![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Joshua-Schachterle-Bart-Ehrman-Author-1-1.png\" "\\"Joshua")
<\/span><\/p>\nWritten by <\/a>Joshua Schachterle, Ph.D<\/a><\/p>\n Author | Professor | Scholar<\/p>\n Author | Professor | BE Contributor<\/p>\n Verified! See our editorial guidelines<\/a><\/p>\n Verified! See our guidelines<\/a><\/p>\n Edited by Laura Robinson, Ph.D.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\nDate written: October 20th, 2023\n \nDate written: October 20th, 2023<\/p>\n Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily match my own. – Dr. Bart D. Ehrman<\/p>\n After reading the Gospel of Matthew<\/a>, you might wonder who it was written to. In other words, who was Matthew\u2019s audience?<\/strong> In this article, I\u2019ll explore what we can know about the author of Matthew. Then, using that information, I\u2019ll address who the author Matthew wrote his Gospel for.<\/p>\n Matthew, like all the Gospels<\/a>, was <\/strong>originally anonymous<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong> In other words, the author chose not to sign his name to the text. Many scholars believe that this is an indication that the author considered the Gospel the product of a community rather than a single individual.<\/p>\n Whatever the reason, the lack of a signature means that we\u2019ll never truly know the name of the individual that wrote the Gospel of Matthew. We can, however, know some things about this author.<\/p>\n By the way, during the first century, more men than women were literate. Therefore, most scholars assume that the author of this work has a masculine identity.<\/p>\n Matthew is called the most Jewish of the Gospels for several reasons.<\/strong><\/p>\n The genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of the Gospel links him directly not only to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also to David, Israel\u2019s greatest king. It seems unlikely that a gentile author would take such great pains to link Jesus to the greatest Jewish patriarchs.<\/p>\n Walter Wilson<\/a> also notes that the author clearly has knowledge of Hebrew. In addition, he makes numerous references to the Hebrew Bible in the text, highlighting prophecies he believes are relevant, and insisting on the importance of Torah observance. All this suggests a Jewish author for Matthew.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Gospel of Matthew was written in Greek,<\/strong> not the Aramaic language dominant in Palestine at the time.<\/p>\n Many scholars agree that Antioch, Syria is the most likely location for the writing of Matthew, since Greek was the primary language spoken there.<\/p>\n In addition, Aaron Gale, in the Jewish Annotated New Testament<\/a> notes that Matthew is the only Gospel that mentions that Jesus was recognized in Syria during his lifetime. Later New Testament texts also mention that a community led by Jesus existed there<\/strong> (See Acts 11:19-27, 13:1, Gal 2:11). Moreover, Peter, who was one of the leaders of the disciples, seems to have links to the city (Matt 16-17-19, Gal 2:11).<\/p>\n Wilson also points out that Antioch had a large population of Jews and Jewish-Christians, making it even more likely as the place where Matthew was written.<\/p>\n For the most part, writers always have an audience in mind. They shape their writing to fit this target audience. So who was Matthew\u2019s written to?<\/strong><\/p>\n In Scripting Jesus<\/a>, L. Michael White writes that Jesus is portrayed in three ways in Matthew.<\/p>\n He is the Davidic Messiah, which again is shown in his birth narrative and genealogy.He is the new Moses<\/a>, clarifying and even modifying the law of Moses.He is a teacher of righteousness who is more authoritative than the teachers of his day.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n These are all particularly Jewish ways of viewing Jesus. We can therefore assume that Matthew\u2019s primary audience consisted of Jewish Christians.<\/strong> Let\u2019s explore those three ways a bit further to understand Matthew\u2019s readers.<\/p>\n TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE of the Historical Jesus!<\/p>\n Think you know the Jesus of the Bible? Uncover the historical figure behind the texts!<\/p>\n __CONFIG_colors_palette__{“active_palette”:0,”config”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“name”:”Main Accent”,”parent”:-1}},”gradients”:[]},”palettes”:[{“name”:”Default”,”value”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“val”:”rgb(255, 133, 34)”}},”gradients”:[]},”original”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“val”:”rgb(19, 114, 211)”,”hsl”:{“h”:210,”s”:0.83,”l”:0.45,”a”:1}}},”gradients”:[]}}]}__CONFIG_colors_palette__ <\/span> sTART QUIZ<\/strong><\/span><\/span> <\/a> <\/p>\n It’s free!<\/em><\/p>\n Matthew often ends a particular story with some version of the phrase \u201cAll this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet.\u201d What does this tell us about Matthew\u2019s audience?<\/p>\n Some early Jews believed that the Hebrew Bible contained prophecies about the Messiah. Matthew was clearly one of them, and he argued that many texts from the Hebrew Bible (whether they were originally written to be prophecies or not!) were \u201cfulfilled\u201d by Jesus. Many people at that time claimed to be the Messiah, but Matthew used proof-texts from the Hebrew Bible to argue that only Jesus was the real Messiah.<\/p>\n We can assume, then, that Matthew\u2019s audience were Jews who believed that Jesus fulfilled Messianic prophecy.<\/strong><\/p>\n In the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew 5, Jesus says \u201cDo not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.\u201d As the Messiah, he is there to fulfill prophecy. As the new Moses, however, he is there to make sure that Jews understand the true interpretation of the Torah.<\/p>\n In this same sermon, Jesus often starts his discourse on the Torah by saying \u201cYou have heard it said\u2026 but I say\u2026\u201d Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n \u201cYou have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, \u2018You shall not murder,\u2019 and \u2018whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.\u2019 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment, and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council, and if you say, \u2018You fool,\u2019 you will be liable to the hell of fire.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Note the formula here: Jesus acknowledges the letter of the law, but then says that his followers should go even further than the law requires. This indicates that while the Law is important for Matthew\u2019s audience, Jesus interpretation and fulfillment of the Law is more important.<\/strong><\/p>\n In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says this:<\/p>\n For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Pharisees are depicted in Matthew as strict interpreters of the Law of Moses, as well as Jesus\u2019 opponents. Here, Matthew paints Jesus as the strictest teacher of all<\/strong>, with the authority to modify the requirements of the law.<\/p>\n Scholars know that this depiction of the Pharisees isn\u2019t historically accurate. What it does indicate, however, is that Matthew\u2019s community, his audience, had fallen out with the Jewish religious authorities of their day<\/strong> and were thus trying to show that their form of Judaism was valid.<\/p>\n What does this say about Matthew\u2019s audience? They considered themselves Jews for whom Torah interpretation and observance was paramount.<\/strong> Therefore, Matthew\u2019s Jesus shows himself as the definitive teacher of Torah.<\/p>\n Matthew has Jesus give five sermons, which scholars call the five discourses. Looking at their themes can tell us a lot about Matthew\u2019s target audience.<\/p>\n The Sermon on the Mount<\/strong> focuses on observance of the Jewish Law.<\/p>\n The Mission Discourse<\/strong> is about the pressures of following Jesus during persecution.<\/p>\n Parables of the Kingdom<\/strong> explains the coming kingdom of heaven and outlines the proper choices and behaviors that will bring this kingdom about.<\/p>\n On Discipline and Forgiveness<\/strong> addresses divisions within Matthew\u2019s community and how to resolve it.<\/p>\n On Judgment,<\/strong> contains warnings to the Jewish religious authorities (\u201cWoe to you, Pharisees!\u201d) and a speech about the end of the current world.<\/p>\n The common theme in these sermons, according to Walter Wilson is \u201cidentifying the ideals of discipleship, while\u2026 [exposing] the challenge of meeting these ideals, a challenge that the reader is implicitly invited to take up.\u201d<\/p>\n This demonstrates that Matthew\u2019s audience consisted primarily of a community of Jews devoted to living according to the teachings of Jesus.<\/strong><\/p>\n But there is a twist!<\/p>\n At the end of Matthew, a resurrected Jesus says this:<\/p>\n Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This seems to suggest that Jesus wanted his followers to include gentiles in their ranks. What can this tell us about Matthew\u2019s audience?<\/p>\n Remember that Jesus\u2019 conflicts with the Pharisees in Matthew likely meant that the Jewish authorities of Matthew\u2019s time did not accept Jesus-followers as part of the Jewish community. This implies that most Jewish religious leaders were not convinced that Jesus was the Messiah.<\/strong><\/p>\n Wilson therefore says that the inclusion of gentiles in Jesus\u2019 commission shows that since Jewish authorities were not open to Jesus, Matthew\u2019s Jewish community expanded to include gentiles.<\/strong><\/p>\n The author of Matthew was a Jew who followed the teachings of Jesus. Here\u2019s what we can surmise about his target audience.<\/p>\n Most of them were Jewish.<\/strong> Matthew\u2019s community consisted mainly of Jewish Christians who followed both Jesus and the Jewish Law.<\/p>\n They probably lived in Antioch, Syria.<\/strong> There were many Jews and Jewish Christians living in Antioch at the time. In addition, Matthew is the only Gospel to mention Syria as a place where Jesus was well-known.<\/p>\n They believed that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel, and that Jesus was the fulfillment of their scriptures in the Hebrew Bible.<\/p>\n They believed that Jesus had made the Jewish law more rigorous.<\/strong> Jesus\u2019 discourses on what the law said often stated that his followers should live even more strictly than the Jewish religious authorities.<\/p>\n Some of them were gentiles.<\/strong> Matthew sees Jesus through a decidedly Jewish lens. However, it would seem that since the Jewish authorities in Matthew\u2019s time did not accept Jewish Christians, Matthew\u2019s community opened themselves to gentiles as well.<\/p>\n TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE of the Historical Jesus!<\/p>\n Think you know the Jesus of the Bible? Uncover the historical figure behind the texts!<\/p>\n __CONFIG_colors_palette__{“active_palette”:0,”config”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“name”:”Main Accent”,”parent”:-1}},”gradients”:[]},”palettes”:[{“name”:”Default”,”value”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“val”:”rgb(255, 133, 34)”}},”gradients”:[]},”original”:{“colors”:{“10c55”:{“val”:”rgb(19, 114, 211)”,”hsl”:{“h”:210,”s”:0.83,”l”:0.45,”a”:1}}},”gradients”:[]}}]}__CONFIG_colors_palette__ <\/span> sTART QUIZ<\/strong><\/span><\/span> <\/a> <\/p>\n It’s free!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Who Was Matthew Written To? The Gospel’s Audience Written by Joshua Schachterle, Ph.D Author | Professor | Scholar Author | Professor | BE Contributor Verified! See our editorial guidelines Verified! See our guidelines Edited by Laura Robinson, Ph.D. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":9811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","tve_updated_post":" Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily match my own. - Dr. Bart D. Ehrman<\/p><\/div> After reading the Gospel of Matthew<\/a>, you might wonder who it was written to. In other words, who was Matthew\u2019s audience?<\/strong> In this article, I\u2019ll explore what we can know about the author of Matthew. Then, using that information, I\u2019ll address who the author Matthew wrote his Gospel for.<\/p><\/div> Matthew, like all the Gospels<\/a>, was <\/strong>originally anonymous<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong> In other words, the author chose not to sign his name to the text. Many scholars believe that this is an indication that the author considered the Gospel the product of a community rather than a single individual.<\/p> Whatever the reason, the lack of a signature means that we\u2019ll never truly know the name of the individual that wrote the Gospel of Matthew. We can, however, know some things about this author.<\/p> By the way, during the first century, more men than women were literate. Therefore, most scholars assume that the author of this work has a masculine identity.<\/p><\/div> Matthew is called the most Jewish of the Gospels for several reasons.<\/strong><\/p> The genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of the Gospel links him directly not only to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also to David, Israel\u2019s greatest king. It seems unlikely that a gentile author would take such great pains to link Jesus to the greatest Jewish patriarchs.<\/p> Walter Wilson<\/a> also notes that the author clearly has knowledge of Hebrew. In addition, he makes numerous references to the Hebrew Bible in the text, highlighting prophecies he believes are relevant, and insisting on the importance of Torah observance. All this suggests a Jewish author for Matthew.<\/strong><\/p><\/div> The Gospel of Matthew was written in Greek,<\/strong> not the Aramaic language dominant in Palestine at the time.<\/p> Many scholars agree that Antioch, Syria is the most likely location for the writing of Matthew, since Greek was the primary language spoken there.<\/p>![\"Who](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Who-Was-Matthew-Written-To-The-Gospels-Audience.png\" "\\"Who")
<\/span><\/p>\nWho Wrote the Gospel of Matthew?<\/h2>\n
Was Matthew Jewish?<\/h2>\n
He Was Probably not from Palestine<\/h2>\n
For Whom Was Matthew Written?<\/h2>\n
Jesus as Davidic Messiah<\/h2>\n
Jesus as the New Moses<\/h2>\n
Jesus as a Teacher of Righteousness<\/h2>\n
![\"matthew](\"https:\/\/www.bartehrman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/matthew-jewish.png\" "\\"matthew")
<\/span><\/p>\nThe Five Discourses in Matthew<\/h2>\n
Could Gentiles be Part of Matthew\u2019s Audience?<\/h2>\n
Conclusion: For Whom the Gospel of Matthew Written?<\/h2>\n
Who Was Matthew Written To? The Gospel's Audience<\/h2><\/div>
<\/span><\/div>Who Wrote the Gospel of Matthew?<\/h2><\/div>
Was Matthew Jewish?<\/h2><\/div>
He Was Probably not from Palestine<\/h2><\/div>