Pull Up a Chair
“Come and sit down. Let’s read Matthew together.”
That’s really what this commentary is all about.
Imagine a few friends gathered around a dining room table. There are cups of coffee, open Bibles, notebooks, and plenty of questions. Someone reads a passage aloud. Another notices something that everyone else missed. A third asks a question that takes the conversation in an unexpected direction. Together we discover what Matthew wrote, why he wrote it, and what God may be saying to us today.
That’s the kind of commentary I have tried to write.
It is not intended to be merely an academic lecture, although there are times when careful analysis is important. Neither is it simply a devotional book designed to provide a brief thought for the day. Rather, I hope it combines thoughtful study with practical application in a way that invites you into the conversation.
As you read, I hope you’ll do more than agree or disagree with my observations. I hope you’ll pause, ask your own questions, write your own notes in the margin, and discover insights that I never noticed. My goal is not simply to tell you what I think Matthew means. It is to encourage you to wrestle with the text yourself so that together we hear what God is saying through His Word.
Why Matthew?
People have often asked why I chose Matthew to be the first volume in this commentary series.
The answer is twofold.
First, I wanted to begin at the beginning of the New Testament. Matthew gives us the opportunity to explore not only the Gospel itself but also to revisit many significant passages and themes from the Old Testament that echo throughout these pages. New Testament faith is firmly rooted in the Old Testament. Rest assured, when we finish Matthew, the next volume in this series will come from the Old Testament.
Second, many years ago I taught through Matthew in a six-month Bible study series in Sydney, Australia. Those studies became the foundation for this commentary, but they are certainly not the finished product. Since then I have continued reading, studying, teaching, and learning. This book is not simply an edited version of those earlier lessons; it is a complete rewrite. That is intentional.
One of the great joys of studying Scripture is discovering that we never stop learning. The more we read, the more we listen, and the more we discuss God’s Word with other believers, the more clearly we begin to understand what God has been saying all along. New questions arise. Fresh insights emerge. Familiar passages suddenly come alive in unexpected ways.
I hope that happens for you as well. Perhaps one day you will rewrite your own notes on Matthew because your understanding has deepened. If that happens, this commentary will have accomplished one of its purposes. We are all students of God’s Word.
Why Another Commentary?
The simple answer is because God’s Word is still alive.
The writer of Hebrews reminds us that “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword.” Every generation has discovered that to be true.
People living in the eighteenth century faced challenges different from ours. Those in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries wrestled with questions that shaped their own generations. Today we face another set of challenges. Technology has changed. Society has changed. Culture has changed.
God’s Word has not. Whether Yeshua returns before this commentary is completed or hundreds of years from now, Matthew’s Gospel still calls us to faithful discipleship. It still challenges our assumptions. It still points us toward the Messiah and asks us what difference His life makes in our own. That is why this commentary matters now.
Reading Matthew Through Jewish Eyes
One distinctive feature of this commentary is its emphasis on Jewish background. Matthew wrote as a Jewish follower of the Jewish Messiah to readers who already understood many of the customs, traditions, and assumptions of first-century Judaism. Modern readers often miss those connections because we live in a very different world.
I’ve often heard it said that a text without a context is a pretext for error.
There is an old story about a man who appeared to be an expert archer. His neighbor noticed dozens of perfect bull’s-eyes painted on the side of a barn and was amazed at his accuracy. Eventually he discovered the secret. The man had first fired his arrows into the wall and only afterwards painted the targets around them.
Sadly, we sometimes do the same thing with Scripture. We decide what we want a passage to mean and then arrange the evidence around our conclusion.
Matthew deserves better than that. Understanding the Jewish setting, the historical background, and the Old Testament foundations allows us to hear Matthew much more clearly.
That is also why I have chosen to use the name Yeshua throughout this commentary. He was born in Bethlehem of Judea, raised in a Jewish home, worshipped in the synagogue, celebrated the Jewish festivals, and fulfilled God’s promises to Israel. Remembering His Jewish identity helps us appreciate the richness of Matthew’s Gospel.
How to Use This Commentary
May I make a suggestion?
Don’t read this commentary alone if you can help it. Read it with your spouse or life partner. Gather your family around the table. Invite a few friends from your congregation or Bible study. The format of this commentary is designed to encourage conversation, not simply to communicate information.
Each chapter of Matthew has its own lesson in this commentary. That means there are twenty-eight opportunities to pause, reflect, ask questions, pray together, and discover what God may be saying through His Word.
Twenty-eight chapters may sound like a long journey. If you study one chapter each week, you’ll spend about half a year working through Matthew’s Gospel.
I think that’s time well spent. Our culture encourages us to move quickly. We skim books, scroll through headlines, and rush from one idea to the next. But conversations worth having are rarely hurried, and the deepest discoveries often come when someone around the table asks a question nobody expected.
That’s one of my hopes for this commentary.
Perhaps you will disagree with one of my conclusions. Good. Let’s talk about it. Perhaps you’ll notice something in the biblical text that I overlooked. Even better. Write it down. Share it with the others around your table. This commentary is not intended to end the conversation. It is intended to begin one.
My Prayer for You
My prayer is simple. I hope that, as Matthew discovered the grace of God and faithfully passed it on to others, you will do the same.
Most of us will never write a commentary. Few of us will write a Gospel. But every one of us has the privilege of receiving truth from God and sharing it with someone else.
That has always been God’s way. We receive. We grow. We pass it on.
My prayer is that, by the time you reach the end of Matthew’s Gospel, you will know Yeshua more deeply, love Him more completely, and be better equipped to help others discover the same grace that has changed your life.
Let’s Begin
Pull up a chair. Open your Bible. Pour yourself a cup of coffee—or tea.