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For centuries exegetes have struggled to explain why Matthew presents two animals in the triumphal entry—a female ὄνος and her πῶλος—while all the other Gospels only have one (a πῶλος). The question is further complicated by the fact that the Scripture Matthew cites as fulfilled in this action—Zech. 9:9—also presents only one animal in all extant versions. So what is the historical or exegetical reason for Matthew's addition? While many have argued that Matthew's presentation stems from a misreading of the poetic parallelism in Zech. 9:9, this essay contends that Matthew's doubling of Mark's single πῶλος is the result of messianic exegesis. The argument is that Matthew or Matthew's tradition has read Zech. 9:9 alongside another famous messianic oracle, Jacob's blessing of Judah in Gen. 49:10–11, and that the doubling of the donkeys stems from a likely mistaken—though completely understandable—reading of the Hebrew text. The essay further shows that Matthew's use of Gen. 49 and Zech. 9 in the triumphal entry scene makes good sense in light of the interests of the Gospel as a whole as well as exegetical tradition that stems from these passages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores biblical teachings of Matthew when Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King. Topics include that Matthew's exegesis has confounded Christian exegetes because it appears that both Gen 49:11 and Zech 9:9, in original contexts, as Matthew has read cases of synonymous parallelism as references to two separate animals. It also highlights that the fact that Christ stands at the center of Matthew's understanding of the world is precisely what permits him to see old things in new way.

In Matthew's version of Peter's confession, the disciple says to Jesus, 'You are the Christ the Son of the living God,' and Jesus responds, 'Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood have not revealed this to you but my Father in Heaven' (16:16-17). In the history of interpretation these two verses have been used in debates about the Trinity, Christology, revelation, and personal salvation. This intriguing history has not been properly documented by scholars, since reception histories have focused on the re-naming of Peter as 'the rock' (vv. 18-19) and the feud between Protestants and Catholics over the papacy during the Reformation. This paper explores the forgotten exegesis of vv. 16-17 from the patristic to the modern period, organizing readers synchronically in terms of what they believe Peter meant by his confession (v. 16) as well as their explanation of why Jesus blessed Peter (v. 17). While primarily descriptive, the article shows how exegesis of Matt. 16:16-17 highlights theological debates unique to the time of each thinker, exposes the creativity of interpretive methods, and replicates the logic of larger theological systems in miniature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]