In performing exegeses of the Gospels, we must attempt to understand the authors and their respective audiences. While not all firmly or historically noted, it is believed that Matthew is a Jew and is writing to Jews. Mark (the oldest Gospel), too, is a Jew that most probably followed Peter and finds his Jewish voice. Luke is a Greek physician and historian that travels with Paul and writes the Acts with a more Gentilic audience. John (a non-synoptic Gospel) is a disciple of Jesus and speaks first-hand in a theological format.
With that, two popular schools form hypothetical patterns of shared knowledge that include a source denoted as “Q” the common known sayings and activities of Jesus. The Griesbach Hypothesis offers a triangular approach with Matthew feeding Mark and Luke, while Luke feeds Mark. The more popular Two-Source Hypothesis is patterned with Mark and “Q” feeding both Matthew and Luke.
Using these exegetical points, it is most clear that Matthew is speaking to Jews who are well-versed in the Hebrew texts, especially Isaiah. The description in Matthew is a direct quote from Isaiah 42:2: “He does not cry out or raise his voice, his voice is not heard in the street.” As a sheep goes to the slaughter, they do not cry out in the suffering, they only cry out in fear. As Jesus anticipates the slaughter, neither does he cry out or make a fuss on His behalf. He fully understands what He has come to do, and will succumb to His earthly mission. To offer the Matthian Jewish point, the author encourages the Jews of the day to embrace the prophetic parallel with which they would be most comfortable and seem most understandable. He implores his audience to see Jesus as the Lamb of God.