Gospel of Matthew - New Testament - Bible. "Christ is sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel"

Introduction.

The New Testament begins with four accounts of the life of Jesus Christ. These accounts represent the “good news” of the Son of God and tell of His life on earth and His death on the cross for the sins of mankind. The first three Gospels are quite similar to each other and tell approximately the same facts from the life of Jesus, and the fourth Gospel differs from them in many ways in its content. Therefore, the first three books of the New Testament, due to the mentioned similarities, are called synoptic.

The adjective "synoptic" comes from the Greek word "synoptikos", which can be translated as "to see together." Although Matthew, Mark, and Luke had different goals, their approach to describing the life of Jesus Christ was more or less identical. However, we should not lose sight of some differences in the manner of their presentation. These similarities and differences raise the question of the sources of the Gospel narratives.

The first-century gospel writers had personal and detailed knowledge of much of what they subsequently recorded. Matthew and John were disciples of Jesus Christ and spent a lot of time communicating with Him. Mark could have compiled his narrative based on what he heard from Peter, who was also a disciple of Jesus. And Luke could learn a lot from the Apostle Paul and from others who personally knew the Lord. All this information was used in writing the three Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John.

Stories related to Jesus Christ were written down in the first century by various people. Luke testifies to this at the beginning of his narrative (Luke 1:1-4). However, this could not guarantee the writing of an inspired testimony of the life of Jesus Christ that would be free from any errors. That's why key point in the compilation of the four Gospels there was the influence of the Holy Spirit on the evangelists as they carried out their work.

The Lord promised His disciples that the Holy Spirit would “teach them all things” and “remind them of all things” that He had told them. This was the guarantee (John 14:26) of truth and accuracy in the work of each author, regardless of whether he used his personal memories, the oral testimony of others, or written documents at his disposal. Regardless of the source, the author's hand was guided by the Holy Spirit Himself.

Author.

When deciding who wrote a particular book of the Bible, they usually resort to “external” evidence, that is, evidence from the outside, and “internal” evidence contained in the text of the book itself. In this case, “external evidence” clearly speaks in favor of the fact that it was the Apostle Matthew who wrote the Gospel that bears his name. Many Church Fathers confirm this, including Clement of Rome, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian and Origen. Matthew was not a particularly outstanding apostle.

And rather, it would seem, the first Gospel should have been written by Peter, James or John. Nevertheless, the tradition leaves no doubt that Matthew is its author. “Internal evidence” also speaks in favor of this. Thus, this book mentions money more often than any of the other three Gospels.

The author names monetary units not found in other New Testament books three times: “didrachma” (Matthew 17:24), “stater” (17:27) and “talent” (18:24). Since Matthew was a "tax collector" (tax collector), he was well versed in a variety of monetary units and in the cost of things. In addition, the publican had to be able to keep accurate records. So from a human point of view Matthew answered necessary condition to write the Gospel.

In his book, the author constantly calls himself a “tax collector,” that is, he does not hide the fact that he was engaged in a business that was of little respect in the eyes of his compatriots. And this testifies to his inherent Christian humility. Note that Mark and Luke do not at all abuse the above-mentioned term when mentioning Matthew. Following Christ, Matthew arranged a dinner for his new friends, which he mentions very casually and modestly (Matthew 9:9-10). But Luke calls this dinner a “great treat” (Luke 5:29).

What is omitted from the Gospel of Matthew is also important. He does not give the parable of the publican (Luke 18:9-14), nor the story of the publican Zacchaeus, who, having turned, decided to repay those whom he had “offended” (Luke 19:1-10). All this is “internal evidence”, clearly indicating that Matthew is the author of the first Gospel.

In what language was the Gospel of Matthew written? Although all the manuscripts of the first Gospel that have reached us are Greek, some believe that Matthew wrote it in Aramaic (a language close to ancient Hebrew). Five prominent church leaders believed that Matthew wrote in Aramaic, and then what he wrote was translated into Greek: Papias (80-155), Irenaeus (130-202), Origen (185-254), Eusebius (IV century) and Jerome (VI century). However, they could not have meant the Gospel of Matthew, but some of his other writings.

Thus, Papias said that Matthew collected the sayings of Jesus Christ and compiled the so-called “Logia”. This second and shorter “set” of Christ’s teachings could have been written by Matthew in Aramaic, being primarily intended for Jewish readers. This work was later lost, and today we do not have a single such manuscript. But the first Gospel was most likely written in Greek and in this form it has been preserved to this day. Matthew's Logia has not survived, but his Gospel has reached us. And this is because it, as part of the Word of God, was written by inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Time to write.

It is impossible to accurately indicate the date of writing of this Gospel. Theologians believe that the Gospel of Matthew was written at least before the year 70, since the author does not mention in it the destruction of Jerusalem. Moreover, he speaks of Jerusalem as a “holy city” (Matt. 4:5; 27:53), from which we can conclude that this city was not yet destroyed.

However, some time passed from the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ to the writing of the first Gospel. This can be seen at least from the fact that in Matt. 27:7-8 there is a reference to a certain custom that exists “to this day,” and in 28:15 to the fact that among the Jews the resurrection of Christ is told “to this day.” A phrase indicating the passage of some period of time, although not so long that these events could be forgotten. Since church traditions claim that the Gospel of Matthew was written first, the estimated date of its writing is around 50 AD.

Purpose of writing.

Although the exact purpose of writing this Gospel remains unknown, it can be assumed that Matthew was motivated by at least two motives. First, he wanted to show the unbelieving Jews that Jesus was their Messiah. Personally, he, Matthew, found Him and desired the same for others. Secondly, Matthew wanted to encourage those Jews who had already believed in Him. If Jesus really is the Messiah, then something terrible happened: the Jews crucified their Savior and King. What awaits them now? Has God turned his back on them forever?

This is where Matthew expresses a word of encouragement: although the current generation of Jews expects God’s punishment for their disobedience, God did not abandon His people. The kingdom that He promised them will be established in the future. Until then, believers are responsible for bringing to the world a message of faith in the Messiah that is different from the one that is ingrained in the minds of most Jews.

Some features of the first Gospel.

1. In this book Special attention devoted to the teachings of Jesus Christ. Of all the gospel narratives, we find the most conversations of the Savior in Matthew. Three chapters in his Gospel (5-7) constitute the so-called Sermon on the Mount of Christ. Chapter 10 outlines Jesus' instructions to the disciples before sending them out to serve, chapter 13 presents parables about the Kingdom of Heaven, chapter 23 Jesus severely rebukes the leaders of Israel, and chapters 24-25 are a sermon on the Mount of Olives, dedicated to explaining future events. , directly related to both Jerusalem and the entire Israeli people.

2. In Matthew, part of the story is presented logically rather than chronologically. Thus, he sets out the genealogical part in three stages, mentions many miracles in a row, and talks about all those who resisted Jesus in one place.

3. The first Gospel contains a lot of excerpts from the Old Testament. There are about 50 direct quotes alone. In addition, there are about 75 references to Old Testament events. This is undoubtedly explained by the nature of the audience to which the evangelist was addressing. After all, Matthew wrote primarily for the Jews, and it was them who he wanted to convince with numerous references to the facts and events set forth in the Old Testament. And besides, if this Gospel was written around the year 50, then Matthew had too few New Testament writings at his disposal to quote from them. And those that already existed at that time could be unknown either to his readers or to himself.

4. The First Gospel testifies that Jesus Christ is Israel's Messiah and explains matters pertaining to the Kingdom of God. “If Jesus really is the Messiah,” the Jews might ask, “then why did He not establish the promised Kingdom?” The Old Testament quite definitely indicates that the Messiah will establish His glorious Kingdom on earth, in which Israel will occupy a special position. And since Israel rejected her true King, what will happen to the promised Kingdom?

The Gospel of Matthew reveals several "secrets" regarding this that were not revealed in the Old Testament. These "mysteries" indicate that in the "present age" this Kingdom has taken a different form, but that in the future the "kingdom of David" promised to the Jews will nevertheless be established, and this will happen when Jesus Christ returns to earth to establish His authority over it.

The first verse of the first Gospel says: “The genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.” But why is the name of David mentioned before the name of Abraham? Was not Abraham, the father of the Jewish people, a more significant person in the eyes of the Jews? Perhaps Matthew named David first because David was promised that the King of Israel would come from him (2 Sam. 7:12-17). Jesus Christ came with good news to His people. However, according to God's plan, His message was rejected. Rejected to be heard throughout the world and for all peoples.

At one time, the promise to bless all nations was given by God to Abraham and confirmed in the covenant with him (Gen. 12:3). It is important that Matthew “included” pagans in his narrative, such as the wise men from the East (Matt. 2:1-12), the centurion who had great faith (8:5-13), and the Canaanite woman whose faith “was great" (15:22-28). The book ends with Christ's great commission: “Go and make disciples of all nations” (28:19).

Book outline:

I. Presentation of the King (1:1 - 4:11)

A. His genealogy (1:1-17)

B. His coming (1:18 - 2:23)

C. The Messiah-King is represented by His forerunner (3:1-12)

D. King receiving recognition from above (3:13 - 4:11)

II. Messages Brought by the King (4:12 - 7:29)

A. The Beginning of His Sermons (4:12-25)

B. Continuation of His Sermons (Chapters 5-7)

III. Evidence of the King's Trustworthiness (8:1 - 11:1)

A. His power over disease (8:1-15)

B. His power over the forces of evil (8:16-17,28-34)

C. His power over people (8:18-22; 9:9)

D. His power over nature (8:23-27) E. His power to forgive (9:1-8)

E. His power over human traditions (9:10-17)

G. His power over death (9:18-26) 3. His ability to turn darkness into light (9:27-31)

I. Again about His ability to cast out demons (9:32-34)

K. His right and ability to give power to others (9:35 - 11:1)

IV. Challenge to the King's Authority (11:2 - 16:12)

A. Expressed in contrast to John the Baptist (11:2-19)

B. As seen from His condemnation of the cities (11:20-30)

C. As seen from the disputes about His authority (chapter 12)

D. As seen in the “change in status” of the Kingdom (13:1-52)

D. How it is visible from different events (13:53 - 16:12)

V. Education and encouragement of the disciples of the King (16:13 - 20:34)

A. Revelation of the coming rejection of the King (16:13 - 17:13)

B. Instructions in light of the coming rejection (17:14 - 20:34)

VI. The King's proposal reaches its climax (chapters 21-27)

A. The King Announces Himself (21:1-22)

B. Confrontation of the “religious” with the Tsar (21:23 - 22:46)

C. The People Reject the King (Chapter 23)

D. Prophetic predictions of the King (chapters 24-25)

D. The people renounce the King (chapters 26-27)

VII. Confirmation of the King's immortality (chapter 28)

A. The empty tomb (28:1-8)

B. His Appearance (28:9-10)

C. The "formal" explanation given by the high priests (28:11-15)

D. Official commission from the King (28:16-20)

Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 1 Genealogy of Jesus Christ from Joseph to Abraham. Joseph, at first, did not want to live with Mary because of her unexpected pregnancy, but he obeyed the Angel. Jesus was born to them. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 2 The Magi saw in the sky the star of the birth of the king's son, and came to congratulate Herod. But they were sent to Bethlehem, where they presented gold, incense, and oil to Jesus. Herod killed the babies, and Jesus escaped in Egypt. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 3 John the Baptist does not allow the Pharisees to wash, because... For repentance, deeds are important, not words. Jesus asks Him to baptize, John, at first, refuses. Jesus Himself will baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 4 The devil tempts Jesus in the desert: to make bread out of a stone, to jump off a roof, to worship for money. Jesus refused and began to preach, call the first apostles, and heal the sick. Became famous. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 5 Sermon on the Mount: 9 Beatitudes, you are the salt of the earth, the light of the world. Don't break the law. Do not be angry, make peace, do not be tempted, do not get divorced, do not swear, do not fight, help, love your enemies. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 6 Sermon on the Mount: about secret almsgiving and the Lord’s Prayer. About fasting and forgiveness. True Treasure in Heaven. The eye is a lamp. Either God or wealth. God knows about the need for food and clothing. Seek the truth. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 7 Sermon on the Mount: take the beam out of your eye, do not throw pearls. Seek and you will find. Do to others as you do to yourself. The tree bears fruit well, and people will enter Heaven on business. Build a house on a rock - taught with authority. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 8 Healing the leper, Peter's mother-in-law. Military faith. Jesus has nowhere to sleep. The way the dead bury themselves. The wind and sea obey Jesus. Healing the possessed. The pigs are drowned by demons, and the livestock farmers are unhappy. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 9 Is it easier to tell a paralyzed person to walk or to forgive his sins? Jesus eats with sinners, fasts later. About containers for wine, clothing repair. Resurrection of the Maiden. Healing the bleeding, the blind, the dumb. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 10 Jesus sends 12 apostles to preach and heal freely, in exchange for food and lodging. You will be judged, Jesus will be called the devil. Save yourself with patience. Walk everywhere. There are no secrets. God will watch over you and reward you. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 11 John asks about the Messiah. Jesus praises John for being greater than a prophet, but lesser with God. Heaven is reached by effort. To eat or not to eat? A reproach to the cities. God is open to babies and workers. Light burden. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 12 God wants mercy and goodness, not sacrifice. You can heal on Saturday - it is not from the devil. Do not blaspheme the Spirit; words provide justification. Good from the heart. The Sign of Jonah. The hope of the nations is in Jesus, His mother is the disciples. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 13 About the sower: people are as productive as grain. Parables are easier to understand. The weeds will be separated from the wheat later. The Kingdom of Heaven grows like grain, rises like leaven, is profitable like treasure and pearls, like a net with fish. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 14 Herod cut off the head of John the Baptist at the request of his wife and daughter. Jesus healed the sick and fed 5,000 hungry people with five loaves of bread and two fish. At night Jesus went to the boat on the water, and Peter wanted to do the same. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 15 The disciples do not wash their hands, and the Pharisees do not follow their words, thus the blind guides become defiled. It is a bad gift to give to God instead of a gift to parents. Dogs eat crumbs - heal your daughter. He treated and fed 4000 with 7 loaves of bread and fish. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 16 Pink sunset marks clear weather. Avoid the wickedness of the Pharisees. Jesus is the Christ, he will be killed and rise again. Church on Peter the Stone. By following Christ to death, you will save your soul, you will be rewarded according to your deeds. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 17 Transfiguration of Jesus. John the Baptist - like the prophet Elijah. Demons are cast out by prayer and fasting, the youth is healed. Need to believe. Jesus will be killed, but will rise again. They take taxes from strangers, but it’s easier to pay for the Temple. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 18 He who is humbled as a child is greater in Heaven. Woe to the seducer, it is better to be without an arm, a leg and an eye. It is not God's will to perish. Farewell to the obedient 7x70 times. Jesus is among the two asking. Parable of the Evil Debtor. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 19 Divorce only if there is infidelity, because... one flesh. You won't be able to not get married. Let the children come. God alone is good. Righteous - give away your property. It is difficult for a rich person to go to God. Those who follow Jesus will sit in judgment. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 20 Parable: they worked differently, but were paid the same because of bonuses. Jesus will be crucified, but will be resurrected, and who sits on the sides depends on God. Don't dominate, but serve like Jesus. Healing 2 blind people. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 21 Entry into Jerusalem, Hosanna to Jesus. Expulsion of traders from the Temple. Speak in faith. John's Baptism from Heaven? They do it not in words, but in deeds. A parable about the punishment of evil winegrowers. The main stone of God. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 22 For the Kingdom of Heaven, as for a wedding, dress up, don’t be late, and behave with dignity. Caesar minted coins - return part, and God - God's. There is no registry office in Heaven. God is among the living. Love God and your neighbor. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 23 Do what your bosses tell you, but don’t take your example from them, hypocrites. You are brothers, do not be proud. The temple is more valuable than gold. Judgment, mercy, faith. It's beautiful on the outside, but bad on the inside. The people of Jerusalem bear the blood of the prophets. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 24 When the end of the world is not clear, but you will understand: the sun will be eclipsed, signs in the sky, there is the Gospel. Before that: wars, devastation, famine, disease, impostors. Prepare, hide and save yourself. Do everything right. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 25 5 smart girls made it to the wedding, but the others didn’t. The cunning slave was punished for 0 income, and the profitable ones were increased. The king will punish the goats and reward the righteous sheep for their good guesses: they fed, clothed, and visited. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 26 Valuable oil for Jesus, the poor will wait. Judas hired himself to betray. Last Supper, Body and Blood. Bogomolye on the mountain. Judas kisses, Jesus is arrested. Peter fought with a knife, but denied. Jesus was convicted of blasphemy. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 27 Judas repented, quarreled and hanged himself. At Pilate's trial, Jesus' crucifixion was questionable, but the people took the blame: the King of the Jews. Signs and death of Jesus. Funeral in a cave, entrance guarded, sealed. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 28 On Sunday, a sparkling Angel scared the guards, opened the cave, told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead and would appear soon. The guards were taught: you fell asleep, the body was stolen. Jesus ordered the nations to be taught and baptized.

Features of the Gospel of Matthew

"Until the end of time"

As a rule, we begin to read and reflect on the Gospel text with the Gospel of Matthew. And one often gets the impression that it is, so to speak, exemplary, and that in the three other Gospels there is something new in comparison with it. But in fact, some things, just special ones, which are in the first of the four Gospels, are completely absent from Luke, Mark, and John.

First of all, you need to pay attention to the composition of the Gospel of Matthew. Just as the Law of Moses is set out in five books (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy), so the Gospel of Matthew (the New Law, the Law of Christ) can also be divided into five parts.

The first part includes the story of the Savior's baptism, the beginning of His sermon and the text of the Sermon on the Mount and ends with a remark about how, having finished these words, Jesus came down from the mountain (8: 1).

The second part includes a story about ten miracles of God (chapters 8 and 9), and ends with chapter 10, where the Savior gives instructions to the apostles, and ends with the same remark: “And when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there ..." (11: 1).

The third part also ends with a large text spoken by the Savior - parables about the Kingdom of God, and with exactly the same remark: “And when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed from there” (13:53).

The fourth part ends with the 18th chapter, its last verse: “When Jesus finished these words, then... he left Galilee...” (19: 1). It includes, in addition to the narrative part, a parable about an unmerciful lender.

Finally, the last, fifth part - before the events Holy Week- includes a conversation on the Mount of Olives about the End of History, the parable of the ten virgins and the last Judgment and ends with the same phrase: “When I had finished all these words...” (26: 1).

Just as in the Pentateuch the central point is the Commandments of God, which God gives to Moses on the mountain, so in the Gospel of Matthew the main point is the Sermon on the Mount: the Beatitudes, which God gives to people through Jesus on the mountain (that’s why we say “Sermon on the Mount” ").

Just as in the Old Testament the Pentateuch is a book about the presence of God among people, so the Gospel of Matthew includes - as a main theme - the message about the presence of God among people in the person of Jesus.

Already at the very beginning, as if setting the tone for the entire book, a verse from the prophet Isaiah sounds: “Behold, a virgin will be with child and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel, which means: God is with us” (Matthew 1:23). This name of Jesus, given to Him through the prophet, is the key to the rest of the text. In the person of Jesus, God is with us.

If we go further through the Gospel text, we will find the Savior’s phrase that the sons of the bridal chamber cannot fast while the groom is with them. The word “Bridegroom” in the Old Testament very often replaces the word “God” - the Bridegroom is with them, with the sons of the bridal chamber. If we are “sons of the bridal chamber,” that means the Bridegroom is with us, that is, God is with us.

And finally, the last verse once again repeats this formula - “I am”: “... and lo, I am with you to the end of the age” (28: 20).

God is with us, Emmanuel is with us- this is the main theme of the entire Gospel of Matthew, through which the Lord, as it were, reveals to us His presence among us, and this important point for Christianity is emphasized only in the Gospel of Matthew. From beginning to end, in its entirety, it alone contains the Sermon on the Mount. But if we divide the Sermon on the Mount into separate parts, it turns out that almost all of its text can be found in Luke, and Mark, and individual words- in the Gospel of John. Of the 111 verses of the Sermon on the Mount, only 24, that is, less than a quarter, are missing from the other Gospels. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to them.

“I came not to destroy, but to fulfill”

“I came not to destroy, but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17) - these words are the key to understanding the Old Testament and at the same time set the tone for the entire Gospel. The Gospel is the fulfillment of what is said in the Old Testament; without the Old Testament, the New Testament loses all meaning. Chapter 13 says, in general, about the same thing: “And he said to them: Therefore every scribe who is taught in the kingdom of heaven is like a master who brings out of his treasury new and old” (13:52).

What does “New” mean and what does “Old Testament” mean?

New - not in the sense of its opposition to the Old Testament, as we often think, but New (Greek?????? or Latin novus) in the sense - always new. It is no coincidence that the Savior’s words during the Last Supper: “This is My blood of the New Testament” - on Latin language translated as: "Hic est enim canguis mens novi et aeterni testamenti"(“This is My blood of the New and Eternal Testament”).

Latin word novus no longer contains what is expressed in Greek by the word ??????, so the translator has to resort to replacing one word with two: “new” and “eternal.” I would translate to modern language this word is like “ever new”: “This is my blood of the ever new testament,” the “timeless testament.”

The very term “Old”, or “Dilapidated”, as we usually say, is quite arbitrary. It is better, after all, to say not the Old, but the Mosaic Covenant (given under Moses), or the Covenant concluded with the fathers, but in any case not the Old, because there is nothing old in it.

The covenant given to the fathers And Covenant, given to us, – this is the whole difference between the two Testaments.

“I came not to destroy, but to fulfill” is the first moment of the Sermon on the Mount, unique to the Gospel of Matthew. The second is about the oath, when the Savior addresses Us with these words: “...do not swear at all: neither by heaven, because it is the Throne of God; nor the earth, because it is the footstool of His feet; nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King; Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word be: “yes, yes,” “no, no,” and anything beyond this is from the evil one” (5: 34-37).

This truth is very important, but we have not yet realized it in two thousand years of reading the Sermon on the Mount: there is still such a concept as an oath not only in everyday life, but also in church life. We must understand that we cannot take oaths, because every oath is already a step towards breaking it. In order not to violate, you don’t have to promise, you just have to possess with an open heart. It is very important to feel this from the inside, to understand from the depths of our “I”.

Presence of an oath element in many liturgical rites and in the life of Christian monarchs in the first centuries of the spread of Christianity - this is a blow to the preaching of the Gospel. This is where our retreat from Christ, who is present among us, sometimes begins.

Christian life

Almsgiving, prayer, fasting - in essence, the whole life of a Christian fits into these three concepts, but they are clearly defined only in the Gospel of Matthew, in the Sermon on the Mount. This is the third very important point.

The episode when the Savior walks on the waters to the disciples is found in Luke, Mark, and John. But only in Matthew, Peter, leaving the ship, goes to meet Him, walks on the water and begins to drown because he is afraid. Then the Savior extends his hand to him. This passage, included in the penitential canon of Andrew of Crete, is read for the first four days of Great Lent. “The storm of anger will overcome me, God bless me, but like Peter, stretch out your hand to me,” each of us prays. The kontakion of the Sunday akathist also talks about this: “The storm of passions confuses and drowns me, but I pray to You, Jesus, like to Peter, extend a helping hand to me and, having raised up the power of Your Resurrection, teach me to sing “Hallelujah.”

Probably, this is the Christian feat of Peter, that he managed to grab the outstretched hand. Christ extends a helping hand to each of us, but we fail to grasp it. This moment of connection between God and the believer, revealed when Jesus walks on the water, is found only in the Gospel of Matthew.

I would like to remind you of one more place. Calling the disciples, the sons of Zebedee (John and James), Jesus says: “And I will make you fishers of men,” and in the Gospel of Mark and in many ancient manuscripts of the Gospel of Matthew, in the Codex Sinaiticus, in the Syriac translation there is another word???? ???? - “and I will do”, and then the construction (like English complex object)- “so that you may become fishers of men.” He says: “...and I will cause you to become fishers of men.”

In other words, the Savior does not mechanically make us different. He makes us ourselves have become. He gives us the strength to do this, and whether we do it or not is in our power. It is very important. He extends his hand, and whether to grab it or not is our free will. One follows this path, the other chooses his own path. The idea of ​​Christian freedom becomes very noticeable when you do not read the Gospel text superficially, but look deeply into every word, into every grammatical construction, because God speaks to us in some very special way. At the same time, Matthew (more correctly, the Gospel of Matthew) talks about miracles, as a rule, briefly, never naming the names of the people with whom these miracles occur.

Let's say that the Savior resurrects Jairus's daughter, we learn from the Gospel of Mark and from the Gospel of Luke - although this is told in the Gospel of Matthew, the name of the girl's father is not mentioned.

We also learn from the Gospel of Mark that the blind man rescued by Jesus from blindness was named Bartimaeus - this is not mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew. The healing of the paralytic is also described in Matthew as briefly as possible in comparison with the same story in Mark.

Or the episode where Jesus heals a boy suffering from epilepsy. His father comes running, as told in the Gospel of Mark, with the words: “I believe, Lord! Help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24). This scene is found not only in Mark and Luke, but also in Matthew. But Matthew conveys it literally in a nutshell, without any details. He always talks about miracles not just briefly, but also somehow presses the events.

Jesus comes to Jerusalem on the sixth Sunday of Lent and drives out the merchants from the Temple. Mark emphasizes that one day the Savior comes to Jerusalem, the next day he returns and then expels the merchants from the Temple. And in the Gospel of Matthew it seems that the Savior does this on the same day that he came to Jerusalem.

Or this example. Jesus comes to a barren fig tree and, seeing that it is barren, curses it. The Gospel of Mark says: the next day, passing by a fig tree, the disciples saw that it had withered. The Gospel of Matthew says that the fig tree withered immediately. He cursed it and withered away. Although it is clear that it takes at least some time for a tree to dry out.

This is the method of the Gospel of Matthew as opposed to the Gospel of Mark. Moreover, each of these texts seems to begin to sound in the future history of the Church. For example, when the Gospel of Mark tells about the healing of the paralytic, we can very well imagine how it all happened. How Jesus came to that house, how people surrounded Him, how they crowded at the door and it was impossible to pass, how four people “opened the roof of the house where He was, and, having dug through it, lowered the bed on which the paralytic lay” to his feet Jesus (Mark 2:4). Mark talks about all this in great detail, while Matthew talks about it very briefly. But at the same time, how does Mark end his story about the healing of the paralytic? “...They were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this” (Mark 2:12).

Luke’s story about this ends like this: “And horror seized everyone, and they glorified God; and being filled with fear, they said, “We have now seen wonderful things” (Luke 5:26).

And finally, in Matthew: “When the people saw this, they were amazed and glorified God, who had given such power to men” (Matthew 9:8).

This expression - “who gave such power to men” - is only in the Gospel of Matthew, that is, the story of this miracle is told in the perspective of the future of the Church. The Savior not only has the power to forgive sins and not only forgives them Himself, but transfers the “power to forgive sins” to man, so that in the future this miracle will be repeated again and again. He arranges everything in such a way that he can forgive sins through the hands of those to whom this power has been transferred.

From here we receive the sacrament of repentance, the essence of which is extremely expressed in the formula that the priest reads when he covers the head of the penitent with the stole: “May our Lord and God Jesus Christ, by the grace and generosity of His love for mankind, forgive you, child, all your sins, and I, unworthy priest, by His power given to me, I forgive and absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

It is no coincidence that in the Gospel of Mark Jesus heals one blind man, and in the Gospel of Matthew the miracle occurs again and again. When we read the same story in Mark, Matthew, Luke and see that in each case there is something seemingly contradictory to the other, then we must understand that behind this contradiction there is some special message hidden.

Let us recall this example once again. Healing Peter’s mother-in-law, the Savior raises her healthy from her bed, and the Gospel of Matthew says that “she arose and served Him,” and in the Gospel of Mark, “she arose and served them.” This is what is written in the original Greek and in the Russian translation by Bishop Cassian (in Synodal translation in both texts – “...and served them”). What is the difference?

The Gospel of Mark describes a situation: a woman was sick, she was lying down, and as soon as she was healed, she got up and began to serve them - all the people who were in the house. And the Gospel of Matthew emphasizes the point: she rose up to serve Him! This means that the Savior heals us so that we serve Him.

Thus, The Gospel of Matthew answers the question of what a Christian should do. Serve Him, Christ! And the Gospel of Mark answers the question, How do it, How serve Him: serving the people for whom Christ came into this world.

In the Gospel of Matthew there is a parable about how one should give money to the temple. Just like the parable of the cursed fig tree, it is not told, but shown to us. Collectors of didrachms came to the Apostle Peter and said: “Will your Teacher give didrachms for the Temple?” Jesus sends Peter: “...go to the sea, throw a hook and take the first fish that comes along; and, opening her mouth, you will find a statir; take it and give it to them for Me and for yourself” (Matthew 17:27).

Peter pulls out the fish, finds, as Jesus said, in its mouth a statir - a coin equal to four drachmas, and gives it to the Temple for Jesus and for himself.

Yes, the task of every Christian is to give money to the temple. Where to get this money from? Earn money with your own labor. Peter is a fisherman, and it’s probably no coincidence that his fish brings him money. The essence of this “revealed” parable is that a Christian needs to work with his own labor, as the Apostle Paul will tell us about this many times later in his Epistles, to earn money in order to invest it in the treasury of the temple.

Moreover, Christ shows us parables precisely in those cases when they are difficult or almost impossible to tell, because in Christianity there are, as it were, three layers of truth: those truths that can be told; those that can be shown; and those that can only be understood from own experience. And so, almost things are shown to us in cases where it is impossible to talk about it, it doesn’t work out, when there are no words. Not only can you not tell about the most important thing, but you cannot show the most important thing. The most important thing, the core of Christianity can only be understood from my own experience.

Let me remind you that only in the Gospel of Matthew are told: the parable of the tares in the field; the parable of the eleventh hour workers who received the same denarius as those who endured both the heat and the long day of work; a parable about two brothers, one of whom refused to work in the vineyard, saying to his father, “I don’t want to,” but then, repenting, he went, and the other willingly agreed, “I’m going, sir,” and did not go.

We understand that the correct path is the one who first refused, and then repented and went, and not the path of the good boy who said: “Yes, yes, I’m going,” and did not go. This contains some very important message from the Lord for us. Faith often begins with rebellion, with the fact that we resist God and say: “No, I don’t want to,” and not with the fact that we willingly say: “Yes, yes,” but sometimes beyond this “yes, yes” we've been going for many years.

This parable is addressed to those who are upset about their children and grandchildren, who do not want to go to church, who rebel against God. But if a person rebels against the Church, this is already good, it means that God has already touched him, that he is already on the road. Much worse is the “Sunday Christian” who, on occasion, once every three or four months, will go to church, light a candle and consider himself a believer.

Among the parables that are told only in the Gospel of Matthew are the parable of the ten virgins, the parable of the Last Judgment, and the parable of the merciless lender. The last parable is very important. We don’t always remember it, we don’t always read: “...The Kingdom of Heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to count, someone was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he did not have anything to pay with, his sovereign ordered him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and everything that he had, and to pay. Then that slave fell and, bowing to him, said: “Sir! have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.” The Emperor, having mercy on that slave, released him and forgave him the debt. That servant went out and found one of his companions who owed him a hundred denarii, and he grabbed him and strangled him, saying, “Give me what you owe.” Then his comrade fell at his feet, begged him and said: “Have patience with me, and I will give you everything.” But he didn’t want to, but went and put him in prison until he paid off the debt. His comrades, who saw what had happened, were very upset and, when they came, told their sovereign everything that had happened. Then his sovereign calls him and says: “Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your companion, just as I had mercy on you?” And, angry, the sovereign handed him over to the torturers until he repaid him with all the debt” (18: 23-34).

This parable is based on the words from the Lord’s Prayer “Our Father”: “And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.” If we do not forgive debtors, then the Lord will not forgive us our sins. The last verse of the parable says: “My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother his sins from his heart” (18:35).

And, as a rule, it is difficult for us to do this. Even if we can say: “I have forgiven,” resentment often continues to live in our hearts. It is from the depths of our “I” that we cannot forgive. But you need to forgive from the heart, because nothing destroys a person more than resentment.

On the other hand, it is important to compare this parable with the parable from the Gospel of Luke about the unfaithful steward, who also owed money to his master, but in order to arrange his fate, he calls the people who owed him, forgives them part of the debt, and thus gets settled for the future. Here is one way of behavior of a person who is not enlightened by God: when trouble touches him, he arranges everything with cunning. Another way is shown in the Gospel of Matthew - to arrange everything by force, grab it, start strangling it and saying: “Give it up!”

But the Savior tells us that neither cunning, nor malice, nor coercion are suitable or suitable. Both paths lead to a dead end. We need some third option. And it appears only when a real meeting with the Savior takes place in our life, when we meet Christ, just as we meet a person in life.

But there is one more point in this parable. Her hero owed his master 10 thousand talents, and he forgave him this amount, but his debtor could not return him 100 denarii, and for this he began to strangle the unfortunate debtor. What are 10 thousand talents and 100 denarii? When you read this text, both talents and denarii are quite abstract values ​​for us: 10 thousand is a lot, and a hundred is a lot. But if we express these amounts in modern convertible currency, then 10 thousand talents is approximately 15 million dollars, and 100 denarii is 25 dollars.

That's how much God forgives and how much we didn't want to forgive! This is the extent to which God is merciful, and the extent to which you and I are unmerciful.

“Don’t give sacred things to dogs...”

Another, perhaps the most difficult passage not only in the Gospel of Matthew, but in the Gospel in general, if not in the entire Bible. These are the words of the Savior from the Sermon on the Mount: “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces” (Matthew 7:6).

What is it about? Very often this passage is understood as an indication of what later, in the Middle Ages, Latin theologians would call disciplina arcana: in the Church there must be a secret discipline, a secret science, a secret knowledge and theology, into which one is not initiated ordinary people. There are books that can be read by the clergy and not by the laity. There are things to which the clergy are allowed and the laity are not allowed: the iconostasis, the Royal Doors, the altar. Many priests believe that the laity should not receive communion too often, because this means giving holy things to dogs. I always tell such priests: “We serve the Liturgy three times a week, which means we receive communion three times a week. Why are we better than parishioners?” They answer me: “Well, this is the discipline of the lasso.” The discipline of the arcana was expressed in Eastern Church the appearance in churches of an altar barrier, the Royal Doors, a curtain, etc. In the Western Church, it was expressed in the fact that the laity began to receive communion not with the Body and Blood of Christ, but only with the Body of Christ. It showed up so differently misunderstanding words of the Savior: “Do not give what is holy to dogs and do not throw your pearls before swine...”

What are we really talking about? If we have been touched by Christ in any way, if He has entered our hearts in any way, we understand that the Savior cannot push away a sinner with the words “don’t give holy things to dogs.” From literature, from the Talmud in particular, we know that many pious Jews called the pagans dogs and pigs. But we also know that the Savior came precisely to those who had already been crushed or almost crushed by sin, in order to “call not the righteous, but sinners,” in order to seek and save the lost, in order to extend a helping hand to those who are rejected by everyone.

The Gospel as a whole, many parables and miracles in the Gospel testify that it is the fallen who the Savior raises and saves.

Each gospel expression, in general the word of God, differs from the word of man in that it alive. The Word of God is the seed. It is no coincidence that in the parable of the sower it is said: “The sower sows the word.” This means that the seed that is described in the parable of the sower is the word of God. If a seed falls to the ground, then the word of God falls into the heart. But then the same thing happens to it as to a seed in the ground, which is filled with water from the soil, swells, sprouts - and gradually germinates.

And in the heart of each of us, if we accept the word of God into ourselves, even without understanding it, and carry it in our hearts, it gradually grows and sprouts. And with this gospel phrase, this is probably what should happen. If we accept it in our hearts, it will gradually grow, and from experience we will understand what “don’t give sacred things to dogs” means.

It is clear that the Savior cannot call anyone dogs and pigs, but you and I can. This means that, saying: “Do not give what is holy to dogs and do not throw your pearls before swine,” the Savior, as it were, puts the words “dogs” and “swine” in quotation marks. That is, this expression should be understood as follows: do not give shrines to those whom You consider dogs and pigs, because if you do this, they will rush and tear you to pieces.

When He calls others “dogs” and “swine,” He is quoting us. It is very important to understand this. Considering that simple people not yet ready to understand church service or that they cannot know this, we become like those Jews who called the pagans dogs and pigs. And at the same time, we don’t understand the simplest thing: if we think that they are not ready, then we ourselves are not ready.

Why did the Polynesians eat Cook? Because he came to them as “dogs” and “pigs,” as second-class people and looked down on them: I am a European in shoulder straps and epaulettes, and you are savages, running around naked and understanding nothing at all.

Why didn’t those same Polynesians eat Paul Gauguin or Miklouho-Maclay? Because they came to them as equals. Not as the best for the worst, but, perhaps, as the worst, spoiled by civilization, to the naive children of nature - and for this reason they lived there peacefully, made many friends and left behind a grateful memory. Both Paul Gauguin and Miklouho-Maclay heard these words of the Savior: “Do not give sacred things to dogs,” that is, do not enter into dialogue with people if you consider them dogs.

We read about something similar in the Gospel of Mark and in the Gospel of Matthew: a Canaanite woman runs to Jesus and asks him to heal her daughter. “But Jesus said to her: First let the children be satisfied; for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs. She answered Him: So, Lord; but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs” (Mark 7:27-28).

Does the Savior really call this woman and her daughter dogs? No, the Savior says out loud what she is thinking: “I’m dirty, like a dog, I’m disgusting, but help me.”

The worst thing for her is that she is a pagan, unlike them - people who are pure and enlightened by God. And the trouble is not that someone considers her dirty, but the trouble is that she considers herself so. The Savior says this out loud and saves her, and she straightens up, she ceases to be a second-class citizen - this is very important to understand.

If we turn to the history of the Church, we will see two ways in dialogue with unenlightened peoples. Some preachers went to Latin America, others to the Philippines. The task of those who arrived in Latin America was to quickly baptize the local inhabitants, give them Christian names, thus establishing their authority, and move on. And those who came to the Philippines began to work there. And what happened as a result? Filipinos are one of the most religious peoples in the world. And in Latin America, as you know, there are only a few believers - only in the educated stratum, while ordinary people do not believe in God, even though they bear Christian names. Because they were treated precisely according to the principle “don’t give sacred things to dogs, they won’t understand anything anyway.”

You can also look at our history. The inhabitants of Chuvashia were baptized back in the Middle Ages, but practically remained pagans. It is not surprising that today pagan temples are being built there and pagan rituals are openly practiced. An old artist, whose father was a rural priest in Chuvashia, told me that at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the Chuvash, in general, did not believe in God, but went somewhere in the forest, where there were huts, and there they worshiped their gods. Moreover, the residents of each village, in addition to the official Christian name, also had a pagan one. That is, they were baptized - and this was the end of communication with them as future Christians.

And vice versa, in the Perm region, back in the days St. Sergius Saint Stephen of Perm began by learning the language of the Permians, compiled the alphabet for them, translated the Gospel, and only then began to baptize them, preaching among them. Centuries have passed, the Permian language has been forgotten, but the evangelical way of life has already been adopted, the Gospel has already been assimilated, they have already accepted Christ in their hearts, and in the Perm region no pagan temples are being built, they simply do not need them, because St. Stephen is still with them in the 14th century he spoke as an equal with equals. And they came to the Chuvash, looking down on them.

We can take two more regions as examples – Yakutia and Alaska. His Holiness Patriarch often asks: “What about the Gospel in the Yakut language?”, because paganism is now being revived there. Unfortunately, we were at least 150 years late with the Gospel in the Yakut language. Today, almost everyone there speaks Russian. Now, if the missionaries had translated the Gospel in their time, the local residents would have mastered it and, perhaps, later, like the Permians, would have switched to Russian. But they were baptized, but they didn’t give the Word of God into their hands and didn’t even talk about God at all.

The situation is completely different in Alaska. It has long been associated not with Russia, but with the Protestant United States, and no one here speaks Russian. However, every village has Orthodox church. Yes, local residents perform worship, read the Holy Scriptures on English language, but they are all Orthodox, although they live in a Protestant country. Why didn't they abandon Orthodoxy? Because the missionaries who came to Alaska began, again, by studying the language of the local inhabitants.

Saint Innocent, the future Metropolitan of Moscow, began working in America as a young man, mastered the Aleut language, compiled a dictionary, grammar, translated the Gospel, other holy books, and after that, as a bishop, he began to build and consecrate churches, organize Sunday schools, etc.

And his successors did the same, among whom was St. Tikhon, the future Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. It is no coincidence that two bishops who worked in Alaska for quite a long time ended up in the Moscow see. Moreover, Orthodox Americans, back in Brezhnev times, demanded from our Church that we recognize St. Innocent as a saint. He (later Saint Tikhon) was canonized, although our authorities, including the church ones, did not really want this: the saints, they said, had died long ago, how is it suddenly a new saint?

Saint Innocent realized how futile it was to live according to the principle “don’t give holy things to dogs.” We must understand that pagans are people just like us, maybe even better, and then, switching to their language, explain to them everything that concerns God, explain not to “dogs” and “pigs,” but to their brothers and sisters.

This is what these words say, which, I repeat, were preserved for us only by the Gospel of Matthew. And they, so strange and tough at first glance, become wonderful, saving, complete God's love when they “swell” in our heart.