Read Gospel from Luke 9. Interpretation of the books of the New Testament
. Having called the twelve, he gave power and authority over all demons and to heal diseases,
And from here the superiority of the Divinity of Jesus is revealed. For He not only performed miracles Himself, but also gave the same power to His disciples. And to communicate such gifts to your friends, without any doubt, is possible not for man, but only for God.
. and sent them to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
Having given the disciples power over evil spirits, the Lord did not limit them to the use of this power only, but commanded them to preach the Gospel. The one who has been entrusted with teaching must both preach and perform miracles. In this case, the sermon is confirmed by miracles, and miracles by the sermon. For many often performed miracles by the power of demons, but their preaching was not true; and therefore their miracles are not from God.
. And he said to them: take nothing for the road: neither staff, nor scrip, nor bread, nor silver, and do not have two clothes;
The Lord, sending his disciples, commands them such moderation that he does not command them to take either bread or anything else that many of us gather for ourselves.
. and whatever house you enter, stay there and go from there: let's hit the road.
He also commands them not to run from one to another, but to stay in whichever house they enter, so as not to seem somehow fickle and very changeable.
. And if they do not accept you anywhere, then when you leave that city, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.
Shake off, he says, the dust on those who will not accept you, "as a testimony against them", that is, to reprove and condemn them, showing them that, although they made a lot of journeys for their sake, they did not receive any profit from them.
. They went and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
Some understand the commandment to the apostles - not to carry either a bag or a staff, not to have two clothes each - as follows: do not collect treasures - for the bag, containing a lot, means collecting; do not carry a staff, that is, do not be angry and pugnacious; do not have two clothes, that is, do not be changeable in morals and double-minded in thoughts.
. Herod the tetrarch heard about everything he had done: Jesus, and was perplexed: for some said that it was John who rose from the dead;
. others that Elijah appeared, and others that one of the ancient prophets was resurrected.
This Herod was a little one, the son of the great Herod, who beat up infants. That one was a king, and this one was "tetrarch". He “wondered” who Jesus was.
. And Herod said: I have beheaded John; Who is this one about whom I hear such things? And I sought to see Him.
However, “John,” he says, “I beheaded,” and therefore if he rose from the dead, then when I saw him, I would recognize him; “and I looked for an opportunity to see” Jesus. Look: Jews believe the resurrection of the dead is in the life of the flesh, in food and They think wrongly, for the resurrection is not in food and drink or in the life of the flesh, but the resurrected live like the Angels of God.
. The apostles returned and told Him what they had done; and He, taking them with Him, withdrew separately to an empty place, near a city called Bethsaida.
Jesus, having the intention of performing a miracle over the loaves, goes into an empty place so that no one would think of saying that the loaves were brought from a nearby city.
. But the people, having learned, followed Him; and He, having received them, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.
Having received the people, He taught and healed, so that you would know that our chastity is divided into word and deed, and that just as we should not say what is inconvenient to do, so we should not do what is absurd to talk about.
. The day began to turn towards evening. And the twelve came to Him and said to Him: Let the people go, so that they can go to the surrounding villages to spend the night and get food; because we are in an empty place here.
When the day was approaching evening, the disciples, who had already begun to be distinguished by their philanthropic and pastoral dispositions, took pity on the people and said: “let them go,” that is, quickly heal their illnesses, fulfill their petitions.
. But He said to them: Give them something to eat. They said: We do not have more than five loaves and two fish; Should we go buy food for all these people?
And the Lord says to the disciples: "you let them eat". He says this not because he did not know about the poverty, but because he wanted to force the disciples themselves to express how many loaves they had, and thus, through their confession, through the announcement of the number of loaves, to reveal all the greatness of the miracle.
. For there were about five thousand of them. But He said to His disciples: Seat them in rows of fifty.
. And they did so, and seated everyone.
Commanding the disciples to seat the people in rows of fifty, he shows that when we receive a stranger, we must calm him down and take every care for him.
. He took the five loaves and two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke them and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.
He looks at the sky to show that we, intending to eat food, must send thanks to God. He Himself gives to the disciples, and then they give to the people; this is so that they do not forget about the miracle, but remember it when they think that they took the loaves into their hands.
. And they all ate and were filled; and the pieces that remained with them were collected into twelve boxes.
There were twelve boxes left over, so that we would know the power of hospitality and how our wealth increases when we help the poor.
However, this is discussed at greater length in the explanation of the Gospel of Matthew (see chapter 14
. At one time, when He was praying in a solitary place, and the disciples were with Him, He asked them: Who do the people say that I am?
. They answered: for John the Baptist, and others for Elijah; others: They say, that one of the ancient prophets was resurrected.
. He asked them: Who do you say that I am? Peter answered: for the Christ of God.
. But He strictly ordered them not to tell anyone about this,
. saying that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.
The Lord, questioning the disciples, does not directly ask what they themselves say, but first asks about the people’s opinion, and then about their own opinion. He does this in order to show the injustice of the people’s rumors about Him and to lead the disciples to the true understanding, which is what was done. For when the disciples said that some call You John, others Elijah, He “and you,” that is, you are different from everyone else, you are chosen, you are set apart, who do you call Me? Then Peter precedes the others and, having become the mouth of all, confesses Him as the Christ of God, about whom it has long been preached. He did not just call Him the Christ of God, but that Christ of God, who is actually the Christ of God. For many have been anointed, but that Christ (Anointed) of God is the One and Only.
. To all he said: If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
Since Christ said of Himself that the Son of Man must "to suffer a lot", then it adds something general and universal, namely: I am not the only one who will suffer death, but everyone who wants to follow Me must renounce themselves, have no communication with the flesh, but despise themselves.
“The Cross” here names the most blasphemous death; for there was no other death so inglorious as death on the cross. So, He declares that the one who wants to be His disciple must die not a glorious death, but a blasphemous one, will be killed as a condemned person Since many are killed blasphemously as robbers and evildoers, therefore He added: "and follow me", that is, practice every virtue.
. For whoever wants to save his soul will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.
“Whoever wants to save his soul will lose it”, that is, if anyone wants to live in a worldly way, he will die in soul.
. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, but destroy or harm himself?
. For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father and the holy Angels.
He is ashamed of Christ who says: How can I believe in a crucified and mocked God? And he is ashamed of His words who mocks the simplicity of the Gospel. The Lord will be ashamed of such "in His glory", that is, the second coming. He says something like this: just as a householder, having a wicked servant, is ashamed to call him his slave, so I am ashamed to call him my slave who has denied Me.
. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.
Because He said above: “Whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.”, then now, wanting to show what benefits such people will receive, he says: “There are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”, that is, the glory in which the righteous have to be. He said this about His Transfiguration. For the Transfiguration was an image of the future heavenly glory, and just as Jesus in the Transfiguration miraculously shone like lightning, so then the righteous will shine in the same way (). There are, he says, several (John, Peter and James) who will not die before they see the glory in which My confessors will be. And they will see this during the Transfiguration.
. After these words, eight days later,
The Evangelist Matthew says that Jesus ascended the mountain when six days passed after these words (), and Luke says that eight days passed. For Matthew speaks only about intermediate days, and Luke does not only speak about intermediate days, but he means both the day on which these words were spoken and the one on which the Transfiguration took place.
taking Peter, John and James,
Jesus took with Him only three: Peter as loving, John as beloved and James as burning with zeal for Him, or as capable of hiding the event, keeping it in silence and not telling anyone.
He went up the mountain to pray.
To pray, Jesus goes up the mountain; for we must pray in solitude, with ascension, without bowing to anything earthly.
. And when he prayed, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became white and shining.
His appearance became different, not, however, as if He Himself had become different in essence, for He remained the same as He was, but the appearance of His face appeared much brighter than before. The same thing happened with His clothes. For only her appearance shone with lightning; the substance of the clothing did not change, only the appearance.
. And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah;
As He prayed, Moses and Elijah stood before Him to show that He was not opposed to the Law and the Prophets. For if He were an enemy, then Moses, who gave the Law, and Elijah, the most zealous of the prophets, would not have allowed themselves to serve Him (like bodyguards), or even to be with Him.
. appearing in glory, they spoke of His exodus, which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem.
They spoke about the exodus that He had to accomplish in Jerusalem, that is, about His death.
. Peter and those with him were burdened with sleep; but when they awoke, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.
. And when they departed from Him, Peter said to Jesus: Master! It’s good for us to be here; We will make three tabernacles: one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah, not knowing what he said.
While Christ was in prayer, Peter “was heavy with sleep,” for he was weak and, serving sleep, paid tribute to human nature. When Peter woke up, he saw the glory of Christ and two men. Finding such a stay here pleasant because of the light and contemplation of the prophets, Peter says: “It’s good for us to be here”! He thought that now the end of the world and the kingdom of Jesus had come. But he didn't know what he was saying. For then the end had not yet occurred, the day of the kingdom and enjoyment of the blessings that the saints would possess had not yet arrived. Peter said this (it is good for us to be here) together also because he feared that Christ would be crucified. He heard from Christ that He must be killed and rise on the third day; That’s why he said this, expressing himself as if like this: let’s not leave the mountain, we’ll stay here to avoid the Cross and suffering; if the Jews come against us, then we have Elijah as an assistant, who brought down fire from heaven and destroyed the leaders of the fifty; we have Moses, who defeated so many and such nations. He said this without knowing what he was saying. For he thought that the cross was evil, and, moreover, painful, and therefore, wanting to avoid it, he said this. Meanwhile, the Lord longed to be crucified, since otherwise the salvation of people could not be accomplished.
. While he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them; and they were afraid when they entered the cloud.
Then, as Peter also said: "let's make three tabernacles", The Lord suddenly creates a canopy not made by hands and enters it with the prophets to show that He is no less than the Father. For just as in the Old Testament the Lord appeared in a cloud, and Moses entered it, and thus received the Law (), so now the cloud has embraced Christ, and the cloud is not dark (for the shadow of the Law and the darkness of ignorance has passed), but a bright cloud. For the truth has come, and the grace of the Lord has shone, and therefore now nothing is dark.
. And there came a voice from the cloud, saying: This is My Beloved Son; listen to Him.
And a voice came out of the cloud, just as in the Old Testament the voice of God was heard from the cloud.
. When this voice came, Jesus was left alone.
Jesus remained alone, so that no one would think that the words: "This is My Beloved Son" were said about Moses or Elijah. However, this perhaps also means that the Law and the Prophets existed only for a certain time, just as Moses and Elijah were visible here, and then, when their time passed, only Jesus remained. For now the gospel reigns, while much of the law has passed away.
And they kept silent and did not tell anyone in those days what they saw.
The apostles remained silent and did not say anything about what they saw. Before the Cross, one should not have said anything decent to God about Jesus. For what opinion would those who heard this, and then saw Him crucified, form about Him? Would they not consider Him a deceiver and a dreamer? That is why the apostles do not preach about a single miraculous and God-worthy deed of Jesus before the Cross.
However, we have said enough about this subject in our explanation of the Gospel of Matthew (see chapter 17
. The very next day, when they came down from the mountain, many people met Him.
. Suddenly one of the people exclaimed: Teacher! I beg You to look at my son, he is the only one I have:
. the spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out, and torments him, so that he emits foam; and forcibly retreats from him, having exhausted him
. I asked Your disciples to drive him out, but they could not.
This man (about whom we are talking) was a very unbeliever. Therefore, the demon did not leave his son. For unbelief prevailed over the strength of the apostles. His disbelief and insolence are evident from the fact that he came to accuse the disciples in front of everyone.
. Jesus answered and said: O faithless and perverse generation! How long will I be with you and endure you?
But the Lord declares that his son was not healed because of his unbelief, and before everyone he reproaches him, and not just him, but everyone else in general. For having said: "Oh, the unfaithful race" By this he means all the Jews, and by the word “corrupt” he shows that their evil is not from the beginning and not from nature. They were good by nature (for they were the holy offspring of Abraham and Isaac), but they were corrupted by their wickedness. Words: “As long as I will be with you and will bear with you” mean that He wants to accept death and wants to get rid of them as quickly as possible. For how long,” he says, “will I endure your unbelief?
bring your son here.
. While he was still walking, the demon overthrew him and began to beat him; but Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him to his father.
The Lord, to show that He has the power to overcome the unbelief of the Jews, says: "bring your son here" and having healed him, "gave it to his father". The possessed man did not previously belong to his father, but to the evil spirit that possessed him; and now the Lord gave him to his father, who lost him and then found him.
. And everyone was amazed at the greatness of God. When everyone was amazed at everything that Jesus did, He said to His disciples:
. put these words in your ears: the Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men.
Others “everyone marveled at everything that Jesus did”, and not just this miracle. But Jesus, leaving the others, talks with the disciples and says: all this, miracles and words about miracles, “put it in your ears”. For what? Since I am about to be betrayed and crucified, so that when you see Me crucified, you do not think that I endured this out of My powerlessness. For whoever performs such miracles might not have been crucified.
. But they did not understand this word, and it was hidden from them,
What was this for? So that they do not prematurely fall into sadness and are not embarrassed from fear. So, God, condescending to their weakness and guiding them as if they were children, allowed them not to understand what was said about the Cross.
so they did not comprehend it, but were afraid to ask Him about this word.
Accept and the reverence of the disciples, for which they did not dare, they were even more afraid to ask the Lord. For fear enhances reverence, just as reverence is fear dissolved by love.
. The thought came to them: which of them would be greater?
The apostles were overcome by a passion for empty glory. It seems that this passion was aroused in them because they did not heal the demoniac. Probably on this occasion they argued, each claiming for his part that the boy was not healed not because of my powerlessness, but because of the powerlessness of such and such, and from here a dispute broke out about which of them would be greater.
. But Jesus, seeing the thoughts of their hearts, took the child and set him before Him
But the Lord, knowing everyone’s heart, anticipates and, before this passion grows, tries to nip it at the very root. For it is easy to overcome passions at the beginning, but when they grow, then it becomes very difficult to drive them out. How does the Lord stop evil? “Taking, it is said, a child,” shows it to his students, letting them know through this that we must bring our mind to the state in which it is in childhood; for children are inexperienced in evil, very simple and are not worried by thoughts of either love of glory or the desire for primacy over others.
. and he said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for whoever is least among you will be great.
“Who,” says, “ this child receives in My name, he receives Me.”. These words have this meaning: although you think that many will like you and that you will be accepted by many if you seem proud and love-loving, I tell you that simplicity is especially pleasing to Me and that it serves as a distinctive feature of My disciples , so whoever accepts a simple and gentle man as My disciple (for this means the expression “in My name”) will accept Me. For whoever accepts the proud does not accept either My disciple or Me.
. At this John said: Mentor! We saw a man casting out demons in Your name, and we rebuked him, because he did not walk with us.
John, entering into the conversation, said: "Mentor! We saw a man casting out demons in Your name, and we rebuked him.”. What is the sequence between the words of John and the words of the Lord? Very close. Because the Lord said that “Whoever is least among you will be great”, then John began to fear that they had acted badly when they powerfully and proudly forbade that man. For forbidding something to someone reveals that the one prohibiting is no less, but thinks of himself somewhat more than the one to whom he forbids. So, John was afraid that he had acted proudly in forbidding the man.
Why did the disciples forbid this man? Not out of envy, but because they considered him unworthy to work miracles, since he did not receive the grace of working miracles with them, was not, like them, sent from the Lord to do this, and did not follow Jesus at all. What about the Lord?
Jesus said to him: Do not forbid, for whoever is not against you is for you.
Leave him, he says, to do this; for he also breaks the power of Satan. Since he does not hinder you in the work of preaching, does not act in concert with the devil, it means he is for you. For whoever is not against God is for God, just as he is with the devil who does not gather with God.
Marvel, perhaps, at the power of the name of Christ, how grace acted at the mere pronunciation of it, even though those pronouncing it were unworthy and were not disciples of Christ. In the same way, grace works through priests, even if they are unworthy, and everyone is sanctified, even if the priest is not pure.
. When the days of His capture drew near: from the world He wanted to go to Jerusalem;
What do the words mean: “When the days of his taking were drawing near”? This means that the time had come when He needed to endure saving suffering for us and then ascend to heaven and be reunited with God and the Father.
When the time came for His suffering and taking away from the world, He decided not to go here and there, but to ascend to Jerusalem. Expression: “wanted to go” (in Church Slavonic - “establish your face”) this means that He determined, decided, laid down a firm intention to go to Jerusalem.
. and He sent messengers before Him; and they went and entered the village of the Samaritans; to prepare for Him;
But: there They did not accept Him because He appeared to be traveling to Jerusalem.
. Seeing this, His disciples, James and John, said: Lord! Do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and destroy them, just as Elijah did?
. But He, turning to them, rebuked them and said: You do not know what kind of spirit you are;
. for the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save. And they went to another village.
Sends "messengers before Him" so that they would prepare some kind of reception for Him. Although He knew that the Samaritans would not accept Him, He nevertheless sent messengers to take away any excuse from the Samaritans, so that later they could not say that we would have accepted Him if He had sent someone before Him. He did this together and for the benefit of His disciples, namely: so that when they saw Him on the Cross in an insult, they would not be tempted, but from the present case they would learn that just as now He kindly endured contempt from the Samaritans and even forbade the disciples themselves to arouse in Him anger at the offenders, so even then he endures crucifixion, not because He is powerless, but because He is long-suffering. This is also useful for the disciples in the sense that the Lord, by his own example, teaches them to be gentle. For they, looking at Elijah, who twice destroyed with fire fifty people each with their leaders, and being still imperfect, stirred up the Lord to take vengeance on those who had offended Him. But the Lord, showing them that His Law is higher than Elijah’s life, forbids them and leads them away from such a way of thinking, but on the contrary, taught them to endure insults with meekness.
What do the words mean: “But they did not receive Him there, because He appeared to be traveling to Jerusalem.”? Do they not say that they did not accept Him because He intended to go to Jerusalem? And if we understand in this way that the Samaritans did not accept the Lord because He intended to go to Jerusalem, then do not those who did not accept Him turn out to be innocent? We can say that the evangelist says this: they did not accept Him, and He did not enter Samaria; then, as if someone asked: why didn’t they accept Him against his will and He didn’t enter; Was it really because He was powerless or could not enter, even if they did not want to? To resolve this, the evangelist says: not because the Lord did not enter, as if it was not possible for Him, but because He Himself did not want to enter there, but intended to go straight to Jerusalem. For if the Lord had not had such an intention, He would have entered the village of the Samaritans even if they did not want this.
. It happened that while they were on the way, someone said to Him: Lord! I will follow You wherever You go.
. Jesus said to him: Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.
This one, who came to Jesus and asked permission to follow Him, came with a crafty thought. Seeing that many people were following the Lord, he thought that the Lord was collecting money from them, and he himself came to the idea that he would make an estate for himself if he followed Jesus. Therefore, the Lord rejected him, telling him something like this: you think that by following Me you will make a fortune for yourself, believing that this is My life, but in reality it is not so; I teach and preach such poverty that I do not even have my own house, while other animals have holes. And thus rejected him.
. And he said to another: follow me. He said: Lord! let me first go and bury my father.
. But Jesus said to him: Let the dead bury their dead, and you go and preach the Kingdom of God.
And he allows the other, who did not ask, to follow. When this one asked permission to go and "bury father" The Lord did not allow his own, but said: leave the dead to bury their dead. This hints that his father was an unbeliever and therefore unworthy to be nourished in his old age by his son, who believed. Grant, he says, to the “dead” relatives, that is, the unbelievers, to feed your unbelieving father in his old age and until the grave. For to bury here means to have care until the very grave, since in ordinary conversation we say: such and such a son buried his father, and by this we mean not that he buried him and did not do him any other good, but that had care of him until his death and burial. So let these dead, that is, the unbelievers, bury their dead man, that is, your father. And since you have believed, then, as My disciple, preach the Gospel of God. The Lord, having said this, does not forbid us to feed our parents, but teaches us to prefer God to unbelieving parents and not to have any obstacle to virtue, but to despise nature itself.
. Another one said: I will follow You, Lord! but first let me say goodbye to my family.
. But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
So to the man who asked permission to follow Him, but first to pay his due to his family, He did not allow this, that is, to go to his house and pay his due, or, to put it more simply, to say goodbye. For such a person reveals in himself an attachment to the world and a lack of apostolic disposition; for the apostles, as soon as they heard the calling from the Lord, immediately followed Him, did not do anything else, and even forsook saying goodbye to their relatives. And it often happens that while a person is saying goodbye to his relatives, among them there are those who keep him from a godlike life. Therefore, it is good, having a disposition for good, to immediately do it, without any delay. For no one who has taken up the spiritual plow and looks back at the world is capable of the Kingdom of Heaven.
By “foxes” you mean crafty demons; they are also called birds of the air, that is, birds of the air; for it is said: "by the will of the prince who rules the air"(). So, the Lord says to the mentioned person: since demons have holes in you, then I, the Son of Man, have no place to lay my head, that is, in your heart, full of demons, I see no place for faith in Me. For the head of Christ is faith in Him. Whoever believes that Christ is God receives the head of Christ. And the sinner is dead; he buries his dead, that is, evil thoughts, by not confessing them. So, the Lord forbids those who intend to be His follower to bury an evil thought and hide it, but commands them to reveal it through confession.
Having called the Twelve, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to heal diseases,and sent them to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.And he said to them: do not take anything for the road: neither a staff, nor a scrip, nor bread, nor silver, and do not have two clothes;and whichever house you enter, stay there and go from there let's hit the road. And if they do not accept you anywhere, then when you leave that city, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.
They went and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
Herod the tetrarch heard about everything he was doing. Jesus, and was perplexed: for some said that it was John who rose from the dead;others that Elijah appeared, and others that one of the ancient prophets was resurrected.And Herod said: I have beheaded John; Who is this one about whom I hear such things? And I sought to see Him.
The apostles returned and told Him what they had done; and He, taking them with Him, withdrew separately to an empty place, near a city called Bethsaida.But the people, having learned, followed Him; and He, having received them, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.
The day began to turn towards evening. And, approaching Him, the Twelve said to Him: Let the people go, so that they can go to the surrounding villages and villages to spend the night and get food; because we are in an empty place here.
But He said to them: you give them something to eat.
They said: We do not have more than five loaves and two fish; Should we go buy food for all these people?For there were about five thousand of them.
But He said to His disciples: plant them in rows of fifty.
And they did so, and seated everyone.He took the five loaves and two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke them and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.And they all ate and were filled; and the pieces that remained with them were collected into twelve boxes.
At one time, when He was praying in a secluded place and the disciples were with Him, He asked them: Who do the people say that I am?
They answered: for John the Baptist, and others for Elijah; others They say that one of the ancient prophets has risen.
He asked them: and who do you say that I am?
Peter answered: for the Christ of God.
But He strictly ordered them not to tell anyone about this,saying that The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.
To everyone he said: If anyone wants to come after Me, deny yourself, and take up your cross, and follow Me.For whoever wants to save his soul will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, but destroy or harm himself?For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father and the holy Angels.
But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.
After these words, eight days later, He took Peter, John and James and went up to the mountain to pray.And when he prayed, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became white and shining.And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah;appearing in glory, they spoke of His exodus, which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem.Peter and those with him were burdened with sleep; but when they awoke, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.And when they departed from Him, Peter said to Jesus: Master! It’s good for us to be here; We will make three tabernacles: one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah, not knowing what he said.
While he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them; and they were afraid when they entered the cloud.And there came a voice from the cloud, saying: This is My Beloved Son; listen to Him.
When this voice came, Jesus was left alone. And they kept silent and did not tell anyone in those days what they saw.
The very next day, when they came down from the mountain, many people met Him.Suddenly one of the people exclaimed: Teacher! I beg You to look at my son, he is the only one I have:the spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out, and torments him, so that he emits foam; and forcibly retreats from him, having exhausted him.I asked Your disciples to drive him out, but they could not.
Jesus answered and said: O faithless and corrupt generation! How long will I be with you and endure you? bring your son here.While he was still walking, the demon overthrew him and began to beat him; but Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him to his father.And everyone was amazed at the greatness of God.
When everyone was amazed at everything that Jesus did, He said to His disciples:put these words in your ears: the Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men.But they did not understand this word, and it was hidden from them, so that they did not comprehend it, and they were afraid to ask Him about this word.
The thought came to them: which of them would be greater?But Jesus, seeing the thoughts of their hearts, took the child and set him before Himand said to them: whoever receives this child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for whoever is least among you will be great.
At this John said: Mentor! We saw a man casting out demons in Your name, and we rebuked him, because he did not walk with us.
Jesus said to him: do not forbid, for whoever is not against you is for you.
When the days of His capture drew near from the world, He wanted to go to Jerusalem;and he sent messengers before him; and they went and entered the village of the Samaritans to make preparations for Him;But there They did not accept Him because He appeared to be traveling to Jerusalem.Seeing this, His disciples, James and John, said: Lord! Do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and destroy them, just as Elijah did?
But He, turning to them, rebuked them and said: You do not know what kind of spirit you are;for the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save. And they went to another village.
It happened that while they were on the way, someone said to Him: Lord! I will follow You wherever You go.
Jesus said to him: foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.
And he said to another: follow me.
He said: Lord! let me first go and bury my father.
But Jesus said to him: leave the dead to bury their dead, and you go and preach the Kingdom of God.
Another one said: I will follow You, Lord! but first let me say goodbye to my family.
But Jesus said to him: no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of God.
1. JESUS SENDS THE TWELVE TO MINISTRY (9:1-6) (Matt. 10:5-15; Mark 6:7-13)
Onion. 9:1-6. When Jesus sent the twelve disciples into ministry, He gave them two instructions. They were to preach the Kingdom of God and heal the sick. They were able to carry out the task assigned to them because Jesus gave them strength (the “dynamin” used here can be translated as “spiritual ability”; compare 4:14,36; 5:17; 6:19; 8:46) and authority ( "exousian" - "the right to use force") over the world of demons and over the sphere of physical ailments. Christ Himself has already demonstrated His authority over both of these areas (8:26-56).
As in His case, the “ministry of healing” was to be performed by the Apostles in support of their preaching ministry. And the fact that Jesus gave them the corresponding “power” testifies to Him as the Messiah, Whose power is to bring man into the Kingdom of God. From that moment on, people needed to show their faith to the twelve Apostles, because in this way they would show their faith in the Messiah.
Providing hospitality to the Apostles would indicate their trust in them. This consideration helps to understand the seemingly strange order of Christ, which is spoken of in 9:3-5. The ministry of the Twelve was apparently not long, and they soon returned to Jesus with an account (verse 10). Why, after all, should they not have taken any money, food, or spare clothes with them? Apparently for two reasons.
Firstly, as was said, their ministry was not long, and secondly, so that from the attitude of people towards them it would become clear whether the people recognize Jesus as the Messiah. Those who believed their gospel and that the power to heal was given to them from above would gladly share their material wealth with them. Those who did not accept them would testify against themselves: judgment would await such (verses 4-5). Shake off the dust from your feet as you leave the city that rejected you, Jesus told them.
The Jews had a custom: upon returning home from a pagan city or country, they shook off the dust from their feet - as a sign that nothing more connected them with the pagans. The apostles would have shown in this way that some Jewish cities are similar in their unwillingness to listen and believe to pagan cities. They went... through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere, Luke writes, apparently meaning the Galilean villages.
2. HEROD CONCERNED ABOUT JESUS (9:7-9) (MAT 14:1-2; MAR 6:14-29)
Onion. 9:7-9. The ministry of the Apostles attracted, as they would say now, public attention. The more they began to talk about everything that Jesus did. Even Herod, who ruled Galilee (3:1), heard about Him and was perplexed: what is this? And who is He? Herod apparently doubted the resurrection of the dead, and therefore also doubted the rumor that it was John the Baptist, whom he beheaded, who rose from the dead. But he heard from others that Elijah or one of the ancient prophets appeared in the person of Jesus...
One way or another, even in the highest strata of society there was much talk in those days about Christ and His Apostles. And this is recorded by Luke.
3. JESUS FEEDS 5000 PEOPLE (9:10-17) (MAT 14:13-21; MAR 6:30-44; JOH 6:1-14)
The feeding of 5,000 people is the only miracle that all four evangelists talk about. It can be seen as the culmination of Christ's ministry through His miracles. The purpose of this miracle was to deepen and strengthen faith in His disciples.
Onion. 9:10-11. Here Luke calls the twelve disciples “Apostles.” Jesus Himself called them this before (6:13). Perhaps the Apostles returned to Him in Capernaum, which gave Him shelter for a while. After which He withdrew with them to a deserted place near the city of Bethsaida, located on the other side of the Jordan, on the northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. (Some theologians, however, believe that Bethsaida was the name of the city now known as Tabgha, located southwest of Capernaum.) As usual, the crowd that followed them disturbed their privacy.
And then He, having received them, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and those who needed healing - He healed. What happened next was the climax of His miracles, demonstrating to all present that He was the Messiah, able to fully meet the needs of His people. "Who is he?" - asked Herod (9:7-9). Later, Jesus will ask His disciples what people think about this (verses 18-20). As for the Apostles themselves, after their Teacher saturated 5,000 people (verses 10-17), they hardly doubted that before them was the true Messiah.
Onion. 9:12-17. The people who followed Jesus and the Apostles, apparently from Capernaum (the crowd probably grew along the way), found themselves in a place that was foreign to them. And when it began to get dark, the disciples told Him that they should let the people go in search of accommodation and food in the surrounding villages. In response, He invited the disciples to feed them. He did this to make them realize how humanly impossible it was to feed such a crowd.
The answer of the disciples, who had five loaves and two fish at their disposal, sounded in the appropriate “key”: should we buy food for all these people? And there were about five thousand people there. In the Greek text here the word is "andres", which means "man"; and this makes us think that in fact there were much more people in the crowd, including women and children (Matthew says this directly; Matt. 14:21).
Jesus ordered them to be seated 50 in a row - to make it more convenient to distribute food to them. Then He, looking up to heaven, blessed the bread and fish and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. It is said that after everyone was satisfied, the remaining pieces were collected into twelve boxes. Was this not a demonstration to Israel that if they would believe Jesus Christ and His gospel, they would be provided with everything they needed to prosper!
The miracle of feeding a crowd of thousands is reminiscent of what was once done by the prophet Elisha; according to the word of the Lord, he fed many people with a small amount of food that still remained (2 Kings 4:42-44).
4. JESUS TALKS TO THE DISCIPLES ABOUT HIMSELF AND HIS MISSION (9:18-27) (MAT. 16:13-28; MAR. 8:27 - 9:1)
For the first time in this section, Jesus began to tell his disciples about the final and main goal of His mission - to die for the sins of people.
Onion. 9:18-21. The conversation discussed below took place, as Evangelist Mark writes (Mark 8:27), on the road north, “to the villages of Caesarea Philippi.” Jesus asked the disciples who people said He was (compare Luke 9:7-9). But first of all, He was interested in who His disciples thought He was. Peter answered on behalf of the whole group: for the Christ (that is, for the Messiah) of God.
Although some time had passed since the moment the miracle of “multiplying” the loaves and fishes happened before their eyes. Luke makes it clear that this incident became decisive for the disciples of Jesus, and they no longer doubted that He was the Messiah. Jesus, however, did not want other people to know this (verse 21), because the time for the public announcement of the coming of the Messiah had not yet come.
Onion. 9:22-27. The speech in these verses is about the martyrdom of not only Jesus Himself, but also His disciples. Christ speaks of the dominant role of the leaders of the Jewish people in His earthly destiny (verse 22). Here He declares for the first time that He will be resurrected after His death (verse 22). Then he makes it clear that His disciples will die a violent death and in this regard instructs them to treat death (and life) in the same way as He, their Teacher. Deny yourself, He teaches, which means don’t think about your well-being. Take up your cross, that is, bear the hardships that lie ahead of you, recognizing in the name and for whose sake you are bearing them (commentary on 14:27). And follow Him until death.
Not long before this, the disciples went “through the villages” and preached the gospel about the Messiah and His Kingdom. Undoubtedly, some thought that by leaving their usual work (the source of their existence) and following Jesus to share with Him the hardships and direct danger that threatened Him from the leaders of the people, the disciples were wasting their lives. But they made the right choice. And the one who makes the same choice, without caring about earthly well-being for himself, will ultimately save his soul (verse 24).
Those who do not want to accept God’s plan for one or another earthly “consideration” will destroy their souls. In verses 25-26 the idea expressed in verse 24 is further developed. For whoever is ashamed of Me (i.e., does not want to believe Me and identify himself with Me) and My words (i.e., My teaching), the Son of Man will be ashamed...
To avoid the future judgment that will take place when He comes in the glory of His Father and the Holy Angels (compare 2 Thess. 1:7-10), it is vital for people to take the side of Christ and His disciples.
Jesus concludes this conversation with words that have been the subject of discussion for centuries and have been understood in different ways: there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God. Let's look at the four most popular views: 1) Jesus spoke about the birth of the Christian movement, which began on the day of Pentecost. It is clear that most of the Apostles (only Judas Iscariot was dead by this time) were witnesses to what happened that day.
But to identify the phenomenon of the Day of Pentecost with the Kingdom means to go against the Old Testament teaching about it. 2) Jesus was referring to the destruction of Jerusalem. It is difficult, however, to imagine that this event contained even the symbolism of the Kingdom. 3) He meant that the disciples would not die with Him, but would remain to preach the Gospel after His death. Again, it is difficult to understand how in the minds of the Apostles this could be associated with the teaching of the Old Testament, which they were familiar with, about the Kingdom of God. 4) Jesus meant three Apostles who were to accompany Him to the “mount of transfiguration.”
What happened there with Christ was a prototype of the glory inherent in the Kingdom of God. This understanding seems to be the most consistent with the truth. Luke's account places this event in direct connection with Jesus' words in verse 27 - at least with what he describes immediately after them (verses 28-36).
5. TRANSFORMATION OF JESUS (9:28-36) (MAT. 17:1-8; MAR. 9:2-8)
Onion. 9:28-31. …Eight days later, He took Peter, John and James and went up to the mountain to pray. Mark writes that this happened “about six days later” (Mark 9:2). However, there is no contradiction here if we assume that Mark speaks of six days that passed between the day when Jesus made this prophecy and the day when He “went up into the mountain,” and Luke includes both of these days in the “interval.” The mountain on which the three Apostles observed His transfiguration could be Mount Hermon, near Caesarea Philippi (Mark 8:27); according to others, it was Mount Tabor.
Three events occurred during the transformation process.
1. The appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became white and shining. This is reminiscent of the radiance that emanated from the face of Moses when he returned from Mount Sinai with the tablets of the Covenant (Ex. 34:29-35).
2. Two men appeared on the mountain and entered into conversation with Jesus; it was Moses and Elijah. Let us remember that the bodies of Moses and Elijah were never found by people. God Himself buried the body of Moses (Deut. 34:5-6), and Elijah was caught up alive into heaven (2 Kings 2:11-12,15-18). These two men represent the beginning and end of Israel as a nation. For Moses was its founder and legislator, and Elijah will return to him at the end of the ages, before the second coming of Christ (Mal. 4:5-6).
3. Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus about His exodus, which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem. The “Exodus” or departure of Jesus from the earth signified that His work of saving mankind was completed; The symbolism of this “exodus” echoes the symbolism of the exodus of Israel from Egypt, which marked the “liberation” of this people by Jehovah for Himself.
Since the transfiguration, Jesus has repeatedly said that His path lies in Jerusalem (Luke 9:51,53; 13:33; 17:11; 18:31).
Onion. 9:32-33. There were three disciples with Jesus. This reminds how Moses, “ascending the mountain,” was also accompanied by three - Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, who saw God (Exodus 24:9-11). At the moment of the transfiguration, Peter... and those with him were burdened with sleep... When they woke up, they were blinded by the glory of Jesus and shocked by the situation as a whole.
They probably realized that they were seeing the glory of the Kingdom of God, and this gave Peter the idea of building three tabernacles. He most likely thought about the Feast of Tabernacles, with which the Jews had long associated the hope for the coming of the Kingdom of God (Zech. 14:16-21). Apparently, Peter decided that this Kingdom had already arrived.
Onion. 9:34-36. While he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them (apparently all six); and (the disciples) were afraid when they entered the cloud. Let us remember that in the Bible the cloud is often a symbol of God's presence (Ex. 13:21-22; 40:38).
Just as at the baptism of Jesus (Luke 3:22), and in this case a voice came from the cloud, saying: This is My Beloved Son; Listen to him. In the minds of the Apostles, who were well acquainted with the Old Testament, these words - “Listen to Him” could not help but be associated with identical ones written in the book of Deuteronomy (18:15) - in the context of the messianic prediction that the people would be given a prophet greater than Moses.
And suddenly only Jesus was left before the Apostles. And in those days they did not tell anyone what they saw. Thus, what Christ predicted to them was fulfilled (Luke 9:27). Three of His disciples saw a type of the Kingdom of God - before they died (2 Pet. 1:16-19).
6. JESUS HEALS A DEMONISHED YOUTH (9:37-43) (MAT 17:14-18; MAR 9:14-27)
Onion. 9:37-43. The transfiguration may have taken place at night, judging by what Luke writes: The next day, when they came down from the mountain, many people met Him. And one of the people fervently asked Him: Teacher! I beg You to look at my son... The disciples had already tried to help this young man possessed by an unclean spirit, but they could not. This case turned out to be within the power of only Jesus Himself. The disciples acted successfully only if His power was present in them. When the young man was healed by Christ, everyone was amazed at the greatness of God.
7. JESUS SPEAKS ABOUT HIS DEATH (9:44-45)
Onion. 9:44-45. And so, at the moment of this universal admiration, Jesus for the second time told the disciples about His death at the “hands of men.” But they did not understand what He said, since it was hidden from them. Perhaps the Apostles could not comprehend how Jesus, possessing supernatural power, could die the way people die. How the reaction of the people to the miracles He performed was not reconciled in their minds with His prediction that this people would not only turn away from Him, but would also put Him to death.
8. JESUS SPEAKS ABOUT THE CRITERIA OF TRUE GREATNESS (9:46-50) (MAT. 18:1-5; MAR. 9:33-40)
Onion. 9:46-50. This section (9:1-50) ends with Jesus talking to his disciples about the criteria of true greatness. Jesus had already fully revealed to them that He is the Messiah, who will lead them into the Kingdom of God. Perhaps, in anticipation of this, the disciples began to think about how high a position they would occupy in this Kingdom. Jesus, responding to their thoughts, puts forward an unusual principle: whoever is least among you will be great. He Himself was guided by this principle in His ministry, expressing His readiness to die on the cross for all people.
During this conversation, John confessed to Jesus that they forbade a man unknown to them, who cast out demons in the name of Jesus, to do so, since he did not walk with them. John apparently believed that the “greatness” of the Apostles might “suffer” if someone outside their number began to cast out demons like them. Jesus' answer: do not forbid; for whoever is not against you is for you obviously meant that the Apostles should not have considered themselves as the only representatives of God on earth. On the contrary, they should have rejoiced in the fact that the power of God manifests itself in other people.
V. Jesus Goes to Jerusalem (9:51 - 19:27)
This large section of Luke's Gospel can be divided into two parts:
1) Rejection of Jesus for most of His journey to Jerusalem (9:52 - 11:54) and
2) Jesus instructs His followers in light of this rejection (12:1 - 19:27).
In the previous section (4:4 - 9:50) we saw how Jesus' ministry in Galilee testified to the truth of His Person and teachings. In this section, this topic is replaced by the topic of people’s attitude towards Him. Most Israelis did not accept Jesus. And then He began to teach His followers how they should live day after day in conditions of opposition and hostility towards them.
A. Rejection of Jesus Christ along much of this route (9:51 - 11:54)
The section begins with a story about how Jesus was not received in the Samaritan village (9:51-56). That the Samaritans would reject Him was to be expected, but that was only the beginning. Eventually it came to the point of accusing Jesus of being a demonic force, at which point the people's rejection of Him reached its climax (11:14-54).
Chapter Nine
Having called the twelve, he gave power and authority over all demons and to heal diseases, and sent them to preach the Kingdom of God and heal the sick. And he said to them: Do not take anything for the road: neither staff, nor scrip, nor bread, nor silver, and do not have two clothes; and whatever house you enter, stay there and from there go on your journey. And if they do not accept you anywhere, then when you leave that city, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them. They went and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
And from here the superiority of the Divinity of Jesus is revealed. For He not only performed miracles Himself, but also gave the same power to His disciples. And to communicate such gifts to your friends, without any doubt, is possible not for man, but only for God. - Having given the disciples power over evil spirits, the Lord did not limit them to the use of this power only, but commanded them to preach the Gospel. The one who has been entrusted with teaching must both preach and perform miracles. In this case, the sermon is confirmed by miracles, and miracles by the sermon. For many often performed miracles by the power of demons, but their preaching was not true; and therefore their miracles are not from God. - The Lord, sending his disciples, commands them such moderation that he does not command them to take either bread or anything else that many of us gather for ourselves. He also commands them not to run from one to another, but to stay in whichever house they enter, so as not to seem somehow fickle and very changeable. Shake off, - he says, - the dust on those who will not accept you, as a testimony against them, that is, for their reproof and condemnation, showing them that, although they have done a lot of things for their sake, they have not received anything from them. arrived. - Some understand the commandment to the apostles - not to carry a bag or a staff, not to have two clothes each - as follows: do not collect treasures - for the bag, containing a lot, means collecting; do not carry a staff, that is, do not be angry and pugnacious; do not have two clothes, that is, do not be changeable in morals and double-minded in thoughts.
Herod the tetrarch heard about everything that Jesus did and was perplexed: for some said that it was John who rose from the dead; others that Elijah appeared, and others that one of the ancient prophets was resurrected. And Herod said: I have beheaded John; Who is this one about whom I hear such things? And I sought to see Him.
This Herod was a little one, the son of the great Herod, who beat up infants. This one was a king, and this one was a tetrarch. He wondered who Jesus was. However, John,” he says, “I beheaded, and therefore if he rose from the dead, then when I see him, I will recognize him; and looked for an opportunity to see Jesus. Look: Jews believe the resurrection of the dead is in carnal life, in food and drink. They think wrongly, for the resurrection is not in food and drink or in the life of the flesh, but the resurrected live like the Angels of God.
The apostles returned and told Him what they had done; and He, taking them with Him, withdrew separately to an empty place, near a city called Bethsaida. But the people, having learned, followed Him; and He, having received them, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing. The day began to turn towards evening. And the twelve came to Him and said to Him: Let the people go, so that they can go to the surrounding villages to spend the night and get food; because we are in an empty place here. But He said to them: Give them something to eat. They said: We do not have more than five loaves and two fish; Should we go buy food for all these people? For there were about five thousand of them. But He said to His disciples: Seat them in rows of fifty. And they did so, and seated everyone. He took the five loaves and two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke them and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. And they all ate and were filled; and the pieces that remained with them were collected into twelve boxes.
Jesus, having the intention of performing a miracle over the loaves, goes into an empty place so that no one would think of saying that the loaves were brought from a nearby city. - Having received the people, He taught and healed, so that you would know that our chastity is divided into word and deed, and that just as we should not say what is inconvenient to do, so we should not do what is absurd to talk about. - When the day was approaching evening, the disciples, who had already begun to be distinguished by their philanthropic and pastoral dispositions, took pity on the people and said: let them go, that is, quickly heal their illnesses, fulfill their petitions. And the Lord says to the disciples: “Give them something to eat.” He says this not because he did not know about the poverty, but because he wanted to force the disciples themselves to express how many loaves they had, and thus, through their confession, through the announcement of the number of loaves, to reveal all the greatness of the miracle. Commanding the disciples to seat the people in rows of fifty, he shows that when we receive a stranger, we must calm him down and take every care for him. He looks at the sky to show that we, intending to eat food, must send thanks to God. He Himself gives to the disciples, and then they give to the people; this is so that they do not forget about the miracle, but remember it when they think that they took the loaves into their hands. There were twelve boxes left over, so that we would know the power of hospitality and how our wealth increases when we help the poor. - However, this is discussed at greater length in the explanation of the Gospel of Matthew (see Chapter 14).
At one time, when He was praying in a solitary place, and the disciples were with Him, He asked them: Who do the people say that I am? They answered: for John the Baptist, and others for Elijah; others say that one of the ancient prophets has been resurrected. He asked them: Who do you say that I am? Peter answered: for the Christ of God. But He strictly ordered them not to tell anyone about this, saying that the Son of Man must suffer much, and be rejected by the elders, the high priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.
The Lord, questioning the disciples, does not directly ask what they themselves say, but first asks about the people’s opinion, and then about their own opinion. He does this in order to show the injustice of the people’s rumors about Him and to lead the disciples to the true understanding, which is what was done. For when the disciples said that some call You John, others Elijah, He asked: and you, that is, you are different from everyone else, you are chosen, you are set apart, who do you call Me? Then Peter precedes the others and, having become the mouth of all, confesses Him as the Christ of God, about whom it has long been preached. He did not just call Him the Christ of God, but that Christ of God, who is actually the Christ of God. For many have been anointed, but that Christ (Anointed) of God is the One and Only.
1 Having called the twelve, he gave power and authority over all demons and to heal diseases,
2 And he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
3 And he said to them, “Take nothing for the road: neither staff, nor scrip, nor bread, nor silver, and do not have two coats each;
4 And whatever house you enter, stay there and from there go [to] [the way].
5 And if they do not receive you anywhere, then when you leave that city, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.
6 They went and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
7 Herod the tetrarch heard about everything that [Jesus] did and was perplexed: for some said that it was John who rose from the dead;
8 others that Elijah appeared, and others that one of the ancient prophets was resurrected.
9 And Herod said, I have beheaded John; Who is this one about whom I hear such things? And I sought to see Him.
10 The apostles returned and told Him what they had done; and He, taking them with Him, withdrew separately to an empty place, near a city called Bethsaida.
11 But when the people knew, they followed him; and He, having received them, talked with them about the Kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.
12 The day began to approach evening. And the twelve came to Him and said to Him: Let the people go, so that they can go to the surrounding villages to spend the night and get food; because we are in an empty place here.
13 But He said to them, “Give them something to eat.” They said: We do not have more than five loaves and two fish; Should we go buy food for all these people?
14 For they were about five thousand men. But He said to His disciples: Seat them in rows of fifty.
15 And they did so, and seated them all.
16 He took the five loaves and two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.
17 And they all ate and were filled; and the pieces that remained with them were collected into twelve boxes.
18 At one time, when He was praying in a solitary place, and the disciples were with Him, He asked them: Who do the people say that I am?
19 They answered and said, For John the Baptist, and some for Elijah; others [say] that one of the ancient prophets has risen.
20 He asked them: Who do you say that I am? Peter answered: for the Christ of God.
21 But He strictly commanded them not to tell anyone about this,
22 Saying that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.
23 But he said to everyone, “If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.
25 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and lose or harm himself?
26 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory and that of the Father and the holy angels.
27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.
28 After these words, about eight days later, He took Peter, John and James and went up to the mountain to pray.
29 And as he prayed, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothing became white and shining.
30 And behold, two men talked with Him, which were Moses and Elijah;
31 Having appeared in glory, they spoke of His exodus, which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem.
32 And Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; but when they awoke, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.
33 And when they departed from Him, Peter said to Jesus: Master! It’s good for us to be here; We will make three tabernacles: one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah, not knowing what he said.
34 And while he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them; and they were afraid when they entered the cloud.
35 And there came a voice from the cloud, saying: This is my beloved Son; hear ye him.
36 When this voice came, it remained Jesus one. And they kept silent and did not tell anyone in those days what they saw.
37 The next day, when they came down from the mountain, many people met Him.
38 Suddenly one of the people exclaimed: Teacher! I beg You to look at my son, he is the only one I have:
39 the spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out, and torments him, so that he emits foam; and forcibly retreats from him, having exhausted him.
40 I asked your disciples to drive him out, but they could not.
41 Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation! How long will I be with you and endure you? bring your son here.
42 While he was still walking, the demon overthrew him and began to beat him; but Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him to his father.
43 And everyone was amazed at the greatness of God. When everyone was amazed at everything that Jesus did, He said to His disciples:
44 Put these words in your ears: The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men.
45 But they did not understand this word, and it was hidden from them, so that they did not comprehend it, and they were afraid to ask Him about this word.
46 And a thought came to them: Which of them would be greater?
47 But Jesus, seeing the thoughts of their hearts, took the child and set him before Him
48 And he said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for whoever is least among you will be great.
49 At this John said: Master! We saw a man casting out demons in Your name, and we rebuked him, because he did not walk with us.
50 Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid, for whoever is not against you is for you.”
51 When the days of His taking [from the world] drew near, He desired to go to Jerusalem;
52 And he sent messengers before him; and they went and entered the village of the Samaritans; to prepare for Him;
53 But [there] they did not receive Him, because He appeared to be traveling to Jerusalem.
54 Seeing this, His disciples James and John said: Lord! Do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and destroy them, just as Elijah did?
55 But He turned to them and rebuked them and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are;
56 For the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save. And they went to another village.
57 It happened that while they were on the way, someone said to Him: Lord! I will follow You wherever You go.
58 Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.
59 And he said to another, “Follow Me.” He said: Lord! let me first go and bury my father.
60 But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their dead, and you go and preach the kingdom of God.”
61 Another said: I will follow You, Lord! but first let me say goodbye to my family.
62 But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”