09 — Historical Questions
An honest inventory of what can and cannot be established about the First Gospel and the man named as its author: the authorship and dating of canonical Matthew (traditional apostolic authorship against the dominant modern view of a later evangelist drawing on Mark), and the Gospel’s reception and legacy — its primacy in the canon, its catechetical and liturgical use, and the modern scholarship.
Tradition: Pan-Orthodox (Apostle and Evangelist)
This section is where the contested historical questions are gathered and handled with the most care. The authorship of canonical Greek Matthew, the date of its composition (a range running from before 70 to the 80s–90s, depending chiefly on one’s reading of Matthew 22:7 and the synoptic relationship), and the relation of the canonical Gospel to the apostle Matthew and to Papias’s “Hebrew logia” are all live questions on which the traditional and the dominant modern positions diverge. Per METHODOLOGY §3, the positions are set out with their proponents and grounds, the disputes are marked with structured [Disputed: ...] notes, and the Orthodox conviction that the Gospel is apostolic and inspired is distinguished from the particular historical reconstructions that no council has defined. The companion file then traces the Gospel’s reception: its place first in the canon from the second century, its dominance in lectionary, catechesis, and the Fathers’ commentaries, and the shape of the modern scholarly literature.
Files in This Section
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| Authorship and Dating | The traditional apostolic authorship (the unanimous patristic ascription; the titles; Papias and Irenaeus) against the dominant modern view (a later Greek evangelist dependent on Mark); the dating range (pre-70 vs 80s–90s) and the arguments; and what the Orthodox tradition holds and what it leaves open. |
| Reception and Legacy | The Gospel first in the canon (Origen in Eusebius, HE 6.25); its catechetical and liturgical primacy; the great commentaries (Chrysostom, Jerome, Theophylact); the Didache and early citation; and the shape of the modern scholarship (Davies–Allison, Luz, France). |
See Also
- Papias and the Logia — the testimony that bears most on authorship
- The Question of Priority — how the synoptic question bears on dating
- The Gospel of Matthew — the Gospel under examination
- Holy Scripture — inspiration, canon, and apostolicity
References
- Eusebius of Caesarea. The Ecclesiastical History 3.24; 6.25.3–6. Trans. McGiffert. NPNF II/1.
- Davies, W. D., and Dale C. Allison. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel according to Saint Matthew. ICC. 3 vols. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1988–1997.
- France, R. T. The Gospel of Matthew. NICNT. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007.
- Luz, Ulrich. Matthew: A Commentary. Hermeneia. 3 vols. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001–2007.