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Explanation for:
Matthew
16
:
28
Amen I say to you, there are some of them that stand here, that shall not taste death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
11
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{"arr":[{"author-name":"Jerome of Stridon","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88dcd3432c6dd41375498_Jerome%20of%20Stridon.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"He sought to alleviate the fear of the apostles with the assurance of what is to come, stating, \\"The Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels.\\" Additionally, He spoke with the authority of the Judge, declaring, \\"And then He will reward each one according to his deeds.\\" The apostles might have harbored an unvoiced thought that could tempt them: \\"You now speak of death as inevitable; yet the glory You promise, accompanied by angels and the authority to judge, seems far off in the future.\\" Anticipating their possible objections, He, being aware of hidden matters, reassured them of immediate consolation and reward. His words, \\"There are some of those who stand here, who shall not taste death till they have already seen the Son of Man coming in His kingdom,\\" imply that, owing to our unbelief, He will reveal Himself in the present as He is destined to appear later."},{"author-name":"Caesarius of Nazianzus","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88a176e0f4c3aeca7aee3_Caesarius%20of%20Nazianzus.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"Question: To whom does the Lord refer when He declares, ‘Amen, I say to you, there is one of those standing here who will not taste death until he sees the Son of Man coming in His glory’? Some interpret this to mean that John the Evangelist will not pass from this life until the second coming of Christ. \\n\\nReply: The Lord, having previously instructed His disciples to disregard earthly passions and steadfastly endure trials, recognized their uncertain and wavering thoughts. To guide them clearly, He chose to articulate His intentions directly, encouraging their perseverance with the promise of an extended life, urging them to serve Him wholeheartedly unto death. He observed their lack of firmness, noting their vulnerability, as they were swayed like reeds in the wind. Even without hardship, betrayal lurked in the heart of Judas Iscariot, who, drawn by greed, turned away from the Savior, ultimately falling into ruin. Similarly, the chief apostle, intimidated by the servant of the high priest, denied Christ three times, though he was soon restored by tears of repentance. \\n\\nIn summary, as he approached the agony of the cross, fear overwhelmed them, causing them all to flee. God allowed a multitude of demons to scatter at His command, teaching the disciples not to place their trust in themselves. Nevertheless, He did not let them perish until they had proclaimed the Gospel about Him. This is why He instructed those who apprehended Him, ‘If you seek Me, let them go.’ Aware of their impending flight and confusion, He strengthened them with promises of the future, gradually revealing insights that, at the time, they could hardly grasp. They became so engrossed in worldly matters that they nearly fell into despair.\\n\\nSix days later, He took Peter, John, and James to a high mountain and was transfigured before them: ‘...and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became white as light,’ as noted by the evangelist Matthew. In this moment, they beheld the Son of Man in His glory, fulfilling His promise to them before they tasted death. He revealed His divine nature to them, showing the profound reality of His Godhead. They fell to the ground, unable to endure the vision, teaching them that if Christ had fully revealed Himself as He is, their mortal frames would not withstand the radiance. Just as wax melts when exposed to fire, so too would they have been consumed.\\n\\nTo illustrate His dominion over both the earthly and the unseen realms, He brought forth Moses and Elijah, esteemed leaders among the righteous. Their conversation with Him demonstrated His authority over not only the living but also the dead. He raised the deceased, long since turned to dust, before Him, showcasing His power to give life. This occurred prior to His Passion and Resurrection, illustrating that His sovereignty stemmed not from patience or valor but from His eternal essence as the source of life.\\n\\nThus, He displayed mastery over all, including those who ended their lives in various ways: Moses experienced a natural death, while Elijah was taken up to heaven by chariots of fire. Consequently, the former was raised from the realm of the dead, while the latter was swiftly summoned from heaven's embrace, presenting them to Himself. As He spoke to them, ‘behold, a cloud of light overshadowed them, and a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son ... to Him, listen,”’ as recounted by Matthew. The Father’s voice resonated through the cloud, causing the prominent figures to disperse and the disciples to fall, shielding their eyes from the overwhelming glory.\\n\\nFor the only Son to manifest His greatness in the flesh, as the cherished, beloved Son in communion with His Father of the same essence, it was appropriate that some ministers at the divine throne should keep their distance while others stood in reverent silence before it. Therefore, the disciples did not taste death until they witnessed the Son of Man in His glory, not in His full essence but as much as they could endure. Only three witnesses were chosen to behold this vision, standing among the ranks of saints. The Lord proclaimed, ‘There are some of those standing here— not all—who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.’ After a brief glimpse, they soon departed this life: John and the other Apostles and Prophets passed on, except for Enoch and Elijah, who remain alive in the flesh but will eventually meet death as well."},{"author-name":"John Chrysostom","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88ea76859f9f8e2ffd3ee_John%20Chrysostom.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"Christ had often warned about the perils of His impending death and the sufferings that awaited His disciples, leaving them with daunting challenges in this life. Meanwhile, the promised gifts of salvation for the soul, the return of Christ in the splendor of His Father, and the rewards for their faithful service remained a source of hope and anticipation. To comfort them and especially Peter, who was troubled by thoughts of death—both his own and that of the Lord—Christ sought to illuminate their understanding of the glory that would accompany His return. He did this by revealing glimpses of that glory while they were still in this world, helping them to find solace amid their anxieties.\\n\\nObserve how He addresses them. He speaks of Hell and the Kingdom with phrases like \\"He who loses his life for my sake will find it\\" and \\"He will repay everyone according to their actions\\" (John 12:25; Matthew 16:27). Here, He addresses both aspects but emphasizes the Kingdom, directing their vision away from Hell. This approach is particularly necessary for those less inclined to deeper understanding; hence, for His seasoned and learned disciples, He offers assurance through messages that promise profound comfort. While Christ sometimes references Hell—as seen in the parable of Lazarus (Luke 16) or the story of the debtor who owed a hundred denarii (Matthew 18)—He ultimately aims to uplift their spirits by highlighting the hope of the Kingdom and the blessings attached to it."},{"author-name":"Ephraem the Syrian","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88b589fc3e99eb7bb1839_Ephraem%20the%20Syrian.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"‘There will be some who now stand before Me ...here and will not taste death,’ indicating that they will be taken to heaven without experiencing physical death."},{"author-name":"Hilarius of Poitiers","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88cb92f12b3278598f946_Hilarius%20of%20Poitiers.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"The Lord imparts that our actions, words, and conduct all contribute to the faith that fuels our hope. It may feel as though He places a profound weight upon human frailty; even as individuals begin to grasp the essence of life and its significance, they are called to relinquish its pleasures that soothe the body. For their own benefit, He instructs them to practice self-denial—that is, to refrain from aspiring to the identity they previously sought. This teaching is intertwined with the temptation of fleeting joy, which can lead to a weakening of hope and a diminishment of strength. Consequently, it becomes essential to demonstrate, through a faithful and unambiguous example, the need to sacrifice the present for the promise of future rewards. This concept may initially appear to conflict with the human perception and judgement concerning the immediate. After warning about the necessity of taking up one's cross, and the peril of losing one's soul and eternal life in exchange for worldly separation, Jesus addressed His disciples, declaring that some among them would not experience death before witnessing the Son of Man coming in His glory. Furthermore, Jesus Himself experienced death, providing believers with a testament to the cost of embracing mortality. Thus, action follows the spoken word."},{"author-name":"Euthymios Zigabenos","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c96d263b8c22d9c467bdab_no-pic-theosis.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":11,"exegesis-text":"In speaking of Himself, He declared that He would return in splendor, accompanied by angels, and aware that His disciples were skeptical of this promise, He reassured them by saying that shortly thereafter, some would witness His glory—referred to here as the kingdom. This statement alluded to the brilliance of His Transfiguration, which He would soon reveal to Peter, James, and John. Concerning these disciples, He remarked, “They are not of those who stand here.” He identified His kingdom, or His glory, as the brilliance that He would showcase in due time, when He would render to each individual according to their actions."},{"author-name":"Theophylact of Bulgaria","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c8989296bafed9104677d7_Theophylact%20of%20Bulgaria.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":11,"exegesis-text":"He declared that the Son of Man would return in His splendor, and to strengthen their belief, He mentions that some present will witness, as much as is allowed for them, the transformation and glory of His second coming. He simultaneously reveals the exaltation that awaits those who endure suffering for His sake. Just as His body radiated with brilliance, so too, metaphorically, will the righteous be illuminated at that time. He refers specifically to Peter, James, and John, whom He brought up the mountain to reveal His kingdom—meaning the future state when He returns, and the righteous will be filled with light. Thus, He states that some of those present will not experience death until they see Him transfigured. It is important to note that those who stand firm in righteousness and devotion will witness the most radiant transfiguration of Jesus and will continually grow in faith and adherence to His commandments."},{"author-name":"Abbot Panteleimon about the Trinity","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c96d263b8c22d9c467bdab_no-pic-theosis.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"It is as if the Lord has conveyed to you, ‘It may be difficult to fathom that I, whom you now perceive in such a lowly state, will one day arrive in magnificent glory; yet to assure you that this will indeed occur, I will allow a few of you to witness this glory while I am still among you: I assure you, some of you present (the Lord was referring to Peter, James, and John) will not experience death until they have beheld me, the Son of Man, arriving in His Kingdom, seeing the vision of my future advent and the brilliance of the righteous. Truly, three of the apostles beheld the Lord's glory during His transfiguration; all but Judas experienced His resurrection; John witnessed the fulfillment of His forewarnings regarding Jerusalem and observed the end of the Old Testament sacrifices and the destruction of the temple. Through these events, the foundation for the spiritual reign of Christ was established on the ruins of the ceremonial law of Moses. \\n\\nAs Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow states, when Christ took His seat at the right hand of God the Father and, through the Holy Spirit, began to gather believers into one divinely appointed community of His followers—the Church—this kingdom swiftly spread from Judea to every part of the world, extending from India to Spain, from Scythia to Ethiopia. It did so with such strength that it triumphed over the persecutions of the Caesars through the blood of martyrs. Thus, the apostles could indeed affirm to the Lord, in response to His foretelling, that before they had experienced death, they had witnessed the Kingdom of God manifested in power. \\n\\nFurthermore, the Lord’s statements, for the soul's benefit, can also be interpreted spiritually. He mentions, ‘The Kingdom of God is within you’ (Luke 17:21). According to the Apostle Paul, this comprises righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17). Where the Lord is present with His grace, there ensues righteousness, joy, and peace in the Lord, leading to paradise and the heavenly kingdom. The Lord further declares, ‘Whoever loves Me will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him’ (John 14:23). To ensure that the gates of Heaven do not close before you in the life to come, make sure that this Kingdom of God resides in your heart beforehand. When your time to depart from this life arrives, may you bear within your heart a reliable promise—a foretaste of future bliss in the sacred communion with the Lord as He graciously approaches you. \\n\\nIndeed, the Kingdom of God does not manifest in a visible manner (Luke 17:20); we should not desperately seek out divine consolations that we ought not to consider ourselves entitled to, yet the Lord assures His followers: ‘Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ (Matt. 11:28). Do you yearn to experience this inner tranquility with the Lord in your heart? Remember that only the pure in heart shall see God; thus, strive to cleanse your heart from anything that could taint it. Observe the commandments of Christ, willingly bear the cross that God presents to you, and above all, cultivate a childlike humility, simplicity, and devotion to God’s will, in accordance with Christ's words: ‘Unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 18:3). Be a faithful child of the Church, and even while still on earth, you will come to know in your heart what the Kingdom of God is; you will feel its influence and will enter its gates. St. Philaret of Moscow asserts, ‘He who does not possess the Kingdom of God, which has come in power, before death, will not enter into the Kingdom of God, which endures in glory, after death.’"},{"author-name":"Michail (Lusin)","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c89550c567e172d15b3055_Michail%20(Lusin).png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"The phrase \\"coming in His kingdom\\" refers to the establishment of Christ's reign that began with His resurrection. Many who were present when the Lord spoke these words continued to live until that moment (cf. note on Mt 10:23). St. John Chrysostom and Blessed Theophylact connect the realization of this promise closely with the event of the Lord's Transfiguration (Mt 17:1-9), interpreting \\"some of those standing here\\" as referring to Peter, James, and John, the witnesses of that glorious moment. Chrysostom explains that Christ aimed to illuminate their understanding and prepare them for the glory that would be revealed at His coming (Matt. 16:27), offering them a glimpse of that splendor while they were still alive. This was done so that they, particularly Peter, who had been troubled, would not mourn either for their impending deaths or for the death of their Lord. He spoke earlier about the future coming of the Son of Man in His glory, and now, to strengthen their faith, He stated that \\"some of those who stand here\\" would witness, to the extent possible for them, the glory of the second coming during the Transfiguration. Theophylact further clarifies that this specifically refers to Peter, James, and John, whom He took to the mountain, revealing to them a vision of His kingdom—an image of His future coming and the radiance of the righteous; thus, He indicated that some of those present would not taste death until they witnessed His Transfiguration."},{"author-name":"Gladkow B.I.","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88bf0ceef8c96e09a6521_Gladkow%20B.I..png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"In expressing this, Christ recognized that among the individuals gathered around Him, only a few were prepared to relinquish their worldly possessions or even their lives for the sake of their souls' salvation. To alleviate any concern the Apostles might feel regarding this truth, He promptly offered them the encouragement that some of them would witness the Kingdom of God manifesting in power (Mk. 9:1). Interpreters such as John Chrysostom, Theophylact, Bishop Michael, and others have understood that when Jesus mentioned that some present would see the Kingdom of God come in power, He was referring to His Transfiguration. However, considering that Christ was speaking of a future event that only a select few of His listeners might live to see, and since the Transfiguration was set to occur merely six days later, this interpretation is challenging to accept. Among the Apostles who heard these words, John ultimately was the last to pass away; by the conclusion of his life, the community of believers in Christ, bound together by their love for God and one another, had grown significantly in spite of persecution, enabling him to witness the Kingdom of God manifesting in power."},{"author-name":"Lopuchin A.P.","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c891400ee1341634d2276d_Lopuchin%20A.P..png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"Upon disclosing to his followers the hidden truths concerning the dreadful events that would mark his earthly conclusion, the Savior did not abandon them in despair; rather, he soon strengthened their faith through the magnificent unveiling of his divine glory."}]}
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