple. Youll walk away from it with enough knowledge to have a thoughtful conversation about the Bible with a pastor, an atheist, or anyone else. He left behind the source of his riches; he left his position of security and comfort for traveling, hardship, and eventual martyrdom; he left his old life for a new life with Jesus. While Jesus and his followers were eating supper at Matthews house, a large number of tax collectors and sinners joined them and ate with them. Follow me, he said, as Matthew rose to his feet and followed him. As a result, the majority of the apostles would have been teens when Jesus asked them to join him. He is an eyewitness of Jesus Christ's ascension. Matthew also uses money-related words the other gospels dont. John was the son of Zebedee who was also a fisherman in Galilee. His Story from the Bible Zacchaeus was a tax collector of the city Jericho and learned that Jesus the prophet was passing through the city. 2 Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. According to the early church fathers, he was burnt, stoned, stabbed, or beheaded for his religious beliefs. For a short time after healing the paralytic, Jesus remains in the area of Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee. Due to this viewpoint, there is some variation in their ages, with John presumably being the youngest and Peter maybe being the oldest due to the fact that he had previously been married. Remember also that Jesus nicknamed them Sons of Thunder because they were probably either loud or bold, characteristics of youth. Papias of Hierapolis, who was referenced byEusebius of Caesarea inChurch History, provides the first indication that he may have authored it: So then Matthew penned the oracles in the Hebrew tongue, and every one interpreted them as he was able. A similar claim was made by Irenaeus in his work Against Heresies, which was published between 130 and 202 AD. Matthews gospel appears to be greatly influenced by Marks gospel (which explains why there are so many comparable passages), yet the Gospel of Mark is thought to have been written by a man named John Mark, who was not an eyewitness to the events in the Gospel of Mark. When Jesus called Matthew to follow him, he was a tax collector (or publican)one of the most reviled professions in ancient Judaism. A few of the disciples had just witnessed Jesus transfiguration and heard the voice of the Father saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to Him. In this second instance, the disciples had actually just witnessed Jesus transfiguration and heard the Father say, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to Him (Matt. In it, Jesus appears to Matthew as a boy and tells him to go to the city of Myrna (an unknown location), which is inhabited by man eaters. Upon arriving there, Matthew performs miracles and casts out demons. Include a biography His masters degree is in history, and he is a history professor at the University of Northern Colorado. He understood King David's advice found in Psalm 37: "Delight yourself in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. And his clothes became white as light. Third and last point: Jesus prophecies about His own death and resurrection add to the dramatic tension of this most ultimate of redemption stories. There is good news beyond Jesus death, although it appears to have escaped Peters awareness, and that good news is that Jesus will be risen from the grave on the third day. Another important thing to remember is that John lived until at least AD96, when the book of Revelation was published, which is 66 years after Jesus death and resurrection. Your email address will not be published. Evangelion is derived from the Greek word for good news, which is evangel. We only have speculation to go on. As a Jew, stepping into this profession was essentially an act of betrayal to his people. However, Jesus accepted and loved this tax collector for who he was, regardless of his background. So really, Jesus begins at the very moment it was possible to begin when it was culturally appropriate to assume authority and take on disciples. There are several conflicting accounts about his death. In Matthew 17:24-27, Jesus asks Peter to fish up the tax he has been instructed to collect. He was sitting at his tax collector's desk near the Sea of Galilee when Jesus told him to follow him (Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:14). Isaiah 11:1 He would be born from the family of Jesse. Do you want to be a student or a teacher? 20) The Messiah would be the Passover lamb. While in Jerusalem he chased the moneychangers from the temple and overturned their tables. Compare this line in the prayer as recorded by Matthew and Luke: Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. Luke 11:4 (emphasis added), And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12 (emphasis added). 00:00 36:02. . The parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-20), which is well-known across the world, is found solely in the Gospel of Matthew. 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