The Reason of Following

Below is a rough translation and some preliminary comments on Matthew 4: 12-23, the Revised Common Lectionary gospel reading for the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany. 

 

¹² Ἀκούσας δὲ ὅτι Ἰωάννης παρεδόθη ἀνεχώρησεν εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν. 

Yet having heard that John had been handed over, he withdrew/escaped into Galilee.  

Ἀκούσας  AAPart nms, ἀκούω, 1) to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, 

παρεδόθη  API 3s, παραδίδωμι, 1) to give into the hands (of another)  ἀνεχώρησεν  AAI 3s, ἀναχωρέω, 1) to go back, return  2) to withdraw 

1. Matthew uses the word παραδίδωμι (hand over) often. It can mean something fairly benign, but in the gospels it often has the more sinister sense of betrayal. See the list below for Matthew’s uses.

2. The word ἀναχωρέω (withdraw) also has intense meaning in Matthew. Audrey West (Lutheran School of Theology) says, “The verb ἀναχωρέω is typically used in Matthew when there is movement from one place to another in the face of threatening circumstances. (MD: see v.13, n.1 below) … Thus, the pericope's opening verse is not simply a way to mark time, but it signals that John's arrest is a dangerous situation for Jesus, and he must choose how to respond.”  http://www.workingpreacher.org/

In my mind, the problem with ‘withdrew’ is that Jesus is not anywhere from which he needs to withdraw. He’s in the wilderness, having been led there by the Spirit. The point about danger is very well-taken, but doesn’t ‘withdraw’ put the emphasis on the place that one is leaving? I am offering “escaped” as another option, to pick up on the danger of returning to the area of the Jordan. 

 

¹³ καὶ καταλιπὼν τὴν Ναζαρὰ ἐλθὼν κατῴκησεν εἰς Καφαρναοὺμ τὴν 

παρα θαλασσίαν ἐν ὁρίοις Ζαβουλὼν καὶ Νεφθαλίμ: 

And having left Nazareth having arrived he settled in Capernaum by the sea in region of Zebulon and Naphtali; 

καταλιπὼν  AAPart nms, καταλείπω, 1) to leave behind  1a) to depart from, leave  

ἐλθὼν : AAPart nms, ἔρχομαι, 1) to come  

κατῴκησεν  AAI 3s, κατοικέω, 1) to dwell, settle

1. This verse reminds me of the constant moving that characterizes Matthew’s birth narrative. Audrey West’s comment above helps to place this motion in the context of Jesus being displaced from the very beginning of this life and now at the onset of his ministry. I also will suggest below that we can hear the call stories of the disciples as a fugitive calling them to follow – I feel that is the significance of starting this pericope not with v.17, but rightly with v.12.

2. Warren Carter argues that Mt. 4:12-16 closes the introduction to Jesus’ ministry, which begins properly with v.17.  Noting that Jesus has not moved to major cities like Tiberius or Sepphoris, Carter says, “As a Jew in Roman- dominated territory, Jesus is located among the marginal, with the rural peasants not the urban wealthy, with the ruled not the rulers, with the power­less and exploited not the powerful.” (Warren Carter, “Evoking Isaiah: Matthean Soteriology and an Intertextual Reading of Isaiah 7-9 and Matthew 1:23 and 4:15-16,” Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 119, No. 3 (Autumn, 2000), pp. 503-520.) 

 

¹⁴ ἵνα πληρωθῇ τὸ ῥηθὲν διὰ Ἠσαΐου τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος, 

In order that which was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled, saying, 

πληρωθῇ  APS 3s, πληρόω, 1) to make full, to fill up, i.e. to fill to the full 

ῥηθὲν: APPart nms, λέγω, 1) to say, to speak 

λέγοντος PAPart gms, λέγω, 1) to say, to speak 

1. Matthew

By now we are accustomed to Matthew’s tendency to describe movements as fulfillments of Scripture. 

 

¹⁵ Γῆ Ζαβουλὼν καὶ γῆ Νεφθαλίμ, ὁδὸν θαλάσσης, πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, 

Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν, 

Land of Zebulon and land of Naphtali, road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles/nations,  

1. Matthew is quoting Isaiah 9:1-2, which does not mention Capernaum. Capernaum would be located in the OT region called Naphtali. 

2. Warren Carter (op.cit) emphasizes the imperial overtone of this quotation: “Since 67 C.E., Vespasian and Titus claimed control of Galilee, redistributed land among loyal supporters, and ensured economic control of land and resources through taxation of the largely peasant economy. Loyal local elites, who secured their own social and economic power through cooperation with Rome, assisted in maintaining control. The few and the powerful benefited at the expense of many. This institutionalized injustice, sustained by the memory of the recent defeat and the threat of military violence and reinforced, for instance, by the presence of Vespasian's and Titus's images on coins, was a far cry from the vision of the promised land which acknowledged God's sover­eignty and justice.” 

3. The phrase “Galilee of the Gentiles/nations” (the word ἐθνῶν could be translated either way) could refer to the practice of imperial countries populating regions with their own peoples in order to quell uprisings, or to the fact that this part of Galilee (in Isaiah’s time under Assyria and in Matthew’s time under Rome) was controlled by other nations. 

 

¹⁶ ὁ λαὸς ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκότει φῶς εἶδεν μέγα, καὶ τοῖς καθημένοις ἐν 

χώρᾳ καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου φῶς ἀνέτειλεν αὐτοῖς. 

The people who are seated in darkness saw a great light, and to the ones who are seated in a space and shadow of death a light rose to them.

καθήμενος  PMPart nms, κάθημαι, 1) to sit down, seat one's self

εἶδεν: AAI 3s, ὁράω, 1) to see with the eyes 

καθημένοις  PMPart dmp, κάθημαι, 1) to sit down, seat one's self 

ἀνέτειλεν  AAI 3s, ἀνατέλλω, 1) rise  1a) to cause to rise

1. I did not note to myself where I initially learned this piece of information but it is a very good observation: 

When one compares the text of Matt 4:16 to the Greek and Hebrew forms of Isa 9:2, the differences are immediately apparent. First, it is clear that the Gospel of Matthew has not followed the text of the LXX here. Matthew writes: 

ό λαός ό καθήμενος έν σκότει φως ειδεν μέγα, και τοις καθημένοις έν χώρα και σκιά θανάτου φως άνέτειλεν αύτοΐς. 

The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, and to those who sit in the region and shadow of death a light has arisen to them. 

The LXX differs substantially with: 

ό λαός ό πορευόμενος έν σκότει ΐδετε φως μέγα* οί κατοικοϋντες έν χώρα και σκιφ θανάτου φως λάμψει έφ' υμάς. 

You people who walk in darkness see a great light, those who dwell in the region and shadow of death a light shines upon you.

 

¹⁷ Ἀπὸ τότε ἤρξατο ὁ Ἰησοῦς κηρύσσειν καὶ λέγειν, Μετανοεῖτε, ἤγγικεν 

γὰρ ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν. 

From there, Jesus entered to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has come near.” 

ἤρξατο: AMI 3s, ἄρχω, 1) to be chief, to lead, to rule

κηρύσσειν: PAInf, κηρύσσω, 1) to be a herald, to officiate as a herald  1a) to proclaim after the manner of a herald

λέγειν: PAInf, λέγω, 1) to say, to speak 

Μετανοεῖτε: PAImpv 2p, μετανοέω, 1) to change one's mind, i.e. to repent 

ἤγγικεν  PerfAI 3s, ἐγγίζω, 1) to bring near, to join one thing to another 

1. When Matthew specifies that Jesus came ‘to preach and to say’ I wonder if the preaching was one thing and the words that Matthew quotes are another thing. 

2. The message of Jesus is precisely what John the Baptizer was preaching, in Mt.3:2. 

 

¹⁸ Περιπατῶν δὲ παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν τῆς Γαλιλαίας εἶδεν δύο ἀδελφούς, 

Σίμωνα τὸν λεγόμενον Πέτρον καὶ Ἀνδρέαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ, βάλλοντας 

ἀμφίβληστρον εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν: ἦσαν γὰρ ἁλιεῖς. 

Yet walking along the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishers. 

Περιπατῶν  PAPart nms, περιπατέω, 1) to walk

εἶδεν: AAI 3s, ὁράω, 1) to see with the eyes  2) to see with the mind, to perceive, know

λεγόμενον: PPPart asm, λέγω, 1) to say, to speak

βάλλοντας  PAPart amp, βάλλω, 1) to throw or let go of a thing without caring where it falls  1a) to scatter, to throw, cast into 

ἦσαν : IAI 3p, εἰμί, 1) to be, to exist, to happen, to be present

1. This all sounds disturbingly happenstance. “As Jesus was walking along …” rather than, “From there he set out to find ….” More like ‘first available’ than ‘specifically destined.’ Maybe Jesus was casting a net like fishers do – toss it out and see what happens to get tangled up in it. This is a very different telling of this call than we saw in John’s first chapter last week. 

 

¹⁹καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς, Δεῦτε ὀπίσω μου, καὶ ποιήσω ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων. 

λέγει: 

And he says to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of people.”

Δεῦτε 1) come hither, come here, come  2) interjection, come!, come now! ποιήσω: FAI 1s, ποιέω, 1) to make 

1. If my comment from the last verse has any validity (and that’s always a concern when I comment), maybe this activity of fishing for people is not quite the precise technique or process that preachers have often said that it is. They are fishers, it is what they do and what they know. 

Here is an excellent comment from Magnus Ramage from 3 years ago on this page: 

Adding to your comment on v19, I like what Ched Myers says (on the parallel phrase in Mark): "There is perhaps no expression more traditionally misunderstood than Jesus’ invitation to these workers to become ‘fishers of men’ (Mk 1:17). This metaphor, despite the grand old tradition of missionary interpretation, does not refer to the ‘saving of souls’, as if Jesus were conferring upon these men instant evangelist status. Rather, the image is carefully chosen from Jeremiah 16:16, where it used as a symbol of Yahweh’s censure of Israel. Elsewhere the ‘hooking of fish’ is a euphemism for judgement upon the rich (Am 4:2) and powerful (Ez 29:4). Taking this mandate for his own, Jesus is inviting common folk to join in his struggle to overturn the existing order of power and privilege." (from Binding the Strong Man, p.132)

 

²⁰ οἱ δὲ εὐθέως ἀφέντες τὰ δίκτυα ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ.

Yet immediately having left the nets they followed him.  

ἀφέντες  AAPart, nmpl ἀφίημι, 1) to send away  … of a husband divorcing his wife  … to yield up, to expire   to let go, let alone, let be   to disregard   to leave.

ἠκολούθησαν  AAI, 3pl. ἀκολουθέω, 1) to follow one who precedes, join him as attendant, accompany 

1. See the comment below v.22 on the disciples’ immediate reactions. 

 

²¹ Καὶ προβὰς ἐκεῖθεν εἶδεν ἄλλους δύο ἀδελφούς, Ἰάκωβον τὸν τοῦ 

Ζεβεδαίου καὶ Ἰωάννην τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ, ἐν τῷ πλοίῳ μετὰ Ζεβεδαίου τοῦ πατρὸςαὐτῶν καταρτίζοντας τὰ δίκτυα αὐτῶν: καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτούς.

And going forward from that place, he saw two other brothers, James the of Zebedee and John his brother, in their work with Zebedee their father mending their nets; and he called them.  

προβὰς  AAPart, nms προβαίνω, 1) to go forwards, go on 

εἶδεν: AAI 3s, ὁράω,v  \{hor-ah'-o}

1) to see with the eyes  2) to see with the mind, to perceive, know

καταρτίζοντας  PAPart, ampl, καταρτίζω, 1) to render, i.e. to fit, sound, complete  1a) to mend (what has been broken or rent), to repair 

ἐκάλεσεν AAI, 3sg καλέω, 1) to call  1a) to call aloud, utter in a loud voice 

1. It looks as though I left out the word “son,” but that word is implied, not given. 

2. The fact that they were mending their nets is a reminder that a lot of the task of fishing goes well beyond simply dropping the nets, pulling them in, and gathering the fish – as arduous as that work can be. It also involves caring for the equipment – the nets, the boats, and all of the other things of which I am largely ignorant for that profession. 

 

 ²² οἱ δὲ εὐθέως ἀφέντες τὸ πλοῖον καὶ τὸν πατέρα αὐτῶν ἠκολούθησαν 

αὐτῷ. 

And immediately leaving the boat and their father they followed him.

ἀφέντες  AAPart nmp, ἀφίημι, 1) leave, to send forth or away, to let go from one's self, 2) to let go from one's further notice, care, etc., to leave, let alone. 3)

forgive, to send away, dismiss, set free.

ἠκολούθησαν  AAI 3pl ἀκολουθέω, 1) to follow one who precedes, join him as attendant, accompany

1. Robert Scharlemann has reflected long and philosophically about the disciples’ immediate reaction to Jesus’ invitation in his book, The Reason of Following. He argues that the reasoning in the immediate – i.e. not-mediated-by-thinking-it-over – reaction is different from the 3 traditional types of reason found in western philosophy of thinking, doing, and feeling (or pure reason, practical reason, and aesthetic judgment). Their response is not mediated. It is more intuitive than reflective. As such, Scharlemann argues that it shows a 4^th kind of reasoning, which he calls “acolouthetic reason” based on the word ἀκολουθέω, to follow. I see Scharlemann’s acolouthetic reason as being quite similar to what Friedrich Schleiermacher called, in The Christian Faith, “the feeling of absolute dependence,” which is an immediate state of self-consciousness, rather than a mediated one. 

While one may not want to drag 4-foot long names into a Sunday sermon, Scharlemann and Schleiermacher offer some keen insight here into how the call and response of discipleship cannot be treated like just another marketing or persuasive activity. There is something about the call, the caller, the called, that evokes an immediate response, the consequences of which have yet to be disclosed. As such, it is a trusting onset of a journey, rather than a conclusion of sorts. It seems related to what Paul Tillich called he-autonomy, the alternative to heteronomy (a law from without) and autonomy (freedom, a law from within) and signifies that moment when the call from without corresponds with the longing from within. 

If nothing else, the call and response here, beside the call to “come and see” after disciples follow Jesus and ask “Where are you staying?” last week, as well as Jesus’ invitation to “count the costs” show that these callings are not “one size fits all experiences.” 

 

²³Καὶ περιῆγεν ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ Γαλιλαίᾳ, διδάσκων ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς αὐτῶν 

καὶ κηρύσσων τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας καὶ θεραπεύων πᾶσαν νόσον 

καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν ἐν τῷ λαῷ.

And he was leading in the region of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing all the disease and all the infirmity in the people. 

περιῆγεν  IAI 3s, περιάγω, 1) to lead around, to lead about with one's self 

διδάσκων  PAPart nms, διδάσκω, 1) to teach  1a) to hold discourse with others in order to instruct them,  deliver didactic discourses

κηρύσσων  PAPart nms, κηρύσσω, 1) to be a herald, to officiate as a herald  1a) to proclaim 

θεραπεύων  PAPart nms, θεραπεύω, 1) to serve, do service  2) to heal, cure, restore to health

1. Leading (ostensibly leading the disciples whom he had just called to follow behind him), teaching, preaching, and healing. Sounds like a work plan! It also sounds suspiciously like the “Great Commission” at the end of Matthew’s gospel.

2. T. Hartley Hall summarizes it in this way: The remainder of the Gospel serves in part to expand the themes incorporated here: demonstrating through specific examples of Jesus' teaching, preaching, and healing just how Matthew's church understood Jesus' relationship to Judaism and to John; in precisely what this "good news" of the Kingdom might consist; and what it meant for a person to "repent" and follow this Jesus as Lord. (An Exposition of Matthew 4:12-23)

 

 

Here are the uses of of παραδίδωμι (betrayed, handed over) in Matthew 

Mat 4:12	...heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into...
Mat 5:25	...time the adversary deliver thee to the...
Mat 10:4	...and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
Mat 10:17	...of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils...
Mat 10:19	But when they deliver you up, take no thought...
Mat 10:21	And the brother shall deliver up the brother to...
Mat 11:27	All things are delivered unto me of...
Mat 17:22	...of man shall be betrayed into the hands...
Mat 18:34	...was wroth, and delivered him to the...
Mat 20:18	...Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief...
Mat 20:19	And shall deliver him to the...
Mat 24:9	Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted...
Mat 24:10	...be offended, and shall betray one another, and...
Mat 25:14	...own servants, and delivered unto them his...
Mat 25:20	...talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five...
Mat 25:22	...and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two...
Mat 26:2	...Son of man is betrayed to be crucified...
Mat 26:15	...me, and I will deliver him unto you...
Mat 26:16	...sought opportunity to betray him.
Mat 26:21	...one of you shall betray me.
Mat 26:23	...dish, the same shall betray me.
Mat 26:24	...Son of man is betrayed! it had been...
Mat 26:25	Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and...
Mat 26:45	...Son of man is betrayed into the hands...
Mat 26:46	...is at hand that doth betray me.
Mat 26:48	Now he that betrayed him gave them...
Mat 27:2	...him away, and delivered him to Pontius...
Mat 27:3	Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he...
Mat 27:4	...I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood...
Mat 27:18	...that for envy they had delivered him.
Mat 27:26	...had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be...

 

Here are the uses of δεῦτε (come) in Matthew

Mat 4:19	...saith unto them, Follow me, and I...
Mat 11:28	Come unto me, all...
Mat 21:38	...is the heir; come, let us kill...
Mat 22:4	...things are ready: come unto the marriage...
Mat 25:34	...his right hand, Come, ye blessed of...
Mat 28:6	...as he said. Come, see the place..

 

Commentaries: A marvelous resource for this text is here, by Audrey West, Associate Professor of New Testament, Lutheran School of Theology. Says West, 

“The verb ἀναχωρέω is typically used in Matthew when there is movement from one place to another in the face of threatening circumstances. For example, after following the star to Bethlehem, the magi left ἀναχωρέω, 2:12) for their own country by a different route, having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod. Jesus' parents went into Egypt ἀναχωρέω, 2:14) after the angel warned them to flee, and they went away to Galilee ἀναχωρέω, 2:22) upon their return after a similar such warning. Jesus departed from the synagogue ἀναχωρέω, 12:15) after becoming aware of a threat against him by the Pharisees. Later, after hearing that John has been killed, Jesus departed to a deserted place ἀναχωρέω, 14:13) to be alone. Thus, the pericope's opening verse is not simply a way to mark time, but it signals that John's arrest is a dangerous situation for Jesus, and he must choose how to respond. There will come a time, later, to face such threats head-on (particularly when Jesus goes to Jerusalem prior to the crucifixion), but for now Jesus pulls away in order to carry out his ministry of proclamation in and around Galilee.”