the Messianic commissioning of the disciples (28:16–20).1 In Matthew, orthopraxy is a prominent motif.2 The ethical tenor of much material contained in Matthew can be defined against the backdrop of several factors—among these are a transition from a Jewish-Christian to an increasingly Gentile-Christian community; the early church’s relationship to first-century Judaism, and the halakah advanced by Jesus himself. What is striking in Matthew is the degree to which Jesus stands in continuity with the