Matthew 8 Background Information with Maps and Images (Picture Study Bible - Matthew) Free Bible Online

Matthew 8

1 - When he came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

2 - Behold, a leper came to him and worshiped him, saying, "Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean."

3 - Jesus stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying,"I want to. Be made clean." Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

4 - Jesus said to him,"See that you tell nobody, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."

5 - When he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him,

When he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him,

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6 - and saying, "Lord, my servant lies in the house paralyzed, grievously tormented."

7 - Jesus said to him,"I will come and heal him."

8 - The centurion answered, "Lord, I'm not worthy for you to come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

9 - For I am also a man under authority, having under myself soldiers. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and tell another, 'Come,' and he comes; and tell my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."

10 - When Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to those who followed,"Most certainly I tell you, I haven't found so great a faith, not even in Israel.

11 - I tell you that many will come from the east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven,

12 - but the children of the Kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

13 - Jesus said to the centurion,"Go your way. Let it be done for you as you have believed." His servant was healed in that hour.

14 - When Jesus came into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother lying sick with a fever.

15 - He touched her hand, and the fever left her. She got up and served him.

16 - When evening came, they brought to him many possessed with demons. He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick;

17 - that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying, "He took our infirmities, and bore our diseases."Isaiah 53:4

18 - Now when Jesus saw great multitudes around him, he gave the order to depart to the other side.

19 - A scribe came, and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."

20 - Jesus said to him,"The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."

21 - Another of his disciples said to him, "Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father."

22 - But Jesus said to him,"Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."

23 - When he got into a boat, his disciples followed him.

24 - Behold, a violent storm came up on the sea, so much that the boat was covered with the waves, but he was asleep.

25 - They came to him, and woke him up, saying, "Save us, Lord! We are dying!"

26 - He said to them,"Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" Then he got up, rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.

27 - The men marveled, saying, "What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"

28 - When he came to the other side, into the country of the Gergesenes, two people possessed by demons met him there, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that nobody could pass that way.

29 - Behold, they cried out, saying, "What do we have to do with you, Jesus, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?"

30 - Now there was a herd of many pigs feeding far away from them.

31 - The demons begged him, saying, "If you cast us out, permit us to go away into the herd of pigs."

32 - He said to them,"Go!"They came out, and went into the herd of pigs: and behold, the whole herd of pigs rushed down the cliff into the sea, and died in the water.

33 - Those who fed them fled, and went away into the city, and told everything, including what happened to those who were possessed with demons.

34 - Behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged that he would depart from their borders.

The Book of Matthew

Matthew 2:2 - Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Matthew 18:3 - And Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Painting of St. Matthew with Angel by Rembrandt

The Word Gospel. The first book of the English Bible that most of us read from is the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew is the first of the four gospel writings, yet there is only one gospel about Jesus Christ and there are four different writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word "Gospel" means "good news", and the good news is about Jesus Christ dying on the cross and then 3 days later conquering death and rising from the dead, offering salvation to all mankind, this is the Gospel.

Summary of the Book of Matthew

Brief Summary. Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the long awaited Messiah King of he Jews as foretold by the ancient Jewish prophets. He came to reveal how to enter the "Kingdom of Heaven."

Purpose. It is very obvious that the Gospel of Matthew was written for the purpose of revealing that the man Jesus of Nazareth was actually the King of the Jews, the long awaited Messiah, the sovereign Lord Jehovah who came from heaven to this world revealing to mankind the "kingdom of heaven". The King of the Jews, the Messiah Jesus fulfilled every prophecy that was spoken about Him in the ancient Jewish Scriptures, in the Old Testament. The prophecies that spoke of the "Kingdom" that the Messiah would bring would be a spiritual Kingdom that would never be destroyed.

Audience. When reading the book of Matthew it becomes clear that the writer was speaking to a Jewish audience. One of the obvious reasons is that the "Kingdom of Heaven" is mentioned over 30 times and never the Kingdom of God. This is because the Jews do not speak the name of God and this could be the very reason that Matthew used this phrase. There are many times while reading the book that an event happens and a prophecy is cited. The event is mentioned as the direct fulfillment of a promise made to the Jews by one of their Jewish prophets, and the fulfillment of the prophecy was happening before their very eyes. It is clear that the audience of people are the Jews, they were awaiting their King, and Matthew records that the King had come and they rejected their King.

Authorship. Early Christian writings and traditions have attributed the authorship of the Gospel of Matthew to the apostle Matthew. Many scholars question whether or not Matthew was the true author of the first Gospel, but there is no way at this current time to be absolutely positive based on historical evidence. Most agree that Matthew was the author. The Bible reveals that Matthew, or Levi, as he was sometimes called, collected taxes for the Romans. One day Jesus passed by and called Matthew to come and follow him, and Matthew did so. The Bible also records that Matthew held a banquet at his house with several of his tax collector friends and Jesus being invited to the banquet was the guest of honor (Mark 2:14-15). The Bible also provides a list of the 12 apostles and Matthew was named among them.

Date. There is no way to determine with absolute certainty the date that the book of Matthew was written. Most scholars agree that the book of Matthew was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., this is because Jesus spoke of many events as though they had not happened yet. A large number of scholars do not believe in the miracle of prophecy and therefore insist that the Gospel of Matthew was written after the fall of Jerusalem because of the accuracy of the predicted events.

Language. There are many references among the books in the history of the early church that state that the Gospel of Matthew was originally written by Matthew in the biblical Hebrew language, and he was writing to an audience of  Jews throughout the world who had become followers of Jesus. Unfortunately there is no evidence whatsoever of a Hebrew or Aramaic manuscript, so many scholars have agreed that the Gospel of Matthew is not actually a translation from Hebrew into Greek, but was actually written in Greek. The whole subject of the Gospel of Matthew being written in Hebrew must remain speculation rather than fact.

Outline of the Book of Matthew

The King Comes and His Kingdom is Rejected - Matthew 1-12
The Rejection of the King's Teaching and Ministry - Matthew 13-25
The King's Trial and Crucifixion - Matthew 26-27
The King's Victory and Resurrection - Matthew 28
The King's Commissioning of His Apostles - Matthew 28

Matthew - Interesting Notes

Matthew mentions four women in his genealogy which is not typical for Jewish genealogical records: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheeba who were all associated with some sort of immorality. Tamar (incest), Rahab (harlotry), Ruth (a descendant of Moab who committed incest) and Bathsheba (adultery). Christ's greatness was in Himself not his genealogy.

There are many intimations for the word "King" in Matthew if one takes the time to look. For example in chapter one there is a royal genealogy mentioning king David at the start. Chapter two reveals the kingly gifts of the Magi. Chapter three calls John the Baptist a "herald" which is a cultural term that represents a herald for a king. Etc. 

There are similarities with the number four. The four colors in the veil of the Temple were purple, scarlet, white, and blue. The four faces of the cherubim are the lion, ox, man, eagle. The four Gospel accounts are Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. 

Quick Reference Maps - Matthew

Israel in New Testament Times

The Kingdom of Herod the Great

The Divisions of Herod's Kingdom

The Flight into Egypt

The Baptism of Jesus

The Beginning of Christ's Ministry

Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee

Jesus Ministers in Galilee

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem

Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus

Jesus Journeys from Nazareth to Jerusalem

The Final Journey of Jesus to Jerusalem

The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus" would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A). Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

Matthew Resources

Outline of the Life of Jesus in Harmony
Simple Map of First Century Israel
Topographical Map of First Century Israel
Map of the Ministry of Jesus
Map of the Roads in Ancient Israel
Map of the Roman Empire