What was Matthews (gospel writer) views on jesus?
The Early Christian tradition attributes the Gospel to Matthew, to one of Jesus’ disciples – contemporary scholars describe the author as an anonymous Christian writing towards the end of the first century. The consensus view of the contemporary New Testament scholars is that the Gospel was originally composed in fluent Greek rather than being a translation from Aramaic or Hebrew. It is nearly universally agreed among scholars that Matthew (and Luke) used Mark’s narrative of Jesus’ life and death, plus the hypothetical Q document’s record of Jesus’ sayings while only a minority argue that Matthew was the first. Matthew is most closely aligned with first century Judaism and repeatedly stresses how Jesus fulfilled Jewish prophecies. Most scholars hold that the author was a Jewish Christian rather than a Gentile. The special commission given to Peter, found only in Matthew, has been highly influential. Matthew is also the only Gospel to mention the church (ecclesia). With its emphasis on
Matthew Levi was a tax collector prior to his calling by Jesus. He would have been used to keeping records, and to a very high degree of accuracy; as such he was perfectly placed to keep a record of Jesus’ words. This is why I believe — despite the mantra now spouted and followed by most modern theologians — that Matthew’s was the first Gospel account written, though not necessarily the first widely circulated (that probably was Mark’s). Matthew’s Gospel was written to show Jesus’ descent from Abraham, via Isaac, Jacob, Judah .. David, through to Mary, with Joseph as (legal, not biological) father.Matthew shows Joseph was ready to disown Mary but in a private way, not wishing to disgrace her in public, due to her pregnancy (Mt. 1:18, 19). Following the visit by an angel in a dream, Joseph changed his mind, and took Mary as his wife. This angelic vision was proof to Joseph — and was passed on by Matthew — as fulfilment of the prophecy by Isaiah that Jesus was the product of a virgin
