Who was St Matthew and what can we find out about him?

21 September is St Matthew’s Day. But who was St Matthew and what can we find out about him? This is the story …

Meaning of the name

There is barely one person the Bible called Matthew. The name is originally Hebrew וּהיָ תְתִּמ (Mattityahu), which implies “gift of God”. The English name of Matthew comes from the Greek Ματθαῖος (Matthaios). The reason for the double t in English is since the Greek spelling has a τ (tau), equivalent of “t” followed by a θ (theta) which is transliterated “th”.

Matthew the Tax Collector

Matthew is recorded as a tax collector. There were two forms of tax collectors on the time of Jesus. Taxes were paid to the Temple authorities and to the Roman authorities. In the King James Version tax collectors were called “publicans” from the Latin “publicani,” although as of late to most those that word implies you run a pub. The Romans told tax collectors to gather a certain quantity of tax, but they often collected rather more.

Luke records that when tax collectors got here to be baptised by John the Baptist, and asked what they need to do, he didn’t tell them to stop being tax collectors, but somewhat he told them to gather not more than they were required to (Luke 3:12-13). Jesus was once asked a trick query whether the Jews should pay taxes to God or to Caesar. He didn’t regard it as an either or scenario, but recognised it as a false dichotomy meant to trap him and he replied, “Render unto God what’s God’s, render unto Caesar what’s Caesar’s” (Mark 12:17).

Matthew worked as a tax collector within the service of King Herod. Those who collected taxes for the Romans were seen as collaborators with the occupying forces. They were often despised but we all know from the stories of Jesus with Matthew and in one other story with Zacchaeus (Luke 19:2) that Jesus didn’t hold this prejudice. When Zacchaeus repented he said he would repay people fourfold (Luke 19:8) which reflected his knowledge of the Mosaic law which required a fourfold compensation after theft (Exodus 22:1).

Account in Matthew

The calling of Matthew is recorded briefly in Matthew 9:9-12. Assuming that Matthew the apostle is identical as Matthew the writer of the primary Gospel account, then this makes this account autobiographical. In this account Jesus is in Capernaum, by the ocean of Galilee, which was his base, and he saw a person sitting on the tax collector’s booth (Matthew 9:9), also called a desk or office depending on the interpretation. It doesn’t state it within the text, nevertheless it could possibly be that this records when Matthew was called somewhat than when Jesus first met him. It could also be that because they were each in Capernaum that this was the culmination of encounters, or it often is the first time they met. In any case Jesus said, “Follow me,” a phrase kept in virtually all English translations, and he did. 

Supper at Matthew’s house 

Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to have dinner with him at his house, together with other tax collectors (Matthew 9:10). It could also be that it was a dinner that was scheduled anyway and he invited Jesus and his disciples as extra guests of honour.  Or it might be that he invited Jesus and his disciples after which invited fellow tax collectors to ensure that them to satisfy him.In any case some Pharisees observed this and asked Jesus’s disciples why he was with tax collectors and other sinners (Matthew 9:11). On checking out about this Jesus replied that it will not be the healthy who need a physician however the sick (Matthew (9:12) and said he had not come to call the righteous but sinners (Matthew 9:13).

Matthew alias Levi

In Mark and Luke the identical story is told in a really similar way and it appears in Mark 2:13-17 and Luke 5:27-31. In these accounts he is known as Levi. This will not be a contradiction since it seems it was common for people to be known by two names. We can consider Jacob also generally known as Israel, Cephas also generally known as Peter, Thomas also generally known as Didymus, and later Saul also generally known as Paul. The name Levi may suggest that he was a Levite, or that Levi was his surname, or that he was generally known as Matthew to the Romans and Levi to the Jews.Mark adds that he was the son of Alphaeus (Mark 2:14). Alphaeus can be mentioned as the daddy of James the fisherman (to not be confused with Jesus’s half-brother James). It will not be clear if this was the identical Alphaeus or a distinct Alphaeus. If it is identical Alphaeus then that makes Levi the tax collector and James the fisherman brothers. In the lists of the apostles in Matthew 10:3 and Luke 6:15 and in Acts 1:13, Matthew precedes James within the lists of apostles, which might support the thought they were connected.

Matthew the Apostle 

Later we read that Matthew was chosen from amongst the disciples as an apostle which we read in Matthew 10:1-4, Mark 3:13-19 and Luke 6:13-16. Jesus expected honesty and integrity but he didn’t appear to require tax collectors to present up their day job. In the list of apostles in Matthew, he is known as “Matthew the tax collector” or “Matthew the publican”, depending on the interpretation, which can imply he carried on working within the trade. After that he doesn’t appear specifically by name except in Acts when he’s among the many apostles within the upper room (Acts 1:13).

Matthew’s Gospel 

What makes Matthew necessary is the assumption that he later wrote an account of Jesus’s life and ministry generally known as “The Gospel According to St Matthew the Evangelist” or “Matthew’s Gospel” or simply Matthew.  It was the opinion of the Early Church fathers that these were the identical Mattthew. 

We cannot ensure nevertheless it makes a certain quantity of sense, since a tax collector would have been literate and would have been able to write down in Greek, which was the official lingua franca of the eastern a part of the Roman Empire. As an apostle he was also an eyewitness to the accounts he wrote about. 

His humility and deal with Jesus, may explain why he doesn’t mention himself although he’s there wherever it says “the apostles.” As someone who was literate he can have taken notes along the best way which he later incorporated into his Gospel account. The accounts of the birth of Jesus and details concerning the visit of the Magi suggest he had first-hand information from Mary, mother of Jesus herself. 

The writers of the 4 Gospel accounts were traditionally called “Evangelists” and so he is usually generally known as “St Matthew the Evangelist.” Much of Matthew is remarkably just like Mark’s Gospel but with additional material, so one common theory is that Matthew can have taken Mark’s Gospel and augmented it.

Structure

The Gospel of Matthew was structured in a way which will not be all the time apparent from modern chapter divisions. It starts with an introduction when the primary two chapters set the scene of Jesus’s birth narratives commonly retold at Christmas. Then it has five sections which each end in “Jesus had ended these sayings” or something similar (Matthew 7:28, 11:1, 13:53, 19:1 and 26:1). Then the last section Matthew 28:16-20 acts like an epilogue or summary.  

This form of structure is lost to newest readers due to the chapter divisions, which are usually not original, although helpful. Some people wonder if this fivefold structure was meant to mimic the five books of Moses which start the Old Testament. It could also be why it was placed as the primary Gospel when the books of the New Testament were compiled together. Unlike Luke and John that is the one writing which now we have from Matthew.

Greek or Aramaic original?

Some people consider that Matthew wrote his Gospel first in Aramaic or Hebrew and it was later translated into Greek. This idea comes from the early second-century Church father Papias of Hierapolis who wrote that Matthew had collected the oracles or sayings of Christ in Hebrew, but this will consult with the concept that he wrote notes which he later incorporated into the Gospel account, which he then wrote in Greek. In any case it’s somewhat academic because if he did write the Gospel originally in Hebrew or Aramaic, it has never been found, so we only have the Greek Gospel to go by.

What happened to Matthew?

After his appearance within the upper room in Acts, Matthew disappears from the story. As is usually the case the gaps within the narrative are filled in by tradition or legend. He is believed to have been martyred but there is no such thing as a widely accepted tradition. John Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, which drew on earlier sources, popularised the concept that he evangelised in Parthia and “was slain with a halberd in the town of Nadabah, A.D. 60.”

Churches dedicated to St Matthew

In the Catholic and Anglican tradition some churches are dedicated to St Matthew. There are 145 church buildings dedicated to St Matthew within the Church of England. There are three Catholic cathedrals dedicated to St Matthew, being Salerno in southwestern Italy, Osorno in Chile, and in Washington DC within the US, made famous for being the location of the funeral Mass for President Kennedy. The oldest is St Matthew’s Cathedral at Salerno in Italy, which claims to have his relics, and where there may be an annual St Matthew’s Day procession.

St Matthew’s Day

In the Eastern Orthodox tradition St Matthew is remembered each 16 November and within the Coptic Church on 22 October. In the Western Church he’s remembered each 21 September which is known as “The Feast of St Matthew” or “St Matthew’s Day”. This is within the church calendar for Catholics, Lutherans, and Anglicans. 

In the Catholic tradition St Matthew is the patron saint of accountants, bankers, tax collectors, customs officers, and civil servants.  

Many saints’ days are set by the normal date of death or martyrdom, although in St Matthew’s case there is no such thing as a one widely accepted tradition of how, where or when he died. The date of 21 September for St Matthew’s Day goes back to not less than the sixth century, but the explanation for this particular date is now lost in early church tradition or liturgical calendar development. 

Collect for St Matthew’s Day

The collect prayer for St Matthew’s Day is “O Almighty God, whose blessed Son called Matthew the tax collector to be an apostle and evangelist: give us grace to forsake the selfish pursuit of gain and the possessive love of riches that we may follow in the best way of your Son Jesus Christ, who’s alive and reigns with you, within the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.”