Matthew and the Margins: A Sociopolitical And Religious Reading

Bible & Liberation

by Warren Carter

This verse by verse commentary presents the Gospel of Matthew as a counter-narrative that shapes the group of Jesus' followers as an alternative community able to resist the dominant authorities both in Rome and in the synagogue. The Gospel anticipates the time when Jesus will return and establish God's reign over all, including the powers in Rome.

Breaking Matthew into five narrative blocks, Carter carefully considers historical, literary, cultural, and ecclesial factors as he explores the themes of marginality and power. A masterful introduction outlines these approaches and surveys other studies on Matthew.

Genres: Theology, Religion, Christianity

636 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2000

About the author

Warren Carter is Professor of New Testament at Brite Divinity School. He came to Brite in 2007 after teaching for 17 years at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City. His scholarly work has focused on the gospels of Matthew and John, and he has focused on the issue of the ways in which early Christians negotiated the Roman empire. In addition to numerous scholarly articles, he is the author of ten books including Matthew and the Margins (Orbis Books), Matthew and Empire (Trinity Press International/Continuum), The Roman Empire and the New Testament (Abingdon), John and Empire (T&T Clark/Continuum), and What Does Revelation Reveal? (Abingdon). He has also contributed to numerous church resources and publications such as contributing 15 studies on Matthew in The Pastors Bible Study Vol 1 (Abingdon). He is a frequent speaker at scholarly and ecclesial conferences.

Degrees
Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary, 1991
Th.M., Melbourne College of Divinity, 1986
B.D., Melbourne College of Divinity, 1985
B.A., Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, 1976

Reviews

[David Jackson]

When preaching as a practising priest, I discovered three commentaries on the Gospels that I studied and prayed over for, what were termed, years A,B,C. Warren Carter's Matthew and the Margins became my main resource for the A (Matthew) cycle. It was not easy reading but the insights presented were well worth the effort to study and find application for Sunday preaching on Matthew's Gospel.
My other favorites are: for Mark's Gospel, Binding the Strong Man by Ched Myers; ( for Luke, I have not found a commentary in the same vein); for John's Gospel, Becoming Children of God by Wes Howard-Brook.

[Al Gritten]

Primarily a reference book designed for exegesis or preaching, Carter moves through Matthew in pericopes exploring the Matthean text from the perspective of historical and sociopolitical influences, suggesting alternative understandings of some of the Jesus stories relating them more directly to a deeper reflection of their power in the economic, political and social context of the day, adding a richer significance to interpreting the text for modern hearers of the gospel.

[Neil White]

This is a reading of Matthew's gospel that brings together a historical critical look at the Greco-Roman influences in the culture Matthew speaks to with Liberation perspectives on how Jesus' message would be heard by those not in positions of power. There are a lot of good insights in this volume and Warren Carter has a good grasp of many ancient sources.

[Susie Webster-toleno]

Very helpful for sermon prep

[cinlin]

Read for Gospel of Matthew in Context.