om their Roman oppressors and establish a new kingdom. As their king, he would rule the world with justice. However, many Jews overlooked prophecies that also spoke of this king as a suffering servant who would be rejected and killed. It is no wonder, then, that few recognized Jesus as the Messiah. “How could this humble carpenter’s son from Nazareth be their king,” they thought. But Jesus was the King of all the earth, and it was Matthew (Levi) who took it upon himself (but not alone) to spread the word. Matthew used about 1475 words, 137 of which are words used by him alone of all the New Testament writers. Of these latter 76 are classical; 15 were introduced for the first time by Matthew, or at least he was the first writer in whom they were discovered; 8 words were employed for the first time by Matthew and Mark, and 15 others by Matthew and another New Testament writer. It is probable that, at the time of the Evangelist, all these words were in current use. Matthew's Gospel contains many peculiar expressions that help to give decided colour to his style. Thus, he employs thirty-four times the expression basileia ton ouranon; this is never found in Mark and Luke, who, in parallel passages, replace it by basileia tou thou, which also occurs four times in Matthew. Matthew begins his account by giving Jesus’ genealogy. He then tells of Jesus’ birth and early years, including the escape to Egypt from the murderous Herod and their return to Nazareth. As you read this Gospel, Matthew’s message sounds clearly: Jesus is the Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords. The message of Mark was written c.55-65 A.D. and was probably the first Gospel to be written. It was printed to encourage Roman Christians to live closer and steadier to God and to prove beyond a doubt that Jesus is Messiah. He sought to reveal the true person, work, and teachings of Jesus Christ. Mark presents a rapid succession of vivid pi...
