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20 Then he instructed the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. 21 He began to teach his disciples that it would be necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, to suffer at the hands of the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, to be killed, and to be raised on the third day. 22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid, Lord, that this should happen to you!” 23 He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling stone, for you are thinking not as God does, but as people do.” 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If you want to come after me, you must deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what good will it do a person to gain the whole world, but lose their life? 27 For the Son of Man will come with the angels in the glory of his Father, and he will reward each person according to their works. 28 Amen, I say to you, some standing here will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”
Comments
Jesus tells his disciples not to tell anyone that he is the Messiah, and it immediately becomes clear why: Jesus’ definition of Messiah does not at all match the popular expectation. He will not be a military leader to fight Israel’s enemies and establish an independent political entity. Rather, he will be rejected, suffer, die, and rise again.
This is not what Simon Peter wants to hear. (Peter has a track record of responding enthusiastically to Jesus and then failing, cf. 14.22-33, 26.31-35, 26.69-75.) He takes Jesus aside and rebukes him. Jesus, in turn, calls Peter Satan (one now feels less bad for the Canaanite woman). He tells Peter that he is thinking not as God does, but as people do. Following Jesus demands a radical reorienting of the world’s values. He tells the disciples that sometimes it is possible to lose one’s life while trying to preserve it, and to save one’s life in the process of giving it up. The Greek word here is psyche, which can mean both life and soul. In other words, it is possible, in an effort to preserve one’s physical life, to completely compromise what makes that life worth living. It is also possible that in giving up your life, you can become the person God most meant you to be.
The phrase “Son of Man coming in his Kingdom” in verse 28 refers to Jesus’ Paschal Mystery, i.e. his saving passion, death, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus knows that what he is telling his disciples about his Messiahship is difficult to accept, but, aside from Judas Iscariot, they will all see it play out in full.
