The Gospel of Matthew (Sacra Pagina Series, Vol 1) [Hardcover]

Dainel J. Harrington (Author), Donald P. Senior (Author), Daniel J., S.J. Harrington (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Sacra Pagina | Publication Date: September 1991

Matthew wrote his Gospel from his perspective as a Jew. It is with sensitivity to this perspective that Father Daniel J. Harrington undertakes this commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. After an introduction, he provides a literal translation of each section in Matthew s Gospel and explains the textual problems, philological difficulties, and other matters in the notes. He then presents a literary analysis of each text (content, form, use of sources, structure), examines the text against its Jewish background, situates it in the context of Matthews debate with other first-century Jews, and reflects on its significance for Christian theology and Christian-Jewish relations. Includes an updated bibliography and appendix.This book is part of the series Sacra Pagina,a multi-volume commentary on the books of the New Testament thatpresents fresh translations and modern expositions of all the books ofthe New Testament. It is intended for biblical professionals, graduatestudents, theologians, clergy, and religious educators. The volumespresent basic introductory information and close exposition, with eachauthor adopting a specific methodology while maintaining a focus on theissues raised by the New Testament compositions themselves. The goalof Sacra Pagina is to provide sound, critical analysis without any loss of sensitivity to religious meaning. Author: Daniel J. Harrington, S.J. Format: 448 pages, hardcover Series: Sacra Pagina 1 Publisher: Liturgical Press (2007) ISBN: 9780814658031

Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Liturgical Press (September 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814658032
• ISBN-13: 978-0814658031
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #408,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Historical Overview, April 30, 2002

By 

Brad Shorr "Brad Shorr" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel of Matthew (Sacra Pagina Series, Vol 1) (Hardcover)

As someone just getting acquainted with the Scriptures, I found this book extraordinarily helpful. First and foremost, Harrington excels at putting Matthew in its historical context. By tracing changes within the Jewish community from Old Testament times through circa 70AD, he clearly shows how this Gospel was intended to solidify Christian identity and Scriptural validity after the destruction of the temple, when competing theologies were battling for the hearts and minds of the Jewish people. His extensive translation notes are also helpful, as they explain nuances of meaning that would go unnoticed by a lay reader using a thinly-annotated text.

Two other themes of this commentary stand out. First, Harrington takes great pains to demonstrate that Matthew is not an indictment of the Jewish race and has been totally misinterpreted by some as a call to anti-Semitism--an important message in any age. Second, he continually compares Matthew to Mark, pointing out virtually all similarities and differences. While this is interesting (and indirectly useful in understanding Mark), I'm not sure how important these distinctions are in terms of grasping the historical and theological significance of Matthew. On the other hand, presenting Matthew and Mark in this way does highlight the uniqueness of each Gospel--no doubt a worthy end in itself.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Commentary by a Top Scholar, January 8, 2005

By 

Timothy Kearney (Haverhill, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel of Matthew (Sacra Pagina Series, Vol 1) (Hardcover)

I first became familiar with Daniel Harrington's commentary on Matthew's Gospel for the SACRA PAGINA series when I took a graduate class on the gospel. It was the text used for the course.I found it very informative, giving an excellent background to the gospel itself and leading to interesting class discussions. As I did exegetical work on various gospel texts, again I found the commentary helpful as a basis for research and a valuable in pointing to other sources for further study.

The commentary is set up the way that is similar to other volumes in the series. A brief introduction to the Gospel of Matthew is followed by the author's translation of the gospel text. The events of the gospel are broken into smaller units. For each smaller unit there is a line commentary which emphasizes important words and lines in the story. This is followed by an overall discussion of the text which highlights religious, historical, and social issues involved in the story. In many cases in this commentary, Harrington not only discusses the issues of the ancient world by adds how these issue can be of concern to us today.

I no longer use the book for formal research, but turn to it time and again for preparation for preaching and Bible studies groups. Here I have found the commentary most helpful. Harrington's book has scholarly value, but it is written in such a way that it highlights concerns in the text which still concern people today which gives it pastoral value as well. One small example which immediately comes to mind is Harrington's discussion of Jesus' Baptism by John. He not only points out the differences in the synoptic accounts of the events, but the possible historical difficulties and struggles within the early Church, and what the focus should be when preaching or teaching this text. At this point my copy of the book is well worn, a tribute to the many times I refer to it.

As I read some of the other reviews, I noticed that one reviewer noted that this commentary is primarily for Catholics. Since Daniel Harrington is a Jesuit priest, and the Liturgical Press is a Catholic publishing company, the work is certainly Catholic oriented, and since I am also writing from a Catholic perspective, I see this as a plus for the work. However, when I took the course on the Gospel of Matthew which was taught at a Catholic seminary, there were many in the class who were not Catholic, and they seemed to be the people who were most impressed with the scholarship. It was authentic to the Biblical text and had as its goal making scripture accessible to everyone.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent commentary, March 29, 2002

By 

Ben Elohim (Lebanon, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gospel of Matthew (Sacra Pagina Series, Vol 1) (Hardcover)

While I'm only part way through volume 1. I will be purchasing more of this series. This is state of the art. Multiple opinions and views are considered and each position is well-argued and supported. There is a great deal of attention to detail. Those familiar with older commentaries will be pleasantly surprised by this.