03_Wilson_201_221_201_221 10/07/15 12:41 Pagina 218 218 WALTER T. WILSON 218 basic argument) would not have been inconsistent with efforts to make Jesus’ moral teachings intelligible to non-Jewish audiences as well. As Ulrich Luz has suggested, although Matthew’s Gospel most likely originated in a Jewish Christian milieu, among the evangelist’s emerging priorities is the mission to the Gentiles, a task that would have entailed the “adaptation” of the community’s legal traditions to an expanding and increasingly pluralistic audience 62. In this regard, it is significant that in Matt 12,11 the merciful treat- ment of an animal is presented not as a dictate of the Mosaic law (as was the case in the examples from Philo discussed above) but as a self-evident matter of common experience and practice. Such considerations provide a vantage point from which to re- flect on the importance attached to the teaching/learning process in Matthew’s interpretation of the Law, an emphasis shared by Philo. As we have seen, in the Exposition, the Alexandrian repeatedly draws attention to how through the Law Moses educates its adher- ents in virtue, honing their moral dispositions in particular ways. The appeal to “learn from me” in Matt 11,29, meanwhile, reflects a narrative priority for the First Gospel as a whole, namely, the por- trayal of Jesus as one who teaches and his followers as ones who learn 63. In concert with this, it is apparent that for both authors what is at stake for their readers is learning not simply the correct obser- vance of particular laws, but also how to reason about the relevance of the Law in determining human responsibilities more broadly. In the case of Matthew, the principles supporting this form of reason- ing are summed up under the related concepts of mercy (12,7) and “doing good” (12,12) 64, principles exemplified by who Jesus is (11,29), what Jesus says (12,7.12) and what Jesus does (12,13). The need for such reasoning abilities is essential, since, as R. T. France observes, the conclusion in Matt 12,12b (lacking the second set of alternatives in Mark 3,4) not only “goes far beyond the specific 62 LUZ, Matthew, I, 50-52. Cf. P. FOSTER, Community, Law and Mission in Matthew’s Gospel (WUNT 2/177; Tübingen 2004) 253-260. 63 U. LUZ, Studies in Matthew (Grand Rapids, MI 2005) 115-142. The term dida,skaloj informs Jesus’ self-presentation in 10,24-25 and 23,8. Note also the use of dida,skein in 4,23; 5,2; 7,29; 9,35; 11,1; 13,54; 21,23; 22,16; 26,55; 28,20 (cf. 7,28; 22,33). 64 For the connection between mercy and “doing good”, see Mic 6,8; Sir 2,9; Acts 9,36; cf. T. Zeb. 7.2.