The Pharisees in Matthew 23 Reconsidered

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Scholarly and historical challenges to the canon of Scripture have been ongoing since before the Council of Nicea in 325, and they continue to this day. A growing number of Matthean scholars contest the historicity of Matthew 23 and its validity for inclusion in the Gospel narrative. They view Jesus’s condemnation of the Pharisees and the polemical language as a reflection of growing opposition to Judaism within the Matthean community of post-70 CE and therefore regard the chapter as having little historical value.

In this detailed historical, cultural and social analysis, Dr Layang Seng Ja defends the contended understanding of this passage and analyses the view that the actions of the Pharisees, and the condemnation they receive in Matthew 23, are consistent with the context of Jesus’s time on earth. Dr Layang also tackles the dating controversy of the Pharisees in this chapter and the chapter’s subsequent authenticity. This book provides an interesting and in-depth study that credits Matthew 23 as historically reliable and authoritative as part of the Word of God, giving a convincing counter-argument to recent critical thought.