Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 9:1

"And he entered into a boat, and crossed over, and came into his own city." — Matthew 9:1 (ASV)

Here again, the order of the narrated events varies so much in the three Gospels that the efforts of the harmonist are baffled.

ST. MATTHEW	ST. MARK	ST. LUKE
(1.) The Paralytic, Matthew 9:1–8	Mark 2:1–12	Luke 5:18–26
(2.) The call of Matthew, etc., Matthew 9:9–17	Mark 2:13–22	Luke 5:27–39
(3.) Jairus, and the woman with an issue of blood, Matthew 9:18–26	Mark 5:21–43	Luke 8:41–56
(4.) The two blind men, Matthew 9:27–31	—	—
(5.) The mute man, Matthew 9:32–34	—	Luke 11:14

It can be seen that (1) and (2) are grouped together in all three Gospels, as are the two events in (3). Beyond this, however, we cannot trace any systematic order, and the apparent notes of sequence are therefore misleading. In this case, St. Matthew makes the return to Capernaum follow the healing of the Gadarene demoniacs. St. Mark and St. Luke place it after the healing of the leper, but they seem uncertain about its exact position, using phrases like “after certain days” or “on one of the days.”

Ship—This is better translated as boat.

Into his own city—St. Mark definitively identifies this as Capernaum, which had become Jesus’s “own city” since His departure from Nazareth (Matthew 4:13). Nazareth, though the home of His childhood, is never described this way.