Spooh's 4 Thought

Things you should know before reading Matthew's Gospel

When Jesus is anointed as King of God's Kingdom at his baptism in Matthew 3:13-17 (cf. Psalm 2), it is important to have some sort of grasp on what the Old Testament's take is on the concept of kingship. Since Matthew is quite clearly at pains to show his readers that his gospel is a continuation of the Old Testament revelation (Matthew 1 – note the genealogy), it is absolutely fundamental to take into account the Old Testament understanding. Here's a summary:

1 Creation:

In creation the single, true God of the universe speaks creation into being (Gen. 1:1ff.). Through this great display of authority he sets himself up as ruler of all that he has created, one might surmise that God sets himself up, by virtue of his creating work, as king of his creation. Yet in this creation God makes man in his own image (Gen1:27) and thus sets man up as the pinnacle of all that is created. Alexander remarks that, ‘the supremacy of human beings in relation to the rest of creation is further emphasized by God’s directive that they are to “fill the earth and subdue it” (1:28)’ (1998: 16). Dempster shows that the Hebrew words used for man’s subduing and dominion in Genesis 1 convey ‘power and authority’ (2003: 59). At the same time God exercises his kingship over man by giving them his rule (Gen. 2:16 – 17) in informing them that they are not to eat from the tree in the middle of the garden. So we see two clear pictures of dominion and kingship in the creation account: God is set up as king, ruling over his creation, primarily man, whilst man is set up, in the image of God, to subdue and rule over the rest of creation in God’s stead (Gen. 1:28). The building blocks of kingship are in place at an early stage in the Bible storyline.

2 The Fall:

The fall takes place as a result of man trying to upset these fundamental building blocks by desiring to be king of himself, this is in essence what Satan tempts Eve with in Genesis 3:5, that man will be like God – man will rule. Man eats from the tree (Gen. 3:6) and thus in rebellion moves out from under God’s rule and kingship, man becomes his own king. At the fall the true pattern of kingship is horribly marred and in desperate need of restoration. Alexander highlights that although the events of the fall occupy only a single chapter of the Bible the consequence ‘for the whole of human history is enormous.’ (1998: 17).

3 The Promise:

Upon reading Genesis 3 one might be forgiven for thinking that it is devoid of hope. However upon closer reading one will be greatly comforted by verse 15. In this verse God sets up a power struggle that will continue through the rest of the Bible as the seed of the woman fights with the seed of the serpent for ultimate dominion. The striking feature to verse 15 is the fact that it foresees not only a line of seed from the woman, a godly line (this concept is picked up in Gen 4-11), but it also foresees a single seed, a single person, from the godly line, who will one day crush the seed of the serpent forever. Since the power struggle in view is one for dominion and the restoration of God’s rule over creation, it is not far-fetched to see this as a promise of a coming king who will once again rule God’s kingdom.

The promises made to Abraham in Genesis 12 further amplify God’s intent to restore and reconcile a people to himself through Abraham and his descendents which really is just building upon the concept of a godly line. The promise includes that all nations will be blessed through this line (Gen. 12:3) and this forces us back to the initial promise in Genesis 3:16 as we reflect that all nations were affected by the fall and thus the promise of a serpent-crusher is the reversal that will bring blessing to all nations in the future. The promises awaken within the reader a desire to search the unfolding story for the proverbial serpent-crusher, or ultimately, for the king of God’s kingdom. Commenting on Genesis 3:15, Alexander remarks, ‘here…we find the first brushstroke on the biblical canvas concerning a future king through whom God’s salvation will come to humanity’. (1998: 19).

4 Israel pre-Monarchy

In the period spanning from Abraham to King Saul, by and large, the nation of Israel was without a king. In saying this however the God’s reinstituted his law (Ex. 19ff.) at Sinai and thus built the nation into a theocracy whereby God rule them by his law. Yet the pattern set up in creation of God ruling with his kingly representative on earth remained broken. However, in saying this, this particular period was not without echoes concerning the coming of an earthly king. We will touch on three of these so-called ‘echoes’.

Firstly Abraham is told in Genesis 17:16 that kings shall come from his line, which points immediately to kingship in the godly line. We also keep in mind that although Abraham is not a king he is often portrayed ‘as enjoying royal status’ (Alexander: 1998: 30). This is evident in places such as Genesis 21:22-24 and again in 23:6. Similar echoes are found in the Joseph narrative and also in the sections of text dealing with Judah.

Secondly in Deuteronomy 17 clear provision is put in place in the Law of Moses for a future king who will rule the nation in God’s stead. So once again the concept of an earthly king is disclosed to the people through God’s revelation.

Thirdly and finally, in the period just prior to the monarchy, the judges period, Israel are in moral turmoil and the author closes with the following words, ‘In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.’ (Judg. 21:25). The lack of king is directly linked to the lack of morality in the nation. Hence the reader is forced to consider that the next logical step is for God to provide an earthly king who will restore the nation to him.

5 Israel during the Monarchy

The book of Ruth is a fundamental bridge between Israel pre-monarchy and Israel with the monarchy in place. It is through the story of Naomi and Ruth that the author reveals to us that God is busy at work in bringing about the continuation and fulfillment of the promise of Genesis 3:15. And so it is no surprise that we encounter the first earthly king, Saul, set up by God in 1 Samuel (1 Sam. 8 & 9). Saul is anointed by the prophet Samuel as king over Israel (1 Sam. 10:1), and this concept of anointing becomes key in understanding the office of one who would rule on earth in God’s stead. Saul however fails to keep God’s command and so God removes the office of king from him and gives it to one after his own heart (1 Sam. 13:13-15).

The reigns of David and Solomon mark a high point in the nation of Israel as both kings enlarge the nation geographically and, by and large, in terms of calling the people to submit to God’s rule. The highpoint is evidenced under Solomon as God chooses to cement his presence among the people in the temple which is built under Solomon’s reign. During this period we are presented with a proto-type of the manifestation of God’s kingdom on earth. Roberts suggests that with the Solomon narrative, ‘we have reached the pinnacle of the Old Testament’ (2003: 82). Hints, such as the promise, of a future king who will reign forever, made to David in 2 Samuel 7:11ff. suggest that these exemplary kings or not the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise in Genesis 3:15, and this is further amplified as David stumbles greatly in sin in 2 Samuel 12, just 5 chapters later. So although a model is set up, in part, of what God’s king might look like, the model fails to provide a solution to the fallen nature of man. The proof of this is evidenced in the line of kings in both the Northern and Southern Kingdom that follow David and Solomon who, with the odd exception, fail to live under the rule of God and thus plunge the nation of Israel into exile as a result of their turning away from the Lord.

It is worth mentioning that at this time many of the Psalms were being written either by David or by others closely associated with him and the Davidic line. Many of these Psalms (such as Ps. 2 and Ps. 45), touch on a number of concepts linked with the office of kingship and many of their prophetic words are picked up in the New Testament as pointing towards Jesus as the King of God’s kingdom, as you will come across in Matthew.

6 The Prophetic Witness

During this steady decline in the nation of Israel, God raises up his revelation in the form of prophets with a two-fold purpose: to call the people back to himself and to warn of impending judgment. Yet one need not read for long through the prophetic literature before one becomes aware of a third stream of thought that runs through the prophetic writings, the concept of hope. As in places like Amos 9:13-15 and Isaiah 2:2-4, this hope speaks of a day when God will restore the nation and the blessing of that nation. However besides just concentrating on restoration in general, at times the prophetic witness identifies this overall restoration with a restoration of God’s kingship through the Davidic line. Alexander supports this idea and cites Amos 9:11-12 as one such example (1998: 103). Consider Amos’ words in chapter 9:11, ‘In that day I will restore David’s fallen tent. I will repair the broken places, restore its ruins and build it as it used to be.’ Isaiah 11:1-5 picks up a similar theme and Isaiah 9:1-7 is possibly the most explicit prophetic declaration about the coming king, especially in the light of 2 Samuel 7 and the promise of a king who will reign on David’s throne forever. Dempster points out that, ‘this king will rule justly and transform the world into an Edenic paradise.’ (2003: 175).

Alexander goes on to point out that similar themes are found in Jeremiah, Zechariah and Daniel all calling us to see the restoration of God’s people coming hand in hand with the restoration of a king in God’s stead on earth. The reader enters the New Testament in search of a king, of one in the line of David who will restore the fallen nation and ultimately restore the fallen nature of man that began in the garden.

Further Reading:
Alexander T. D. 1998. The Servant King. Inter-Varsity Press. Leicester.
Dempster S. G. 2003. Dominion and Dynasty, A theology of the Hebrew Bible – NSBT. Inter-Varsity Press. Leicester.
Goldsworthy G. 2000. Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture. Inter-Varsity Press. Leicester.
Jackman D. 2003. Teaching Matthew. Christian Focus Publishers. London
Roberts V. 2003. God’s Big Picture. Inter-Varsity Press. Leicester.

posted by Stephen Murray @ 11:22 PM