Animating Matthew's Tax Collector Booth
RevelationMedia is actively designing characters and settings for the latest 3D-animated installment of iBIBLE, called Life of Christ. This series brings the story of the Gospels to life with Biblical accuracy, providing an immersive experience of Scripture for families worldwide. Watch the latest episodes today for free at www.i.BIBLE!
This week, step back into the town of Capernaum, where Jesus based His earthly ministry. Many of Jesus’ disciples lived and worked there prior to His calling them to be disciples. One of these was Matthew the tax collector (also called Levi in some Gospels), whom Jesus called while he was at his work. We read, “After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And leaving everything, he rose and followed him” (Luke 5:27–28, ESV).
The tax booth created for iBIBLE will most likely be situated in a market near the Capernaum docks. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke don’t say much about the location of the tax booth. They simply say that Jesus passed it after healing the paralytic (see Matthew 9:1, 9 and Luke 5:27). However, Mark specifies that Jesus was going “out again beside the sea” when He passed Matthew’s tax booth and called him (Mark 2:13a).
The booth itself has a simple setup, with wooden walls and a canopy to shield the workers from the sun on hot days. Structures such as this can be moved around within a set. Each piece of Capernaum is created individually, then placed together to form a full and accurate town.
Inside the booth is space for one or two tax collectors, writing materials for keeping records, and food and drink for the workers.
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