Matthew 2:1

The Visit of the Wise Men

2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem ¹  in Judea, in the time ²  of King Herod, ³  wise men ⁴  from the East came to Jerusalem ⁵ 

Matthew 11:12

11:12 From ⁶  the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it. ⁷ 

Matthew 12:36

12:36 I ⁸  tell you that on the day of judgment, people will give an account for every worthless word they speak.

Matthew 17:1

The Transfiguration

17:1 Six days later ⁹  Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John the brother of James, ¹⁰  and led them privately up a high mountain.

Matthew 20:6

20:6 And about five o’clock that afternoon ¹¹  he went out and found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why are you standing here all day without work?’

Matthew 20:12

20:12 saying, ‘These last fellows worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us who bore the hardship and burning heat of the day.’

Matthew 20:19

20:19 and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged severely ¹²  and crucified. ¹³  Yet ¹⁴  on the third day, he will be raised.”

Matthew 23:30

23:30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, ¹⁵  we would not have participated with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’

Matthew 24:36

Be Ready!

24:36 “But as for that day and hour no one knows it – not even the angels in heaven ¹⁶  – except the Father alone.

Matthew 24:50

24:50 then the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not foresee,

Matthew 26:2

26:2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be handed over ¹⁷  to be crucified.” ¹⁸ 

Matthew 26:61

26:61 and declared, “This man ¹⁹  said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

Matthew 28:15

28:15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story is told among the Jews to this day. ²⁰ 

Matthew 28:20

28:20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, ²¹  I am with you ²²  always, to the end of the age.” ²³ 

¹ map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.

² tn Grk “in the days.”

³ sn King Herod was Herod the Great, who ruled Palestine from 37 b.c. until he died in 4 b.c. He was known for his extensive building projects (including the temple in Jerusalem) and for his cruelty.

⁴ sn The Greek term magi here describes a class of wise men and priests who were astrologers (L&N 32.40).

⁵ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

⁷ tn Or “the kingdom of heaven is forcibly entered and violent people take hold of it.” For a somewhat different interpretation of this passage, see the note on the phrase “urged to enter in” in Luke 16:16.

¹¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

¹⁶ tn Grk “And after six days.”

¹⁷ tn Grk “John his brother” with “his” referring to James.

²¹ tn Grk “about the eleventh hour.”

²⁶ tn Traditionally, “scourged” (the term means to beat severely with a whip, L&N 19.9). BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “The ‘verberatio’ is denoted in the passion predictions and explicitly as action by non-Israelites Mt 20:19; Mk 10:34; Lk 18:33”; the verberatio was the beating given to those condemned to death in the Roman judicial system. Here the term μαστιγόω (mastigow) has been translated “flog…severely” to distinguish it from the term φραγελλόω (fragellow) used in Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15.

²⁷ sn Crucifixion was the cruelest form of punishment practiced by the Romans. Roman citizens could not normally undergo it. It was reserved for the worst crimes, like treason and evasion of due process in a capital case. The Roman historian Cicero called it “a cruel and disgusting penalty” (Against Verres 2.5.63-66 §§163-70); Josephus (J. W. 7.6.4 [7.203]) called it the worst of deaths.

²⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

³¹ tn Grk “fathers” (so also in v. 32).

³⁶ tc ‡ Some important witnesses, including early Alexandrian and Western mss (א*^,2 B D Θ Ë¹³ pc it vg^mss Ir^lat Hier^mss), have the additional words οὐδὲ ὁ υἱός (oude Jo Juios, “nor the son”) here. Although the shorter reading (which lacks this phrase) is suspect in that it seems to soften the prophetic ignorance of Jesus, the final phrase (“except the Father alone”) already implies this. Further, the parallel in Mark 13:32 has οὐδὲ ὁ υἱός, with almost no witnesses lacking the expression. Hence, it is doubtful that the absence of “neither the Son” is due to the scribes. In keeping with Matthew’s general softening of Mark’s harsh statements throughout his Gospel, it is more likely that the absence of “neither the Son” is part of the original text of Matthew, being an intentional change on the part of the author. Further, this shorter reading is supported by the first corrector of א as well as L W ˹ 33 Ï vg sy co Hier^mss. Admittedly, the external evidence is not as impressive for the shorter reading, but it best explains the rise of the other reading (in particular, how does one account for virtually no mss excising οὐδὲ ὁ υἱός at Mark 13:32 if such an absence here is due to scribal alteration? Although scribes were hardly consistent, for such a theologically significant issue at least some consistency would be expected on the part of a few scribes). Nevertheless, NA²⁷ includes οὐδὲ ὁ υἱός here.

⁴¹ tn Or “will be delivered up.”

⁴² sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.

⁴⁶ tn Grk “This one.”

⁵¹ tc ‡ The word ἡμέρας (Jhmeras, “day”) is found after σήμερον (shmeron, “today, this [day]”) in some early and important witnesses (B D L Θ lat), but may be a clarifying (or perhaps redundant) note. The shorter reading (found in א A W 0148^vid Ë^1,13 33 Ï) is thus preferred. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating reservations about its authenticity.

⁵⁶ tn The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has been translated here as “remember” (BDAG 468 s.v. 1.c).

⁵⁷ sn I am with you. Matthew’s Gospel begins with the prophecy that the Savior’s name would be “Emmanuel, that is, ‘God with us,’” (1:23, in which the author has linked Isa 7:14 and 8:8, 10 together) and it ends with Jesus’ promise to be with his disciples forever. The Gospel of Matthew thus forms an inclusio about Jesus in his relationship to his people that suggests his deity.

⁵⁸ tc Most mss (A^c Θ Ë¹³ Ï it sy) have ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”) at the end of v. 20. Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Further, no good reason exists for the omission of the particle in significant and early witnesses such as א A* B D W ˹ 33 al lat sa.