Moving on from Mark’s resurrection account, we now turn our attention to Matthew. The Gospel of Matthew is, most likely, the second gospel account, generally dated to 80–90 CE. Matthew’s account, like Luke’s, to be discussed in our next article, is probably best understood as an expansion of Mark’s account. Matthew’s primary contribution to the resurrection is his connection to Old Testament prophecy. 

Matthew’s audience is most likely Jewish Christians. Therefore, Matthew’s gospel is filled with quotations, references, and allusions to the Old Testament. In Matthew, Jesus is the long-awaited and prophesied Israelite Messiah. He is the fulfillment of the covenant with Abraham and David (Matt 1:1), the new Moses (Matt 1:13–23), and the completer of Israel’s vocation (Matt 4:1–11). As such, Jesus is the king (Matt 1:2) and inaugurator of the kingdom of God (or, as Matthew prefers, the “kingdom of heaven” [32 times in Matthew]). 

This Old Testament and Israelite emphasis can be seen in how Matthew tells the story of Jesus’ resurrection by expanding Mark’s account. For example, Matthew is the only gospel to speak about earthquakes and the resurrection of saints in connection to Jesus’ death and resurrection (Matt 27:51–52; 28:2). Such imagery is apocalyptic in nature. That is, it is imagery used to show that God has acted in the world, usually to bring about his kingdom and authority. Similar imagery can be seen in Ezekiel 37:12–13, Isaiah 26:19, and Daniel 12:2. 

Also unique to Matthew is his conclusion with what we typically call The Great Commission (Matt 28:16–20). Jesus words begin with his declaration, “’All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.’” These words of Jesus not only connect us back to his model prayer in the Sermon on the Mount (i.e., “’Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.’” [Matt 6:10]), but also to Jesus’ kingship in the kingdom of God prophesied about in the Old Testament (e.g., Psalms 2, 72, 89; Daniel 7). 

Bringing all this imagery together, what we see is Matthew showing the reader that Jesus’ death and resurrection is a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy as the establishment of the kingdom of God, over which Jesus is king. God has acted in the world to establish his kingdom, conquering the powers of sin and death. In Jesus’ resurrection and the resurrection of saints, we get a taste of the fulness of the kingdom to come, when we too will be resurrected. Jesus is, by means of his death and resurrection, the Israelite Messiah, through which God is putting the world back in order. 

by Spencer Shaw

Check out the entire article series: Jesus’s Resurrection Through the Gospels