Matthew 4:23 is the twenty-third verse of the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. Jesus has just recruited the first four disciples, this verse begins a brief summary of and introduction to Jesus' ministry in Galilee that will be recounted in the next several chapters.
Content
right|thumb|200px|Matthew 4:22-23 on [[Papyrus 102 (3rd century).]]
The text in Koine Greek, according to Westcott and Hort, reads:
:και περιηγεν εν ολη τη γαλιλαια διδασκων εν ταις συναγωγαις
:αυτων και κηρυσσων το ευαγγελιον της βασιλειας και θεραπευων
:πασαν νοσον και πασαν μαλακιαν εν τω λαω
In the King James Version of the Bible the text reads:
:And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
:and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner
:of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
The World English Bible translates the passage as:
:Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
:preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every
:disease and every sickness among the people
For a collection of other versions see BibleHub Matthew 4:23
Analysis
This verse outlines Jesus' life as an itinerant preacher in Galilee. It divides his ministry into three sections: teaching, preaching, and healing. Unlike the other Gospels, the author of Matthew makes a clear distinction between teaching and preaching. To him teaching is only commentary on the scripture and the laws, while preaching is public proclamation. According to France, the third form, healing, is to provide clear illustration of the power of God.
The mention of teaching in synagogues is especially noteworthy. While this Gospel and others have a large number of scenes of Jesus preaching and healing, none depict him teaching in a synagogue. Clarke notes that Jesus being permitted to speak in a synagogue would indicate that he was a respected figure and also that he could speak Hebrew in addition to the Aramaic that was the common language of the area.
Jesus preaches the gospel of the kingdom, literally the good news of the kingdom. France feels this is based on John the Baptist's message of the coming Kingdom of Heaven in Matthew 3:2 that Jesus later adopts in Matthew 4:1. France states that while John was preaching about the kingdom coming in the near future, Jesus now reports that it is in the present.
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this verse in Greek are:
- Papyrus 102 (3rd century)
- Codex Vaticanus (325–350)
- Codex Sinaiticus (330–360)
- Codex Bezae (~400)
- Codex Washingtonianus (~400)
- Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (~450)
Commentary from the Church Fathers
Pseudo-Chrysostom: Kings, when about to go to war with their enemies, first gather an army, and so go out to battle; thus the Lord, when about to war against the Devil, first collected Apostles, and then began to preach the Gospel.