Things Old and New

Several times Matthew tells how Jesus himself remained with the old – with “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:6), that he was not sent to foreigners, even to those who happened to show up in Palestine. Yet in the Sermon on the Mount (5-7), Matthew repeats Jesus’ new vision that perfects and replaces the old law, “You have heard the commandment… but now I say to you…” The change from