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The Matthaean Understanding of the Sabbath: a Response To G.N. Stanton

Pieter Vlaming Straat 58-I NL-1093 AG Amsterdam, Holland

G.N. Stanton argues against the members of the Matthaean community keeping the Sabbath strictly, and suggests that they do not adhere to the Sabbath commandments, but that they are afraid of antagonizing their Jewish persecutors. This article counters Stanton's argument by pointing out that Mt. 12.1-14 (the most relevant Matthaean text to the Sabbath issue) cannot be taken to legitimate abolition of the Sabbath, as Stanton maintains, if enough attention is paid to a general exegetical principle and the Matthaean redactional changes. Moreover, if the historical background of the two Gospels is considered, it can be seen that the persecutors in Mk 13.14-23 and Mt. 24.20-28 could not have been Jews, but were Romans. Finally, a tentative alternative to account for the Matthaean redactional addition 'on a Sabbath' in the verse 'pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath' (Mt. 24.20) is put forward from an examination of the probable readers of Matthew 24 and the situation of the Matthaean community implied therein.

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