In Against Heresies 3.1.1, Irenaeus correlates Matthew's publication with when Peter and Paul began preaching in Rome, which I argue refers to Rome, the empire. This article reviews a similar usage of Rome, as the empire, found in 1 Maccabees 8.
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Those who argue for an early date for Matthew’s Gospel must contend with Irenaeus’s claim that “Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church.” My approach for dealing with the…
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Irenaeus’ Against Heresies 3.1.1 (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 5.8.2–4) has long been a mixed blessing for those who want to leverage the church fathers to argue that Matthew was published early: For, after our Lord rose from the dead, [the apostles] were invested with power from on high when the Holy…