Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 17:22-23

"And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be delivered up into the hands of men; and they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised up. And they were exceeding sorry." — Matthew 17:22-23 (ASV)

Our Lord returned often to the solemn subject of His death at the hands of men. It was on His own mind, and therefore He spoke of it to His disciples. Their minds were far too receptive of other notions in reference to His kingdom, and therefore He set before them the truth again and again, almost in the same words. He would banish all dreams of a worldly monarchy from their souls. His death would be a grievous trial to them, and He would prepare them for it.

He now speaks of His being betrayed. This was always a bitter drop in His cup of gall. The Son of man comes to save men and is, by a man, betrayed into the hands of men. For man He lived, by man He is betrayed, and by man He died. He fully foresaw that they shall kill him. O suicidal world! Will nothing content you but the blood of God’s own Son?

Our Lord would have us preach much about His death now that it is accomplished, for He continually talked of it while it was still in the future. No theme is so vital, so practical, so needful. His penetrating mind realized death and anticipated that third day, when the word would be fulfilled, He shall be raised again. This was the light of the morning which would have banished the darkness of despair from the minds of the disciples, if they had understood and believed. An old writer says, “He sugared the bitter pill of His death with the sweetness of His assured resurrection.”

Our Lord well knew what He said, and He used plain terms; but however plainly He spoke, His followers could only in part understand His meaning, and that part made them exceeding sorry. Christ’s words, half understood, may cause the heart great grief. Yet, perhaps, this cooling cloud of fear calmed their minds and kept them from that fanaticism which filled the air around them. He knew best what state of mind would be safest for them at that time, and He knows the same for us at this moment.