There are yet other reasons why Matthew’s Gospel comes first among the canonical four. In fact, it is immediately recognizable as an extremely well-ordered Gospel. Though Matthew follows Mark’s narrative structure very closely,5 he rearranges stories and incorporates a good many others into a narrative structure designed to communicate Gospel events and teachings in a helpful, straightforward manner.
Though numerous literary structures have been discerned in Matthew, the simplest recognizes the way in which Matthew integrates narrative and teaching discourse in an alternating structure.
The five sermons (possibly an allusion to the five books of Moses) are each designed to address a particular aspect of Christian discipleship. The fact that Mark and Luke include much of this material in different locations in their Gospels makes it rather clear that these sermons are the result of Matthew’s creative editorial activity. He wants to present readers with a clear, well-ordered articulation of Jesus’s teaching. Nothing could be more appropriate for the first Gospel in the collection.
As it turns out, Matthew’s ordering strategy reflects a deep interest in number patterns, a feature typical of ancient rabbinic literature. There are nine (3 × 3) miracle stories gathered neatly together in chapters 8–9, and seven parables in chapter 13. We find twelve fulfillment citations of OT Scripture and seven denunciations of the Pharisees in chapter 23. The nine Beatitudes in chapter 5 are gathered into three groups: two groups of four, plus one culminating beatitude. The two groups of four each contain precisely 36 words in Greek (3 × 12, the number 12 being for God’s people). These few number patterns I’ve mentioned are just the tip of the iceberg, for this Gospel is populated with triads and patterns of sevens and twelves. The number arrangements do more than point to an obsessive author; they also convey a sense of order and predictability. Like the recurring references to the fulfillment of OT Scripture, the number patterns provide the sense that God is in control and all things are working out in an orderly fashion and completely according to plan.
The Structure of Matthew
A Basic Outline Introduction (1:1–2:23)Ministry in Galilee (4:1–18:35)
Ministry in Judea (19:1–20:33)
Confrontation in Jerusalem (21:1–27:66)
Resurrection (28:1–20)
Alternating Structure of Narrative and Sermon
1:1–4:25 NARRATIVE introducing Jesus
5:1–7:29 SERMON on the character of Christian discipleship8:1–9:38 NARRATIVE collection of nine miracle stories
10:1–42 SERMON on the mission of Christian disciples
11:1–12:50 NARRATIVE on Jesus’s actions and people’s responses
13:1–53 SERMON of parables, exploring why people reject discipleship
13:54–17:27 NARRATIVE on the formation of the Christian community
18:1–35 SERMON on Christian community as discipleship
19:1–23:39 NARRATIVE confrontation with the religious authorities
24:1–25:46 SERMON on living in light of the end
26:1–28:20 NARRATIVE of betrayal, arrest, suffering, death, resurrection, and commission
Taken from "A Concise Guide to Reading the New Testament: A Canonical Introduction" by David R. Nienhuis (Baker Academic)
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