Matthew 9 Background Information with Maps and Images (Picture Study Bible - Matthew) Free Bible Online

Matthew 9

1 - He entered into a boat, and crossed over, and came into his own city.

2 - Behold, they brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a bed. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic,"Son, cheer up! Your sins are forgiven you."

3 - Behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man blasphemes."

4 - Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said,"Why do you think evil in your hearts?

5 - For which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven;' or to say, 'Get up, and walk?'

6 - But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins-" (then he said to the paralytic),"Get up, and take up your mat, and go to your house."

7 - He arose and departed to his house.

8 - But when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

But when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

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9 - As Jesus passed by from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collection office. He said to him,"Follow me." He got up and followed him.

10 - As he sat in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples.

11 - When the Pharisees saw it, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

12 - When Jesus heard it, he said to them,"Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do.

13 - But you go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,'Hosea 6:6for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

14 - Then John's disciples came to him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples don't fast?"

Then John's disciples came to him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples don't fast?"

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15 - Jesus said to them,"Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.

16 - No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch would tear away from the garment, and a worse hole is made.

17 - Neither do people put new wine into old wine skins, or else the skins would burst, and the wine be spilled, and the skins ruined. No, they put new wine into fresh wine skins, and both are preserved."

18 - While he told these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped him, saying, "My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live."

19 - Jesus got up and followed him, as did his disciples.

20 - Behold, a woman who had an issue of blood for twelve years came behind him, and touched the fringe of his garment;

21 - for she said within herself, "If I just touch his garment, I will be made well."

22 - But Jesus, turning around and seeing her, said,"Daughter, cheer up! Your faith has made you well." And the woman was made well from that hour.

23 - When Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the flute players, and the crowd in noisy disorder,

24 - he said to them,"Make room, because the girl isn't dead, but sleeping."They were ridiculing him.

25 - But when the crowd was put out, he entered in, took her by the hand, and the girl arose.

26 - The report of this went out into all that land.

27 - As Jesus passed by from there, two blind men followed him, calling out and saying, "Have mercy on us, son of David!"

28 - When he had come into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus said to them,"Do you believe that I am able to do this?"They told him, "Yes, Lord."

29 - Then he touched their eyes, saying,"According to your faith be it done to you."

30 - Their eyes were opened. Jesus strictly commanded them, saying,"See that no one knows about this."

31 - But they went out and spread abroad his fame in all that land.

32 - As they went out, behold, a mute man who was demon possessed was brought to him.

33 - When the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke. The multitudes marveled, saying, "Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!"

34 - But the Pharisees said, "By the prince of the demons, he casts out demons."

35 - Jesus went about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.

36 - But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd.

37 - Then he said to his disciples,"The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few.

38 - Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest."

The Book of Matthew

Matthew 2:2 - Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Matthew 18:3 - And Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Painting of St. Matthew with Angel by Rembrandt

The Word Gospel. The first book of the English Bible that most of us read from is the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew is the first of the four gospel writings, yet there is only one gospel about Jesus Christ and there are four different writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word "Gospel" means "good news", and the good news is about Jesus Christ dying on the cross and then 3 days later conquering death and rising from the dead, offering salvation to all mankind, this is the Gospel.

Summary of the Book of Matthew

Brief Summary. Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the long awaited Messiah King of he Jews as foretold by the ancient Jewish prophets. He came to reveal how to enter the "Kingdom of Heaven."

Purpose. It is very obvious that the Gospel of Matthew was written for the purpose of revealing that the man Jesus of Nazareth was actually the King of the Jews, the long awaited Messiah, the sovereign Lord Jehovah who came from heaven to this world revealing to mankind the "kingdom of heaven". The King of the Jews, the Messiah Jesus fulfilled every prophecy that was spoken about Him in the ancient Jewish Scriptures, in the Old Testament. The prophecies that spoke of the "Kingdom" that the Messiah would bring would be a spiritual Kingdom that would never be destroyed.

Audience. When reading the book of Matthew it becomes clear that the writer was speaking to a Jewish audience. One of the obvious reasons is that the "Kingdom of Heaven" is mentioned over 30 times and never the Kingdom of God. This is because the Jews do not speak the name of God and this could be the very reason that Matthew used this phrase. There are many times while reading the book that an event happens and a prophecy is cited. The event is mentioned as the direct fulfillment of a promise made to the Jews by one of their Jewish prophets, and the fulfillment of the prophecy was happening before their very eyes. It is clear that the audience of people are the Jews, they were awaiting their King, and Matthew records that the King had come and they rejected their King.

Authorship. Early Christian writings and traditions have attributed the authorship of the Gospel of Matthew to the apostle Matthew. Many scholars question whether or not Matthew was the true author of the first Gospel, but there is no way at this current time to be absolutely positive based on historical evidence. Most agree that Matthew was the author. The Bible reveals that Matthew, or Levi, as he was sometimes called, collected taxes for the Romans. One day Jesus passed by and called Matthew to come and follow him, and Matthew did so. The Bible also records that Matthew held a banquet at his house with several of his tax collector friends and Jesus being invited to the banquet was the guest of honor (Mark 2:14-15). The Bible also provides a list of the 12 apostles and Matthew was named among them.

Date. There is no way to determine with absolute certainty the date that the book of Matthew was written. Most scholars agree that the book of Matthew was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., this is because Jesus spoke of many events as though they had not happened yet. A large number of scholars do not believe in the miracle of prophecy and therefore insist that the Gospel of Matthew was written after the fall of Jerusalem because of the accuracy of the predicted events.

Language. There are many references among the books in the history of the early church that state that the Gospel of Matthew was originally written by Matthew in the biblical Hebrew language, and he was writing to an audience of  Jews throughout the world who had become followers of Jesus. Unfortunately there is no evidence whatsoever of a Hebrew or Aramaic manuscript, so many scholars have agreed that the Gospel of Matthew is not actually a translation from Hebrew into Greek, but was actually written in Greek. The whole subject of the Gospel of Matthew being written in Hebrew must remain speculation rather than fact.

Outline of the Book of Matthew

The King Comes and His Kingdom is Rejected - Matthew 1-12
The Rejection of the King's Teaching and Ministry - Matthew 13-25
The King's Trial and Crucifixion - Matthew 26-27
The King's Victory and Resurrection - Matthew 28
The King's Commissioning of His Apostles - Matthew 28

Matthew - Interesting Notes

Matthew mentions four women in his genealogy which is not typical for Jewish genealogical records: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheeba who were all associated with some sort of immorality. Tamar (incest), Rahab (harlotry), Ruth (a descendant of Moab who committed incest) and Bathsheba (adultery). Christ's greatness was in Himself not his genealogy.

There are many intimations for the word "King" in Matthew if one takes the time to look. For example in chapter one there is a royal genealogy mentioning king David at the start. Chapter two reveals the kingly gifts of the Magi. Chapter three calls John the Baptist a "herald" which is a cultural term that represents a herald for a king. Etc. 

There are similarities with the number four. The four colors in the veil of the Temple were purple, scarlet, white, and blue. The four faces of the cherubim are the lion, ox, man, eagle. The four Gospel accounts are Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. 

Quick Reference Maps - Matthew

Israel in New Testament Times

The Kingdom of Herod the Great

The Divisions of Herod's Kingdom

The Flight into Egypt

The Baptism of Jesus

The Beginning of Christ's Ministry

Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee

Jesus Ministers in Galilee

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem

Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus

Jesus Journeys from Nazareth to Jerusalem

The Final Journey of Jesus to Jerusalem

The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus" would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A). Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

Matthew Resources

Outline of the Life of Jesus in Harmony
Simple Map of First Century Israel
Topographical Map of First Century Israel
Map of the Ministry of Jesus
Map of the Roads in Ancient Israel
Map of the Roman Empire