Table Of Content

THE NAVARRE BIBLE Saint Matthew's Gospel in the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate with a commentary by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre FOUR COURTS PRESS. DUBLIN SCEPTER PUBLISHERS. NEW YORK Nihil oh.flar: Stephen J. Greene. l.'l!tf.mr dl'plltulu.f Imprimi poust: Desmond. Archbishop of Dublin Typeset by Carrigboy Typescuing Services ror FOUR COURTS PRESS LTD 7 Mulpas SUCCi. Dublin 8, Ireland c·mail: Contents Alap 6 Preface and Preliminary Noles 7 Abbrevialions 9 IllIrodllclion 10 Ihe Gmpe/ according to Alal/helV II The author II Date of composition 13 Authenticity and canonicity 14 The purpose of this Gospel 14 Content 15 Special features 18 Literary style 21 St Matthew'S Gospel in the life of the Church 22 The Gospel according 10 Alal/helV: English version, lVilh lIoles 23 Nell' Vlligale Texl 187 Explanalory Notes 207 Headings added 10 Ihe Biblical Texl 211 SOllrces qlloted in Ihe COII/melllary 213 5 Medlt,mJlnean Sa AURANITI8 NABATEA IDUIIEA _e Palestille ill the tillle of Jesus Preface and Preliminary Notes The English edition of The Navarre Bible: Nell' Testamellt was published in twelve volumes in 1985-92. These books have been constantly reprinted and have obtained a very wide acceptance. The project of a new Spanish translation of the Bible, with commentary, was originally entrusted to the faculty of theology at the University of Navarre by St losemaria Escriva, the founder of Opus Dei and the university's first chancellor. Because it involved making a new translation of the Bible from the original languages, the project was a much more substantial undertaking than might appear from the English edition. J The completion of the project was celebrated in Madrid in February 2005. The main feature of the English edition, The Navarre Bible, is the commentary, that is, the notes and introductions provided by the editors; rarely very technical, these are designed to elucidate the spiritual and theological message of the Bible. Quotations from commentaries by the Fathers, and excerpts from other spiritual writers, not least St losemaria Escriva, are provided to show how they read Scripture and made it meaningful in their lives. The Standard Edition also carries the Western Church's official Latin version of the Bible, the etlifia /ypica alfera of the New Vulgate (1986). For the English edition we consider ourselves fortunate in having the Revised Standard Version as the translation of Scripture and wish to record our 2 appreciation for permission to use that text. PRELIMINARY NOTES The headings in the biblical text have been provided by the editors (they are not taken from the RSV); this is true also of the cross references in the marginal notes. These headings are listed in a section at the end of the book. to provide an overview of its content. References in the margin of the biblical text or its headings point to parallel passages or other passages which deal with the same theme. With the exception of the New Testament and Psalms, the marginal references are to the New Vulgate, that is, they are not normally adjuSled (where applicable) to the RSV. I. Sugmdll n;blitl : Amiglw TeJICltIJelltO Lilmls poeticttJ ." ,wpiencitdf!.f (Pamplona, 2001) at pp. 7- 8 dt:scribcs the prinCiples Bo\'crning its translation. 2. Intcgr.tllo which arc the RSV rootnote).. which arc indicated by superior leiters . 7 Prefnce An asterisk in the biblical text refers the reader to the Explanatory Notes that appear in the RSV Catholic Edition of the Bible. 8 Abbreviations J. BOOKS OF HOLY SCRIPTURE Acts Acts of the Apostles I Kings I Kings Amos Amos 2 Kings 2 Kings Bar Baruch Lam Lamentations I Chron I Chronicles Lev Leviticus 2 Chron 2 Chronicles Lk Luke Col Colossians I Mac I Maccabees I Cor I Corinthians 2 Mac 2 Maccabees 2 Cor 2 Corinthians Mal Malachi Oan Daniel Mic Micah Oeut Deuteronomy Mk Mark Eccles Ecclesiastes (Qoheleth) Mt Matthew Esther Esther Nah Nahum Eph Ephesians Neh Nehemiah Ex Exodus Num Numbers Ezek Ezekiel Obad Obadiah Ezra Ezra I Pet I Peter Gal Galatians 2 Pet 2 Peter Gen Genesis Phil Philippians Hab Habakkuk Philem Philemon Hag Haggai Ps Psalms Heb Hebrews Prov Proverbs Hos Hosea Rev Revelation (Apocalypse) Is Isaiah Rom Romans Jas James Ruth Ruth Jer Jeremiah I Sam I Samuel Jn John 2 Sam 2 Samuel I Jn I John Sir Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 2 Jn 2John Song Song of Solomon 3 Jn 3John I Thess I Thessalonians Job Job 2 Thess 2 Thessalonians Joel Joel I Tim I Timothy Jon Jonah 2Tim 2 Timothy Josh Joshua TIt Titus Jud Judith Wis Wisdom Jude Jude Zech Zechariah Judg Judges Zeph Zephaniah 9 Abbreviations 2. OTHER ABBREVIATIONS ad lac. ad locum, commentary on Exhort. Exhonation this passage f and following (pl. fl) AAA Acta Aposwlicae Sedi. . ibid. ibidelll, in the same place Apost. Apostolic in loe. in locu"" commentary on can. canon this passage chap. chapter loc. locum. place or passage cr. confer. compare par. parallel passages Canst. Constitution Past. Pastoml Oed Dcclamtion RSVCE Reviscd Standard Version, Dz-Sch Dcnzinger-Schonmetzer, Catholic Edition Ellchiridioll BibliclIlII (4th SCDF Sacred Congregation for edition, Naples-Rome, 1961) the Doctrine of the Faith Enc. Encyclical sess. session V. verse (pl. vv.) "Sources quoted in the Commentary", which appears at the end of this book, explains other abbreviations used. 10 Introduction to the Gospel according to Matthew With the help of God we are going to enter a golden city, more precious than all the gold the world contains. Let us notice what its foun- dations are made of, and find its gates to be composed of sapphires and precious stones. In Matthew we have the best of guides. Matthew is the door by which we enter, and we must enter eagerly, for if the guide notices that someone is distracted, he will exclude him from the city. What a magnificent and truly stately city it is; not like our cities, which are a mixture of streets and palaces. Here all are palaces. Let us, then, open the gates of our soul, let us open our ears, and as we prepare reverently to cross its threshold, let us adore the King who holds sway therein. What immense splendour shall we not find when we enter!1 THE AUTHOR As is the case with many other sacred books, the name of the author does not appear in the text of this Gospel. This fact is significant in itself: it indicates that the author was not writing a book of his own; he was bearing witness, briefly and in written form, to Jesus' life on earth, his teachings, his redemptive passion and death, and his glorious resurrection. He was seeking to show that Jesus of Nazareth, a descendant of David, a descendant of Abraham according to the flesh, who was virginally conceived in the pure womb of Mary by the working of the Holy Spirit, was the Messiah promised in the Old Testament prophecies; that he was the Incarnate Son of God, the Saviour of mankind, who had come to set men free from the slavery of sin, from the devil and from eter- nal death . In the presence of the divine and human majesty of Jesus Christ, St Matthew makes no appearance. Jesus is what matters, and what he said, and what he did. However, the constant Tradition of the Church from earliest times identi- fies the human author of this Gospel a~ the apostle St Matthew, one of the first I. SI John Chryso.!> tom. Hom. (1/1 Sf MClltlu.". . '. 1. 8, II Introduction to St Matthew's Gospel Twelve, whom Jesus himself called when he was working at his job as a "pub- lican", that is, as a tax collector. We have referred to St MaUhew as being the "human author" of the first Gospel, the reason being that the principal author of the sacred books is God himself, who "inspired" the human authors, or hagiographers, in their literary work and "by supernatural power so moved and impelled them to write-he so assisted them when writing-that the things which he ordered, and those only, they, first, rightly understood, then willed faithfully to write down, and finally expressed in apt words and with infallible truth".' However, when he communicates his grace to men, God, in his providence, does not destroy nature-in this case, the human qualities of the writers; rather, he raises nature on to a new level, perfects it and uses it to suit his purpose, in the same kind of way as a musician brings out all the qualities of a good violin. In two important respects, however, the comparison does not fit: firstly, because God, as well as using the writer as his instrument, also created him and endowed him with those qualities which he wanted him to have, to equip him to perform the task he planned for him; and secondly, because the sacred writer is not an inert instrument in God's hands: he is a living instrument, gifted with all his faculties. By virtue of this divine inspiration, a sacred book-in its entirety-is the end-product of close collaboration between God and the particular writer: each and every part of the book is really and in the proper sense of the word a work composed by God and a work composed by his instrument, the hagiographer; but, first and foremost, it is God's book, because God is its principal author. St MaUhew's Gospel, therefore-like any other biblical text-has charac- teristics of its own, which we will later examine. These help to identify the human author and they combine perfectly with the divine hallmark that is to be found in all the books of Holy Scripture. Much less is known about St Mauhew than about certain other New Testament authors, such as St Peter, St Paul and St John. We do know that very soon after being called 10 be an apostle, the immense joy he felt over his voca- tion led him to give a large dinner-party for his old friends and colleagues, a party attended by Jesus and by Matthew's new companions in the apostolate (cf. Mt 9: 10-13; Mk 2: 15-17; Lk 5:29-32). St Luke describes it as a "great feast" for "a large company": this shows that Mauhew was well-to-do, had many friends and was held in high regard in Capemaum, despite the low opin- ion the Jews generally had of tax collectors. St MaUhew himself tells about how Jesus first called him (cf. Mt 9:9-12). When Jesus addressed him personally, in affectionate and at the same time imperative terms, Mauhew immediately left his position as a tax collector and 2. Leo XIII. Ene. PnJl'idemin;mll:r DeliS. 12