Last week, I began a series on the Gospel of Matthew since we will be hearing that Gospel throughout the coming year. In that column, I gave you some background about the Gospel and explained how Matthew made use of and expanded upon the Gospel of Mark in writing his Gospel. In this column, I will present two ways of reading the Gospel of Matthew.

The first way is built around five great sermons that Jesus gives in this Gospel. The Gospel begins with the story of Jesus’ birth, which is followed by five books, each one beginning with a narrative section and concluding with a sermon by Jesus. The Gospel ends with the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. This is a helpful way of reading the Gospel of Matthew that can be outlined in this way.

Prologue
Jesus’ genealogy and the story of his birth, chapters 1−2

Book One:
Narrative of John the Baptist, Jesus’ baptism and temptation, chapters 3−4
Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, chapters 5−7

Book Two:
A narrative of Jesus miracles, chapters 8−9
Jesus’ sermon sending his disciples on mission, chapter 10

Book Three:
A narrative about the opposition Jesus encounters, chapters 11−12
Jesus’ sermon about the kingdom of heaven, chapter13

Book Four:
A narrative of Jesus beginning to form the church, chapters 14−17
Jesus’ sermon about the life of discipleship, chapter 18

Book Five:
A narrative of Jesus’ journey to and mission in Jerusalem, chapters 19−23
Jesus’ sermon in the temple of Jerusalem, chapters 24−25

Epilogue:
Jesus’ Passion and Resurrection, chapters 26−28

Another way to read the Gospel of Matthew is to approach the Gospel as a story with a plot that can be summarized in this way: Jesus comes to Israel to proclaim the in-breaking kingdom of God. But the religious leaders contest his authority to proclaim God’s kingdom and hand him over to the Romans. Although it appears Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom has failed, God vindicates Jesus’ authority to proclaim the kingdom by raising him from the dead, thereby making Jesus the first to enter the kingdom he proclaimed. If you read the Gospel in this way, you can read it in light of this outline.

1:1−4:16: Matthew presents Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God who is the culmination of his people’s history
4:17−11:1: Matthew presents Jesus’ ministry of preaching, teaching, and healing in light of the in-breaking kingdom of heaven
11:2−16:20: Jesus the Messiah encounters opposition from Israel and begins to form his own congregation, the church
16:21−20:34: Jesus reveals that as the Messiah he must suffer, die, and rise
21:22−28:20: Jesus’ ministry in Jerusalem leads to his passion and death, and his entrance into the kingdom through his resurrection

Try to read the Gospel from start to finish, using one or both of these outlines. Next week, I will highlight some of the major themes of this Gospel. Father Matera