A Ransom for Israel: Jesus and Jewish Salvation in Matthew

A Ransom for Israel: Jesus and Jewish Salvation in Matthew

In this study of the Gospel of Matthew, Nicholas J. Schaser proposes that Matthew intended to narrate the corporate salvation of ethnic Israel rather than its replacement by an ethnically diverse Christian church. Instead of presenting Jesus as a new Israel to replace the old, Matthew highlights Jesus’s salvific value in exchange for the nation of Israel when he dies as a ransom for their sins. This book presents one of the most comprehensive challenges to the prevalent interpretation that Matthew locates Israel in an ongoing exile from which Jesus offers redemption only if they follow him. Rather, the gospel, when read alongside Israel’s Scriptures, presents Israel at risk of an eschatological exile from God’s kingdom, and Jesus removes his people’s exile-inducing sins by being cast out in their place. Schaser’s compelling reading has the potential to open new dialogue between Jews and Christians.