Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew wrote his Gospel from his perspective as a Jew. It is with sensitivity to this perspective that Father Harrington undertakes this commentary on the Gospel of Matthew.

After an introduction, he provides a literal translation of each section in Matthew's Gospel and explains the textual problems, philological difficulties, and other matters in the notes. He then presents a literary analysis of each text (content, form, use of sources, structure), examines the text against its Jewish background, situates it in the context of Matthew's debate with other first-century Jews, and reflects on its significance for Christian theology and Christian-Jewish relations. Bibliographies direct the reader to other important modern studies.

Daniel J. Harrington, SJ, PhD, (1940-2014), was professor of New Testament at Boston College and the Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Massachusetts. He wrote numerous scholarly works, including What Are We Hoping For? New Testament Images, The Gospel of Mark, Jesus Ben Sira of Jerusalem: A Biblical Guide to Living Wisely, and The Letter to the Hebrews, all published by Liturgical Press. He served as editor of New Testament Abstracts from 1972 until his death.