Matthew’s Mission and Supersessionism

Who was Matthew trying to reach with his particular version of the message of Jesus of Nazareth? When examining the question of Matthew’s social setting, scholars tend to focus either on the evangelist’s socioreligious orientation or that of his original audience. An overlooked entry point into this monumental debate is Matthew’s mission field: those people outside of the Jesus movement but living in relationship to Matthew and his communities, whom they were seeking to reach with their brand of the gospel of the kingdom. Although Matthew wrote his Gospel to address Christ-believing communities, he did so within the wider social context of instructing his people in their mission to “make disciples of all the nations.” The evangelist, then, would have crafted his story of Jesus to fit with his mission. The socioreligious orientation of the group best suited to hear and receive his message would represent his mission field. This study seeks to demonstrate that the evangelist’s attitude toward Jews and gentiles in his Gospel reveals that Matthew sought to address his fellow Jews, and in a way that reveals a non-supersessionist perspective.