establishment of righteousness (from the same Hebrew word as justice), which only the ‘zeal of the Lord of hosts’ can make a reality (9:6–7). We eagerly await God’s ‘new heavens and a new earth’ when we will no longer ‘toil in vain’ (65:17, 23). Until the time of his call to serve the Lord, Matthew was a civil servant; he had first-hand knowledge of corruption and the perversion of justice. Even when enforced impartially, Rome’s law had little regard for the needs of individuals. When Matthew reflected