Although the Gospel of Matthew does not identify its author within the text itself, Christian tradition has consistently attributed it to St. Matthew the Apostle. The testimony of the early Church Fathers is unanimous in this regard, and this tradition was widely accepted from at least the second century onward. The title “According to Matthew” also appears in some of the earliest surviving Gospel manuscripts, dating to the fourth century.
According to Holy Tradition, after Pentecost, St. Matthew preached the Good News of Christ’s Resurrection throughout Palestine. At the request of Jewish converts in Jerusalem, he wrote his Gospel to describe the earthly life and ministry of the Savior before departing to proclaim the Gospel in distant lands. Tradition holds that he later preached in Syria, Media, Persia, and Parthia, eventually suffering martyrdom in Ethiopia.
Because Matthew’s Gospel is closely connected with the early Christian community in Palestine, some scholars have suggested that an earlier version may have been written in Aramaic, although the earliest surviving form of the Gospel is in Greek. The Gospel is commonly dated to approximately AD 60–65, while some scholars propose a later date, around AD 80–100.
The Gospel of St. Matthew is read liturgically over seventeen weeks, beginning on the Monday of the Holy Spirit, the day after Pentecost. Beginning with the twelfth week, Matthew is read on Saturdays and Sundays, while the Gospel of St. Mark is read on the remaining weekdays.
According to the Typicon, the Gospel of Luke always begins on the Monday following the Sunday after the Exaltation of the Cross. This date does not necessarily correspond to the eighteenth week after Pentecost. As a result, the readings from the Gospel of St. Matthew may sometimes conclude earlier, with certain passages omitted, or later, with some readings repeated, depending on the liturgical calendar.