Opening the mouth in parables
Matthew connects Jesus' parables with the psalmist's telling of ancient mysteries.
Historical context
Asaph's teaching psalm recounts Israel's history so a new generation remembers God's acts and avoids the ancestors' disobedience.
Tradition note
Read the unity of Scripture in Christ while attending to the Old Testament's literal setting and the New Testament's use of it. Fulfillment can include a renewed historical pattern, not only an isolated prediction; this collection is a study guide rather than an exhaustive doctrinal catalogue.
Avoid overclaiming
The psalm is historical instruction, not originally a schedule of Jesus' teaching. Matthew's fulfillment use draws its teaching voice into the Gospel.
Key points
- Fulfillment citation
- Matthew 13:34–35 (Fulfillment citation) — Matthew explicitly uses a fulfillment formula to connect Jesus' parables with Psalm 78:2.
Doctrinal connections
- Matthew explicitly uses a fulfillment formula to connect Jesus' parables with Psalm 78:2.
Scripture
- Psalm 78:1–4 — Asaph's teaching psalm recounts Israel's history so a new generation remembers God's acts and avoids the ancestors' disobedience.
- Matthew 13:34–35 — Matthew explicitly uses a fulfillment formula to connect Jesus' parables with Psalm 78:2.