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Fragments on Matthew

1Mt 1, 1 The blessed Matthew, having the purpose from the very beginning to teach everything, that Christ appeared according to the prophetic voices, providing truth to the promises that had been made, and leaving not one excuse for ignorance for the unbelievers, says, "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham," instead of: this one the preceding voices proclaimed, this one the promises to the righteous spoke of. 2 mt 1, 1 It is superfluous to ask this; for what difference does it make to say this one first or the other? For through either, he was shown to be equally the descendant of both. But the evangelist does not say it this way; for he did not say Christ was the son of David and the son of Abraham, but Christ of David, and David of Abraham, thus signifying the same thing, but not saying this for the moment in the plain wording; for it is clear that by "son" he does not mean the one begotten, but the descendant. But someone might say to him that Matthew did not wish to trace the lineage up from David to Abraham; for why, if he wanted this, did he not give his genealogy according to Luke? But for the reasons we have stated, he says this in his own way. It was from these twelve that he had to make mention of those through whom it came to pass that the lineage was brought down to Christ. 4 mt 1, 16 Since, therefore, it seemed to show something new in the transition by saying "And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ," he promised also to set forth for us the manner in which he was born, and he says: "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was in this way"; instead of: he was not born in the same way as the rest, but differently. 5 mt 1, But it is possible to understand the power of God; for it is also called spirit. 7

mt 2, 7 Herod wished to question the magi secretly, fearing lest the

Jews save him as their own king. 8 mt 2, 23 But others say that these things disagree with what is found in Luke; for if according to Luke he went up from Bethlehem to Jerusalem and from there to Nazareth, how according to Matthew was Joseph, having been warned, taken from Bethlehem into Egypt? For Luke, recounting the time of our Savior's birth, mentions the reign of "Augustus" and the "census" under him and the events at the Savior's birth, but also says "when the days were completed for circumcising him, they brought" the child "to Jerusalem" and after performing the customary rites for him, they go away to "Nazareth." But Matthew makes no mention at all of what is in Luke, but he sets down what is passed over in silence by him, I mean, the things concerning the magi, who had perhaps set out from their own land at the same time as Jesus was born, but had not yet completed so great a journey in a short time. And how long was this time between the appearance of the star and the arrival of the magi, the evangelist himself taught, saying "from two years old" and "according to the time which he had ascertained from the magi"; therefore, a period of two years had already passed from the birth of the Lord until the arrival of the aforementioned. Therefore, there is no disagreement in the sacred evangelists, if Luke brings him up with his parents to Jerusalem on the eighth day of his birth and from there takes him away to Nazareth, while Matthew records that after a period of two years he was again in Bethlehem, and from there had departed to Egypt because of the king's plot. And it was likely that they visited the place not only a second time, but even many times for the sake of the memory of the marvel. That the time was not the same in both, it is also possible to infer otherwise. Luke says that they were not prosperous

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Fragmenta in Matthaeum

1Mt 1, 1 Ὁ μὲν μακάριος Ματθαῖος εὐθὺς καὶ ἐκ προοιμίων διδάξαι πάντα σκοπὸν ἐσχηκώς, ὅτι κατὰ τὰς προφητικὰς ὤφθη φωνὰς ὁ Χριστὸς ταῖς μὲν γεγενημέναις ἐπαγγελίαις τὸ ἀψευδὲς παρεχόμενος οὐδὲ μίαν δ' ἀγνωμοσύνης πρόφασιν τοῖς ἀπιστοῦσιν καταλιμπάνων, βίβλος, φησί, γενέσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ ∆αβὶδ υἱοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἀντὶ τοῦ· τοῦτον ἐκήρυττον αἱ προλαβοῦσαι φωναί, τοῦτον ηὔδων αἱ πρὸς τοὺς δικαίους ἐπαγγελίαι. 2 mt 1, 1 Περιττὸν μὲν τὸ τοῦτο ζητεῖν· τί γὰρ διαλλάττει τὸ πρῶτον τοῦτον εἰπεῖν ἢ τὸν ἕτερον; δι' ἑκατέρου γὰρ ἀπόγονος ὁμοίως ἀμφοτέρων ἐδείκνυτο. ὁ δὲ εὐαγγελιστὴς οὐδὲ οὕτως φησίν· οὐ γὰρ τὸν Χριστὸν ἔφη υἱὸν τοῦ ∆αβὶδ καὶ υἱὸν Ἀβραὰμ, ἀλλὰ τὸν μὲν Χριστὸν τοῦ ∆αβίδ, τοῦ δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τὸν ∆αβίδ, τὸ αὐτὸ μὲν καὶ οὕτως σημαίνων, οὐ τοῦτο δὲ τέως ἐν τῷ προχείρῳ λέγων τῆς λέξεως· τὸν γὰρ υἱὸν δῆλον ὡς οὐ τὸν γεννηθέντα λέγει, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἀπόγονον. ἀλλὰ φαίη τις ἂν πρὸς αὐτόν, ὡς οὐκ ἀπὸ τοῦ ∆αβὶδ ἀνάγειν ἐπὶ τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ἐβουλήθη τὸ γένος ὁ Ματθαῖος· τί δήποτε γάρ, εἰ τοῦτο ἤθελεν, μὴ κατὰ τὸν Λουκᾶν αὐτὸν ἐγενεαλόγησεν; ἀλλ' ἰδικῶς δι' ἃς ἔφαμεν αἰτίας τοῦτό φησιν. ἦν ἀπὸ τῶν δώδεκα τούτων μνημονεῦσαι δι' ὧν τὸ γένος ἐπὶ τὸν Χριστὸν κατάγεσθαι συνέβαινεν. 4 mt 1, 16 Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν ἐδόκει τι καινὸν ἐμφαίνειν τῇ μεταβάσει εἰπὼν Ἰακὼβ δὲ ἐγέννησεν τὸν Ἰωσὴφ τὸν ἄνδρα Μαρίας, ἐξ ἧς ἐγεννήθη Ἰησοῦς ὁ λεγόμενος Χριστός, ἐπηγγείλατο καὶ τὸν τρόπον ἡμῖν ἐκθέσθαι, καθ' ὃν γεγέννηται καί φησιν· «τοῦ δὲ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἡ γέννησις οὕτως ἦν»· ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐχ ὁμοίως ἐτέχθη τοῖς λοι ποῖς, ἀλλ' ἑτέρως. 5 mt 1, ∆υνατὸν δὲ νοῆσαι τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ θεοῦ· καὶ γὰρ πνεῦμα κα λεῖται. 7

mt 2, 7 Ὁ Ἡρώδης λάθρα ἠβουλήθη ἐρωτῆσαι τοὺς μάγους δεδιὼς μή πως οἱ

Ἰουδαῖοι ὡς οἰκεῖον βασιλέα σώσωσιν αὐτόν. 8 mt 2, 23 Ἕτεροι δέ φασιν ταῦτα διαφωνεῖν πρὸς τὰ παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ κεί μενα· εἰ γὰρ ἀπὸ τῆς Βηθλεὲμ κατὰ τὸν Λουκᾶν ἀνῆλθεν εἰς Ἰερου σαλὴμ κἀκεῖθεν εἰς τὰ Νάζαρα, πῶς κατὰ τὸν Ματθαῖον ἀπὸ τῆς Βηθ λεὲμ χρηματισθεὶς ὁ Ἰωσὴφ ἀπήρθη εἰς Αἴγυπτον; Λουκᾶς μὲν γὰρ τὸν καιρὸν ἱστορῶν τῆς τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν γεννήσεως τῆς «Αὐγούστου» βασιλείας μνημονεύει καὶ τῆς κατ' αὐτὸν «ἀπογραφῆς» καὶ τὰ συμ βάντα ἐπὶ τῇ τοῦ σωτῆρος γεννήσει, ἀλλὰ καὶ «ὅτε», φησίν, «ἐπλήσθησαν αἱ ἡμέραι τοῦ περιτεμεῖν αὐτόν, ἀνήγαγον» τὸ παιδίον «εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα» καὶ τελέσαντες ἐπ' αὐτῷ τὰ νενομισμένα ἀπίασιν εἰς «Ναζαρέθ». ὁ δὲ Ματθαῖος οὐδ' ὅλως τῶν παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ μέμνηται, τίθησι δὲ τὰ παρὰ τούτῳ σεσιγημένα, λέγω δὴ τὰ κατὰ τοὺς μάγους, κινησάντων μὲν ἴσως ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκείας γῆς ἅμα τῷ γεννηθῆναι τὸν Ἰησοῦν οὔπω δὲ τὴν τοσαύ την στειλαμένων πορείαν ἐν καιρῷ βραχεῖ. πόσος δὲ ἦν οὗτος ὁ μεταξὺ χρόνος τοῦ τε φανέντος ἀστέρος καὶ τῆς τῶν μάγων ἀφίξεως, αὐτὸς ἐδίδαξεν ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς λέγων «ἀπὸ διετοῦς» καὶ «κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ὃν ἠκρίβωσεν παρὰ τῶν μάγων»· οὐκοῦν διετὴς ἤδη χρόνος παρελήλυθεν ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ κυρίου γεννήσεως καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν ἄφιξιν τῶν εἰρημένων. οὔκουν διαφωνεῖ τὰ παρὰ τοῖς ἱεροῖς εὐαγγελισταῖς, εἰ μὲν ὁ Λουκᾶς ὀγδόῃ τῆς γεννήσεως ἡμέρᾳ ἀνάγει αὐτὸν ἅμα τοῖς γονεῦσιν εἰς Ἰερουσαλὴμ κἀκεῖθεν ἀπάγει ἐπὶ τὴν Ναζαρέθ, Ματθαῖος δὲ μετὰ διετῆ χρόνον γενόμενον πάλιν ἐν Βηθλεὲμ ἀναγράφει, ἐντεῦθέν τε εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἀπεληλυθέναι διὰ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ἐπιβουλήν. καὶ ἦν εἰκὸς οὐ μόνον δεύτερον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πλειστάκις ἐπιφοιτᾶν αὐτοὺς τῷ τόπῳ μνήμης τοῦ παραδόξου χάριν. ὅτι δὲ μὴ εἷς ἦν παρ' ἀμφοτέροις χρόνος, καὶ ἄλλως ἔστι συλλογίσασθαι. Λουκᾶς φησι μὴ εὐπορῆσαι