A Jewish Bible Companion (Part 5 of 0)

A Reading Plan for the Gospel of Matthew – Part six

In The Previous Articles, our focus has been on the reading plan for the Old Testament. In particular, we have discussed the readings for the Feasts and the Sabbath day readings from the Torah and the Former Prophets. We have tried to indicate how these reading plans were used as part of the public worship service of the Jews.

In this article, we change the focus to the New Testament. Specifically, we give a reading plan for the gospel of Matthew and we begin to show the connections between that plan and the readings for the Feasts.

These connections will help us to better understand the gospel. For example, it appears clear that Matthew’s gospel is a series of readings designed to be read in conjunction with the Sabbath readings and the readings for the feast days. Consequently, his gospel would be ideal for the early ecclesia with its Jewish roots. Furthermore, this explains why Matthew organized his gospel around a set of major speeches of Jesus for, as we shall see, the speeches line up with the Jewish holy days. The speeches come at the appropriate times in the annual reading plan and they are based on the themes for the feasts. Our conclusion, therefore, is that they were intended to be read during those feasts.

The overall impact of the parallels is profound. Jesus did not just occasionally fulfill haphazard parts of the Law and the Feasts. Rather, the very construction of Matthew’s gospel instructs us that Jesus fulfilled the whole Law on a regular, everyday basis. Nothing could emphasize this more than to hear of those fulfillment’s every week, week after week, in the readings at the ecclesial meeting.

Table of Readings for the Gospel of Matthew

(Reading numbers indicate segments of Matthew as indicated by manuscript markers. See below.)

0. Mt. 1 Genealogy and Birth of Jesus

  1. Mt. 2:1-12 Wise Men
  2. Mt. 2:13-23 Male Children Slain
  3. Mt. 3-4:16 John the Baptist, Baptism and Temptation of Jesus
  4. Mt. 4:17-25 First Disciples Called, Jesus Preaches

Feast of Pentecost (Sivan 6)

  1. Mt. 5-7 Sermon on the Mount
  2. Mt. 8:1-4 Leper Healed
  3. Mt. 8:5-13 Centurion’s Servant Healed
  4. Mt. 8:14-15 Peter’s Mother-In-Law Healed
  5. Mt. 8:16-18 Many Possessed Healed
  6. Mt. 8:19-22 Two Would-Be Disciples
  7. Mt. 8:23-27 Tempest in the Sea Calmed
  8. Mt. 8:28-34 Two Gadarene Demoniac’s Healed
  9. Mt. 9:1-8 Paralytic Healed

Fast of Ninth Ab (Ab 9)

  1. Mt. 9:9-17 Matthew Called, Question about Fasting
  2. Mt. 9:18-19 Ruler’s Daughter Dead
  3. Mt. 9:20-26 Woman with Hemorrhage, Ruler’s Daughter Raised
  4. Mt. 9:27-31 Two Blind Men Healed
  5. Mt. 9:32-38 Mute Demoniac Healed
  6. Mt. 10-11:1 Sending Out of the Twelve

Feast of Trumpets (Tishri 1)

  1. Mt. 11:2-12:8 Jesus Replies to John and Upbraids Cities
  2. Mt. 12:9-21 Man with Withered Hand Healed
  3. Mt. 12:22-37 Blind and Mute Demoniac Healed, Beelzebub Controversy

Day of Atonement (Tishri 10)

  1. Mt. 12:38-50 Sign of Jonah, Solomon

Feast of Tabernacles (Tishri 15 – Tishri 22)

  1. Mt. 13 Parables
  2. Mt. 14:1-12 John the Baptist Killed
  3. Mt. 14:13-21 5000 Fed
  4. Mt. 14:22-36 Walking on Water
  5. Mt. 15:1-20 Question about Washing
  6. Mt. 15:21-28 Canaanite Woman’s Daughter Healed
  7. Mt. 15:29-31 Many Healed
  8. Mt. 15:32-16:4 4000 Fed, Tempters Seek a Sign
  9. Mt. 16:5-12 Beware of Leaven of Pharisees
  10. Mt. 16:13-28 Peter’s Confession

Hanukkah (Chisleu 25 – Tebeth 2)

  1. Mt. 17:1-13 The Transfiguration on 25th
  2. Mt. 17:14-23 Man’s Epileptic Son Healed on 26th
  3. Mt. 17:24-27 Temple Tax on 27th
  4. Mt. 18:1-11 Question about Greatest on 28th
  5. Mt. 18:12-22 Lost Sheep, If thy Brother Sin on 29th
  6. Mt. 18:23-19:2 Unforgiving Debtor on 30th
  7. Mt. 19:3-15 Divorce, Little Children on 1st
  8. Mt. 19:16-30 Rich Man on 2nd
  9. Mt. 20:1-19 Laborers in Vineyard
  10. Mt. 20:20-28 Sons of Zebedee
  11. Mt. 20:29-34 Two Blind Men Healed
  12. Mt. 21:1-13 The Triumphal Entry
  13. Mt. 21:14-17 Blind and Lame Healed
  14. Mt. 21:18-22 Fig Tree
  15. Mt. 21:23-27 Question about Authority
  16. Mt. 21:28-32 Two Sons
  17. Mt. 21:33-46 Wicked Husbandmen

Purim (Adar 14- Adar 15)

  1. Mt. 22:1-14 Wedding Feast
  2. Mt. 22:15-21 Question about Tribute
  3. Mt. 22:22-33 Question about Resurrection
  4. Mt. 22:34-40 Question about Great Commandment
  5. Mt. 22:41-46 Son of David

First Week of the Year

  1. Mt. 23-24:2 Woes

Second Week of the Year and the Days Leading Up to Passover

  1. Mt. 24:3-35 Olivet Prophecy
  2. Mt. 24:36-51 The Day and Hour Unknown
  3. Mt. 25:1-13 Ten Virgins
  4. Mt. 25:14-30 Talents
  5. Mt. 25:31-26:5 Sheep and Goats
  6. Mt. 26:6-16 Anointing at Bethany

Passover (Nisan 14)

  1. Mt. 26:17-25 Preparation for Last Supper
  2. Mt. 26:26-46 Last Supper and Gethsemane
  3. Mt. 26:47-68 Arrest and Trial before Caiaphas
  4. Mt. 26:69-75 Peter’s Denials
  5. Mt. 27:1-56 Judas Hangs Himself, Trial before Pilate, Crucifixion and Death
  6. Mt. 27:57-28 Burial and Resurrection

Evidence that these are the Proper Readings

There are two kinds of external evidence that these are the proper readings for the gospel of Matthew.

First, many early manuscripts of the gospel of Matthew have two features: they have markers in the margin where readings were to begin and a list of section headings for those readings at the beginning of the manuscript. The locations of these markers are indicated, for example, in the Nestle-Aland Novum Testamentum Graece and correspond to the numbers given in the above table. See also Bro. Harry Whittaker’s notes (in the appendix to He is Risen Indeed which is reprinted in the extended edition of Studies in the Gospels) which are associated with the last verses of Mark. Unfortunately, over time the reading plan was abandoned and subsequent manuscripts left out the markers. After a while the original purpose of the markers was forgotten.

Second, various church lectionaries (i.e. reading plans) harmonize with parts of the readings given here. For example, references have been found to the reading plan for the lections before and during Passover.

On the other hand, the alignment of the readings with the calendar is not as clear. In fact, it may seem strange that Matthew does not begin his gospel two weeks before Passover just like the Jewish reading plan for the Torah. This is easily explained by the fact that any gospel telling the story of the life of Christ would have to end with his death and resurrection, which took place at Passover. The purpose of the rest of this article is to begin highlighting the other connections to the Jewish calendar.

Outline of the Connections to the Calendar

We saw in an earlier series (Jan. and Feb. ’92, Tidings) that Matthew 1-4 refers back to Genesis and Exodus and leads up to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 which parallels the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai.  Matthew 1-4 was designed to be read between Passover and Pentecost, and Matthew 5-7 was designed to be read at Pentecost. Matthew 8-9 fits well as the bridge between Pentecost and Trumpets, and includes the discussion on fasting which would be read at the Fast of Ninth Ab. Matthew 10-13 is filled with the themes of Trumpets (kingdom, judgment), Atonement (repentance, forgiveness), and Tabernacles (harvest, Solomon, temple). Matthew 14-16 takes us from Tabernacles to Hanukkah. Matthew 17-19 was intended to be read during the eight days of Hanukkah. Matthew 20-21 goes from Hanukkah to Purim. The parable of the marriage supper in Matthew 22 contains themes taken from the book of Esther, so would be read at Purim. Matthew 23-25 links with the Genesis readings leading up to Passover. Matthew 26-27 would be read Passover night and day. Finally, Matthew 28 which records the Resurrection, would be read on both Faster and the week after Easter.

Matthew 1-4 Between Passover and Pentecost

In the January, 1992 Tidings, as an introduction to a series of articles on the Sermon on the Mount, we listed over a dozen allusions in Matthew 1-4 to Genesis and Exodus. While not lining up exactly with the Sabbath Torah reading, the Matthew allusions fit the general section of the Torah readings. In referencing the table of Torah readings, recall that Passover is between the second and third sabbaths of the year and Pentecost is between the ninth and tenth sabbaths of the year.

  1. “The generation of Jesus Christ…the son of Abraham” (Mt. 1:1) refers back specifically to Gen. 25 which records the generations of Abraham and was read on the fifth sabbath of the year.
  2. “Mary thy wife…shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus” (Mt. 1:20-21) parallels “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac” (Gen. 7:19), which was read on the third sabbath.
  3. Joseph the son of Jacob dreaming dreams (Mt. 1:16,20; 2:13,19 // Gen. 37:5,9, etc.) alludes to the reading for the ninth sabbath.
  4. The wise men bowing down before Jesus (Mt. 2:1-2,11) highlights a part of Isaac’s blessing of Jacob, “Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee” (Gen. 27:29), read on the sixth sabbath.
  5. Herod the Edomite’s slaying of male children (Mt. 2:16) alludes to Esau, renamed Edom, who said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob” (Gen. 27:41), read on the sixth sabbath.
  6. The quotation from Jeremiah about Rachel weeping for her children (Mt. 2:18; Jer. 31:15) seems somewhat out of place until you recognize that Rachel was a leading character in reading number (7) Gen. 28:10-32:2.

Furthermore, the allusions in these chapters to the Exodus would also be appropriate for this time between Passover and Pentecost because the Exodus took place between Passover (Ex. 12) and the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai (Ex. 19-­20). For ease of reference, we briefly list some of these allusions to the Exodus.

  1. Male children killed (Mt. 2:16// Ex. 1:15-16,22).
  2. My son called out of Egypt (Mt. 2:15; Hos. 11:1 // Ex. 4:22-23).
  3. The baptism of Jesus and the baptism of the children of Israel (Mt. 3:13,16 // Ex. 14:15-16,21-22,29; 15:19; I Cor. 10:1-2).
  4. Into the wilderness to be tempted (Mt. 4:1 // Ex. 15:22,25; 16:4; Dt. 8:1-2).
  5. Man does not live by bread alone (Mt. 4:2-4// Ex. 16:2-3; Dt. 8:3).
  6. Thou shalt not tempt the Lord your God (Mt. 4:5-7 // Ex. 17:2,7; DL 6:16).
  7. Assistants chosen (Mt. 4:18-22; 10:1; Acts 2:1-4// Ex. 18:24-26; 24:1,9).

Matthew 5-7 at Pentecost

In the February, 1992 Tidings, we gave a long list of allusions in the Sermon on the Mount to the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai. The law-giving at Sinai was celebrated at Pentecost. The readings for Pentecost included Exodus 19-20 and Psalm 119. Consequently, the Sermon on the Mount is a perfect reading for Pentecost. Here we briefly highlight specific reference to the Pentecost readings found in the Sermon.

  1. Blessed are those who keep the Law (Mt. 5:3-10// Psa. 119:1-2).
  2. The kingdom (Mt. 5:3,10// Ex. 19:3,6 cp. 1 Pet. 2:9).
  3. Inherit the earth/land (Mt. 5:5 cp. 2:20// Ex. 19:5; 20:12).
  4. God’s Law the light (Mt. 5:14-15// Psa. 119:105).
  5. To fulfill the Law and the prophets (Mt. 5:17-19).
  6. Six extensions of the Law
  • Murder (Mt. 5:21 // Ex. 20:13).
  • Adultery (Mt. 5:27 // Ex. 20:14).
  • Divorce (Mt. 5:31 // DL 24:1).
  • Swearing/false witness (Mt. 5:33 // Ex. 20:16).
  • Eye for eye (Mt. 5:38// Ex. 21:14).
  • Love thy neighbor (Mt. 5:43 // Ex. 20:17 cp. Mt. 19:18-19; Rom. 13:9).
  1. Hallowed be thy name (Mt. 6:9// Ex. 20:7-8).
  2. The Law summarized (Mt. 7:12).
  3. These words (Mt. 7:24,26,28 RV // Ex. 19:6-7; 20:1; 24:3,4).
  4. Hear and do (Mt. 7:21,24,26 RV // Ex. 19:5,6-7; 24:3,7).

Feasts Dominate Matthew Parallel

Two final comments. First, note that in Matthew the connections to the Torah readings are not in order. They are secondary. The connections to the feasts dominate the construction of the gospel. Second, it is clear that Matthew intended his first four chapters, including the birth of Christ, to be read between Passover and Pentecost. Should we do the same?