08 Matthew 3:1-12 John the Baptist
John the Baptist was the herald who announced the coming of the King. His message had two parts: repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. The king is coming. It is time to turn back to God and follow his Messiah.
repent, metanoeō, G3440
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Greek word for repent: metanoeo.
07 Matthew 2:19-23 A Nazarene
This quotation presents the hardest challenge because no passage in the Old Testament says the Messiah will be called a Nazarene. Instead Matthew is summarizing an idea taught in the prophets. We need both grammar and historical background to understand him.
love, agape, G26
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Greek word for love: agape.
Matthew 2:16-18 Rachel weeping
In this third fulfillment passage, Matthew compares the murder of the young boys in Bethlehem to the Rachel weeping in her tomb for the captives about to be deported to Babylon. In both events, all hope seems lost.
fulfill, pleroo, G5137
Tools and resources you need to do a word study on the Biblical Greek word for fulfill, pleroo, G5137.
Matthew 2:13-15 Out of Egypt
Matthew tells us the life of Jesus “fulfills” something spoken by the prophet Hosea. Yet Hosea is not “predicting” anything; Hosea is looking backward to the Exodus. What is Matthew doing? He’s pointing out the theological connection between Israel as God’s son and the Messiah, God’s son.
What does YAHWEH mean?
When God reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush), He identifies Himself as “Yahweh” or “Jehovah”, which is often translated “I am who I Am.” What does that name mean?
February 2021 Reflections
What should we do when Scripture annoys us? This is my best advice on handling difficult passages like the ones coming up in Matthew 2.
Matthew 2:1-23 Early life of Jesus
Matthew draws many parallels between the early life of Jesus and the Old Testament to reinforce his main point: Jesus is the Christ, the son of Abraham and son of David, who will fulfill God’s promises.
What is the Septuagint?
The Septuagint (often abbreviated LXX) is a translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek in the 3rd century BC. The LXX was made for the Jewish community when Greek was the common language of the day, and for many Jews was their primary language.
Matthew 1:18-25 Birth of Jesus
You would think that a passage covering the birth of Jesus would be easy “Christmas stuff” we’re all familiar with. Don’t be fooled. Matthew’s account raises some interesting theological questions.
About the Author
Krisan Marotta is a Bible teacher and host of Wednesday in the Word, the podcast about what the Bible means and how we know.