English · ASV

Matthew 16

Listen to this chapter
0:00 0:00

Rejecting the Demand for a Sign 1–4

1
And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and trying him asked him to show them a sign from heaven. ​
2
But he answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the heaven is red.
3
And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day: for the heaven is red and lowering. Ye know how to discern the face of the heaven; but ye cannot discern the signs of the times. ​
4
An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of Jonah. And he left them, and departed. ​

Warning Against the Leaven of the Leaders 5–12

5
And the disciples came to the other side and forgot to take bread.
6
And Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. ​
7
And they reasoned among themselves, saying, We took no bread. ​
8
And Jesus perceiving it said, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have no bread? ​
9
Do ye not yet perceive, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
10
Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
11
How is it that ye do not perceive that I spake not to you concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
12
Then understood they that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. ​

Peter's Confession of Christ 13–20

13
Now when Jesus came into the parts of Cæsarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Who do men say that the Son of man is? ​
14
And they said, Some say John the Baptist; some, Elijah; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. ​
15
He saith unto them, But who say ye that I am?
16
And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. ​
17
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven. ​
18
And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. ​
19
I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. ​
20
Then charged he the disciples that they should tell no man that he was the Christ.

Jesus Predicts His Passion 21–23

21
From that time began Jesus to show unto his disciples, that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up. ​
22
And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall never be unto thee. ​
23
But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art a stumbling-block unto me: for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men. ​

The Cost of Discipleship 24–28

24
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. ​
25
For whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it. ​
26
For what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? or what shall a man give in exchange for his life? ​
27
For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. ​
28
Verily I say unto you, There are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Matthew 16

Verse 1

a sign from heaven — Peirazo, 'tempting', is the word for the tempter's work in 4:1–3. The Pharisees had asked for a sign 'from thee' in 12:38; now the Sadducees join them and the request is for one 'from heaven'. The two parties are named together in 3:7 and again here, though the Sadducees 'say that there is no resurrection' (22:23) and the Pharisees confess it (Acts 23:8).

Verse 3

the signs of the times — 'Times' is kairos, an appointed season, and 'discern' is diakrino, to judge between. The signs were already given: 'The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed' (11:5). Luke has the same rebuke (Luke 12:56), and Issachar's sons are praised as 'men that had understanding of the times' (1 Chr 12:32).

Verse 4

the sign of the prophet Jonas — This is the answer of 12:39 repeated; 'wicked' here and 'evil' there are the same Greek word, poneros. The explanation of 12:40, 'three days and three nights', is not repeated. Christ 'left them, and departed', where kataleipo is the verb of leaving behind.

Verse 6

the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees — Zume, leaven, was put away from the house at Passover (Ex 12:15) and kept out of the meat offering (Lev 2:11). Paul says 'A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump' (Gal 5:9). Matthew explains this leaven as 'doctrine' (v.12), Luke as 'hypocrisy' (Luke 12:1), and Mark joins Herod to the Pharisees (Mark 8:15).

Verse 7

It is because we have taken no bread — 'Reasoned' is dialogizomai, to argue it through. The disciples hear 'leaven' and think of 'bread' (artos), which they had forgotten to bring (v.5). The two are linked by the word, and Christ has to ask in vv.9–10 whether they remember the loaves already multiplied.

Verse 8

O ye of little faith — Oligopistos is used in Matthew only at 6:30, 8:26, 14:31 and here. In vv.9–10 he names the five loaves and the seven loaves and asks how many baskets were taken up, twelve in 14:20 and seven in 15:37, and the Greek uses a different word for 'basket' each time, kophinos and spyris.

Verse 12

the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees — 'Doctrine' is didache, teaching. The Pharisees were charged with 'teaching for doctrines the commandments of men' (15:9), and the Sadducees were those who 'say that there is no resurrection' (22:23). Two opposed schools are put under the one word 'leaven'. 'Understood' is syniemi, to put together.

Verse 13

Caesarea Philippi — Named for Caesar and for Philip, 'tetrarch of Ituraea' (Luke 3:1), to tell it from the Caesarea of Cornelius (Acts 10:1). Matthew says Jesus came into its 'coasts', the district around it. 'The Son of man' is his own title, from Dan 7:13, 'one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven'.

Verse 14

John the Baptist… Elias… Jeremias — Herod had already said 'This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead' (14:2). 'Elias' is Elijah, whom Mal 4:5 promised, and 'Jeremias' is Jeremiah, which Matthew writes 'Jeremy' at 2:17. The answers all name a prophet, and none names the Christ.

Verse 16

the Christ, the Son of the living God — Christos is the Anointed, in Hebrew Messiah: 'We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ' (John 1:41). 'The living God' is a title used in Ps 42:2 and Hos 1:10, and set against idols in Jer 10:10 and 1 Thess 1:9. The disciples in the boat had said 'Of a truth thou art the Son of God' (14:33); Peter adds 'the living God'.

Verse 17

flesh and blood hath not revealed it — 'Revealed' is apokalypto. The same word is used of the Father and Son: 'no man knoweth the Son, but the Father… he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him' (11:27). Paul uses the phrase of himself: 'I conferred not with flesh and blood' (Gal 1:16). 'Barjona' is 'son of Jona' (John 1:42).

Verse 18

upon this rock I will build my church — 'Peter' (Petros) and 'rock' (petra) are two forms of one word. Readers have taken the rock as Peter, his confession, or Christ. For Peter: the keys follow in v.19, and the church stands 'upon the foundation of the apostles' (Eph 2:20). For Christ: 'a chief corner stone' (1 Pet 2:6) and the one foundation (1 Cor 3:11).

Verse 19

the keys of the kingdom of heaven — Isa 22:22 gives the key of the house of David, which opens and none shuts; Christ himself holds 'the key of David' (Rev 3:7). 'Shall be bound' and 'shall be loosed' are perfect forms, 'shall already have been bound'. The words are given to all the disciples in 18:18, and John 20:23 speaks of sins remitted and retained.

Verse 21

From that time forth began Jesus — Matthew uses this formula twice: at 4:17, 'From that time Jesus began to preach', and here, where the subject is his death. 'Must' is dei, a necessity Scripture states: 'Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day' (Luke 24:46). The same three groups meet in 26:3.

Verse 22

Be it far from thee, Lord — Hileos soi, found only here and in Heb 8:12, where it is 'merciful': it is a wish, 'God be gracious to thee'. Peter 'took him' aside and 'began to rebuke' (epitimao), the verb Christ uses of winds and demons. 'This shall not be unto thee' is a strong denial, a double negative in the Greek.

Verse 23

Get thee behind me, Satan — In 4:10 the words were 'Get thee hence, Satan'; here 'behind me' (opiso) is added, the place of a follower, and v.24 uses the same word in 'come after me'. 'Offence' is skandalon, a trap or stumblingblock. 'Savourest' is phroneo, to set the mind on, the verb of Rom 8:5, 'mind the things of the flesh'.

Verse 24

let him deny himself — Aparneomai, the verb of Peter's own denial: 'thou shalt deny me thrice' (26:34, 35, 75). 'Come after me' uses opiso, the word of 'behind me' in v.23. Luke adds 'daily' to the taking up of the cross (Luke 9:23), and the saying is given earlier in 10:38.

Verse 25

whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it — 'Life' is psyche, the same word translated 'soul' in v.26. The saying is given earlier at 10:39 and in John 12:25 with the ending 'keep it unto life eternal'. Both verbs of the first half, 'save' and 'lose', are set against 'find' in the second.

Verse 26

what is a man profited — 'Lose' here is zemioo, to suffer forfeit, not the 'lose' (apollymi) of v.25. 'Exchange' is antallagma, a price paid, found only here and in Mark 8:37. Ps 49:7–8 states why no price exists: 'None of them can by any means redeem his brother… the redemption of their soul is precious'.

Verse 27

he shall reward every man according to his works — 'Reward' is apodidomi, to give back, the 'render' of Ps 62:12 and Rom 2:6, 'Who will render to every man according to his deeds'. The Son of man comes 'in the glory of his Father with his angels', as in Dan 7:13 and Matt 25:31.

Verse 28

some standing here, which shall not taste of death — Mark has 'till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power' (Mark 9:1). The next event is 'after six days' (17:1), the transfiguration, when his face 'did shine as the sun' (17:2); Peter later writes 'we… were eyewitnesses of his majesty' (2 Pet 1:16). Others take it of the resurrection, Pentecost or the fall of Jerusalem.