Matthew 6:1-18 continues the Sermon on the Mount, but is a unit that can be distinguished from the following by the theme of "what to treasure" (6:19) and from the preceding by the pattern "you've heard it said ... now I tell you". To be sure, it is a continuation of the topic regarding the "justice that surpasses that of the Pharisees" (5:20). Now, however, the emphasis is on the contrast between "doing in secret" and "doing for show" . The passage can be outlined as follows:

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• Mag-aral Tayo: Mga Gawaing Banal (Matt. 6:1-6.16-18)

At the climax of Eschatological Discourse in Matthew, Jesus speaks of the judgment of the Son of Man. It is a judgment on the "nations" and is therefore to be distinguished from the previous parables of judgment where members of the Matthaean community are targetted.

Introduction

The episode about the two greatest commandments appears in all Synoptic gospels in different contexts. In Mark and Matthew, it appears within a a series of disputations with the power groups of Jerusalem. In Luke, it appears in the context of Jesus' journey towards Jerusalem and introduces the parable about the Good Samaritan. Matthew follows the outline of Mark in presenting the episode. The Pharisees are out to "test" Jesus. In Matthew's gospel, this has been happening since the time Jesus heals a man with a withered hand in a synagogue (Matthew 12:14). The resolve then was to "destroy" Jesus (12:14). Since then, Matthew presents the question about a sign (16:1-4) and the question about divorce (19:1-12) as specific examples by which the Pharisees carry out their plan. After Jesus' entry into Jerusalem and the commotion he causes in the Temple, he is approached first by chief priests and elders who ask him about his authority, then by students and Pharisees and Herodians (22:15-22), Sadducees (22:23-33) and finally by the Pharisees themselves.

The pericope is cut off from the previous section by the phrase "then" (v. 15), the beginning of a new action by the Pharisees who decide to trap Jesus in what he says, and the arrival of new interlocutors: the students (mathetas) of the Pharisees with the Herodians. The episode closes with their departure (v. 22)

The present debate with the lay leaders of Jerusalem are to be understood within the series of confrontations that began with the elders and high priests in Matthew 21:23. The interrogations will end in 22:46 but Jesus will have something to say about these confrontations in Matthew 23, when as Son of Man he pronoounces judgment on the representatives of Jerusalem's power groups, both lay and priestly.

Matthew 22:1-14 is the third parable of a series that Jesus tells his interlocutors. He had already disturbed his hearers with the two previous parables (cf. Matthew 21:45), which share similarities in structure, though not in content. This third parable is similar to Luke 14:16-24 except that in Luke there is nothing about a new invitation and the throwing out of a party crasher. As it stands in Matthew's gospel, the parable is a commentary -- a midrash in a form of a mashal? -- on the words "Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation producing the fruits of it. (Matthew 21:43)" and is meant to be a warning against being complacent vis-a-vis the kingdom.

The parable of the wicked tenants in the vineyard is the second parable that Jesus offers the religious leaders who ask about his authority. While the parable of the two sons brings to light the attitude of these leaders to the ministry of John the Baptist, this second parable gives them a veiled insight into what willl happen if they continue to reject even Jesus who comes with the authority of the son of the vineyard's owner. We have written on this same section of Matthew in two different occassions, links to which are found below.

Related Links

Psalm 118:22-23
The Parable of the Tenants in the Vineyard
The Tenants of the Vineyard

The parable of the two sons immediately follows the events surrounding the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem. His entrance into the Holy City, the act of cleansing the Temple raise questions in the minds of those who safeguard the privilege of those who take part in the covenant with David and Israel. What is important in these covenants however is obedience to God; the spirit of the religion of the fathers is fidelity to God expressed in obedience to His will. John the Baptist called everyone to repentance as preparation for the coming of God's reign. The chief priests and the elders refused to heed that voice. Jesus makes them aware of it.

The parable of the owner of the vineyard who goes out to call workers at different times of the day was the inspiration for the introduction of John Paul II's post-synodal exhortation "Christifideles laici". There, emphasis was placed on the words "You go to the vineyard too" (20:4) as an imperative for the laity to find their place within the Church's mission. (CL,2). The application of the parable to a document about the life and mission of the lay faithful in the Church assumes an identification between the Lord of the vineyard and the God who calls everyone in every stage of human history to be participants in his work. Gregory the Great (Homily XIX) and John Chrysostom (In Matthaeum 64,3), apply the parable to the different stages of the human life and admonish the faithful to respond to God's invitation at whatever age or level of maturity they are in. Whether old (the first) or very young (the last), the Lord invites them to the holy life.

Matthew 18: 15-20 is a text unique to the Gospel of Matthew alone. The closest parallel is found in a Q passage now found in Luke 17:3

Take heed to yourselves

if your brother sins,
rebuke him;
and if he repents,
forgive him.

It has been suggested that Matthew expanded on this Q passage creating a three-step process meant for handling offenses in the community. This might well be the case since the Matthaean community were made up of Jewish converts who have had experience in community handled disputes. This, together with a remark by Paul in 1 Corinthians (1 Cor. 6:2-8) point us to a feature of the early Church that allowed it to handle legal matters within the community of faith.

Matthew 16:21-28 follows the episode of Peter's confession. It is separated from the preceding episode by the phrase "from that time onwards". 17:1 begins another section with the episode of the Transfiguration. The current selection can be divided as follows

21      Jesus speaks of his suffering, death and resurrection
22-23   Peter's misunderstanding
24-28  Jesus' speech about the cross.
24        Discipleship and the Cross
25-26  Saving and Being Lost
27-28  Conclusion: The Son of Man and Judgment