Matthew seems to indicate a change in Jesus the Messiah’s preaching by specifying: ‘From that time Jesus began to preach and to say.’ Following the arrest of John the Baptist, now imprisoned in the fortress of Machaerus near the Dead Sea, Jesus the Messiah enters fully into his ministry.
Matthew stresses the similarity between Jesus’ preaching and John the Baptist’s, thus suggesting a degree of continuity.
Indeed, Herod Antipas will believe that John the Baptist has reappeared, risen from the dead, on the political scene (Luke 9.7). You can consult the following pericopes for further details:
- Pericope PER163 : Death of John the Baptist
- Pericope PER164 : A reminder of John the Baptist’s arrest
- Pericope PER165 : A reminder of the circumstances of John the Baptist’s murder
If John the Baptist’s disciples were initially surprised by the lack of asceticism in Jesus the Messiah’s life, the similarity of the message should reassure them. The wonders and miracles performed by this new Master would surely convince them completely.
Moreover, the people, who understood that the true Messiah must be preceded by a forerunner, now had to realise that the prophets’ promises were being fulfilled before their eyes. The situation thus becomes clearer at this point!
Here Matthew describes a new turning point at which Jesus becomes fully the Messiah. It is therefore in Galilee that the light truly begins to shine.