Matthew 1

[JLG]

Matthew 27

- Judas kills himself
- Pilate asks the crowd who they want to free Barabbas or Jesus and the crowd says Barabbas
- They bring jesus to the golgotha and they execute him with two robbers
- Many mock him
- Even the robbers
- Joseph asks Pilate for Jesus’ body and puts him in a tomb
- The chief priests and the pharisees put a guard in front of the tomb

Matthew 28

- In the morning Mary magdalene and the other Mary go to the tomb but the tomb is opened and there is an angel saying that Jesus has been raised up and he will see them in Galilee
- Jesus meets them and tells them to tell his disciples and he will meet them in Galilee
- The chief priests invent a story about Jesus
- He meets his disciples in Galilee
- He tells his disciples to make disciples of people of all the nations

 

[JLG]

Matthew is the only one to start with Jesus’ genealogy and it goes from Abraham to Jesus. Luke waits for Chapter 3 and it goes from Jesus to Adam.

 

[JLG]

Matthew is the only one to speak about Mary’s pregnancy and her marriage with Joseph. Mary is promised in marriage to Joseph. But she is pregnant by holy spirit before the union. So Joseph wants to divorce secretly. But an angel appears to him and he tells him everything about the child who is to be called Jesus and Immanuel or “with us is God”. So Joseph takes his wife home but they don’t have sexual relations until the birth of Jesus.

 

[JLG]

Matthew gives us more information about Jesus’ birth. Herod is king in Jerusalem. And astrologers from the east come to Jerusalem. They want to see the king of the Jews. They saw his star. So he asks them where the Christ was to be born and they answer in Bethlehem of Judea as it is written though the prophet. So he secretly asks them the time of the star’s appearing. And he tells them to go back and report back to him so he can go and see the child. So they follow the star till it stops above where the young child is. They offer their gifts. But because they receive divine warning in a dream not to return to Herod they go back to their country by another way. God’s angel appears to Joseph in a dream and tells him to flee with Mary and the child to Egypt because Herod is about to search for the young child to kill. He stays there until the death of Herod. When Herod learns the astrologers went away, he decides to have all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its districts killed, from two years of age and under. After Herod’s death, God’s angel appears in a dream to Joseph in Egypt to go back to Israel. But Archelaus, Herod’s son is still ruling Judea and through divine warning in a dream, he goes to Galilee to Nazareth.

 

[JLG]

Matthew tells us that John the baptist preaches in the wilderness of Judea and tell the Jews to repent because God’s kingdom has drawn near. He is clothed with camel’s hair and has a leather belt around his neck. He eats locusts and wild honey. People of Jerusalem and all Judea and all the country around the Jordan go to him and he baptizes them in the Jordan River, openly confessing their sins. He tells people that he baptizes them with water but the one coming after him will baptize them with holy spirit and with fire. Then Jesus comes from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. And god’s spirit descends like a dove and comes upon him and a voice from the heavens says: “This is my Son, the beloved, whom I have approved.”

 

[JLG]

According to Matthew, Jesus is led by the spirit up into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, after having fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. He is hungry.
- The devil pushes him to turn the stones in loaves of bread
- He pushes him to throw himself down
- He pushes him to worship him

 

[JLG]

Then he hears that John has been arrested so he goes to Galilee. He leaves Nazareth and stays in Capernaum and he starts preaching and telling people to repent. He chooses his first two disciples, two brothers, Simon Peter and Andrew who are fishermen. Then, again, he chooses two more disciples, two more brothers, James and John who are also fishermen. And he gets through Galilee teaching in the synagogues and preaching about God’s Kingdom and curing people. So large crowds follow him from Galilee and Decapolis andJerusalem and Judea and from the other side of the Jordan.

 

[JLG]

So at first, Matthew doesn't say a lot about Jesus' miracles, only that he cures people.

 

[JLG]

- Matthew says that Jesus chooses Simon Peter and Andrew then James and John.

 

[JLG]

Matthew was a tax collector, he was accustomed to figures not details. So we may understand that he doesn’t give details about miracles and he goes directly to the conclusion about the choice of the disciples (at the end Jesus decides about the disciples) and the genealogy.

 

[JLG]

THE MIRACLES PERFORMED BY JESUS


Matthew 4:23
- Jesus goes through Galilee teaching in the synagogues and speaking about God’s Kingdom and curing every sort of disease and every sort of informity among the people.


Matthew 4:24
- They bring him all those who are suffering with various diseases and torments, those who are demon-possessed and epileptic and paralyzed and he cures them.


Matthew 8:2-4
- He cures a leper.


Matthew 8:5-13
- In Capernaum, he cures the paralytic servant of an army officer. When he says it, the servant is healed in the same hour. Jesus is impressed by the officer’s faith.


Matthew 8:14,15
- In Peter’s house, he cures the fever of Peter’s mother-in-law.


Matthew 8:16
- In the evening, he expels demons and he cures all who are suffering.


Matthew 8:23-27
- He calms down the storm.


Matthew 8:28-34
- He cures two demon-possessed men. Jesus sends the demons into a herd of swine which rush over the precipice into the sea and die in the waters. The inhabitants ask Jesus to depart from their region.


Matthew 9:2-7
- He cures a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher.


Matthew 9 :19-22
- A woman suffering for 12 years from a flow of blood approaches from behind and touches the fringe of his outer garment and she gets cured.


Matthew 9:18 ; 9:23-25
- He resurrects a ruler’s daughter.


Matthew 9:27-31
- He cures two blind men.


Matthew 9:32
- He cures a speechless man possessed of a demon.


Matthew 12 :10-13
- He cures a man with a withered hand.


Matthew 12:22
- He cures a blind and speechless man.


Matthew 14:17-21
- Jesus multiplies bread and fish to feed 5,000 people.


Matthew 14:25-32
- He walks on the sea and calms down the storm.


Matthew 14:35,36
- He cures people and even those who just touch the fringe of his outer garment are made completely well.


Matthew 15 :21-28
- He cures the daughter of a Phoenician woman who is possessed by a demon.


Matthew 15:32-38
- He multiplies bread and fish to feed 4,000 people.


Matthew 17:14-20
- He cures an epileptic son because his disciples can’t do it.


Matthew 17:27
- He tells Simon to cast a fishhook and take the first fish that comes up, it will have a silver coin in the mouth.


Matthew 19:1,2
- He cures people in the borders of Judea across the Jordan.


Matthew 20:30-34
- He cures two blind men.


Matthew 21:14
- he cures blind and lame people in the temple.


Matthew 21:19,20
- He withered instantly a fig tree because it has no fruit.


Matthew 26 :51-54
- Matthew doesn’t say that Jesus cures the ear of the slave of the high priest cut by Peter.

 

[JLG]

Jesus did many miracles of all kinds. And he did them straight away. People would touch him and be cured. He could also cure them at distance. At a time Jesus’ disciples couldn’t cure someone, Jesus had to do it. We can imagine it was part of the teaching process. They also needed to improve their faith and the way they thought. And Jesus was teaching them progressively. We can also understand the shock it was when he died even if he prepared them mentally. He was their master and he had the knowledge and he gave them everything! And the process of learning kept going even after Jesus’ death! And they would receive holy spirit to strengthen them! And in turn they would help other people to do the same in a perpetual movement!

 

[JLG]

Jesus' work was perfect, everything done with order. It shows a total control of creation . When he cured people, it was all at once. But he could also do it at distance or people could also touch him and they would be cured! Even in his teaching, everything was well organized! He didn't put everything on the table from the beginning but gradually! And when his disciples we slow to make progress, he would tell them. And he showed them a good example doing things by himself. It was not only speaking but acting which was quite different from the religious leaders of his time! How can we expect people to listen to what we say if our acts are not according to what we say. When he died, everything was done to help his disciples through his apparitions and they would also receive holy spirit. They were never left alone. We can remember in Acts when the DSanhedrin put them into prison and they were freed by God’s angel.

 

[JLG]

1- Matthew highlights Jesus’ miracle connected to a possessed man before speaking about the one connected with the fever of Simon’s mother-in-law.

 

[JLG]

Sorry I made a mistake:

1- Matthew highlights two miracles of Jesus before speaking about the one connected with the fever of Simon’s mother-in-law:

- The one about a leper

- The one about the paralytic servant of an army officer at distance or remotely

 

[JLG]

2- Matthew highlights Jesus’ miracle connected to a leper and he cures him all at once. Matthew doesn’t give many details.

 

[JLG]

3-

Even if there is another miracle before, let’s speak about how Matthew speaks about Simon’s mother-in-law’s high fever:

- He touches her hand

- The fever leaves her

- She gets up and begins ministering to him

What a perfect timing!

 

[JLG]

4- coming back to the miracle concerning the leper, luke says:

- Jesus touches him

- he says: “I want to! Be made clean.”

- Immediately his leprosy is cleansed away

 

[JLG]

Sorry, MATTHEW says

 

[JLG]

5- Matthew speaks about Jesus curing a paralyzed man:

- They bring a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher

- On seeing their faith, Jesus says: “Take courage, child! Your sins are forgiven.”

-Then the scribes say: “This fellow is blaspheming.”

- Jesus answers them by saying to the paralyzed man: “Get up, pick up your stretcher, and go to your home.”

- He gets up and goes to his home.

It is exactly like Luke’s account!