Untitled Sermon

As for the structural unity of , students of Matthew have offered several proposals, and it must be said that none of them holds the scholarly field. Davies and Allison suggest that 8:1–9:34 should be viewed as three triads of miracle stories, the first and the third of which are followed by a summary and teaching material, with the second followed by the call of Levi and teaching material. This proposal is not without weaknesses of its own. Yet it does reflect Matthew’s preference for grouping his material in sections of three, which is well-illustrated in the Sermon on the Mount, in the three passion predictions (16:21; 17:22–23; 20:17–19), and in other features in Matthew. Moreover, Davies and Allison’s suggestion pays attention to the three smaller units that have non-miraculous subject matter. For the sake of convenience, then, and to offer some order, the arrangement of the commentary will follow the structural proposal by Davies and Allison.

The first triad of miraculous deeds consists of the cleansing of a leper (8:1–4), the healing of the centurion’s servant (8:5–13), and the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law (8:14–17). The second triad begins with a unit in which Jesus answers questions of discipleship and stills the storm (8:18–27). Then the second and third miracles of the second triad are Jesus exorcizing the Gadarene demoniacs (8:28–34) and forgiving and healing a paralytic (9:1–8). The third triad of Jesus’ deeds begins with a double miracle because the healing of the bleeding woman (9:20–22) occurs within the account of Jesus raising the ruler’s daughter (9:18–19, 23–26). Those intertwined events can be considered one miraculous account. The second miracle is the healing of two blind men (9:27–31) and the third miracle in the third and final triad is the exorcism of the mute man (9:32–35)

Theological Unity

After the framework (7:28–8:1) that closes Jesus’ first great discourse, the Sermon on the Mount (4:25–8:1), Matthew resumes his narration of Jesus’ ministry and reintegrates his readers/hearers into his narrative account. Before examining the smaller units of these two chapters of historical narration, we may pause for a glance at the larger context so as not to lose the “forest” of Matthew’s Gospel for the “trees” of the individual pericopes.

Jesus’ ministry to and in Israel made its public beginning in 4:17, and during the first half (4:17–11:1) of the large middle section of the Gospel (4:17–16:20), Jesus’ ministry in Galilee grows. There is only muted opposition. Scholars commonly observe that 4:23 has already summarized Jesus’ ministry as one of word and deed: “And he began to go around in the whole of Galilee in order to teach in their synagogues and preach the Good News of the reign and heal every disease and every ailment in the people.” Jesus has begun to call disciples to faith and service (4:18–22). The Sermon on the Mount serves as the premier sample of Jesus’ ministry of word, that is, his “teach[ing]” and “preach[ing] the Good News of the reign” (4:23).

Having placed before his readers/hearers the Messiah’s teaching with authority (7:29), his ministry of word, Matthew offers in chapters 8 and 9 an account of the Messiah’s ministry of deed (“heal[ing] every disease and every ailment in the people,” 4:23). In general terms, then, it is clear how fits into the structure of the narrative. However, scholars continue to debate how and to what extent Matthew has structured these two chapters. Nevertheless, it is still possible to offer lenses for reading these two chapters in a coherent way, all the while being fully aware of the difficulty of discerning precisely the coherent shape of what the Spirit was guiding Matthew to write.

A common theme unites , and this theme also binds together chapters 8 and 9 (both of which show Jesus’ ministry of deed) with the Sermon on the Mount (his ministry of word). The theme is that of Jesus’ authority and how people react to it. As both the content of the Sermon on the Mount and the crowds’ response to the Sermon in 7:28–29 reveal, in his teaching Jesus claimed an unparalleled, unconditional, divine authority: “for he was teaching them with the conviction that he had authority, and not as their scribes [taught]” (7:29).

ὡς ἐξουσίαν ἔχων—The construction of ὡς plus a participle “sets forth the ground of belief on which the agent acts, and denotes the thought, assertion, real or presumed intention, in the mind of the subject of the principal verb or of some other person mentioned prominently in the sentence, without implicating the speaker or writer.” What astonishes the crowds is Jesus’ own attitude, Jesus’ claim to speak with authority. Hence the translation is that Jesus was teaching them “with the conviction that he had authority.”

Moreover, one may describe Jesus’ disciples (in contrast with the crowds) as those who have been given the faith both to know and trustingly to accept Jesus’ authoritative revelation (see the commentary on 7:28–8:1).

Matthew brings the Sermon on the Mount to its conclusion by providing a final frame that corresponds closely to the narrative that led up to the Sermon (4:25–5:2). There the Son of God and Messiah had gone up the mountain to deliver truth and revelation with divine authority. Now, having completed “these words” (7:28), Jesus goes down the mountain. Jesus’ disciples had come to him and formed the inner circle to whom his teaching was addressed (5:1–2). The crowds, however, were also present, and Jesus offered his teaching also to them, as 7:28–29 explicitly says: “The crowds were being astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them with the conviction that he had authority.” Just as great crowds had begun to follow Jesus in the wake of his preaching and healing and ministry of exorcisms (4:24–25), those crowds continue to follow Jesus (8:1).

The crowds follow Jesus, but they have not yet begun to understand or to believe in Jesus’ claim to authority. Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, the crowds remain a transitional group when compared to Jesus’ disciples on the one hand and the various religious leaders of Israel on the other hand. Although the crowds follow Jesus physically, they do not indicate that they have begun to believe, even imperfectly, that he is the Messiah of Israel and the man who is bringing God’s gracious rule and reign into history. The crowds remain ambivalent, outside God’s reign in Jesus.

One thing is clear to the crowds, however, and that is Jesus’ evident conviction about the authority of his own words. None of their scribes taught with such conviction. Nor should they have. Any authority that a scribe might possess in his teaching would be completely derived from the authority of the Scriptures. Any other teacher in Israel would need to substantiate what he proclaimed by citing from God’s Word. Jesus, however, teaches God’s Word from out of himself, with unfettered power and divine authority, and the crowds were astonished at this.

This is what lies at the heart of the life of discipleship: the authority of Jesus. In a wonderful narrative fashion, much of chapters 8 and 9, which follow the Sermon, will recount how Jesus ministered to, healed, and forgave those who came to him and acknowledged his authority. As the individual units in those chapters show, and as the commentary on them will attempt to extol, Jesus comes with authority for those who are in need. His is the authority of grace. His power is precisely the power to restore, forgive, heal, and make whole. The crowds merely marvel that Jesus claims such authority for himself and for his teaching. However, Matthew will relate how individuals approach Jesus from out of the crowds and come with faith that Jesus does, indeed, possess the authority that he claims to possess. He responds to those who have such simple faith by restoring and saving them.

With that kind of faith, disciples of all ages and times will receive the foundationally important teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. We acknowledge that Jesus does have the authority to say what he proclaims, to speak from the mountain with the voice of God himself, and that his words are true. Occupying the primary place in the Sermon, both narratively and theologically, are the Beatitudes, where Jesus with authority speaks salvation and blessing (5:3–12). To the sinners, to the poor in spirit, yes, even to those who are persecuted because of him, he promises the present blessings of the reign of heaven: the forgiveness of sins, fellowship with him and fellow believers, community during his ministry. After his death and resurrection, Jesus, through his Word, his Baptism, and his Eucharist, gives to all generations of believers the present blessings of forgiveness, everlasting life, and salvation, and the power of the Holy Spirit for faith and life. To those who are lowly, who look for his coming on the Last Day, who have begun to be merciful in him and to share the Gospel peace that they have received, Jesus also promises the future blessings of the reign of heaven: the resurrection, full sonship, complete comfort, eternal mercies, the gift of seeing God. He promises these blessings with authority.

Then, following the blessing, Jesus calls us with authority and reveals the character of our calling as his disciples (5:13–7:12). What person is there who having heard and received in faith the authoritative blessing of Jesus would turn away from the truth of his authoritative calling? Jesus and his words are the source of life, both now and at the judgment. Jesus disciples are not merely astonished at his claim to authority, as were the crowds. We who are disciples believe in and submit to his authority, rejoice in it, and follow the Son of God.

In next recounting Jesus’ ministry of deed in 8:2–9:35, Matthew particularly emphasizes Jesus’ authority and the (mostly) believing response to that authority. In the units in chapters 8–9, the term “authority” (ἐξουσία) occurs explicitly only in 8:5–13 and 9:1–8.

As Matthew presents the interaction between Jesus and the centurion, the verses are dominated by dialogue that builds to Jesus’ climactic declaration to the centurion in 8:13. briefly sets the stage and prepares for the centurion’s opening words to Jesus. This Gentile soldier addresses Jesus as “Lord” (8:6). This is the typical way for Jesus’ disciples to speak to their Master; it suggests, but only suggests, that the centurion is approaching Jesus properly, with at least the essence of genuine faith. And yet in the context of both the actual historical event and in the mid-first century AD context of Matthew’s hearers/readers, a question remains. The man is a Gentile soldier. Can this person know the one to whom he is speaking? It was unusual enough for a leper to come out from the ambivalent crowds and approach Jesus (8:1–4). How will Jesus respond to the statement of this Gentile soldier’s need?

The centurion has not yet asked Jesus for anything specific; he has only named the desperate condition of his servant (8:6). The soldier’s brief statement of need and Jesus’ brief response give the Gospel’s audience the opportunity to learn more. Dialogue will dominate the rest of the pericope.

Jesus responds with a question: “Shall I myself come and heal him?” (8:7). As suggested in the textual note on 8:7, the balance of evidence weighs slightly in favor of taking Jesus’ words as a question, rather than as a positive statement, “I will come and heal him.” The evidence is not grammatical as much as it is contextual, historical, and cultural. Modern Gentile readers of Matthew can easily forget how unexpected a thing it would be for Jesus, the Jewish Messiah who has come to fulfill the Scriptures of Israel, to enter the house of a Gentile soldier. Matthew’s Gospel emphasizes, more strongly than the other canonical Gospels, Jesus’ Israelite lineage and his ministry as the true Israelite to and among the Jewish people. Historically and culturally, then, it is easy to imagine that Jesus responds, “Are you asking me, the Messiah of Israel, to come to your house?”

If indeed Jesus’ words in 8:7 are a question, however, we should not think of Jesus as being reluctant to go to the house of a Gentile. Rather, Jesus seems to want to discover more about the faith and the knowledge of this Gentile soldier who initially addresses him as “Lord” (8:6). The conceptual parallels with Jesus’ interaction with the Canaanite woman (15:21–28) are extremely strong. This Gentile woman addresses Jesus as “Lord” and with the messianic title “Son of David” (15:22). Through his puzzling and drawn out interaction with her and with his disciples, Jesus learns (and Matthew’s readers/hearers learn) that the woman fully understands the nature of his ministry as the one who fulfills the Scriptures of Israel—on behalf of Israel’s lost sheep and for the salvation of the Gentiles too. Just as Jesus drew out the faith and understanding of the Canaanite woman by his “delayed” response to her need, so his question to the centurion elicits the humble words from that soldier’s lips, “Lord, I am not worthy” (8:8).

With that humble beginning, the centurion responds at length. In answer to Jesus’ question, the man replies with a small discourse that shows his stunning insight into the extent and the purpose of Jesus’ authority (8:8–9). He does not regard himself, Gentile sinner that he is, to be worthy that the Lord should come under his roof. Nor is such a thing even necessary. This centurion is well aware of how real authority works. The person in authority merely speaks, and his word carries the power to accomplish its purpose. Even the centurion himself, who is only under an earthly, military authority, must obey those who speak to him. Moreover, those under his authority respond at once to his commands.

Because (γάρ, “for,” 8:9) it is thus with mere earthly, military authority, how much more will it be the case with Jesus! The man’s request? “Do not come to my house. Only speak with authority to the disease that is terribly tormenting my servant. You have authority over disease. It will obey you, and my servant will be healed.”

Rarely does Matthew record Jesus’ “internal” reactions to those with whom he interacts. It is all the more remarkable, then, that the evangelist writes that Jesus “marveled” (8:10). Jesus responds to the soldier’s impressive declaration of faith by addressing those who were following him (8:10–12). Jesus’ climactic utterance to the situation of need is held in abeyance. Even though 8:10 does not specifically name Jesus’ addressees as the “crowds,” the narrative context makes it clear that this is who they are (8:1). His words to them contain both an invitation and a warning, for the crowds will have been essentially Jewish in their makeup.

Jesus’ words “I say to you that many will come from east and west and will recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the reign of heaven” (8:11) constitute an invitation to any—even Gentiles!—who will recognize his authority and trust that it is a gracious authority for them in their need. This invitation is ultimately not limited to the biological sons of Abraham (3:9) or to the lost sheep that are the house of Israel, although Jesus, Israel’s Messiah, will continue in Matthew to minister primarily to that flock. In the final, resurrection banquet held under God’s gracious reign, many will come from the corners of the earth to feast with the patriarchs. Stunningly, Jesus’ words echo the OT promise (see and ) that God would gather Israel again to himself, but Jesus applies the prophetic promise also to non-Jews like the centurion whose faith has so astonished him!

Yet Jesus’ words also constitute a stern warning to the crowds that are following him: “But the sons of the reign will be thrown out into the outermost darkness; there the weeping and the gnashing of teeth will be” (8:12). The Baptizer had warned the religious leaders of Israel not to assume that their ethnic identity guaranteed them a good standing in the eyes of the God of Israel (3:7–9). Jesus ironically warns that “the sons of the reign” may find themselves denied access to the end-time banquet when God consummates the ages and brings final salvation. In this Gospel, Jesus will repeatedly use the image of weeping and torment in the outermost darkness to describe the fate of those who reject the Son of God.a

Everything depends upon Jesus himself, upon his authority. Faith in him entails the knowledge of one’s own helplessness and the conviction that he is able and willing to rescue. The centurion does believe that Jesus is the Lord. And yet Jesus’ words may very well have conferred far more than the centurion was thinking or expecting. All who trust in Jesus and in his gracious authority will have a place at the final, eschatological banquet. Tragically, all who do not come to such faith will be cast out forever.

Only now in 8:13 does the narrative reach its brief, powerful climax, as Jesus explicitly responds to the centurion’s need. His faith has caused him to lay hold of Jesus on behalf of his suffering slave. Jesus speaks the authoritative word that he needs: “Go; as you believed, let it happen for you.” The centurion’s servant “was healed in that hour.”

Matthew’s narrative once again proclaims both the power of the reign of God that is present in Jesus’ ministry of healing as well as the greater promise of restored fellowship and blessing with God. This Jesus, who has authority to heal, is also the one who grants entrance into the great eschatological feast. Jesus’ miraculous deeds of authority are anticipations of the Last Day, when God the Father in the crucified and risen Jesus will finally overcome all death and sickness and sin. All the dead shall be raised, and all in Christ shall have gloriously incorruptible bodies like that of their risen Lord (see, e.g., ; ; ). Then God will welcome all who have believed that Jesus is the Lord to the eternal banquet fellowship in the new heavens and the new earth (e.g., ; ; ). And although the Gospel’s narrative will continue to recount how Jesus’ ministry of authority is offered chiefly to Israel’s lost sheep, this same Gospel’s conclusion will explicitly extend Jesus’ gracious, saving authority (28:18) as the basis for the mission to make disciples of all the nations through baptizing and teaching (28:19–20).

Matthew’s hearers/readers, both ancient and modern, should also understand that their Eucharistic celebrations are anticipations of the final banquet that Jesus promises to all who trust in him. The gifts in the Lord’s Supper, Christ’s broken body and his blood shed for the forgiveness of our sins, sustain the church until the day when the banquet begins in all its fullness—until that day when Jesus drinks the cup with us in a new way in the reign of his Father (26:26–29). Then the foretaste will be caught up into the complete and eternal feasting of salvation.

AND

This account in which Jesus forgives and heals a paralytic is the third miracle story in the second triad of miracle stories that constitute . The first three miracle accounts (8:2–17) either portrayed a clear faith in Jesus on the part of the supplicants (the leper in 8:1–4 and the centurion in 8:5–13) or implied such faith (Peter’s mother in law in 8:14–17). This second triad (8:23–9:8) has given even more dramatic evidence of the nature and extent of Jesus’ authority: he is Lord over nature (8:24–27), over demons (8:28–34), and over sin itself (9:1–8)!

In contrast to the people in the first triad who trusted Jesus’ authority, those in this second triad who are present for these demonstrations of Jesus’ rightful divine power have not always exhibited faith in him. The disciples, whom Jesus called “cowardly” and “little-faiths” (8:26), wondered what sort of man Jesus is (8:27). In the region where Jesus cast out the demons into the swine, the townspeople mimicked the demons when they besought him to leave their region (8:34; see also 8:31)! This third account has a similar ambiguity. On the one hand, the group that approaches Jesus in need has “faith” in him (9:2). By contrast, there are “evil things” in the hearts of some scribes who are present (9:4).

Jesus Forgives a Paralytic (9:1–2)

Matthew offers a neatly contrasting structure in this account. serves two functions. It closes out the narrative of the exorcisms in the region of the Gadarenes (8:28–34), since Jesus “got into the boat and crossed over” (9:1), fulfilling the townspeople’s request to leave their region (8:34). It also opens up the next miracle of Jesus’ authority in Capernaum, since Jesus “came into his own city” (9:1). The first part of the text consists of 9:2, which is built around Matthew’s standard rhetorical feature “And look!” (καὶ ἰδού) and his description of Jesus’ response, “And because Jesus saw … he said” (καὶ ἰδὼν … εἶπεν). The second part of the text involves 9:3–7. Here Matthew writes again both “And look!” (καὶ ἰδού, 9:3) and “And because Jesus saw … he said” (καὶ ἰδὼν … εἶπεν, 9:4). In response to the evil thoughts of the scribes who are present, Jesus challenges their unbelief and reveals that he has the authority to forgive sins, just as he claims. In 9:8 the unit concludes with the crowds’ reaction that shows them to be in some sense favorable to Jesus, but still not endowed with faith in his authority.

presents to Matthew’s hearers/readers a striking situation of need and of faith. Unnamed persons were bringing a paralyzed man, cast on a cot, to Jesus. Matthew draws attention to their situation of need, but then moves quickly to Jesus’ words in response to the need. Given the circumstances described by Matthew, Jesus’ response is unexpected. Matthew did not write, “They were bringing a sinner to Jesus” or even “They were bringing to Jesus a man who was sick because of his sin.” Instead, Matthew wrote, “They were bringing to him a paralytic” (9:2). Jesus responds with a word of comfort that meets the man’s true need and that reinforces teaching that he has already given in this marvelous Gospel: “Be courageous, child! Your sins are being forgiven” (9:2). Sin ultimately is the root of all human suffering and need. The sin of Adam and Eve brought the curse of death, sickness, and every malady upon the human race (; ; ). Jesus speaks to the root cause of all need, and he invites this person to be brave, for even as he is encountering Jesus, Jesus is in the act of forgiving his sins. That Jesus spoke because he saw the faith in both the paralytic and in his friends is of no small significance.11 Even though their faith in Jesus cannot as yet have been what we would call “fully informed” about his person and work, nevertheless, these men were trusting that Jesus is the one who has authority from God to heal and restore—and to forgive sins! To such faith Jesus speaks his word, “Your sins are being forgiven” (9:2), which bestows the forgiveness that is the heart and center of salvation and that restores fellowship with God.

Jesus’ very name means that he is the one who has come to save his people from their sins (1:21). Their salvation must begin with forgiveness, with cleansing from sin. But Jesus’ salvation does not stop with forgiveness offered to a paralytic. Jesus’ authority to forgive sin extends over all the effects of sin as well.

This text is one of the clearest and most remarkable testimonies that sin and sickness are inextricably related. It is true that God can inflict illness as punishment for actual sins, and other sins may lead to sicknesses as natural consequences. But this passage does not indicate that this man had caused his paralysis by sinning. Rather, the point is that it is sinners who get sick, and only sinners who get sick. Jesus forgives and heals this man in a perfect illustration of the theology of 8:16–17 (see the commentary there). Surely, Jesus did come to take our weaknesses and to carry our infirmities. The salvation he bestows is centered in the forgiveness of sins, which extends ultimately to encompass and restore the whole person.

Jesus’ ministry is even now manifesting the in-breaking of God’s royal rule. The message and promise of this text is eschatological. Jesus has even now authority to forgive sins on earth and also to heal. On the Last Day, he will finally absolve and heal forever all those who have believed in him.

The Scribes Accuse Jesus of Blaspheming (9:3–7)

Quickly now Matthew changes focus, turning from the man’s need and Jesus’ response. He lines the second response up precisely with the first: “And look” (9:3), certain scribes are there in starkest contrast with those who were carrying the man to Jesus (“And look,” 9:2). The scribes evaluate Jesus’ words as evidence of blasphemy: this mere human is arrogating to himself the authority to do what only God can do! To them Jesus also responds “because Jesus saw their thoughts” (9:3; contrast “because Jesus saw their faith,” 9:2).

Jesus puts two questions to them. First he asks, “Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts?” (9:4). Jesus names their thoughts as “evil” for doubting that he has the authority to forgive, as he is claiming to do.

Then Jesus poses a second question, the answer to which is evident when we read his words in context. Jesus does not ask the scribes who accused him of blasphemy, “Which is easier, to forgive sins or to heal a paralytic?” Nor does he ask, “Which is easier to do?” Instead, he asks, “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are being forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk!’?” (9:5). Two utterances are in view, one of which Jesus has already spoken, evoking the evil thoughts and unbelief of the scribes: “Your sins are being forgiven” (9:2). Does Jesus have this sort of authority? In order to demonstrate that yes he does possess that divine power by right, Jesus emphatically poses the second utterance that will also be spoken to the paralytic: “Rise and walk!” (9:5).

The logic will move from the greater to the lesser. If Jesus can speak the thing that is harder to say, this will show that he also has the authority to say the easier one. The command “Rise and walk!” is the harder thing to say because any observer will be able to tell immediately whether or not Jesus is speaking with authority. In contrast, observers cannot tell for sure from the outside if someone’s sins are actually being forgiven. However, they can tell whether a paralytic gets up and walks—or not—so it is harder to say.

The drama of the moment is heightened by Matthew’s narrative interruption of Jesus’ words in mid-sentence, a technique that the evangelist scarcely uses elsewhere in his Gospel: “ ‘But in order that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to be forgiving sins on the earth’—then he says to the paralytic …” (9:6). Jesus literally demonstrates for all to see that he has the authority—the authority of God himself—to forgive sins on the earth. Matthew writes concerning the paralytic, “And he rose and departed into his house” (9:7).

The Crowds Were Afraid and Glorified God, Who Had Given Such Authority to the Realm of Men (9:8)

The crowds respond; they sense that God has been at work. In fear, they glorify God, whom the evangelist describes in terms of what God has actually done: “given authority such as this to the realm of men” (τοῖς ἀνθρώποις) (9:8). The second textual note on 9:8 rehearsed the difficulties in the interpretation of the dative plural phrase translated “to the realm of men.” The description of God as the one “who had given authority such as this to the realm of men” is the inspired perspective of Matthew, and therefore also of all who read his Gospel in faith. The interpretative challenge consists in discerning what Matthew could possibly mean by saying that God had given authority such as this “to men” when Matthew emphasizes so strongly that the authority manifested in forgiving and raising up the paralytic is the authority that Jesus himself uniquely possesses.

Some think that Matthew is here saying that God is the one who in the future would give such authority to men. In this understanding, 9:8 refers to the authority that the church would exercise once Jesus begins to build the church in the period after his resurrection. This view, however, does not make sense syntactically, and it makes very little sense within the narrative of the Gospel itself. What Matthew states in 9:8 about God must apply in the most direct sense to Jesus himself.

That is why I have offered a somewhat round-about rendering of the dative τοῖς ἀνθρώποις as “to the realm of men.” Two things are implied by the periphrasis “the realm of men.” First and most directly, the unique authority of Jesus is at work in the human realm, on the earth; Jesus is a man, an ἄνθρωπος (“man”) on earth among other ἄνθρωποι (“men”). Second, Jesus will extend his own authority through others. Israel’s Messiah will entrust authority to the Twelve in chapter 10. Moreover, although the Great Commission does not indicate that Jesus transfers or gives his authority for the carrying out of the work of baptizing and teaching, he does promise his own unique and abiding presence with his disciples who will carry out those missional tasks (28:18–20). Thus in that sense, as reflected especially in the book of Acts, the early church carries out its mission in the name of Jesus and with his authority. The authority to forgive and heal has been given by God the Father to the Son of Man, and in the most important sense to him alone. However, because the Son, who became a man (1:18–25), calls others to follow him, and through his promise he entrusts authority to disciples to continue the in-breaking of the reign of God all the days until his parousia, God can also be described as the one who gave such authority to the realm of men.

If we carefully understand the authority of the Word and the Sacraments, we see that God continues to bestow that gift of Jesus’ authority “to the realm of men” (9:8) today. When the Law and the Gospel are preached by a man who is a Christian pastor, or when a Christian teacher speaks God’s truth, Jesus’ authority is there. When one Christian hears the confession of another troubled Christian’s conscience and absolves that brother or sister of the sin, Jesus’ authority is there. When pastors administer the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper in accordance with the Lord’s institution (26:26–29; 28:19), it is really Jesus’ authority that is present to forgive and strengthen and seal his followers unto the Last Day for bodily resurrection, final healing, and eternal life. The reign of God, you see, continues to come through the Good News of Jesus. Even to the end of the age (28:20), God the Father has given Jesus this authority for the sake of those who are in need in the realm of men.

Nevertheless, almost all of the units in these chapters are narrated in such a way as to highlight the authority that Jesus has over sickness, demons, the chaos of nature, and even death itself. Those who interact with Jesus in 8:2–9:35, then, demonstrate either that they have placed their trust in Jesus and his gracious authority or that they have not believed.

It should be emphasized that it is a gracious authority that Jesus wields in his ministry among and for men and women. It is an authority to heal, to rescue from Satan and danger, to forgive sin, and yes, to summon people to a heedless discipleship that drops every attempt to calculate and balance the cost, and that simply follows Jesus. His is an unparalleled authority given and exercised for others. In this way, as in so many others, the truth about Jesus is unexpected, indeed, the reverse of normal human experience with those who exercise authority (see 20:25–28). Jesus administers his authority as the one who brings ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὑρανῶν, “the reign of heaven” (e.g., 4:17), that is, the reigning deeds of the God of heaven, and not the reign of men, nor the reign of the enemy—Satan himself, who still holds sway over the affairs and ways of men.

Jesus inaugurates the reign of God, coming to overthrow the reign of Satan. This is why his miraculous deeds—healings, exorcisms, storm-stilling, resurrections—constitute an essential aspect of his ministry. In this Jesus, “Immanuel,” “God is with us” to save his people from their sins (see the commentary on 1:21-23). Full salvation from sins is, first and always, centered in the forgiveness of those sins, as is abundantly clear in 9:1–8 and the larger testimony of both Matthew’s Gospel and the entirety of the Scriptures. Satan, however, attempts to reign over God’s creation not only through guilt, but also through sickness and demon possession and chaos and especially death. So Jesus’ miracles are not mere allegories that tell us that Jesus heals us from the sickness of our sins or that he will rescue us from the storms of life. Jesus forgives sins, and he physically heals diseased bodies so that they are healthy. He rescues his disciples from an actual storm by controlling the unruly forces of nature. Nor are the Lord’s fearful and awesome deeds merely signs of his deity—although they are indeed evidence that Jesus is God incarnate, “God is with us” (1:23). The original sin all humans (save Jesus himself) have inherited from Adam, as well as the actual sins we commit, brings guilt and sickness and death and renders the creation a hostile and dangerous place. The miracles of the Lord are actual manifestations of what God is beginning to do in Jesus as he restores his creation and reigns over it. Jesus is overthrowing the power of Satan, who seduced Adam and Eve into sin and thus brought the curse, which is rectified by Jesus’ blessing (contrast with ).

Yet the events narrated by Matthew are only the beginning. Even as irresistible divine power attends the ministry of Jesus, the fact remains that only some were healed, only some were rescued from Satan, only a few were raised from the dead during his ministry. Moreover, in light of the scriptural proclamation that Jesus of Nazareth is the first to rise from the dead (; the “firstfruits,” , and “firstborn,” ), we must assume that all whom Jesus healed in his ministry of royal deeds became sick again and all whom he raised were still mortal and eventually weakened and died again. The gracious rule of God in Jesus comes truly and yet in hiddenness. The final consummation of that reign is not yet. In that sense, Jesus’ miracles are signs and anticipations of the Last Day: after Christ returns in glory, all the dead will be raised bodily, unbelievers and Satan will be cast into eternal fire, and all believers—completely and permanently healed, never more to die—will enter eternal life in the new creation, and the restoration of all things will be fully accomplished (; ).

We now live in the time when “the times” are overlapping. The reign of Satan has not yet been completely undone and overthrown, although our stronger Savior has truly bound the strong one by his life, death, and resurrection (). The reign of God in Jesus is still coming, through the Gospel in the Word and Sacraments, to bring God’s gifts and protection to his children. Can the reign and rule of God be manifested today in mighty miracles such as those that characterized the ministry of the Lord? We dare not limit what God will choose to do in response to the prayers and needs of his people! Yet neither may we insist that God will operate according to our expectations and our wisdom. We may only rely on his promise of final eschatological salvation, complete healing, and permanent resurrection and renewal. Jesus’ miracles always and ever point our eyes to the certain hope of the Last Day. For Immanuel came—and will come again on the Last Day—fully to save his people from their sins (1:21–23).

We shall keep our eye, then, on the thematic unity of : Jesus’ royal, eschatological authority for those in need.

As for the structural unity of , students of Matthew have offered several proposals, and it must be said that none of them holds the scholarly field. Davies and Allison suggest that 8:1–9:34 should be viewed as three triads of miracle stories, the first and the third of which are followed by a summary and teaching material, with the second followed by the call of Levi and teaching material. This proposal is not without weaknesses of its own.10 Yet it does reflect Matthew’s preference for grouping his material in sections of three, which is well-illustrated in the Sermon on the Mount, in the three passion predictions (16:21; 17:22–23; 20:17–19), and in other features in Matthew. Moreover, Davies and Allison’s suggestion pays attention to the three smaller units that have non-miraculous subject matter. For the sake of convenience, then, and to offer some order, the arrangement of the commentary will follow the structural proposal by Davies and Allison.

The first triad of miraculous deeds consists of the cleansing of a leper (8:1–4), the healing of the centurion’s servant (8:5–13), and the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law (8:14–17). The second triad begins with a unit in which Jesus answers questions of discipleship and stills the storm (8:18–27). Then the second and third miracles of the second triad are Jesus exorcizing the Gadarene demoniacs (8:28–34) and forgiving and healing a paralytic (9:1–8). The third triad of Jesus’ deeds begins with a double miracle because the healing of the bleeding woman (9:20–22) occurs within the account of Jesus raising the ruler’s daughter (9:18–19, 23–26). Those intertwined events can be considered one miraculous account. The second miracle is the healing of two blind men (9:27–31) and the third miracle in the third and final triad is the exorcism of the mute man (9:32–35)