Word Pictures in the New Testament - David Cox

Word Pictures in the NT [Matthew: Introduction].
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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION
The passing years do not make it any plainer who actually
wrote our Greek Matthew. Papias records, as quoted by Eusebius,
that Matthew wrote the _Logia_ of Jesus in Hebrew (Aramaic). Is
our present Matthew a translation of the Aramaic _Logia_ along
with Mark and other sources as most modern scholars think? If so,
was the writer the Apostle Matthew or some other disciple? There
is at present no way to reach a clear decision in the light of
the known facts. There is no real reason why the Apostle Matthew
could not have written both the Aramaic _Logia_ and our Greek
Matthew, unless one is unwilling to believe that he would make
use of Mark's work on a par with his own. But Mark's book rests
primarily on the preaching of Simon Peter. Scholfield has
recently (1927) published _An Old Hebrew Text of St. Matthew's
Gospel_. We know quite too little of the origin of the Synoptic
Gospels to say dogmatically that the Apostle Matthew was not in
any real sense the author.
If the book is genuine, as I believe, the date becomes a
matter of interest. Here again there is nothing absolutely
decisive save that it is later than the Gospel according to Mark
which it apparently uses. If Mark is given an early date, between
A.D. 50 to 60, then Matthew's book may be between 60 and 70,
though many would place it between 70 and 80. It is not certain
whether Luke wrote after Matthew or not, though that is quite
possible. There is no definite use of Matthew by Luke that has
been shown. One guess is as good as another and each decides by
his own predilections. My own guess is that A.D. 60 is as good as
any.
In the Gospel itself we find Matthew the publican (Mt
9:9; 10:3) though Mark (Mr 2:14) and Luke (Lu 5:27) call him
Levi the publican. Evidently therefore he had two names like John
Mark. It is significant that Jesus called this man from so
disreputable a business to follow him. He was apparently not a
disciple of John the Baptist. He was specially chosen by Jesus to
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Word Pictures in the New Testament
(Matthew: Introduction)