Matthew
The Book of Matthew was written by one of the Apostles of Yeshua, Matthew. Matthew is his anglicized name, his Hebrew name was Mattityahu, which means, "gift of Jehovah". Matthew was a tax collector, one of the most hated professions in the Roman Empire, when Y'shua called him into the ministry in Matthew 9:9.
As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
This is one of five times, Matthew is mentioned in the Bible.
He is also called Levi, son of Alpheus. Mark 2:14
The Gospels Are Synoptic and Specifically Addressed.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are synoptic which means they describe events from a similar point of view, as contrasted with that of John. Matthew, presents Yeshua/Jesus, to the Jew, as the Lion of Judah, the Promised Messiah. Mark presents him to the Roman as the Servant. Luke presents him to the Greek, as the Son of Man. All three of these gospels include many of the same stories, often in a similar sequence and in similar wording. The Book of John, whose content is comparatively distinct, presents Yeshua/Jesus as the Son of God to the Faithful Believers, the Remnant of God in every generation.
Timeline/Archeology
At the beginning of Matthew, we have the Genealogy of Y'shua, Jesus. It starts with Abraham, who lived in the 20th century BC and gives us the names of the Messianic line of Judah from Abraham to David, 1040–970 BC, to Y'shua who was born some time between 7 and 4 BC. The Book of Matthew then jumps from Y'shua's birth to the begining of his ministry, around 27 AD to his Sacificial Death and Resurection, three years later.
It centers on the area from the Galilee to Egypt during the time of Y'shua, as seen in the following map.
The Style of Matthew
-Presented legalistically as fulfilled prophecy
-Centers of what was said by Yeshua.
-Ends at the Resurrection of Yeshua
-Since it presents Yeshua as the Lion of Judah, it is symbolized as the Lion.
Interesting Note
Mark is symbolized as the Ox because it presents Yeshua as the servant.
Luke is symbolized as the Man because it presents Yeshua as the Son of Man.
John is symbolized as the Eagle because it presents Yeshua as the Son of God.
Surrounding the Tabernacle in the desert, the Israelites rallied behind four main tribes, Judah, Ephraim, Reuben and Dan. Their tribal banners were the Lion, Ox, Man and Eagle respectively. The Lion, Ox, Man and Eagle are also the faces of Cherubim at the Throne of God. It appears that the tabernacle is a model of the Throne Room of God.
