Matthew
17:14-27
Lesson 34
17:14-27
Lesson 34
Matthew 17:14-27
The demon, the coin, and the fish 14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, 15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. 18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. 19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. 21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. Some ancient manuscripts omit verse 21. 22 And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: 23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. 24 And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. 27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee. |
Margin notes:
"He is lunatic, and sore vexed." (17:15) - "He has seizures and suffers horribly." "Then came the disciples to Jesus apart." (17:19) - "Then the disciples came to Jesus privately." "Why could not we cast him out?" (17:19) - Remember, in lesson 18, Jesus gave the disciples the power to "heal the sick," "cleanse the lepers," "raise the dead," and to "cast out devils" (Matthew 10:7-8). So, why couldn't they cast out this demon? See verse 17:20. "Because of your unbelief." (17:20) - "Because of your lack of faith." "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." (17:21) - "However, this kind (of demon) can only be cast out by prayer and fasting." "While they abode in Galilee." (17:22) - "While they stayed in Galilee." "They shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again." (17:23) - This is the second time Jesus told His disciples that He will be put to death and resurrected. Because they were expecting the Messiah to be a great military/political leader, the disciples still didn't understand Jesus' divine mission and why He had to die. Jesus will have to tell them again in Matthew 20:18. "They were exceeding sorry." (17:23) - "They were extremely sad." "They that received tribute money came to Peter." (17:24) - "The tax collectors came to Peter." This was the annual Temple tax that every Jewish male over twenty had to pay. The tax paid for the Temple and its maintenance (Exodus 30:11-16; 2 Chronicles 24:5). Because the tax was two drachmae, it was sometimes called the "two drachmae tax." "Jesus prevented him." (17:25) - "But Jesus spoke to him first." Jesus knew what Peter was going to say and spoke first. "Their own children, or of strangers?" (17:25) - "Their own citizens or conquered foreigners?" "Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them." (17:27) - The Son of God was exempt from paying the Temple tax. But Jesus had Peter pay it anyway to not upset the tax collectors. "Take up the fish that first cometh up." (17:27) - "Take the first fish you catch." "Give unto them for me and thee." (17:27) - Jesus told Peter to find the coin in the fish and use it to pay both their taxes. |