Most modern scholars think the Gospel of Matthew was written around 80–90 CE, likely sometime between 70 and 100 CE.

Quick Scoop: When Was Matthew Written?

If you’re asking “when was Matthew written?” you’re stepping into a long- running discussion that mixes tradition, history, and literary analysis.

Scholarly Majority View

Most critical scholars today place Matthew:

  • General window: last quarter of the 1st century (about 70–100 CE).
  • Commonly cited range: about 80–90 CE (sometimes widened to 80–95 CE).

Why this range?

  • Matthew appears to use Mark as a source , and Mark is usually dated shortly after 70 CE.
  • Matthew shows a more developed theology and church structure , suggesting some time had passed since Jesus’ death.
  • It seems to reflect awareness of the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple (70 CE) , though not in a dramatic, first‑report way.
  • Early 2nd‑century Christian writings (Ignatius, Didache) already seem familiar with Matthew, so it must be earlier than roughly 110 CE.

Other Proposed Dates (Early vs Late)

Because your question is simple, here’s a quick multi‑view snapshot rather than a long technical debate.

Traditional Early Date

Some Christian traditions and conservative scholars prefer an early date , for example:

  • Around 50–60 CE , sometimes even in the 40s–50s.
  • Motivations:
    • Church tradition that Matthew the apostle wrote it while eyewitnesses were still alive.
* The idea that because Jesus predicts the Temple’s destruction and Matthew doesn’t explicitly narrate its fulfillment, the Gospel must predate 70 CE.

This view is still held in some confessional circles, but it is not the majority position in academic New Testament scholarship.

Very Early Proposals

A minority of scholars have argued for dates in the 40s–50s CE , usually tied closely to the fragmentary testimony of Papias about Matthew compiling Jesus’ sayings in Hebrew or Aramaic.

These reconstructions often distinguish between a hypothetical early “sayings collection” and the final Greek Gospel as we have it, which most still date later.

Snapshot Table: “When Was Matthew Written?”

Here’s a compact view of the main answers you’ll see in books, lectures, and forum discussions:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>View</th>
      <th>Approximate Date Range</th>
      <th>Main Reasoning</th>
      <th>Who Tends to Hold It</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Scholarly majority</td>
      <td>80–90 CE (broadly 70–100 CE)[web:3][web:5][web:7]</td>
      <td>Uses Mark as a source, reflects post‑70 context, developed theology, cited/echoed by 2nd‑century writers.[web:3][web:5][web:7]</td>
      <td>Most contemporary New Testament scholars and mainstream academic works.[web:3][web:5][web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Traditional early date</td>
      <td>50–60 CE, sometimes “before 70 CE”[web:3][web:4][web:5]</td>
      <td>Attribution to the apostle Matthew, desire to keep it within eyewitness generation, argument from unmentioned Temple destruction.[web:3][web:4][web:5]</td>
      <td>Many conservative and confessional authors, some church traditions and apologetic ministries.[web:3][web:4][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Very early proposals</td>
      <td>40s–50s CE (usually for an earlier form or sayings collection)[web:5]</td>
      <td>Reading Papias as referring to an early Hebrew/Aramaic “Matthew” of Jesus’ sayings later adapted into our Greek Gospel.[web:3][web:5]</td>
      <td>A small minority of scholars and some conservative writers.[web:3][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Why This Still Feels Like a “Trending Topic”

Even in 2025–2026, you’ll find:

  • Blog posts and YouTube lectures revisiting whether Matthew must be post‑70 CE or can be dated earlier.
  • Forum threads (Reddit, theology and history boards) where people debate “when was Matthew written” using Bart Ehrman on one side and conservative apologists on the other.

A typical online exchange looks something like:

“Most scholars say 80–90 CE because Matthew uses Mark and reflects a post‑Temple context.”
“But if Jesus accurately predicted the destruction of the Temple, why assume it was written after 70 CE?”

The underlying tension is often less about pure chronology and more about views of prophecy, authorship, and how to weigh early church tradition versus literary analysis.

TL;DR

  • Best one‑line answer: Matthew was probably written around 80–90 CE.
  • More cautious academic range: sometime between 70 and 100 CE.
  • Alternative views: some Christian traditions argue for an earlier date, before 70 CE, but this is a minority view in modern scholarship.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.