Person New Testament
Matthew
Also known as Levi
Matthew, also known as Levi, was a tax collector who became one of Jesus' twelve apostles and authored the Gospel of Matthew. Mentioned in 8 verses across 4 books, first at Matthew 9:9.
Why it matters. Apostle, tax collector, author of the Gospel of Matthew.
- Primary passages
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Matthew
Matthew, also known as Levi, was a tax collector in Capernaum before being called by Jesus to become one of His twelve apostles. As a tax collector, Matthew would have been considered a sinner and an outcast by the Jewish community. However, Jesus saw beyond his profession and called him to follow Him (Mat.9.9; Mrk.2.14; Luk.5.27). Matthew responded immediately, leaving his tax booth and hosting a great feast for Jesus in his home, inviting other tax collectors and sinners (Luk.5.29). As an apostle, Matthew witnessed Jesus' ministry, death, and resurrection. He is also traditionally attributed as the author of the Gospel of Matthew, which emphasizes Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies and the long-awaited Messiah (Mat.10.3; Mrk.3.18; Luk.6.15; Act.1.13).
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
No reviewed connections yet.
Family
Family links from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0). Where the dataset marks an identification as uncertain, the mark is kept. Matthew and Luke give different genealogies for Jesus; see the Lineage page, which never merges them.
Appears in Scripture
Named in 8 verses across 4 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.