The passage
      v12. John's arrest not only prompts Jesus to move his base of operations, but also to change his ministry style. He now takes on the role of an itinerant preacher and healer.
      v13. Capernaum becomes the ministry base for Jesus and his disciples.
      v14-16. Slightly reworking Isaiah 9:1-2, Matthew reveals the Messiah's special association with Galilee. It is from this devastated and unwanted place that the light of salvation will begin to shine for Israel and the whole world. For Isaiah, the invading Assyrians may overwhelm the land west of the Jordan, the land occupied by the northern tribes of Israel, but out of this darkness a light will one day shine.
      v17. We have here a summary of the gospel. In Mark's slightly expanded form it states: "the time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God (heaven) is at hand (near), repent and believe the gospel." The message proclaims that the long awaited establishment of God's eternal reign, in and through his messiah, is close at hand. Although the people of Israel often understood the kingdom in terms of the restoration of the Jewish state, the prophets were describing something more than a new Davidic empire. God's important news states that the day has dawned when his messiah (the anointed one, the son of David...) will call together a people who will gather in the presence of the living God and dwell securely under his eternal reign.
      v18. Lake Galilee (21km. by 11km.) had a prosperous fishing industry. Simon and Andrew were from Bethsaida and probably came to the area for employment.
      v19. These men had obviously heard Jesus speak on a number of occasions and were now summoned to be "fishers of men" ("follow me" = be disciples - go with him, learn from him, and do his bidding). Interestingly, the image of fishing in the Old Testament is a negative one - gathering for judgement, Jer.16:16, Am.4:2. Are they to proclaim the gospel as a sword of judgement?
      v20. Their response to the call certainly disrupts their lives, but it does not necessarily involve a break with family ties, or the disposal of their homes, fishing boats, etc, eg. 8:14, Jn.21:3, Ac.21:8....
      v21-22. James and John were partners with Simon and Andrew. Matthew emphasizes the immediacy of their response to Jesus' call.
      v23. In this second stage of Jesus' public ministry, he works with the Jewish population of Galilee. There are three elements to this ministry: teaching, preaching the gospel, and healing. It is often said the healing ministry serves to authenticate the gospel message, but it is better to see the miracles as the gospel in signs. Jesus' miracles proclaim the immediacy of the kingdom; "if I by the finger of God cast out Satan, then you know the kingdom is close to you."
      v24. News of the evidential coming of the kingdom in miracles spreads beyond Galilee. The list of miracles is interesting, and note also the ability to distinguish between demon possession and physical and mental complaints.
      v25. Those who follow Jesus come from the Old Testament "holy land" - a significant point.

Belonging
      We all need to belong to something, something bigger than ourselves. It gives us a sense of identity, personhood, meaning in an often meaningless world. There was a time when most people in the West were church members, but ever since the industrial revolution, people have drifted and sought meaning elsewhere. Since the late 1960's, we have increasingly looked to other "gods" for meaning. Today young people are more likely to want to surf cyberspace than sit in church. Even where there is a desire to touch "otherness", it is usually the mysterious energy of mother earth, or Eastern religions. It seems that the crystal is more powerful than the cross.
      Yet, this has always been so. It was no different for Jesus in his day. Signs and wonders will always attract "large crowds", but belonging to Jesus will be left to the one or two who look for a kingdom not of this world, and who see in Jesus the beginning and end of everything. Only they will leave their nets and boats and follow (belong) to him.

v12
      akousaV (akouw) aor. part. "when [Jesus] heard" - having heard. The participle probably forms a temporal clause, as NIV. The time lag between Jesus' temptation and the commencement of his ministry in Galilee could well be around one year, but Matthew makes no attempt to fill it out.
      oJti "that" - Introducing a dependent statement, what Jesus heard.
      paredoqh (paradidwmi) aor. pas. "had been put in prison" - was handed over = arrested.
      anecwrhsen (anacwrew) aor. "he returned" - he departed [into Galilee]. Presumably the move is political, Jesus could be confused as one of John's disciples, although Galilee, as is Perea where John was arrested, is in the territory ruled by Antipas.

v13
      katalipwn (kataleipw) aor. part. "leaving [Nazareth]" - having left, departed. The participle is probably temporal, "he then left Nazareth." Jesus moves to establish his headquarters in Capernaum, a larger and more significant town.
      elqwn (ercomai) aor. part. "he went" - having come to. Attendant circumstance participle, "he then left Nazareth and came to Capernaum."
      thn paraqalassian adj. "which was by the lake" - [Capernaum] situated beside the sea. Capernaum is situated beside the sea, and that is obviously the sense here, although see below, "the way to the sea", v15, means "on the way to the Great Sea" = the Mediterranean sea.

v14
      iJna + subj. "to [fulfill]" - that. Usually forming a purpose clause, "he did this so that ...", Barclay, but here obviously result, "he did this with the result that the words of the Prophet Isaiah were fulfilled."
      dia + gen. "through" - through, by means of. Expressing agency.
      legonteV (legw) pres. part. "-" - saying. Attendant circumstance participle, redundant, not translated as NIV.

v15
      Isaiah 9:1-2: Matthew follows the LXX in structure, but reflects a particular Hebrew text obviously known to him, see Nolland. Isaiah 8:23-9:2 addresses Israel's exile under Assyrian rule. It speaks of a coming descendent of David who will serve as a sign of the people's liberation. We are best to understand this liberation as fulfilled in Christ, which liberation Christ is a sign of.
      qalasshV (a hV) "[the way] of the sea" - way of sea. Possibly an objective genitive, "a thoroughfare that leads to the great sea." Blomberg notes that "way to the sea" and "along (better "across") the Jordan" "reflect the perspective of foreigners from the north east heading through Israel to the Mediterranean (as with the Assyrians' invasion that Isaiah consistently predicted)."
      peran + gen. "along" - beyond, across. "Across the Jordan" means "east of the Jordan" = Galilee, "on the way to the Mediterranean sea." "Across the Jordan", Moffatt.
      Galilaia twn eqnwn "Galilee of the Gentiles" - Jews only made up some 50% of the population of Galilee, but this is not why he quotes Isaiah. Jesus may be working primarily in a mixed population area, but his ministry is to Israel. Matthew "wants a scriptural text linking the Messiah and the Gentiles ..... so that the end will be foreshadowed in the beginning", Davies & Allison.

v16
      oJ laoV "the people" - Best understood as Israel, an Israel in exile, scattered among the Gentiles, lost.
      oJ kaqhmenoV (kaqhmai) pres. part. "living" - the ones sitting, residing, settling. The participle is adjectival, "the people who live in darkness."
      skotei (oV) "darkness" - Possibly moral bankruptcy, a common image, but here probably the darkness / light dichotomy of outside God's grace / under God's grace.
      kai "-" - [and those sitting in the land] and [shadow of death]. The kai here virtually exegetes what is meant by "sitting in the land." Israel in exile lives in the shadow of death awaiting liberation.
      aneteilen (anatellw) aor. "has dawned" - rose up, sprung up. "The light has dawned", rather than the LXX's "shine" is Matthew's way of pointing to Jesus as the sign of Israel's coming liberation.

v17
      Matthew now gives a summary of Jesus' preaching; he preached the dawning of the long-promised kingdom.
      apo tote "from that time on" - from then. Obviously signifying an important division in the gospel. A similar clause is found at 16:21, another significant point of division. Carson disagrees.
      khrussein (khrussw) pres. inf. "to preach" - Complementary infinitive, completing the sense of the verb "began". Up till this time Jesus didn't preach? The impression is that Jesus takes over John's preaching work, including the message. Here obviously, only a summary of that message. On the other hand, some argue that "began" is a pleonasm, ie. a redundant word, an Aramaism says Turner. McNeile suggests it is a sectional identifier; "it either describes the beginning of a continuous action or marks a fresh start or phase in the narrative." "Then Jesus continued preaching."
      metanoeite (metanoew) pres. imp. "repent" - turn around. Expressing "a radical change in heart and mind", Davies & Allison. Not "repent and believe" as in Mark. Obviously, for Matthew, repentance, of itself, includes belief.
      gar "for" - expressing cause/reason.
      twn ouranwn (oV) gen. "[the kingdom] of God" - Genitive is possessive, "the kingdom that belongs to God." God's long promised (although not "fulfilled", as in Mark) eschatological reign which brings with it blessing upon the righteous / the repentant, and cursing on the unrighteous, cf. Isa.24:23, 52:7.
      hggiken (eggizw) perf. "is near" - has drawn near. A sense of "nearness" is best, possibly even "inaugurated", but Matthew probably sees the kingdom as future at this point in time in the narrative. "God has now set in process advance arrangements for the coming of the kingdom", Nolland.

v18
      Matthew now records the call of some of Jesus' disciples. The stories serve as examples of how Jesus gathered his disciples. Interestingly, a disciple usually chose his teacher, not the other way around.
      peripatwn (peripatew) pres. part. "as Jesus was walking" - walking. The participle is adverbial forming a temporal clause, as NIV.
      ton legomenon (legw) pres. pas. part. "called" - the one being called [Peter]. The participle is adjectival, modifying "Simon", "Simon, who is called Peter."
      ballontaV (ballw) pres. part. "they were casting" - [he saw ......] casting. The participle functioning as the verb in a dependent object clause after a verb of perceiving, "he saw that [they] were casting ..." "They were making a cast into the lake", NJB; "they were occupied with throwing their nets out into the lake", Cassirer.

v19
      deute adv. "come" - Used as an imperative by Matthew 6 times.
      legei (legw) pres. "[Jesus] said" - says. Mark has an aorist, Matthew underlines the present ongoing action of the disciples mending their nets and Jesus speaking to them.
      opisw mou "follow me" - [come] after me. "Come after" in the sense of "follow" + gen. "of me", so "be disciples of me / my disciples."
      poihsw (poiew) fut. "I will make" - "I will appoint", cf. McNeile, possibly "I will teach you to catch men", Phillips.
      alieiV anqrwpwn "fishers of men" - An illustrative saying / metaphor which carries its own meaning. "It is no longer a question of taking fish from the lake, but of drawing men up out of the abyss of sin and death, catching them in the great net of God", Dietrich / Morris.

v20
      euqewV "at once" - immediately. Expressing immediate action - an urgent call requires urgent action.
      afenteV (afihmi) aor. part. "they left" - leaving. Possibly "abandoned", but best just "left what they were doing." The participle is adverbial of time, "at that they left their nets immediately", Cassirer.
      hkolouqhsan (akolouqew) "followed" - followed, followed on behind (to him). Possibly "accompanied", but obviously "joined him as a disciple" is intended.

v21
      probaV (probainw) aor. part. "going on" - having gone on. The participle is adverbial of time, "then going on from there", Moffatt.
      tou Zebedaiou (oV) gen. "[James] son of Zebadee" - the of Zebadee. Genitive of relationship, as NIV.
      katartizontaV (katartizw) pres. part. "preparing [their nets]" - repairing, mending, making fit, equipping... Participle functioning as a verb in a dependent statement object clause after a verb of seeing, "he saw that ....... were preparing their nets." The word primarily means "mending / repairing", but can mean "preparing", as NIV.

v22
      oiJ "-" - The two brothers.
      afenteV "they left" - leaving. Attendant circumstance participle identifying action accompanying the main verb "called", "Jesus called and they left." Note how Mark softens the leaving in that the brothers leave their father with the hired help. None-the-less, the leaving of family illustrates the cost of discipleship.

v23
      In these two verses Matthew gives us a summary of Jesus' teaching and healing ministry.
      perihgen (periagw) imperf. "Jesus went throughout [Galilee]" - he went about [in all Galilee]. The imperfect is durative, expressing ongoing action. Jesus' ministry begins in Nazareth and Capernaum and moves outward to cover the whole of Galilee. "He made a tour through the whole of Galilee", Moffatt.
      didaskwn (didaskw) pres. part. "teaching" - Attendant circumstance participle identifying action accompanying the main verb "went about", "he went around and taught", although best left as a participle in English, as also "preaching" and "healing", so NIV. There is probably little difference between "teaching" and "preaching". "Teaching" is what a person would do in a synagogue, so "preaching" here is more like "declaring / proclaiming". None-the-less, there is little evidence that Jesus "word" ministry was synagogue-focused, although the synagogue is the natural place where spiritual matters were addressed, so maybe Jesus taught in the synagogues and preached in the open air. Note that it is "their" synagogues. Jesus is a Jew so it is his synagogue. Possibly a reference to the authorities who inevitably restricted Jesus' use of the synagogue as a preaching platform.
      ton euaggelion "the good news" - the important message. "News" yes, but "good" is assumed. Not "good" for those who reject the "news". Some do argue that "good" is expressed by the prefix eu meaning "well / good", but the word has a technical use, referring to the important news carried by a message bearer. It's good to hear the news, but the news may not be good. Although this word is commonly used by Paul, it is only used 4 times by Matthew. For Matthew, it is all about preaching the kingdom.
      pasan adj. "every [disease ....]" - As Jesus put it "if I by the finger of God cast out demons then you know that the kingdom of God has come upon you." The overcoming of darkness goes hand-in-hand with the realization of God's reign on earth.
      thV basileiaV (a) "of the kingdom" - "The inauguration of the eschatological reign of God."
      en tw/ law/ "among the people" - in the people. Obviously, "the people of Israel."

v24
      hJ akoh (h) "news" - report [of/concerning him]. "His reputation spread throughout Syria", Phillips.
      thn Surian (a) "Syria" - Does Matthew mean the Roman province of Syria = Palestine? Certainly Jesus' reputation spreads far and wide.
      proshnegkan (prosferw) aor. "people brought" - they drove, led, brought... The subject is undefined, but presumably "friends and relatives brought."
      touV econtaV "who were [ill]" - the ones having [illness]. Participle as a substantive, so also "demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed."
      poikilaiV dat. adj. "with various" - various kinds, many coloured. "They brought him all that were suffering from this or that disorder and affliction", Rieu.
      sunecomenouV (sunecw) pres. pas. part. "suffering [severe pain]" - [torture/torments] constraining, controlling, restraining. In the sense of "bound by terrible torments", so possibly as NIV. "In the grip of varried diseases and pains", Barclay.
      selhmiazomenouV (selhniazomai) pres. part. "those having seizures" - the moonstruck, lunatic, epicleptic. Interestingly, Matthew distinguishes this group from demon-possessed. Although usually treated as "epileptics", Morris notes that there is no reason why "lunatic" is not intended.