John the Baptist's preaching was considered too dangerous and he was put in prison. The true preaching of the gospel represents a sharp challenge to society, government and to individuals. Preaching should be dangerous. On hearing this Jesus withdrew to Galilee, this is a region somewhat north of Jerusalem, see map.
Jesus went to live in Capernaum for a period. This area was by the Sea of Galilee, and Capernaum was a town of reasonable size.
Matthew sees another messianic fulfilment here. Isaiah 9:1,2 says that in the future God would honour Galilee, and that the people walking in darkness would see a great light. Galilee was looked down upon by many Jews, partly because it was a distance away from the main religious centre (Jerusalem), and partly because it was inhabited by a significant number of Gentiles as well as Jews.
Jesus then began to preach, "repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand". See that this is the same message that John preached. The kingdom of heaven is the rule and reign of God. A different kingdom is at hand, and the people need to change their ways and turn to God. In this we see encapsulated the basic gospel message. There is a new way of living, a new life, a new kingdom, a new rule. The world need not be the way you think it is at the moment, your life need not be the way it is at the moment. A different rule can come in. But in order to enter that new kingdom we need to repent. We need to turn away from our ways and turn to God's ways.
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