Purpose And Audience Of Matthew's Gospel
Matthew's Gospel was written by the apostle Matthew, one of the twelve disciples, whose authorship is attested by seventeen independent witnesses from the first four centuries [2]. Early tradition holds that Matthew composed his account first among the evangelists, publishing it for Jewish converts—"the Hebrews, those, namely, of the circumcision who believed" [5, 6]. Origen, writing in the third century, confirms this tradition: "I have learned by tradition that the Gospel according to Matthew, who was at one time a publican and afterwards an Apostle of Jesus Christ, was written first; and that he composed it in the Hebrew tongue and published it for the converts from Judaism" [6].
Primary Audience and Jewish Focus
The Gospel's primary audience was Jewish Christians, believers who needed to see Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and the promised Messiah. This explains Matthew's distinctive emphasis on presenting Christ as "the promised King of the kingdom of God" [4]. The evangelist repeatedly demonstrates how Jesus satisfies prophetic expectations, addressing readers who would recognize scriptural allusions and understand the significance of genealogies, legal debates, and temple controversies.
Early church testimony is unanimous that Matthew originally wrote in Hebrew [2], though this claim remains contested among scholars based on linguistic analysis of the text itself. Whether composed in Hebrew or Greek, the Gospel's Jewish orientation is unmistakable in its structure and concerns.
Date and Historical Context
The Gospel was evidently written before Jerusalem's destruction in A.D. 70, since Matthew 24 treats that event as future [1]. Most scholars place composition between A.D. 60 and 65 [1], during a period when the church was transitioning from a predominantly Jewish movement to one encompassing Gentile believers. Matthew wrote to anchor Jewish Christians in their faith while the synagogue and emerging church were separating.
Universal Mission
Despite its Jewish focus, Matthew's Gospel contains the clearest articulation of the church's universal mission. Jesus declares, "This Good News of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come" [3]. This tension—a Gospel rooted in Jewish expectation yet commanding worldwide proclamation—reflects the transitional moment in which Matthew wrote, when the message about Israel's Messiah was becoming the gospel for all peoples.
Sources
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Matthew, Gospel according to — The author of this book was beyond a doubt the Matthew, an apostle of our Lord, whose name it bears. He wrote the Gospel of Christ according to his own plans and aims, and from his own point of view, as did also the other "evangelists." As to the time of its composition, there is little in the Gospel itself to indicate. It was evidently written before the destruction of Jerusalem (Matt. 24), and some time after the events it records. The probability is that it was written between the years A.D. 60 and 65. The cast of thought and the for”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Matthew, Gospel Of — + Its authorship .--That this Gospel was written by the apostle Matthew there is no reason to doubt. Seventeen independent witnesses of the first four centuries attest its genuineness. + Its original language .--The testimony of the early Church is unanimous that Matthew wrote originally in the Hebrew language. On the otherhand doubt is thrown over this opinion, both statements of by an examination of the fathers and by a consideration of peculiar forms of language employed in the Gospel itself. The question is unsettled, the best scholars not agr”
- Matthew “This Good News of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. -- Matthew 24:14”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Gospels — The central fact of Christian preaching was the intelligence that the Saviour had come into the world (Matt. 4:23; Rom. 10:15); and the first Christian preachers who called their account of the person and mission of Christ by the term evangelion_ (= good message) were called _evangelistai (= evangelists) (Eph. 4:11; Acts 21:8). There are four historical accounts of the person and work of Christ: "the first by Matthew, announcing the Redeemer as the promised King of the kingdom of God; the second by Mark, declaring him a prophet, mighty in deed and word'; th”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 9: Gospel of Peter, Diatessaron, Origen's Commentaries — 17. OF THE TESTIMONY OF JOHN TO JESUS IN MATTHEW'S GOSPEL, (part 1): These, then, are the parallel passages of the four; let us try to see as clearly as we can what is the purport of each and wherein they differ from each other. And we will begin with Matthew, who is reported by tradition to have published his Gospel before the others, to the Hebrews, those, namely, of the circumcision who believed. I, he says, baptize you with water unto repentance, purifying you, as it were, and turning you away from evil courses and calling yo”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 9: Gospel of Peter, Diatessaron, Origen's Commentaries — FROM THE FIRST BOOK OF THE COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW(1): Concerning the four Gospels which alone are uncontroverted in the Church of God under heaven, I have learned by tradition that the Gospel according to Matthew, who was at one time a publican and afterwards an Apostle of Jesus Christ, was written first; and that he composed it in the Hebrew tongue and published it for the converts from Judaism. The second written was that according to Mark, who wrote it according to the instruction of Peter, who, in his General Epistle, acknowle”