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"Matthew, who had at first preached to the Hebrews, when he was about to go to other peoples, committed his Gospel to writing in his native tongue, and thus compensated those whom he was obliged to leave for the loss of his presence." - Eusebius Church History Book III, 24:6

"Matthew, also called Levi, apostle and aforetimes publican, composed a gospel of Christ at first published in Judea in Hebrew for the sake of those of the circumcision who believed, but this was afterwards translated into Greek, though by what author is uncertain." Jerome, Illustrious Men Chapter 3.

The primary source for Matthew should be a Hebrew text rather than the typical Greek text. If you don't find the Hebrew primary source compelling, that's fine. Read it from the Greek. Both teach the same Christ. If you like the idea of the Hebrew text and want to see how a traditional translation would have been different, you can compare the footnotes in your favorite translation to this translation to get a sense of whether or not your favorite translators would have dealt with the text differently given this Hebrew source instead of the Greek.

For more of Shaun C. Kennedy's thoughts, visit http: //shaunckennedy.wordpress.com