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Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 1 Genealogy of Jesus Christ from Joseph to Abraham. Joseph, at first, did not want to live with Mary because of her unexpected pregnancy, but he obeyed the Angel. They had Jesus. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 2 The magi saw in the sky the star of the birth of the king's son, and they came to congratulate Herod. But, they were sent to Bethlehem, where they gave gold, frankincense, oil to Jesus. Herod killed the babies, but Jesus escaped in Egypt. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 3 John the Baptist does not allow the Pharisees to bathe, because deeds are important for repentance, not words. Jesus asks Him to baptize, John, at first, refuses. Jesus Himself will baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 4 The devil tempts Jesus in the desert: make bread out of a stone, jump off a roof, bow down for money. Jesus refused, and began to preach, to call the first apostles, to heal the sick. Became famous. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 5 Sermon on the Mount: 9 Beatitudes, you are the salt of the earth, the light of the world. Don't break the law. Do not be angry, put up, do not be tempted, do not divorce, do not swear, do not fight, help, love enemies. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 6 The Sermon on the Mount: On Secret Almsgiving and the Our Father Prayer. About fasting and forgiveness. A true treasure in Heaven. The eye is a lamp. Or God, or wealth. God knows about the need for food and clothing. Seek the truth. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 7 Sermon on the Mount: Take the beam out of your eye, don't throw pearls. Seek and you will find. Do to others as you do to yourself. The tree bears good fruit, and people will enter Heaven on business. Build a house on stone - taught with authority. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 8 Healing a leper, Peter's mother-in-law. Military faith. Jesus has nowhere to sleep. The way the dead bury themselves. The wind and the sea obey Jesus. Healing of the Possessed. Pigs drowned from demons, and livestock breeders are unhappy. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 9 Is it easier for a paralyzed man to command to walk or to forgive sins? Jesus eats with sinners, fasting - then. About a container for wine, repair of clothes. Resurrection of a girl. Healing the bleeding, the blind, the dumb. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 10 Jesus sends 12 apostles to preach and heal for free, for food and lodging. You will be judged, Jesus will be called the devil. Save yourself with patience. Walk everywhere. There are no secrets. God will watch over you and reward you. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 11 John asks about the Messiah. Jesus praises John that he is greater than a prophet, but lesser with God. Heaven is achieved by effort. To eat or not to eat? Reproach to the cities. God is revealed to infants and workers. Light burden. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 12 God wants mercy and kindness, not sacrifice. You can treat on Saturday - it's not from the devil. Do not blaspheme the Spirit, justification comes from words. Good from the heart. Sign of Jonah. The hope of the peoples is in Jesus, His mother is the disciples. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 13 About the sower: people are fruitful like grain. Parables are easier to understand. Weeds from wheat will be separated later. The Kingdom of Heaven grows like grain, rises like leaven, profitable, like treasure and pearls, like a net with fish. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 14 Herod cut off the head of John the Baptist at the request of his wife and daughter. Jesus healed the sick and fed 5,000 hungry people with five loaves and two fish. At night, Jesus went to the boat on the water, and Peter wanted to do the same. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 15 The disciples do not wash their hands, and the Pharisees do not follow the words, thus they are defiled - blind guides. A bad gift to God, instead of a gift to parents. Dogs eat crumbs - heal your daughter. He treated and fed 4000 with 7 loaves and fish. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 16 A pink sunset signifies clear weather. Avoid the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. Jesus is the Christ, they will kill and rise again. Church on Petra-stone. By following Christ to death, you will save your soul, you will be rewarded according to your deeds. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 17 Transfiguration of Jesus. John the Baptist is like the prophet Elijah. Demons are driven out by prayer and fasting, the healing of the lad. Need to believe. Jesus will be killed, but will rise again. Taxes are taken from strangers, but it is easier to pay them to the Temple. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 18 Woe to the one who seduces, it is better to be without an arm, leg and eye. It is not the will of God to die. Farewell obedient 7x70 times. Jesus among two supplicants. Parable about the evil debtor. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 19 one flesh. You won't be able to marry. Let the kids come. God alone is good. Righteous - distribute the estate. It is difficult for a rich man to go to God. Those who follow Jesus will sit down to judge. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 20 Parable: They worked differently, but they paid the same because of bonuses. Jesus will be crucified, but will rise again, and who will sit on the sides depends on God. Do not dominate, but serve like Jesus. Healing of 2 blind people. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 21 Entry into Jerusalem, hosanna to Jesus. The expulsion of merchants from the Temple. Speak with faith. Baptism of John from Heaven? Performed not in words, but in deeds. A parable about the punishment of evil vinedressers. The main stone of God. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 22 In the Kingdom of Heaven, as well as for a wedding, dress up, do not be late, and behave with dignity. Caesar minted coins - return a part, and God - God's. There is no registry office in Heaven. God among the living. Love God and neighbor. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 23 You are brothers, don't get carried away. The temple is worth more than gold. Judgment, mercy, faith. Outwardly beautiful, but inside bad. The blood of the prophets is on the Jerusalemites. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 24 When the end of the world is not clear, but you will understand: the sun will be darkened, signs in the sky, there is the Gospel. Before that: wars, devastation, famine, disease, impostors. Prepare, hide and save yourself. Do everything right. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 25 5 smart girls made it to the wedding, while others didn't. The cunning slave was punished for 0 income, and the profitable ones were promoted. The king will punish the goats, and reward the righteous sheep for good guesses: fed, clothed, visited. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 26 Valuable oil for Jesus, the poor will wait. Judas was hired to betray. Last Supper, Body and Blood. Prayer on the mountain. Judas kisses, arrest of Jesus. Peter fought with a knife, but denied. Jesus was convicted of blasphemy. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 27 Judas repented, quarreled and hanged himself. At the trial, Pilate doubts the crucifixion of Jesus, but the people took the blame: the King of the Jews. Signs and death of Jesus. Burial in a cave, guarded entrance, sealed. Gospel of Matthew. Matt. Chapter 28 On Sunday, a blazing Angel frightened the guards, opened the cave, told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead, would soon appear. They taught the guards: you fell asleep, the body was stolen. Jesus commanded to teach and baptize the nations.

The word Gospel in modern language has two meanings: the Christian gospel of the coming of the Kingdom of God and the salvation of the human race from sin and death, and a book that presents this message in the form of a story about the incarnation, earthly life, saving suffering, death on the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Initially, in the Greek language of the classical period, the word gospel had the meaning of "retribution (reward) for the good news", "a thankful sacrifice for the good news". Later, the good news itself began to be called that. Later, the word gospel acquired a religious meaning. In the New Testament, it began to be used in a specific sense. In several places the gospel denotes the preaching of Jesus Christ himself (Matt. 4:23; Mark 1:14-15), but most often the gospel is the Christian proclamation, the message of salvation in Christ and the preaching of this message. arch. Kirill Kopeikin Gospel - books of the New Testament, which contain a description of the life, teachings, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The gospel is four books named after the authors-compilers - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Among the 27 books of the New Testament, the Gospels are considered law-positive. This name shows that the Gospels have the same meaning for Christians as the Law of Moses - the Pentateuch had for the Jews. “GOSPEL (Mark 1:1, etc.) is a Greek word meaning: gospel, i.e. good, joyful news... These books are called the Gospel because there can be no better and more joyful news for a person than the news of the Divine Savior and eternal salvation. That is why the reading of the Gospel in church is each time accompanied by a joyful exclamation: Glory to Thee, Lord, glory to Thee!” Biblical Encyclopedia of Archimandrite Nicephorus

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Genealogy of Jesus Christ () and His birth ().

. Genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of David, Son of Abraham.

"Genealogy": the calculus of ancestors in succession descending, as here in ev. Matthew, or ascending, as in Ev. Luke (and gave.), OK. It was customary among Eastern writers in general and among Jewish writers in particular, when describing the life of a famous person, to indicate his genealogical table, as is evident from the books of Moses, Ruth, Kings and Chronicles. But the Evangelist Matthew, placing the genealogy of the Lord, no doubt, had a particularly important goal - to show that he descended precisely from those persons to whom the promise of the descent of the Messiah from them was given in ancient times, as can be seen from the further words of the evangelist. And placed at the beginning of the first Gospel, and with it the entire composition of the New Testament books, the genealogy of the Lord constitutes a wonderful transition from the Old Testament to the New.

- “Jesus Christ”: Jesus (in Greek Ἰησjῦς, in Hebrew - Yeshua, shortened from Yehoshua) means the Savior or simply the Savior (see Athan. V. 4, 513), - the name is quite common among the Jews. But here, in its application to Christ, it had a special meaning, expressing the concepts of the work He had done for the salvation of the human race (cf. note, k). - Christ is a Greek word and means anointed - the same as the Jewish Mashiach - the Messiah, which is why Jesus is called either Christ or Messiah, which is all the same (cf.). Among the Jews, kings and high priests, and sometimes prophets, were anointed with oil, which is why they were called anointed (Mashiach - . . . . (cf. ;). Anointing meant the same as the consecration of the elect to a special service to God or the Church of God on earth. It was an outward sign of the pouring out of the special gifts of God on the anointed one.In these meanings, the name of Christ - the Messiah - the Anointed One is assimilated primarily to the Lord Jesus, as a king, high priest and prophet, to whom the gifts of the spirit are communicated beyond measure, moreover, a partaker of Him (.). - " Son of David ": the word son among the Jews was used in different meanings: it meant a son in the proper sense (cf. and others), then - an adopted person (.), further - a descendant in general (. and others), had others not eigenvalues. Here this word means descendant David, a later member of the house of David. For the evangelist, who originally wrote his gospel for Jewish believers, it was very important to point to Jesus as a descendant of Davidova because, according to the promise given to this king-prophet (and gave.; and gave.; and gave.; and gave.), it was from his kind that the Messiah was to come; and this confidence was so strong in the Jews that they could not have been persuaded that Jesus was the Messiah, unless it had been proved to them that he was descended from the line of David (cf. . . . and others). - "Son of Abraham": even before David, Abraham, the forefather of the Jewish people, was given a promise by God that the Messiah (Christ) Savior would come from his offspring (, cf. .), and for the same reasons it was very important for the evangelist to show that Christ comes from the kind of father believers - Abraham. Thus, born in humiliation, Jesus, the son of Mary and the imaginary father of his Joseph, was, according to the promises, the descendant of the father of the believers, Abraham, and the greatest of the kings of the Jews, David. “But why didn’t the evangelist first name Abraham’s son, and then David’s? - Because David was especially famous among the Jews both for the fame of his deeds and for the time of his life, for he died long after Abraham. Although he made a promise to both, little was said about the promise given to Abraham, as of old, and the promise given to David, as recent and new, was repeated by everyone (cf.). And no one called Christ the son of Abraham, but everyone called the son of David. Therefore, the evangelist first mentions David, as the most famous, and then turns to Abraham, as the ancestor, and Poelik says to the Jews, he considers it superfluous to start the genealogy from the most ancient generations ”( Gold., cf. Feof.).

. Abraham begat Isaac; Isaac begat Jacob; Jacob begat Judah and his brothers;

The genealogy of Christ from Abraham is as follows: "Abraham begat Isaac"; about this is narrated in the book of Genesis - and gave. The evangelist's genealogy includes only chapters generations from which the Messiah was to come, and not all members of the family. Therefore the birth of Isaac alone is here spoken of, and not the other children of Abraham; further, the birth of Isaac only Jacob is spoken of; of Jacob's children, only Judas is named by name, and so on. - "Isaac begat Jacob": . - "Jacob - Judas" and his brothers: cf. etc. “Why does the evangelist, having mentioned Abraham and said that he begat Isaac, and Isaac of Jacob, does not mention the brother of the latter, whereas after Jacob he mentions Judas and his brothers? The reason for this is given by some to Esau's wickedness, saying the same about some other ancestors. But I will not say this: for if this were so, then why is there a mention of malevolent wives a little after? The reason is that the Saracens and the Ishmaelites, the Arabs and all who descended from those ancestors, had nothing to do with the people of Israel. Therefore, he kept silent about them, and refers directly to the ancestors of Jesus and the people of the Jews ”( Gold.).

. Judah begat Perez and Zerah by Tamar; Perez begat Esrom; Esrom begat Aram; Aram begat Aminadab; Aminadab begat Nahshon; Nahshon begat Salmon; Salmon begat Boaz by Rahava; Boaz begat Obed by Ruth; Obed begat Jesse;

"Judah - Perez and Zara from Tamar": . "Fares - Esroma": . "Esrom - Arama": . "Aram - Aminadava": . "Aminadav - Naassona": . Between Peres (), who moved to Egypt with the family of Jacob, and Nahsson (), who, when the Jews left Egypt, after 430 years of their stay there, was the ancestor of the tribe of Judah (), only three members of the genealogy are named here; it seems - some are omitted, like . There are omissions below, as we will see, made for special purposes (see note to). "Nahsson - Salmona": . "Salmon - Boaz from Rahava": . . "Boaz - Obida from Ruth": . "Ovid - Jesse": .

. Jesse begat David the king; David the king gave birth to Solomon from the former after Uriah;

"Jesse begat David the king": . and d. "David - Solomon from the former for Uriah": . In verses 3, 5 and 6, contrary to the custom of Eastern writers ( Euph. Zig.), are entered into the genealogical table of a woman, and, moreover, as St. Chrysostom, "malicious". In explanation of this he, in the words of the 3rd verse: "Judah begat Perez and Zerah by Tamar", remarks: “What are you doing, inspired man, reminding us of the history of lawless incest? And why is he saying this? - If we began to list the genus of any ordinary person, then it would be decent to keep silent about that matter. But in the genealogy of the incarnate God, not only should not be silent, but it should also be publicly announced about this in order to show His providence and power. For He did not come to avoid our disgrace, but to destroy it ... Christ should be surprised not only because he took on the flesh and became a man, but also because he deigned vicious people to be his relatives, not being ashamed none of our vices; moreover, He also wants to show that everyone, even the forefathers themselves, are guilty of sins. Thus, the patriarch, from whom the very name the Jewish people received, turns out to be a no small sinner: for Tamar denounces him. And David by an adulterous wife gave birth to Solomon. But if these great men have not kept the law, how much more those who are inferior to them. And if they didn’t, then everyone sinned, and the coming of Christ was necessary. Do you see that it is not for a few and unimportant reasons that the evangelist mentioned the whole story of Judas? For the same reason, Ruth and Rahab are mentioned, of whom one was a foreigner, and the other a harlot, i.e. in order to teach you that the Savior came to destroy all our sins, came as a doctor, and not as a judge ... So, the evangelist compiled a genealogy and placed these wives in it in order to shame the Jews with such examples and teach them not to be arrogant ”(cf. . Theophilus.).

. Solomon begat Rehoboam; Rehoboam begat Abijah; Abijah begat Asa; Asa begat Jehoshaphat; Jehoshaphat begat Jehoram; Jehoram begat Uzziah; Uzziah begat Jotham; Jotham begat Ahaz; Ahaz begat Hezekiah; Hezekiah begat Manasseh; Manasseh begat Amon; Amon begat Josiah;

"Solomon begat Rehoboam": . . "Rehoboam - Abijah": . "Avia - Asu":. "Asa begat Jehoshaphat": . "Josaphat-Jorama": . "Joram to Uzziah": . . . Actually, Jehoram begat Ahaziah, Ahaziah - Jehoash, Jehoash - Amaziah, and Amassiah - Uzziah - three kings are omitted (see note to). - "Uzziah begat Jotham": . "Joatham - Ahaz": . Ahaz to Hezekiah: . . "Hezekiah begat Manasseh": . . "Manasseh - Amun": . . "Amon - Josiah": .

. Josiah begat Joachim; Joachim begat Jeconiah and his brothers before moving to Babylon.

"Josiah begat Jeconiah and his brothers". Josiah begat Joachim, Joachim begat Jeconiah: . ; again one member of the genealogy is omitted. However, in some ancient manuscripts it is not omitted and, on the basis of them, it is included in our Slavic translation: (on a breze) and in Russian (in the text). "Before Migration to Babylon": under the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar around 588 BC. Chr. (). Babylon - the capital city of the Babylonian kingdom, vast and powerful then - stood on the Euphrates, a river that flows into the Persian Gulf; now they are looking for the ruins of this magnificent and once rich city. The Jews spent 70 years in captivity, according to the prophecy of the prophet Jeremiah ().

. After moving to Babylon, Jehoiachin gave birth to Salafiel; Salafiel begat Zerubbabel;

"Jehoniah begat Salaphiel": . Jeconiah did not have children according to the flesh: for when he was taken into captivity in Babylon, he was childless (. cf.), but during the captivity in prison and after the captivity in old age he could not have children, and the word of God, spoken through Jeremiah , should have been carried out on it - and it came. Therefore, if several sons of Jeconiah are mentioned: these were his children by adoption or law zhizchistvo(from the word uzik, which means relative). According to this law (. . cf. etc.), the brother or closest relative of the deceased childless had to marry his widow and restore his seed; the children born of this were considered the children of the deceased, although according to the flesh they belonged to the one who restored the seed, and thus had two fathers, one according to the flesh, the other (who died) according to the law. Such were the children of Jeconiah, and, moreover, the restorer of the seed was a member not from the offspring of Solomon, but from the offspring of his mother's brother Nathan, since the brothers and closest relatives of Jeconiah and Zedekiah - the last kings before the captivity - were put to death. Thus, Niri (from the descendants of Nathan) is a member of the genealogy, because his son Salathiel was adopted by Jeconiah (cf. and). - "Salafiel begat Zerubbabel": Salafiel, according to the testimony of the 1st book, was childless, but his brother Thedaiia (according to the law of widowhood, bore him children, of which the eldest - Zerubbabel - was revered as the legitimate son of Salafiel.

. Zerubbabel begat Abihu; Abihu begat Eliakim; Eliakim begat Azor; Azor begat Zadok; Zadok begat Achim; Achim begat Elihu; Elihu begat Eleazar; Eleazar begat Matthan; Matthan begat Jacob; James begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom Jesus, called Christ, was born.

"Zerubbabel begat Abihu... Matthan begat Jacob": all names from history are unknown: probably, all these members of the genealogy were preserved in family records or in legend, in any case, the genealogy in this part, no doubt, is reliable. - "Jacob begat Joseph, husband of Mary"“What shows that Christ is descended from David? He was born not from a husband, but from one wife, and the evangelist does not have the genealogy of a virgin; so, why can we know that Christ was a descendant of David? .. Gabriel commands to go to the virgin betrothed to her husband, named Joseph, from the house of David (). What do you desire more clearly than this when you hear that the virgin was from the house of David? This shows that Joseph also came from the same generation. For there was a law that commanded to take a wife not from another, but from the same tribe ... The Jews are not allowed to take a wife not only from another tribe, but from another clan or tribe. And so the words: from the house of David, whether we refer to the virgin, what was said above will remain undoubted, or if we apply it to Joseph, what was said about him will also apply to the virgin. If Joseph was from the house of David, then he took a wife not from a different kind, but from the same one from which he himself came ”( Gold., cf. Theophilus.). - “Husband of Mary”: husband only by betrothal (see note to). - "From whom he was born": cf. .– "Jesus called Christ": cf. approx. to .

. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the migration to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the migration to Babylon to Christ, fourteen generations.

"Fourteen Generations": the evangelist divides the genealogy into three periods and names 2 * 7 = 14 genera in each of them. Although in some periods there were more than 14 births, the superfluous ones are omitted. Probably, this was done to facilitate memory, so that it would be more convenient to remember the pedigree table. According to the explanation of St. 3latoust, “The evangelist divided the entire genealogy into three parts, wishing to show that the Jews did not become better with the change of government, but in the days of the aristocracy, and under the kings, and during the oligarchy, they indulged in the same vices; under the rule of judges, priests and kings they had no particular success in virtue” (as some of the names in each part testify to this). Periods:

"The Evangelist ranks Christ himself among the generations, everywhere copulating Him with us" ( Gold.).

. The Nativity of Jesus Christ was like this: after the betrothal of His Mother Mary to Joseph, before they were combined, it turned out that She was pregnant with the Holy Spirit.

"After betrothal": betrothal among the Jews consisted in an agreement that was concluded between the father of the bride and the father of the groom or, for their fathers, the closest relatives of the groom and bride, and the price of the bride, or gifts, was also given. - “With Joseph”: he was from the family of David (), at that time humiliated; craft - carpenter (cf.). According to legend, he was at that time already elderly and widowed. A distant relative of Mary, he became engaged to her only to be the guardian of her vow of virginity (Chet Min March 25, and December 25–27). - "Before they were combined": between the day of betrothal and the day of marriage, several times passed, sometimes several months, during which the bride, staying in the house of relatives, was already considered the wife of the betrothed; however ("it seems" Gold.) it also happened that the betrothed lived together, but did not have marital communication. Tradition, according to the indication of Ev. Luke, says that the betrothed Mary lived in the house of Joseph in Nazareth. - After the betrothal of Mary to Joseph, before they were combined, it turned out that She had in the womb "from the Holy Spirit". “Very expressively said the evangelist: "it turned out that she had in the womb", - as they usually say about special incidents that happen beyond all expectation and unexpected "( Gold., cf. Euph. Zig.: said - it turned out due to surprise). “Therefore, do not prostrate further, do not demand anything more than what has been said, and do not ask how the Spirit formed the child in the virgin. For if it is impossible to explain the method of this formation during natural action, then how can this be explained when the Spirit worked miraculously? ( Gold.).

. Joseph her husband, being righteous and not wanting to publicize her, wanted to secretly let her go.

"Her husband": only still betrothed. - "Being Righteous": δι'χαιος, 1) just, such a person who gives everyone their due; 2) kind (), loving, who softens the severity of the law with mercy, love, kindness. Joseph showed his justice in the fact that, suspecting his betrothed of infidelity, he did not want, contrary to the law, to combine with her, but intended to let her go; but his kindness lies in the fact that he wanted to secretly let her go, without publicly disclosing her. - "Not wanting to publicize it": according to the law of Moses, the betrothed, who violated fidelity before the time of marriage, was stoned before the gates of the city (), i.e. suffered the most shameful and painful death. Then the law granted the husband the right to release his wife from himself by giving her a letter of divorce (). It was customary in this divorce letter to indicate the reasons for the divorce, and there had to be witnesses, which was in any case shameful for the wife. Joseph, out of his kindness, not only did not want to subject his betrothed to legal execution, but did not even want to disgrace her by giving her a letter of divorce with the formalities prescribed by the law, but thought, without disclosing the reasons for the divorce, secretly, without dishonor, let her go Push. Joseph, apparently, did not know at all until now about the annunciation and the seedless conception of a baby in the womb of Mary.

. But when he thought this, behold, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said: Joseph, son of David! do not be afraid to take Mary your wife, for what is born in her is from the Holy Spirit; she will give birth to a Son, and you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

"When He Thought It": Why didn't the angel tell Joseph before he was embarrassed? Lest Joseph discover unbelief, and the same thing happen to him as to Zechariah. It is not difficult to believe a deed when it is already before one's eyes; and when there is no beginning of it, then the words will not be accepted so easily ... For the same reason, the maiden was also silent. For she thought that she would not assure the bridegroom by talking about an unusual deed, but, on the contrary, would upset him by giving the idea that she was covering up the crime that had been committed. If she herself, hearing about the bit of grace bestowed upon her, judges humanly and says: how “This will happen when I don’t know my husband”(); then Joseph would have doubted much more, especially when he heard about this from a suspected wife ”( Gold.). – Angel of the Lord: Angel means messenger; by this name in the Holy Scriptures proper spiritual-intelligent beings are called, who stood in goodness when the devils fell; they live in heaven and are sent by God to proclaim and fulfill His will, and they use various means, appearing in a dream, in a vision, in reality, taking on a human form. - “In a dream”: a way of revealing the will of God, not uncommon in the Old Testament: . and gave. . etc. - “Son of David”: The angel calls Joseph a descendant of David, a reminder of him, arousing faith in his words about his promised descendant to David - the Messiah. - “Do not be afraid” that by accepting your non-idle betrothed, you will break the law and offend God; "Do not be afraid", do not doubt her purity and innocence. - "Accept": to keep her in his house, since in thought Joseph had already let her go. - “What is born in her is from the Holy Spirit”: cf. .- “She will give birth to a son”: eliminating Joseph’s doubt and revealing the secret that confused him, the Angel assures that Mary will give birth to a son and predicts his name; from the explanation of this name, as well as from the indications of the Angel to the conception of a son from the Holy Spirit, Joseph could notice that it was about the Messiah. - "He will save": the name Jesus means Savior, and He, according to this name, really saved people with his redemptive . - "His people": all those whom the Father gave Him (). The Jews themselves were called people or the people of God, because they were especially chosen and generous as their especially beloved people, and they were sent the Messiah Jesus for the redemption of all people through Him. All who turn to Christ from all nations and at all times are people of God and Christ (cf. Gold.). - "From their sins": there is a reason for the separation between God and man and the reason for all evil; therefore, to save from sins means to reconcile people with God and to grant them the blessed union with God lost through sin, in which those who truly believe in Christ and stand in spiritual communion with Him are found.

. And all this happened, so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would come true, who says: behold, the Virgin in the womb will receive and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel, which means: God is with us.

“And all this happened, so that what was said will come true” etc.: the evangelist Matthew, assigning his gospel initially to believers among the Jews, is therefore in the habit, mainly before other evangelists, in the events of the life of Christ, to indicate the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah, which was especially important for the Jews (see and many others. ). So here, in the birth of Christ from a virgin, the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy about this is indicated (St. Golden, Theophilus. and Euph. Zig. the words of verses 22 and 23 are taken as a continuation of the Angel's speech). - May it come true: to be fulfilled. These words (as well as other similar ones) must be understood not so that the Messiah was born in order for the prophecy to be fulfilled, but so that the prophecy was given because the Messiah was to be born, and therefore it came to pass, came true.

"Through the prophet": Isaiah - more than 700 years before the birth of Christ. It was uttered on the occasion of the invasion then under Ahaz of the united armies of the kings of Israel and Syria on Judah in order to deprive the throne of the house of David, with which the promises of the Messiah were connected. The prophet assures that the plans of these kings will not come true, and in confirmation of this a sign is given as follows: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son" etc. (). The meaning of the prophecy is this: the house of David will not be deprived of the kingdom, for from it the Messiah from a virgin must be born in due time; Until then, the reigning lineage of David will not cease, and the enemies who now threaten him will not succeed in anything. The distant future event is presented by the prophet as a sign or proof of the near future, just as Moses pointed out the future worship of the people on the mountain, as proof that the people will indeed soon leave Egypt ().

"Emmanuel - God is with us": appeared on earth and lives among people in a human form, connecting the deity with humanity (). Why is His name not Immanuel, but Jesus? Because it's not said call, but - they will call, i.e. peoples and the event itself. Here the name is borrowed from the incident, as it is characteristic of Scripture to use incidents instead of names. So the words: "His name will be called Immanuel" mean the very thing that they will see God with people. For although he has always been with people, he has never been so clearly" ( Gold., cf. Theophilus.).

. Rising from sleep, Joseph did as the Angel of the Lord commanded him, and took his wife, and did not know Her, how at last She gave birth to her firstborn Son, and he called His name: Jesus.

"I took my wife": only betrothed to him, accepted as a wife to his house, or left her to live in his house (cf. note to); The Jewish bride was called wife. - “Didn't know her. How I finally gave birth: actually - until she gave birth: the doctrine of the ever-virginity of the Most Holy Theotokos. The evangelist used his how long, but you do not suspect from the fact that Joseph later knew her. The Evangelist only lets them know that the virgin before birth was completely inviolable; what happened after birth, that leaves you to judge for yourself. What you need to know from him, he said, i.e. that the virgin was inviolable before birth, and what is self-evident from what has been said as a true consequence, then leaves it to your own reflection, i.e., that such a righteous man (like Joseph) did not want to know the virgin after she so miraculously became a mother and merited to give birth in an unheard-of way and to bring forth an extraordinary fruit" ( Gold. God commands to sanctify to himself every firstborn, regardless of whether there will be children after him or not, and the only begotten was the firstborn. “She calls him the firstborn, not because she had any other son, but simply because he was the first born, and, moreover, the only one: for Christ is both the firstborn, as he was born first, and the only begotten, as he has no brother” ( Theophilus.). If the Gospels mention the brothers of Jesus Christ (. etc.) and they are even called by their names (; . - James, Josiah, Simon and Judas): then they were not relatives, but His named brothers - the children of Joseph the betrothed from the first his marriage Grieg. B., Epith., Kiril. Alexander., Hilary, Eusebius, Theophilus. and others. Cf. Thu Min December 26). Less likely is the opinion that the mentioned persons were cousins ​​of Jesus Christ - the children of Cleopas, brother of Joseph, and Mary, sister of the Mother of God, although they hold this opinion bl. Jerome, Theodoret and Augustine.

The Lord said to His disciples: You know that in two days there will be Easter, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified. Then the chief priests and the scribes and the elders of the people gathered in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and they decided in council to take Jesus by cunning and kill him; but they said: only not on a holiday, so that there would not be indignation among the people. When Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to Him with an alabaster vessel of precious ointment and poured it out to Him who was reclining on His head. Seeing this, His disciples were indignant and said: Why such a waste? For this myrrh could be sold at a high price and given to the poor. But Jesus, realizing this, said to them, Why do you trouble the woman? she has done a good deed for me: for you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me; having poured this myrrh on my body, she prepared me for burial; I tell you truly, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, it will be said in her memory and about what she did. Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said: What will you give me, and I will betray Him to you? They offered him thirty pieces of silver; and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to betray Him. On the very first day of unleavened bread, the disciples came to Jesus and said to Him: Where do you order us to prepare the Passover for You? He said: go to the city to such and such and say to him: The teacher says: My time is near; I will celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your place. The disciples did as Jesus commanded them and prepared the passover. When evening came, He lay down with the twelve disciples. Jesus, knowing that the Father had given everything into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, got up from supper, took off His outer garment and, taking a towel, girded himself. Then he poured water into the basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and wipe them with the towel with which he was girded. Approaches Simon Peter, and he says to Him: Lord! Do you wash my feet? Jesus answered and said to him: What I am doing, you do not know now, but you will understand later. Peter says to Him, You will never wash my feet. Jesus answered him: unless I wash you, you have no part with me. Simon Peter says to Him: Lord! not only my feet, but also my hands and my head. Jesus tells him: He who has been washed only needs to wash his feet, because he is all clean; and you are clean, but not all. For He knew His betrayer, therefore He said: You are not all pure. When he had washed their feet and put on his clothes, he lay down again and said to them, Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you speak correctly, for I am exactly that. So, if I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, then you must also wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. If you know this, blessed are you when you do it. And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” They were very sad, and began to say to Him, each of them: Is it not I, Lord? He answered and said, He who dips his hand with me into the dish, this one will betray me; However, the Son of Man goes as it is written about Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed: it would have been better for this man not to have been born. At the same time, Judas, betraying Him, said: Is it not I, Rabbi? Jesus says to him: You said. And while they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and giving it to the disciples, said, Take, eat: this is my body. And taking the cup and giving thanks, he gave it to them and said: drink from it all, for this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. I tell you that from now on I will not drink of this fruit of the vine until the day when I drink new wine with you in the kingdom of my Father. And having sung, they went up to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, You will all be offended because of Me this night, for it is written, I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered; after my resurrection I will go before you into Galilee. Peter answered Him, “If everyone is offended about You, I will never be offended. Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times. Peter says to him, Even though it behooves me to die with you, I will not deny you. All the students said the same. Then Jesus comes with them to a place called Gethsemane, and says to the disciples: Sit here while I go and pray there. And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to grieve and yearn. Then Jesus said to them: My soul is grieving to death; stay here and watch with me. And going a little way, he fell on his face, prayed and said: My Father! if possible, let this cup pass from me; however, not as I want, but as You. An angel appeared to him from heaven and strengthened him. And, being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Rising from prayer, He came to the disciples, and found them sleeping, and said to Peter: Could you not watch with me one hour? watch and pray so that you do not fall into temptation: the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Still, going away another time, he prayed, saying: My Father! if this cup cannot pass me by, lest I drink it, Thy will be done. And when he comes, he finds them sleeping again, for their eyes are heavy. And leaving them, he went away again and prayed a third time, saying the same word. Then he comes to his disciples and says to them: do you still sleep and rest? behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners; Get up, let's go: behold, he who betrays me has come near. And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a multitude of people with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. And the one who betrayed him gave them a sign, saying: Whom I kiss, he is, take him. And immediately coming up to Jesus, he said: Rejoice, Rabbi! And kissed him. Jesus said to him, Friend, why have you come? Then they came and laid hands on Jesus, and took Him. And behold, one of those who were with Jesus, stretching out his hand, drew his sword, and striking the servant of the high priest, cut off his ear. Then Jesus said to him: Return your sword to its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword; Or do you think that I cannot now implore My Father, and He will present Me more than twelve legions of angels? how will the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so? At that hour Jesus said to the people: You have come out as if against a robber with swords and clubs to take Me; every day I sat with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not take Me. That was all, may the writings of the prophets come true. Then all the disciples left Him and fled. And those who took Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. But Peter followed Him afar off, as far as the court of the high priest; and going inside, he sat down with the attendants to see the end. The chief priests and elders and the whole Sanhedrin looked for false evidence against Jesus in order to put him to death, and did not find it; and although many false witnesses came, they were not found. But at last two false witnesses came and said: He said: I can destroy the temple of God and build it in three days. And the high priest stood up and said to him, “Why don’t you answer anything? what do they testify against you? Jesus was silent. And the high priest said to him: I conjure you by the living God, tell us, are you the Christ, the Son of God? Jesus says to him: You said; I even say to you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest tore his clothes and said: He blasphemes! what else do we need witnesses for? Behold, now you have heard His blasphemy! what do you think? And they answered and said: Guilty of death. Then they spit in his face and choked him; others struck him on the cheeks and said: prophesy to us, Christ, who struck you? Peter was sitting outside in the yard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, You were also with Jesus the Galilean. But he denied before everyone, saying: I do not know what you are talking about. And as he was going out of the gate, another saw him, and she said to those who were there, This one was also with Jesus of Nazareth. And he again denied with an oath that he did not know This Man. After a while, those who were standing there came up and said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for your speech also reproves you.” Then he began to swear and swear that he did not know This Man. And suddenly a rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the word that Jesus had spoken to him: Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times. And when he went out, he wept bitterly. And when morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people had a conference about Jesus, to put him to death; and having bound him, they took him away and handed him over to Pontius Pilate, the governor.

Matthew 26:2-20; John 13:3–17; Matthew 26:21-39; Luke 22:43-45; Matthew 26:40–27:2
Maundy Thursday, Liturgy.

The Bible (“book, composition”) is a collection of sacred texts of Christians, consisting of many parts, combined into the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Bible has a clear division: before and after the birth of Jesus Christ. Before birth - this is the Old Testament, after birth - the New Testament. The New Testament is called the Gospel.

The Bible is a book containing the sacred writings of the Jewish and Christian religions. The Hebrew Bible, a collection of Hebrew sacred texts, is also included in the Christian Bible, forming its first part - the Old Testament. Both Christians and Jews consider it to be a record of an agreement (covenant) concluded by God with man and revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai. Christians believe that Jesus Christ announced a new covenant, which is the fulfillment of the Covenant given in Revelation to Moses, but at the same time replaces it. Therefore, the books that tell about the activities of Jesus and his disciples are called the New Testament. The New Testament is the second part of the Christian Bible.

The word "bible" is of ancient Greek origin. In the language of the ancient Greeks, "byblos" meant "books". In our time, we call this word one specific book, consisting of several dozen separate religious works. The Bible is a book containing over a thousand pages. The Bible consists of two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament.
The Old Testament, which tells about the participation of God in the life of the Jewish people before the coming of Jesus Christ.
The New Testament, which gives information about the life and teachings of Christ in all His truth and beauty. God, through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, gave people salvation - this is the main teaching of Christianity. While only the first four books of the New Testament deal directly with the life of Jesus, each of the 27 books seeks in its own way to interpret the meaning of Jesus or show how his teachings apply to the lives of believers.
Gospel (Greek - "good news") - the biography of Jesus Christ; books revered as sacred in Christianity that tell about the divine nature of Jesus Christ, his birth, life, miracles, death, resurrection and ascension. The Gospels are part of the books of the New Testament.

Bible. New Testament. Gospel.

Bible. Old Testament.

The texts of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments presented on this site are taken from the Synodal translation.

Prayer before reading the Holy Gospel

(prayer after the 11th kathisma)

Shine in our hearts, O Lord of mankind, your imperishable light of God's understanding, and open our mental eyes, in your Gospel preaching understanding, put in us the fear of your blessed commandments, but carnal lusts, all right, we will go through spiritual life, all even to your pleasing and wise and active. You are the enlightenment of our souls and bodies, Christ God, and we send glory to You, with Your Father without beginning, and the Most Holy and Good, and Your Life-giving Spirit, now and forever, and forever and ever, amen.

“There are three ways to read a book,” writes one wise man, “you can read it in order to subject it to critical evaluation; one can read, seeking in it comforts for one's feelings and imagination, and, finally, one can read with conscience. The first read to judge, the second to have fun, and the third to improve. The gospel, which has no equal among books, must first be read only with simple reason and conscience. Read like this, it will make your conscience tremble on every page before goodness, before high, beautiful morality.

“When reading the Gospel,” inspires Bishop. Ignatius (Bryanchaninov), - do not look for pleasure, do not look for delights, do not look for brilliant thoughts: look to see the infallibly holy Truth.
Do not be satisfied with one fruitless reading of the Gospel; try to fulfill his commandments, read his deeds. This is the book of life, and one must read it with life.

The Rule Regarding Reading the Word of God

The reader of the book must do the following:
1) He should not read many sheets and pages, because he who has read a lot cannot comprehend everything and keep it in memory.
2) It is not enough to read and to reason a lot about what is read, because in this way what is read is better understood and deepened in memory, and our mind is enlightened.
3) See what is clear or incomprehensible from what is read in the book. When you understand what you are reading, it's good; and when you don't understand, leave it and read on. What is incomprehensible will either be clarified by the next reading, or by another repeated reading, with the help of God, it will become clear.
4) What the book teaches to evade, what it teaches to seek and do, about that try to fulfill it by the very deed. Avoid evil and do good.
5) When you only sharpen your mind from a book, but do not correct your will, then from reading a book you will be worse than you were; more evil are learned and reasonable fools than simple ignoramuses.
6) Remember that it is better to love in a Christian way than to understand highly; it is better to live redly than to say redly: "the mind swells, but love creates."
7) Whatever you yourself learn with the help of God, teach it to others lovingly as the occasion arises, so that the seed sown may grow and bear fruit.”