Gospel Of Matthew

Author(s): Mark Luke John
Publisher: Mark Luke John

Page 91

Herod's uneasy conscience after his execution of John
9:7-8 - "All these things came to the ears of Herod the tetrarch and caused him acute anxiety, because some people were saying that John had risen from the dead, some maintaining that the prophet Elijah had appeared, and others that one of the old-time prophets had come back.
9:9- "I beheaded John," said Herod. "Who can this be that I hear all these things about?" And he tried to find a way of seeing Jesus."
The twelve return and tell their story
9:10 - Then the apostles returned, and when they had made their report to Jesus of what they had done, he took them with him privately and retired into a town called Bethsaida.
Jesus welcomes the crowds, teaches, heals and feeds them
9:11-12 - But the crowds observed this and followed him. And he welcomed them and talked to them about the kingdom of God, and cured those who were in need of healing. As the day drew to its close the twelve came to him and said, "Please dismiss the crowd now so that they can go to the villages and country round about and find some food and shelter, for we're quite in the wilds here."
9:13-14 - "You give them something to eat!" returned Jesus. "But we've nothing here," they replied, "except five loaves and two fish, unless you want us to go and buy food for all this crowd?" (There were approximately five thousand men there). Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Get them to sit down in groups of about fifty."
9:15-17 - This they did, making them all sit down. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish and looked up to Heaven, blessed them, broke them into pieces and passed them to his disciples to serve to the crowds. Everybody ate and was satisfied. Afterwards they collected twelve baskets full of broken pieces which were left over.
Jesus asks a question and receives Peter's momentous answer
9:18 - Then came this incident. While Jesus was praying by himself, having only the disciples near him, he asked them this question: "Who are the crowd saying that I am?"
9:19 - "Some say that you are John the Baptist," they replied. "Others that you are Elijah, and others think that one of the old-time prophets has come to life again."
9:20 - Then he said, "And who do you say that I am?"
"God's Christ! said Peter.
Jesus foretells his own suffering: the paradox of losing life to find it
9:21 - But Jesus expressly told them not to say a word to anybody, ......
9:22 - ..... at the same time warning them of the inevitability of the Son of Man's great suffering, of his repudiation by the elders, chief priests and scribes, and of his death and of being raised to life again on the third day.
9:23-27 - Then he spoke to them all. "If anyone wants to follow in my footsteps, he must give up all right to himself, carry his cross every day and keep close behind me. For the man who wants to save his life will lose it, but the man who loses his life for my sake will save it. For what is the use of a man gaining the whole world if he loses or forfeits his own soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of