Matthew

Biblical Record

Matthew was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ. Lists of the disciples appear in Matthew 10:3, Mark 3:18, Luke 6:15, and Acts 1:13. The Gospel of Matthew describes him as "Matthew the publican."

The account of his calling appears in all three Synoptic Gospels.

• Matthew 9:9–13: Jesus said to Matthew, who was sitting at the receipt of custom, "Follow me," and he arose and followed him.
• Mark 2:13–17: Records the same event but calls him "Levi the son of Alphaeus."
• Luke 5:27–32: Calls him "Levi" and adds that Levi left all and followed Jesus, and that he made a great feast for Jesus in his own house.

When publicans and sinners sat down together at that meal, the Pharisees objected. Jesus answered, "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." The Gospel of Matthew adds a saying that quotes Hosea 6:6: "I will have mercy, and not sacrifice."

In Acts 1:13, Matthew appears last in the list of disciples gathered in the upper room after Jesus' Ascension. His subsequent activities are not recorded in Scripture.

Significance Within Scripture

A tax collector (publican) was someone who collected taxes or tolls. Because they performed this work under Roman rule, tax collectors were regarded by their fellow Jews as exploiters and dishonest men, and in the Gospels they are frequently grouped together with "sinners." The calling of such a person as a disciple is read as an example of Jesus' acceptance of those whom society rejected. It is often mentioned together with the story of Zacchaeus, who was also a tax collector (Luke 19:1–10).

Interpretation and Points of Debate

• Matthew and Levi: Traditionally the two names have been understood to refer to the same person, since the accounts describe the same scene and differ only in the name. The usual explanation is that one man bore two names, though some scholars have raised the possibility that they were different individuals. The text does not say whether he was a brother of "James the son of Alphaeus," who appears in Mark 3:18.
• Authorship of the Gospel of Matthew: The text of the Gospel of Matthew does not name its author. Papias, writing in the second century, is reported to have stated that Matthew recorded the sayings of the Lord in the Hebrew language, and a tradition identifying the apostle Matthew as the author has continued since the early church. Conservative evangelicals generally accept this tradition. Many critical scholars, by contrast, question whether the apostle Matthew wrote it himself and hold that it was composed within a community associated with Matthew's name.
• Later traditions: Scripture does not say where Matthew preached or how he died. Some accounts relate that he preached in places such as Ethiopia or Persia and was martyred there, but the traditions differ from one another. The Catholic Church venerates him as a saint and observes his feast day on September 21. In Christian art, among the four living creatures (Ezekiel 1:10; Revelation 4:7) that symbolize the four Evangelists, the man (or angel) commonly represents Matthew.

In the Korean Church

In preaching, the scene in Matthew 9:9 is frequently treated in two ways: as an example of an immediate response to a divine calling, and as a text showing the grace of Jesus, who came to call sinners. "Matthew the tax collector" is also often cited as an example of someone who abandoned his former life and began a new one. In Sunday school, when children learn about the twelve disciples, he is introduced as the disciple who had been a tax collector. Most Protestant denominations, which do not observe saints' days, set aside no day to commemorate Matthew.