Where it fits

Matthew is the first book of the New Testament and the first of the four Gospels. It has 28 chapters. Tradition credits Matthew, the tax collector Jesus called to follow him (Matthew 9:9). The book reads as though it was written with a Jewish audience in mind, since it keeps pointing back to the Hebrew Scriptures. It was written in the first century, and read straight through it takes about two hours.

The portrait

Matthew builds his Gospel like a well-organized teacher. He weaves stories together with five long blocks of Jesus' teaching, and he marks the end of each block with a similar phrase (“when Jesus had finished these words”). He also includes stories found only in his Gospel, such as the visit of the magi (chapter 2) and the parable of the sheep and the goats (chapter 25).

The story begins with a genealogy that ties Jesus to Abraham and David, then moves through his birth, the visit of the magi, and his baptism and testing in the wilderness (chapters 1 to 4). The first great teaching block is the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5 to 7). Chapters 8 to 18 alternate miracles, parables, and teaching while opposition from the religious leaders grows. Then Jesus heads to Jerusalem (chapters 19 to 25), where he confronts the leaders and speaks about the future. The book closes with his arrest, death, and resurrection (chapters 26 to 28), and his final command to make disciples of all nations.

Three ideas to hold on to

1. Jesus fulfills the Old Testament story. Again and again Matthew says events happened so that what the prophets said would come true. The birth in Bethlehem, the escape to Egypt, and even Jesus' teaching in parables are each linked to an Old Testament passage (2:5–6, 2:15, 13:35). He wants readers to see one story, not two.
2. The kingdom turns expectations upside down. The Sermon on the Mount blesses the poor in spirit, the merciful, and the peacemakers, and it calls for a goodness that goes deeper than keeping rules.
3. Following Jesus means learning from him and passing it on. The book ends with a mission, not a conclusion: make disciples, baptize, and teach (28:18–20).

Passages people ask about

• Matthew 1. The genealogy. It looks like a list of names, but it includes Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba, a hint that God works through unexpected people.
• Matthew 5–7. The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus' best-known teaching, from the Beatitudes to the two foundations.
• Matthew 6:25–34. Jesus on worry. He points to the birds and the wildflowers, not to wave away real concerns but to turn our trust toward a Father who knows what we need.
• Matthew 16:13–20. Peter's confession and the “rock” saying. Christians across traditions read verse 18 differently, so read it slowly and with that in mind.
• Matthew 28:18–20. The Great Commission, with Jesus' promise to be with his followers always.

How it connects to the rest of the Bible

Matthew opens by calling Jesus the son of David and the son of Abraham (1:1), tying him to God's promises in Genesis and to the king from David's line. An angel soon says the child will be called Immanuel, “God with us” (1:23), quoting Isaiah. The Gospel ends with Jesus saying, “I am with you always” (28:20). The promise at the start and the promise at the end frame the whole book.

A common misunderstanding

Some readers take Matthew's sharp words about the religious leaders (especially chapter 23) as a charge against the Jewish people. Jesus, Matthew, and the first disciples were all Jewish, and the argument is a family argument. Reading these chapters as an attack on a whole people has caused real harm and misses what Matthew is doing.