What was Matthews motive for showcasing Jesus family tree?
But no, Matthew showcases Jesus’ family tree. But why? What was his motive? I think a clue is found in Matthew 9:9-13 where we discover how Jesus met Matthew. Matthew 9:9 (NIV) begins, “As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me,’ he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.” Here’s a critical detail about Matthew. Matthew worked for the IRS of his day. He was a tax collector (a tax enforcement officer or an auditor). The Jewish people hated tax collectors. They hated being exploited. They hated being robbed of the fruits of their labor, only to see that money wasted on Herod’s pet projects and distributed to the Herod’s cronies. Matthew was a Roman collaborator, a “traitor” to his Jewish brethren. But there is more. Matthew 9:10-11 (NIV) continues, “While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his dis
