Galilean Rendezvous
The following is a rough translation and some initial comments on Matthew 28:16-20, the Revised Common Lectionary gospel reading for the Sunday after Pentecost, also called “Trinity Sunday.”
Matthew follows Mark in saying that Jesus had – before his death - planned a meeting with the disciples at a specific place in Galilee. In Mark’s original ending, the women at the tomb are to tell Peter and the disciples to meet Jesus there, but they say nothing to anyone because they were afraid. Later Markan scribes added to the story, presumably because that is such an unsatisfying ending. Matthew has a different ending, with the eleven meeting Jesus as they had planned.
The context of c.28 seems important to me. Verses 1-10 have the resurrection story, ending with Jesus telling Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to go and tell the disciples to meet him as they planned. Verses 11-15 have (IMHO) an interlude, to deal with the matter of the soldiers’ lie that the disciples had removed Jesus’ body. Verse 15 shows that the rumor continued to be an issue for Matthew’s community many years later. Then, verses 16-20 tell of the meeting itself. My point is that vv. 16-20 read in continuity with vv.1-10.
16 Οἱ δὲ ἕνδεκα μαθηταὶ ἐπορεύθησαν εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν εἰς τὸ ὄρος οὗ
ἐτάξατο αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς,
Yet the eleven disciples went into Galilee to the mountain which Jesus appointed to them,
ἐπορεύθησαν: API 3p, πορεύομαι, 1) to lead over, carry over, transfer 1a) to pursue the journey on which one has entered, to continue on one's journey
ἐτάξατο: AMI 3s, τάσσω, 1) to put in order, to station 1a) to place in a certain order, to arrange, to assign a place, to appoint.
1. The verb τάσσω (appointed) suggests that this place and meeting is a rendezvous. Verse 7 and verse 10 have an angel then Jesus telling the women to tell the disciples to meet Jesus in Galilee. All of this seems pre-arranged.
2. The verb πορεύομαι (went) here is the root of the participle in v.19 (having gone) that I will reference below.
3. Over and over in the synoptic stories, Jesus is making plans, preparing rooms, dividing the crowd into manageable groups – and usually employing two or more disciples to help with the execution. Even here, Matthew notes that Jesus had planned the meeting place at some point along the way. Jesus, the community organizer.
17 καὶ ἰδόντες αὐτὸν προσεκύνησαν, οἱ δὲ ἐδίστασαν.
and having seen [him] they worshiped [him], yet they doubted.
ἰδόντες: AAPart npm, ὁράω, 1) to see with the eyes 2) to see with the mind, to perceive, know
προσεκύνησαν: AAI 3p, προσκυνέω, 1) to kiss the hand to (towards) one, in token of reverence
ἐδίστασαν: AAI 3p, διστάζω, 1) to doubt, waiver
1. Of which verb is αὐτὸν (him) the object - ἰδόντες (having seen him) or προσεκύνησαν (worshiped him) or both? Obviously in the meaning of the verse the ‘him’ is the object of both the seeing and the worshiping. My question has to do with the more strict translation question of where to place the ‘him’ or whether to duplicate it.
2. Many translations make this “they saw” and “but some doubted.” The “they” is the implied subject of the 3rd person plural verb προσεκύνησαν (worshipped). The “some” is the curious translation. There is a pronoun here and it is οἱ, which is an extremely common substantive pronoun, the antecedent of which is ‘the eleven disciples’ of v.16. It seems like a bit of a stretch to reduce the pronoun and its fairly clear antecedent to “some.” Kudos to the New American Bible (translated by the US Council of Bishops), which renders: “When they saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted.” That, to me, seems to be the meaning, not that some of them were all in and some of them were not.
3. Worship and doubt are coexistent in this verse. Again I say, worship and doubt are coexistent in this verse.
18 καὶ προσελθὼν ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς λέγων, Ἐδόθη μοι πᾶσα ἐξουσία ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ [τῆς] γῆς.
And having approached, Jesus spoke to them while saying, “All authority in heaven and on [the] earth was given to me.
προσελθὼν: AAPart nsm, προσέρχομαι, 1) to come to, approach 2) draw near to 3) to assent to
ἐλάλησεν: AAI 3s, λαλέω, 1) to utter a voice or emit a sound 2) to speak 2a) to use the tongue or the faculty of speech
λέγων: PAPart nsm, λέγω, 1) to say, to speak 1a) affirm over, maintain 1b) to teach 1c) to exhort, advise, to command, direct
Ἐδόθη: API 3s, δίδωμι, 1) to give 2) to give something to someone 2a) of one's own accord to give one something, to his advantage
Mt 28:18 - ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ [τῆς] γῆς; Mt. 6:10 ὡς ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς·
1. The two aorist participles followed by aorist verbs in vv.17-18 seem to be staging the story: “Having seen him, they worshiped and doubted” then “Having approached, he said.” It could be that in v.17, they see Jesus ascending the path up to their rendezvous spot and that is when they worship and doubt. Then, in v.18 Jesus gets to the spot and speaks.
2. I’m not sure why the simple aorist passive Ἐδόθη (was given) gets translated as if it were in the perfect tense (has been given) in many translations. Perhaps it just reads more smoothly that way.
19 πορευθέντες οὖν μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς
εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος,
Therefore, having gone, disciple all the nations, while baptizing them in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit,
πορευθέντες: APPart, nmpl, πορεύομαι, 1) to lead over, carry over, transfer 1a) to pursue the journey on which one has entered, to continue on one's journey 1b) to depart from life 1c) to follow one, that is: become his adherent 1c1) to lead or order one's life
μαθητεύσατε: AAImp 2p, μαθητεύω, 1) to be a disciple of one 1a) to follow his precepts and instructions 2) to make a disciple
βαπτίζοντες: PAPart npm, βαπτίζω, 1) to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk)
1. Many translations and many, many sermons interpret this verse to have “Go” (and in some cases, “Go!”) as the imperative for evangelism. (See below). The only imperative in this verse is “disciple” (μαθητεύσατε). The word “Go” is not an imperative, but another aorist participle followed by an aorist verb, the same pattern as in vv.17-18. Young’s Literal Translation is the only one I know of that follows this pattern over these three verses.
2. Matthew uses the verbal form of “to disciple” three times: 13:52 (“every scribe having been discipled into the reign of God”), 27:57 (Joseph of Arimathea, who was also himself disciple to Jesus”), and here. The only other instance of the verb in the NT is in Acts 14:21.
20 διδάσκοντες αὐτοὺς τηρεῖν πάντα ὅσα ἐνετειλάμην ὑμῖν: καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ
μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος.
while teaching them to attend to all that I commanded to you; and behold I am with you all the days even to the completion of the age.
διδάσκοντες : PAPart npm, διδάσκω, 1) to teach 1a) to hold discourse with others in order to instruct them, deliver didactic discourses
τηρεῖν: PAInf, τηρέω, 1) to attend to carefully, take care of 1a) to guard 1b) metaph. to keep, one in the state in which he is 1c) to observe 1d) to reserve: to undergo something
ἐνετειλάμην: AMI 1s, ἐντέλλομαι, 1) to order, command to be done, enjoin
συντελείας: gsf, συντέλεια, 1) completion, consummation, end; 2) a bringing to one end together; the combination of parts to one end, marking the unity, perfection, and accomplishment of a scheme
1. If the disciples are to teach all that Jesus had commanded them, the question arises: What has Jesus “commanded” (ἐντέλλομαι) them? Mt. 17:9 is only use of Jesus ‘commanding’: “And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.” My suggestion would be that this is a reference to the teaching on the mountain in chapters 5-7 (the so-called Sermon on the Mount). That setting on a mountain, in cc.5-7 and in this text, places Jesus in a similar position to Moses, who went up onto the mountain to receive instruction from God that was given in the law.
2. The infinitive “to attend to” (τηρέω) is the same word used to describe the work of the guards who were watching over Jesus’ tomb (28:4). The NIV has “obey.”
I don’t know why this text gets privileged as “the Great Commission.” It is captivating as Jesus’ last words to the disciples in Matthew’s gospel, but for three reasons I think it is best not to refer to it as the Great Commission.
1. Almost every translation makes the verb “go” in v.19 into the command or the imperative of this “commission.” The problem, per the translation of v.19 above, is that the verb there appears as a participle, not an imperative. It should read, “As you go …” or better “Having gone …” Throughout this chapter the verb πορεύω (to go) appears in vv. 7 (2x - “having gone,” aorist participle and “he goes” active indicative), 11 (“as they were going”, present participle), 16 (“they went,” aroist), and here. If it is translated as if it were an imperative, “Go …” then this indeed sounds like a commission. The imperative of v.18, however, is not “go” but the verb “disciple.” For a longer argument on this point, see my book Talking About Evangelism, c.2.
2. I believe that the way Matthew tells of this event points to the priority of the “Sermon on the Mount” as the text that ought to be privileged. The very intentional meeting place, set on the mountain, seems to reinforce the priority of that teaching, to me. Otherwise, if the point of discipleship is simply to make more disciples – without the radical vision of a new way of life as described in the Sermon on the Mount – then there is no ‘there’ there. The zeal of evangelism would simply be to accumulate the largest team, or to simply ensure life in heaven after death. That would be completely contrary to the spirit of the Sermon on the Mount.
3. By calling this “the Great Commission,” I think we miss what this text about Jesus. The words “All authority in heaven and on [the] earth was given to me” and “behold I am with you all the days even to the completion of the age” bracket the words to the disciples. It raises what I hope is a meaningful question: Is the primary point here that we are commissioned and, therefore, Jesus’ words about himself are encouraging for us? Or, is the primary point here that Jesus even now has all authority in heaven and earth and even now is with us to the end of the age, so that to disciple others by perpetuating his teachings is how we respond to his authority and presence? I think calling this text “the Great Commission” shows a preference for the first alternative, while I think the second is preferred.
I like this excerpt from the March 1, 2007 edition of Review & Expositor, citing the excellent South African missiologist David Bosch: Only with William Carey's fresh interpretation of this text in his 1792 Modern Missions Movement launching "Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathen" did this text begin its ascendancy in the church's mission consciousness. But Bosch contends that its subsequent use as a missions - mantra —and its concomitant divorcement from its Matthean context—have not been wholly salutary for the practice of mission nor for the church's appropriation of the guidance of the text itself.”
“Matthew’s Trumpet Blast” J. Leslie Houlden, Modern Believing, July 1, 2010
Matthew, in contrast to Mark, avoids the difficulty and tells an imaginable story. Of course the women obeyed the instruction, now with the unambiguous authority of Jesus behind them, to tell the disciples their story (w.8-10) - and tell it they certainly did, all uncertainty gone. Matthew much prefers clarity and confidence to nuance and intriguing possibility.
And the plan for the Galilean rendezvous is executed to the letter. As at the Sermon in chapters 5-7 and the Transfiguration in chapter 17 (and with abundant Old Testament precedent), the disciples meet Jesus on a Galilean mountain, setting the stage for his final revelation to his own.
We are told that the women, and then the disciples, worshipped Jesus, kneeling to him. It is a favourite word of Matthew's, appearing first in his nativity stories and then (rather precariously!) with regard to Peter in the boat on the lake (14.33). The term lacks the technical rigidity of later times (to mean a response due to God alone), but still implies deep veneration. By comparison with Mark and Luke, it is very much a Matthean word for the proper response to Jesus. (It comes only once in a relevant way in Mark and once in Luke, as here in an Easter setting, 24.52, but eleven times in Matthew, in the present passage perhaps with increased force).
Here are some comments that I have collected along the way about this text.
Mountains have played no small part in Matthew's stage settings heretofore, and some see this setting to be a symbolically significant seventh and final mountain reference in this Gospel (5:1; 8:1; 14:23; 15:29; 17:1,9), but the significance is more likely its parallel to Moses' pronouncements from mountain heights. Throughout this Gospel Jesus is cast as the new Moses, and therefore a mountainous Deuteronomic curtain-call is fitting for the Matthean Jesus.
As Hagner points out, Matthew selects the word distazein to specify this doubt. He has used it only once before, on Jesus' lips, questioning Simon regarding his failure in walking on the water: "O little faith, why did you doubt?" (Matt 14:31)
The "everything" may hearken to 26:1, but it surely refers to the Sermon on the Mount as well as the material within the five didactic discourses of Matthew. No reference is made here to the Torah (Jesus' commandments fulfill the Torah's teachings, 5:17-20, and will be the final arbiter at judgment, 7:24-27); it is "everything that J have commanded you" that is mandated as curriculum. Moreover, simple intellectual comprehension is not the objective. The assignment is to teach them "to obey everything." Karl Barth observes: "They need to be nurtured. . . in order that their works may become those of disciples and a Christian community may exist in the world. It exists only where the things commanded by Jesus are Observed.'"
Karl Barth
CD, IV.3,281: Not for nothing was it the Resurrected who at the end of St. Matthew's Gospel came among the disciples who partly knew Him but partly still doubted, and said to them: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore (i.e. because I am the One, and to make known the fact that I am the One, to whom all power is given), and teach all nations ... and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."
I see KB making a strong connection of the "therefore," by making Jesus' self-identification the point and what follows the "therefore" as a response to that identification.
CD (IV.3, 321) Is it not the fulfillment of the promise of the Resurrected: "Lo, I am with you alway?" Is it not the other world in this world, the incorruptible within the corruptible, eternal life in the temporal, divine in the human? Is not the church itself the eschatological fact par excellence? In other words, is it not the case that in it that which took place once and once for all in the Easter event ... still takes place continually, in the existential reaching and claiming of countless individuals both within its own sphere and without?
In my reading of this, I am appreciating that the 'commission' is not simply a 'go and speak' command, but the launch of a new community with whom the risen Christ chooses to be present in the world, through all of their days.
Commentaries on 28:17
Willoughby Allen, International Critical Commentary, p.303. “Who are the ‘some’? Hardly some of the Eleven. It is inconceivable that Mt. should end his Gospel leaving his readers with the impression that some of the Eleven doubted the fact of Christ’s resurrection. The ‘oi’ presupposes a larger gathering than the Eleven only. But Mt. says distinctly ‘the eleven disciples.’ Yes; but this does not preclude the possibility, even in the editor’s mind, that others were present. … (by merging Mk and Mt – supposing that Mt.28:16-20 is the lost ending originally in Mk with some Matthean characteristics added – Allen thinks this is the 2nd time the eleven had seen Jesus – the first in Jerusalem.)
Calvin’s Commentaries, v.iii, p.381. “But some doubted. It is wonderful that, after they had twice seen Christ, still some doubted. If any one choose to view this as referring to the first appearance, there will be no absurdity in that opinion; for the Evangelists are sometimes in the habit of blending a variety of transactions. But neither would it have the appearance of absurdity to suppose that in some of them there remains of their former terror led them again into hesitation; for we know that, when Christ appeared, they were struck with fear and amazement, til the had recovered their minds, and had become accustomed to this presence. The meaning, therefore, appeared to me to be, that some at first hesitated, until Christ made a nearer and more familiar approach to them; but that when they certainly and absolutely recognized him, they then worshipped, because the splendor of his divine glory was manifest. …
The Interpreter’s Bible, v.7, p.621. (Sherman Johnson) That some doubted may correspond to the facts: cf. Luke 24:11, 37-42. Jesus himself had said that the resurrection from the dead would not necessarily convince everyone (Luke 16:31), and we are not to suppose that all disciples had perfect faith. (George Buttrick) Doubt is perhaps not the opposite of faith, but only faith’s misgiving. … There is faith in honest doubt. “Who never doubted never half believed. Where doubt there truth is – ‘tis her shadow.” (Philip James Bailey, Festus: A Country Town)
The New Interpreter’s Bible, v.VIII, p.502. (Eugene Boring) Whatever the nature of the resurrection event, it did not generate perfect faith even in those who experienced it firsthand. It is not to angels or to perfect believers, but to the worshiping/wavering community of disciples to whom the world mission is entrusted.
note: Form criticism may offer a helpful perspective here, since in the commissioning form that may be at the base of this narrative, the patriarch, prophet, or apostle being called and commissioned often responds to the numinous presence of the divine messenger with an objection, hesitancy, fear, or unbelief (cf. Ex.3:6, Judge 6:13; Jer 1:6).
P.W. van der Horst, “Once More: The Translation of oi δέ in Matthew 28:17” (EBSCO)
Existing translations divide roughly into three categories: 1. 'When they saw him, they worshipped him, but some doubted'; in this translation (the most usual one) oi δέ refers to some of the disciples. AV, RSV, NEB, NIV, GNB, JB, etc., and many commentaries.
2. 'When they saw him, they worshipped him, but they doubted; in this translation oi δέ refers to all of the disciples. K. Grayston, 'The Translation of Matthew 28.17', JSNT 21 (1984), , and the commentaries of Lohmeyer, Grandmami, Bonnard, and others noted by Grayston; also A.T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament (New York, 1919) p. 694
3. 'When they saw him, they worshipped him, but others doubted; in this translation oi δέ refers to persons other than the disciples. Some mss. of the Vetus Latina; also F. Blass-A. Debrunner-F.
Rehkopfj Grammatik des neutestamentlichen Griechisch (Göttingen, 1976), p. 201 (S250).
The problem is, of course for, (1) that there is no corresponding oi μέν in the first half of the sentence, (2) that the following verses do not give any indication of doubt on the part of the disciples, (3) that nowhere in the context is there any indication that persons other than the disciples (who are mentioned in v. 16 and are unambiguously the grammatical subject of προσεκόνησαν in v. 17) are involved.
[van der Horst argues that (1) is correct because of ‘many’ precedents in Greek extrabiblical texts where there is no oi μέν in the first half of a sentence, but oi δέ means a partative group in the second half; and because there is no indication whatsoever that anyone else is indicated in the periscope.] It seems to me that many of his precedents are different in kind than Mt 28:17.
