The Bible and earlier Christians

[DeistPaladin]

Er, Matthew was an early Christian - much earlier than the examples you give - and he apparently did read the Bible that way.

My contention is that Matthew lied and hoped nobody would notice.

He lies almost compulsively through his Gospel tale, alleging "prophecies" that were supposedly "fulfilled" but when you read the OT to cross-check his assertions, they turn out to be bogus. At other times he misquotes the OT, alleging that it says things it doesn't say. He also spins tall tales that historians can't verify, from the massacre of the infants around Jerusalem under Herod the Great to the "Attack of the Zombie Saints" when Jesus dies on the cross.

I sympathize somewhat. Matthew had the unenviable task of trying to evangelize to the Jews and convince them that this hippy flower-child was really the long awaited Messiah. Part of the sale of this bill of goods needed to include the "promised kingdom" being in the sky, not on earth as expected.

It's a small wonder the Jews weren't convinced, as underscored by how the books of the NT were originally in Greek and Matthew obviously relied heavily on the Septuagint, the Greek translation of OT books. Their Messiah was a warlord that would lead Israel to glorious triumph over her enemies, not some wandering hippy preaching peace and love. And the notion of an "intercessor" was wholly blasphemous to their faith. The god they worshiped was an insecure, jealous megalomaniac who shared center stage with no one, let alone require an intercessor. Further, the intercessor demigod concept, while popular among pagans, requires a polytheistic pantheon, another blasphemous concept to the Jews.

A hard sell, indeed. No wonder he lied his ass off.