Journal: Tyndale Bulletin
Volume: TYNBUL 72:1 (NA 2021)
Article: The Oath Formulas Of Matthew 23:16–22 As Evidence For A Pre-70 Date Of Composition For Matthew’s Gospel
Author: Charles L. Quarles

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The Oath Formulas Of Matthew 23:16–22 As Evidence For A Pre-70 Date Of Composition For Matthew’s Gospel

Charles L. Quarles

Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology
Charles Page Chair of Biblical Theology
Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
[email protected]

Abstract

Although several Matthean scholars have suggested that the oath formulas in Matthew 23:16–22 offer evidence of a pre-70 date of composition for the Gospel, scholars have not previously conducted a thorough investigation of this claim. This essay explores the potential meaning and rationale of the oath formulas, examines post-70 Jewish conceptions of the temple site, scrutinises the oaths ‘by the sanctuary’ or ‘by the temple’ in early rabbinic literature that potentially undermine the usefulness of the oath formulas for establishing the date of the Gospel, and considers Matthew’s purpose for including Matthew 23:16–22. It concludes that the oath formulas of Matthew 23 do lend credible support to a pre-70 date of composition for the Gospel of Matthew, though they cannot establish this date conclusively.

Introduction

The debate over the date of composition for the Gospel of Matthew continues and shows little sign of abating anytime soon. Although Irenaeus, who offers the earliest testimony to the date of composition, claims that Matthew wrote his Gospel in the late 50s or early 60s while ‘Peter and Paul were preaching the gospel in Rome and establishing the church’,1 many modern scholars, presumably the majority, date the Gospel to the period after the Fall of Jerusalem, usually in the mid-to-late 80s.2 Arguments supporting this later date of the Gospel have

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usually focused on Matthew 22:7 and 24:15–20 as potential post-70 reflections on the Roman siege of Jerusalem.

Other scholars have appealed to features of Matthew such as the discussion of the appropriate manner of sacrifice (Matt 5:23–24) and the payment of the temple tax (Matt 17:24–27) as evidence for a pre-70 date of composition. A few scholars have also appealed to the oath formulas in Matthew 23:16–22 as potential evidence for this earlier date. Rober...