Jewish religion, in various forms and sects, existed before John the Baptist or Yeshua came to preach the True Gospel of the Kingdom. John the Baptist preached repentance, and after John was thrown into prison, Yeshua preached repentance from that time on.

Yeshua did not come to build on or to expand the existing Jewish religion, but to dismantle the religion of the Jews which was steeped in traditions and bondage to the religious leaders. Yeshua came to usher in A New True Religion based on the truth that sets men free.

In this portion of Matthew, Yeshua makes it crystal clear to His audience that His intent and the purpose of His teaching was distinctly and succinctly setting it apart from the teachings of the day. Yeshua’s followers would be distinctly set apart from those who would follow Jewish traditions.