katapi New Study Bible: the Gospels in Chronological Order.
Book of Kells: Symbols of the Evangelists - St.Matthew.

the gospel according to St Matthew

katapi HOME NT.Chronology | Notes
1 (a) Matthew's account:
The annunciation of the birth of Jesus. Mt.1.18-25.
 The birth of Jesus. Visit of the Magi. Stay in Egypt and settlement at Nazareth. Mt.2.1-23.
1 (c) Jesus' family:
The genealogies. Mt.1.1-17.
3 (a) The preaching of John the Baptist:
The message of John. Mt.3.1-12.
 The baptism of Jesus by John. Mt.3.13-17.
 The temptations of Jesus. Mt.4.1-11.
3 (b) Jesus' preaching and healing:
Jesus' return to Galilee. The call of four disciples. Mt.4.12-22.
 Jesus in the synagogue at Capernaum. Mt.7.28-29.
 The healing of Peter's mother-in-law. Healings at evening. Mt.8.14-17.
 The withdrawal of Jesus. Preaching in Galilee. Mt.4.23-25.
 The healing of a leper. Mt.8.1-4.
3 (c) Stories of conflict:
The healing of a paralytic. Mt.9.1-8.
 The call of Levi. Mt.9.9-13.
 A question about fasting. Mt.9.14-17.
 An incident in the cornfields on the Sabbath. Mt.12.1-8.
 The healing of a man's withered hand. Mt.12.9-14.
 The retirement of Jesus. Acts of healing. Mt.12.15-21.
 The choosing of twelve disciples. Mt.10.1-4.
 The anxiety of Jesus' friends and the accusation of his enemies. Mt.12.22-37.
 Jesus' true family. Mt.12.46-50.
3 (d) Parables of the Kingdom of God:
The parable of the sower. Mt.13.1-9.
 Jesus' use of parables. Mt.13.10-15.
 The meaning of the parable of the sower. Mt.13.18-23.
 The parable of the mustard seed. Mt.13.31-32.
 The method of parables. Mt.13.34-35.
 The parable of the leaven. Mt.13.33.
 The parable of the tares. Mt.13.24-30, 13.36-43.
 The parables of the treasure and the pearl merchant. Mt.13.44-46.
 The parable of the drag-net. Mt.13.47-50.
 The good householder.
Note on parables.		 Mt.13.51-52.
2 (e) The Great Sermon:
Introductory note
The beatitudes and the woes.		 Mt.5.1-12.
 The influence of salt and light. Mt.5.13-16.
 Jesus and the Jewish Law. Mt.5.17-20.
 On murder and reconciliation. Mt.5.21-26.
 On adultery and divorce. Mt.5.27-32.
 On swearing. Mt.5.33-37.
 On retaliation and loving one's enemies. Mt.5.38-48.
 Almsgiving. Mt.6.1-4.
 Prayer. Mt.6.5-15.
 Fasting. Mt.6.16-18.
 The true treasure. Mt.6.19-21.
 The single eye. Mt.6.22-24.
 On anxiety. Mt.6.25-34.
 On judging others. Mt.7.1-6.
 On asking. Mt.7.7-11.
 The Golden Rule. Mt.7.12.
 The narrow way. Mt.7.13-14.
 On fruit and the treasure of the heart. Mt.7.15-20.
 The confession of lordship. The parable of the two foundation. Mt.7.21-29.
2 (f) Further Galilaean activities:
The healing of the centurion's servant. Mt.8.5-13.
 The storm on the lake. Mt.8.23-27.
 The madman of the Gerasenes. Mt.8.28-34.
 Jairus' daughter and the woman with haemorrhage. Mt.9.18-26.
 The healing of two blind men. Mt.9.27-31.
 The healing of a dumb demoniac. Mt.9.32-34.
 The rejection of Jesus at Nazareth. Mt.13.53-58.
 The mission of the twelve disciples. Mt.10.5-42.
 Herod's opinion of Jesus. Mt.14.1-2.
 The question of John from prison. Mt.11.2-19.
 The death of John the Baptist. Mt.14.3-12.
 The return of the twelve disciples. The feeding of the five thousand. Mt.14.13-21.
 The journey across the lake. Mt.14.22-36.
 Jesus and scribal tradition. Mt.15.1-20.
2 (a) Phoenicia and other places outside Galilee:
Tyre and Sidon: The Syro-Phoenician woman's daughter. Mt.15.21-29.
 The feeding of the four thousand. Mt.15.29-39.
 The Pharisees' demand for a sign. Mt.16.1-12.
 Caesarea Philippi. Mt.16.13-28.
 The transfiguration of Jesus. Mt.17.1-13.
 The cure of an epileptic boy. Mt.17.14-20.
3 (c) Return to Galilee:
The second statement of the Passion. Mt.17.22-23.
 Teaching on true greatness. Mt.18.1-5.
 The coin in the fish's mouth. Mt.17.24-27.
 Teaching on offences and allied topics. Mt.18.6-14.
 On the agreement of brethren. Mt.18.15-20.
 On forgiveness. The parable of the unmerciful servant. Mt.18.21-35.
3 (a) The account in Mark:
Judea: the question of divorce. Mt.19.1-12.
 The reception of children. Mt.19.13-15.
 The rich man. Mt.19.16-30.
 The parable of the labourers in the vineyard. Mt.20.1-16.
 The third statement of the Passion. Mt.20.17-19.
 The request of James and John. Mt.20.20-28.
 Various would-be followers. Mt.8.18-22.
 The mission of the seventy disciples. Mt.9.25-38, 11.20-24.
 The exultation of Jesus. Mt.11.25-30, 13.16-17.
 The unclean spirit. Mt.12.43-45.
 The demand for a sign. Mt.12.38-42.
 Warning against the Pharisees. Mt.23.1-36.
 The need for watchfulness. Mt.24.42-51.
 The fire and sword of Jesus. Mt.10.34-36.
 The significance of the heavens. Mt.16.2-3.
 Herod and Jesus. The lament over Jerusalem. Mt.23.37-39.
 The parable of the feast. Mt.22.1-14.
 The coming of the kingdom and the day of the Son of Man. Mt.24.26-28, 24.37-41.
 The healing of blind Bartimaeus. Mt.20.29-34.
3 (a) Events of Holy Week:
The entry into Jerusalem. Mt.21.1-9.
 The withered fig-tree. Mt.21.18-22.
 The cleansing of the Temple Court. Mt.21.10-17.
 The question of Jesus' authority. Mt.21.23-27.
 The parable of the two sons. Mt.21.28-32.
 The parable of the vineyard. Mt.21.33-46.
 The question of tribute to Caesar. Mt.22.15-22.
 The question of the resurrection. Mt.22.23-33.
 The greatest commandment. Mt.22.34-40.
 The question of David's Son and warning against the scribes. Mt.22.41-46.
3 (b) The apocalyptic section:
Prediction of the destruction of the Temple. Mt.24.1-2.
 signs of the end. Mt.24.3-8.
 Warnings of trials and tribulation. Mt.24.9-25.
 The coming of the Son of Man. Mt.24.29-31.
 The lesson of the fig-tree and the time of the end. Mt.24.32-36.
1 (c) Matthaean parables:
The parable of the ten maidens. Mt.25.1-13.
 The parable of the talents. Mt.25.14-30.
 The parable of the judgment. Mt.25.31-46.
3 (d) The Passion story:
The conspiracy of the priests. Mt.26.1-5.
 The anointing at Bethany. Mt.26.6-13.
 The treachery of Judas. Mt.26.14-16.
 The Last Supper. Mt.26.17-29.
 Warnings to the disciples and to Peter. Mt.26.30-35.
 Jesus in Gethsemane. Mt.26.36-56.
 Jesus before the High Priest. Mt.26.57-68.
 The denials by Peter. Mt.26.69-75.
 The death of Judas. Mt.27.3-10.
 Jesus before Pilate. Mt.27.1-2, 27.11-14.
 The condemnation of Jesus by Pilate. Mt.27.15-31.
 The crucifixion. Mt.27.32-44.
 The death of Jesus. Mt.27.45-56.
 The burial of Jesus. Mt.27.57-66.
3 (e) The resurrection:
The women's visit to the tomb. Mt.28.1-15.
 The appearance in Galilee. Mt.28.16-20.

Notes: CHRONOLOGY OF THE GOSPELS.

1. IN DEALING WITH THE CHRONOLOGY OF THE GOSPEL PERIOD
we have to ascertain

  1. the starting-point,
  2. the length of our Lord's life and Ministry,
  3. the arrangement of it as gathered from the Gospels.

On all these points there are differences of opinion.
It is generally agreed that the birth of Christ ought to be set back by at least four years.
It seems to have happened very shortly before the death of Herod the Great.
Herod died in the 750th year from the building of Rome, i.e. four years before the usual starting-point of Christian chronology, so that we are forced to the conclusion that our Lord was born BC 4, or, according to some, a little earlier.

2. OUR LORD'S MINISTRY.
The starting- point of the -Ministry is given very clearly in St.Luke iii.1.
Caesar Augustus, under whose reign our Lord was born, had died,
Tiberius having been associated with him on the imperial throne for the last three years of his reign, AD.11-14.
The fifteenth year from the commencement of this joint reign brings us to AD.26 by which time Pilate was acting as procurator of Judaea;
Caiaphas had been appointed High Priest the year before, while his father-in-law Annas still probably presided over the Sanhedrin;
Herod Antipas was still carrying on his Iong rule in Galilee, and Herod Philip in Bashan and the neighbourhood.
All these notes of time fit in with the conclusion that AD.26 was the beginning of John thie Baptist's work, and consequently of our Lord's Ministry, and that His death and resurrection must have taken place in AD.29 or 30.

3. THE DURATION OF HIS MINISTRY is usually reckoned at three and a half years, but some reckon it as two and a half.
A great deal depends on the meaning of St.John v.1.
If the feast named was a Passover, we know that the Ministry was three and a half years.
If it was not a Passover, there is no reason for prolonging the Ministry beyond two and a half years.
On the whole, it cannot be said for certain that the feast was a Passover.
The probabilities both regarding the text and the interpretation are against it.
(See Revised Version, John v. 1.)

4. DIVISIONS.
The Gospel Narrative may be thus divided:-

  1. The Nativity and Early Life of Jesus.
  2. From the Preaching of John to the First Passover.
  3. From the First Passover to the Second.
  4. From the Second Passover to the Third.
  5. Holy Week.
  6. The Death and Burial.
  7. The Resurrection and the Great forty Days.

[See Tischendorf's Synopsis Evangelica;
Bp.Ellicott's Lectures on the Life of the Lord;
Dr.Edersheim's Life & Times of Jesus of Nazareth.]
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© Paul Ingram 2007.