This study fills a gap in previous research concerning the portrayal of Peter in
Matthew, especially the research of narrative-critical studies. Although narrative-critical
studies generally recognize that Matthew has portrayed Peter and the disciples
as recipients of revelation at points, they almost entirely neglect the apocalypses or
apocalyptic literature more broadly as a potentially helpful background for this motif,
nor does the motif itself figure significantly into their conclusions. Therefore, Part 1
of this study examines fourteen different Jewish and Christian apocalypses in order to
determine generic aspects of how the apocalypses portray their seers, and to identify
specific textual features that support these generic aspects of a seer’s portrayal. These
specific textual features then provide the guiding coordinates for Part 2, which
assesses the influence of the generic portrayal of apocalyptic seers on the portrayal of
Peter and the disciples in Matthew’s Gospel and main source, Mark’s Gospel. Like
the apocalypses, both Evangelists deploy the features of exclusionary statements,
narrative isolation, dissemination details, and emphasis of cognitive humanity and
emotional-physical humanity to portray Peter and the disciples as the exclusive
recipients of revealed mysteries, and as humans who encounter the mysteries of the
divine realm. This leads to the conclusion that both Evangelists envisaged Peter and
the disciples as apocalyptic seers in some sense. However, Matthew’s redaction of
Markan source material, incorporation of Q source material, and his own special
material yield a more fully developed, or more explicit, portrayal of Peter and the
disciples as apocalyptic seers than his Markan predecessor. The study concludes by
focusing directly on Peter’s significance for Matthew and his earliest audience. The
research suggests that Peter’s significance was, in part, as principal apocalyptic seer,
which requires revision to the predominant scholarly conclusions about Peter in
Matthew