Gospel Notes by Michael Whelan SM
Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—16 the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”
17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.
23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people (Matthew 4:12-23 – NRSV).
Introductory notes
General
See similar references in Mark 1:14-15, 16-20 & 35-39 and Luke 4:14-15, 5:1-11 & 4:44 & 6:17-19.
“The beginning of Jesus’ ministry takes place in Galilee. The three pericopes in Matt 4:12–23 describe how Jesus came back to Galilee after his baptism by John (4:12–17), how he called his first four disciples by the Sea of Galilee (4:18–22), and how crowds from all over the area came to Galilee to hear his preaching and to be healed by him (4:23–25).
“Matthew’s source in this section is Mark. His use of Mark here illustrates some of his editorial techniques. In the first pericope (4:12–17) Matthew has shaped the account of Jesus’ movement from Nazareth to Capernaum from Mark 1:14a and 1:21, reinforced the idea of that movement as being in accord with God’s will by the quotation from Isa 8:22–9:1, and shortened Mark 1:14b–15 and brought it into line with the summary of John’s preaching (Matt 3:2). In the second pericope (4:18–22) Matthew followed Mark 1:16–20 quite closely and added only a few editorial clarifications to help readers to identify the characters. The third pericope (4:23–25) has been created by Matthew from phrases in Mark 1:39 and 3:7–13 to serve as an introduction to the Sermon on the Mount. This section indicates that Matthew acted as editor in a variety of ways—from basic reproduction of material in his source to freely creating from phrases and motifs in his sources.
“Galilee is the place in which Jesus’ public ministry began. Except for the final days in Jerusalem his ministry was confined to Galilee according to the Synoptic Gospels; John presents Jesus going back and forth between Galilee and Jerusalem. In Jesus’ time Galilee was a small area (about forty-five miles from north to south) bounded on the east by the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee, on the south by Samaria, and on the north and west by Syro-Phoenicia. A major highway from Syria to Egypt—the Way of the Sea—ran through it from north to south. It is customary to divide the district into two parts: Upper Galilee and Lower Galilee.
“In Jesus’ time Galilee was under the political control of Herod Antipas, a son of Herod the Great, who also ruled over Perea, a strip of land to the east of the Jordan and to the south of Galilee. After a.d. 6 when Archelaus, the brother of Herod Antipas, was relieved of his control over Judea, that district was administered by a series of Roman governors, the most famous of which was Pontius Pilate (a.d. 26–36).
“The major industries of Galilee were farming and fishing, settings frequently presupposed in Jesus’ parables (see Matt 13:1–52). The base for Jesus’ ministry in Galilee was Capernaum, on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee. In those days the way in which religious or philosophical doctrines were spread was by means of travelling preachers (as in Matt 10:1–42). So while Capernaum served as ‘home-base,’ the Gospels indicate that Jesus and his disciples were moving about Galilee, preaching the message of the kingdom.
“Though under politically separate control, Galilee and Judea were linked together by religious practice over against Samaria. Whereas the Samaritans took Mount Gerizim as their sacred site (see John 4:20), the Galileans and Judeans worshipped at the Jerusalem temple. There are indications, nonetheless, of tensions between Galileans and Judeans. The Judeans probably looked upon the Galileans as ‘country bumpkins’ or ‘hicks,’ and the Galileans seem to have resented the special status of Jerusalem as a pilgrimage site. …
“While modern readers cannot experience the same kind of geographical identification that Matthew’s first readers did, they can appreciate the major theological themes of Matthew’s account of Jesus’ early ministry in Galilee: the close relation between John and Jesus, Jesus’ movements in accord with God’s will, the extraordinary attractiveness of Jesus in calling his first disciples, and the positive response to him from many different areas. Nevertheless the geographical dimension should not be neglected in preaching and teaching, for it is part of the Christian doctrine of the incarnation. Without attention to the concrete historical circumstances of Jesus’ ministry, Christian faith runs the risk of being misperceived as a body of abstract propositions. All Christians need a basic familiarity with the land of Israel” (Daniel J Harrington, SJ, The Gospel of Matthew, Collegevile, MN: Liturgical Press, 2007, 73-75).
For more on Palestine in the time of Jesus: palestine in the time of Jesus – Search
Specific
John had been arrested: The Greek verb, paradidōmi, translated here as “arrested”, literally means “to hand over”. Matthew uses it again in 26:15 – Judas asks the religious authorities: “What will you give me if I betray him to you?”. Similarly in verses 16 & 21.
he withdrew to Galilee: This is puzzling as Herod also has control over the district of Galilee. However, Matthew makes it clear that Galilee is where Jesus’ ministry begins. “Josephus observes that (Galilee) had all been cultivated, that there was no waste land, and that the smallest village had more than 15,000 inhabitants (War 3.43). Even allowing for exaggeration, Galilee must have been well populated. Important roads passed through the area (Barclay quotes a saying: ‘Judaea is on the way to nowhere: Galilee is on the way to everywhere’), and whereas Judea was mountainous and isolated, Galilee was open to trade and ideas. History had seen foreign conquerors make their mark on the region and, of course, had brought an influx of people from many races. All this means that Galilee was the kind of country where new teachings might be heard and even welcomed” (Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992, 80.)
made his home in Capernaum by the sea: Capernaum is right up the northern end of the Sea of Galilee, on the Western edge – a substantial distance from Nazareth which is on the southern edge of Galilee see Exploring Jesus’s Hometown – Biblical Archaeology Society
the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “The fulfillment quotation comes from Isa 8:23–9:1 (9:1–2 in English). But it is a rather loose adaptation of the Septuagint text, designed to show that the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry in Galilee was in accordance with the Scriptures. In Isaiah the text expressed an oracle of hope after the overrunning of Galilee by the Assyrians in 732 b.c.” (D J Harrington, The Gospel of Matthew, Liturgical Press, 2007, 71.)
Repent: The Greek verb metanoeo means literally “to change one’s mind”. We must remember that the understanding of “mind” in Jesus’ day is not limited to the world of the rational mind and its ideas: “…. in LXX Jer. 8:6; 38:19 (MT 31:19); Isa. 46:8 metanoéō refers to a complete change of attitude, not just a change of mind about specific acts, thus taking on a meaning that is not found in secular Greek and anticipating its use in the NT. …. The writings in the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha also make frequent use of metanoéō and metánoia in the sense of a complete change of one’s way of life, a complete turning from sin and to (the ways or laws of) God. In other Hellenistic Jewish literature (e.g., Philo De virtutibus 175–186; Joseph and Asenath 15) metánoia is used for the conversion of Gentiles to the ways of God. In the NT itself metánoia and metanoéō occur fifty-six times, most frequently in the Lukan literature (twenty-four times in Luke, eleven times in Acts) and Revelation (twelve times, eight of them in the letters to the seven churches, chs 2–3). The terms are rare in the Pauline literature (five times) and do not occur at all in the Gospel or Epistles of John. Usually these terms express repentance in the full sense of a complete change of one’s way of life (although the sense of regret is operative in Lk. 17:3f), the spiritual change implied in a sinner’s return to God.” (E W Smith, & B H Dement, “Repent” in G. W. Bromiley (Ed.), The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume 4,Revised, Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1979–1988, 136.) One scholar observes: “Reference to repentance is actually quite limited in the reported speech of Jesus (Matthew has only 11:20–21; 12:41; and cf. 13:15). In the Matthean frame it seems best to understand Jesus’ call to repentance as primarily implicit since the repentance texts represent complaint that it has not happened rather than calls to repent as such (John Nolland, “Preface” in The Gospel of Matthew: a commentary on the Greek text, W.B. Eerdmans, 2005, 175).
the kingdom of heaven: This is a characteristic expression of Matthew. Mark always speaks of the “kingdom of God” (on at least 15 occasions – eg 1:13); Luke follows Mark in mostly using the expression “kingdom of God” (on at least 33 occasions – eg 4:43) but on another 7 occasions he simply uses the term “kingdom” (eg 1:33); John refers to the “kingdom” three times (all of them in 18:36) and the “kingdom of God” twice (John 3:3 & 3:5). Jesus’ proclamation of the “kingdom of God” in Matthew is exactly the same as that of John the Baptist – see Matthew 3:2.
by the Sea of Galilee: “Jesus encounters his first disciples at their place of work as fishermen. The Sea of Galilee (see Matt 15:29) is a harp-shaped body of fresh water, eight miles at its widest point and thirty-two miles around, in northern Galilee. The trade route known as the Via Maris (“way of the sea”) followed its western shore in part, thus giving the area commercial importance. Other names applied to the sea were the Sea of Chinnereth, Sea of Tiberias, and Lake of Gennesaret” (Daniel Harrington, op cit, 72).
they were fishermen: “Fishing was a major industry on the Sea of Galilee, and the first disciples owned the equipment necessary (nets and boats) to take part in this kind of work. There is no reason to assume that they were illiterate” (Ibid). But we must assume that Simon and Andrew, James and John, were leaving behind a stable life and livelihood.
A Reflection
In 1955 the Jewish scholar, Abraham Joshua Heschel published a marvelous book called God is Search of Man: A Philosophy of Judaism (Farrar, Straus & Giroux). Hechel reminds us of the central truth of Judaism and the Hebrew Scriptures: God who takes the initiative, it is God who reaches out to us in love and it is God who enables us to respond. The Covenant is, in essence, no more nor less than the loving embrace of God. The Covenant is the world of grace. St Paul reiterates this often in his letters. For example, he writes to the Romans, “we are living by grace and not by law” (6:15) and to the Ephesians, “by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast” (2:8-9).
There is nothing we can do that will make God love us more or less! God loves us because God is God, it is God’s nature to love without counting the cost.
St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) writes: “If a great good is not to be twisted into a great evil it is of paramount importance for everyone among you who seeks God to understand that he anticipates you, and that you were being sought before you sought him. The soul seeks the word, but it was first sought by the Word. …. For whence comes this desire that is in (the soul)? If I am not mistaken, it must be that it has already been visited and sought by the Word.” (St Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song of Songs, 84:2 & 3.)
Jesus is God in search of humanity – you and me. Jesus goes throughout Galilee telling people that there is a whole new way of being on offer: “the kingdom is near”. We do not have to let the inventions of culture and politics, money and status, selfishness and fear, define and entrap us. Yes, they are part of the human condition and will be found in one form or another in all our lives. But there is more. You are worth much more. Allow yourself to be drawn into the world of grace, open your minds and hearts: “Repent!”
There are two very concrete signs in the person who has opened their mind and heart – repented – to the infinite love of God. The first sign is grace. Such a person will embody the truth that the Good News is gift not conquest, it comes through grace not mastery. They will quite literally be gracious. The second sign is freedom. Such a person will be more or less free of the human inventions that can entrap us. They will engender freedom in others. Do you know anyone you could say is gracious and free? Are you?
Wondering
In today’s Gospel – Matthew 4:12-23 – we have an account of the beginning of Jesus’ ministry: “When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee.” The announcement contains the Greek verb anachōreō, which Matthew uses a number of times. It may be translated as “withdraw” or “depart” or “go away.” At first blush, it is a strange word to announce the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.
Matthew uses the verb on five notable occasions. He tells us Joseph took Mary and the child and “went” to Egypt (2:14); on returning from Egypt, Joseph “went away to the district of Galilee” (2:22); after the confrontation with the Pharisees over picking corn on the sabbath, then healing the man in the synagogue on the sabbath, he “departed” that place (12:15); when he heard that his cousin John had been executed, “he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself” (14:13); on one notable occasion, Jesus left Galilee and went to the gentile territory of Tyre and Sidon where he encountered the Syrophoenician woman (15:21).
The cumulative effect of the use of this verb creates the sense of “homelessness,” of Jesus’ being amongst people who do not recognize or perhaps even want him there. We, like Matthew’s listeners, are forced to wonder: Who is he? Why is he here? Does his presence among us ask anything of me?
Our wondering is intensified by reports such as the following: “A scribe approached (Jesus) and said, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ Another of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead’” (8:18-22). To the least, these responses are puzzling!
Just as puzzling, are the apparently unambiguous and unquestioning responses of Simon and Andrew, James and John who, when invited by Jesus to join him in his homelessness left their known and secure lives? Did they not have questions? What was the response of their families? Were those families able to make do without the help of these four young men whom we can assume did a lot of the heavy lifting?
It is not wrong to wonder about that. Nor is it wrong to feel perplexed and uncertain about our own response. There is an incident reported by Mattew that will not resolve our wondering but it may help us to wonder well. Jesus’ mother and brothers came looking for him. They are obviously wondering about him. However, they cannot get near him for the crowds. A message is passed to Jesus. He responds: “‘Who is my mother, and who are my brothers? … whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother’” (12:46-50).