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Home Matthew 17:10-13 NRSVue

Matthew 17:10-13 NRSVue

10And the disciples asked him, “Why, then, do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” 11He replied, “Elijah is indeed coming and will restore all things, 12but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but they did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man is about to suffer at their hands.” 13Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them about John the Baptist.

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)

“Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.”

Reflection on Matthew 17:10-13

Inspiration from 2026-12-12 Daily Prayer

The dialogue in today’s gospel takes place on the way down the mountain following the Transfiguration of Jesus before Peter, James and John – when his face shone ‘like the sun ’, and his garments became ‘as white as the light’. Moses and Elijah appeared next to Jesus, which explains why the disciples are asking about Elijah. They learn that Elijah and John the Baptist were not recognised as prophets and suffered as a result, just as Jesus is not recognised by many and will be rejected and mistreated too.

The role of John the Baptist was to prepare the way for Jesus to come into people’s lives. Prophets of every age challenge our cosy existence, encouraging us to wake up and look at life in a new way. What modern-day prophets or messengers can you think of? What can we learn from them? How do they point us towards God?

Further reflection

The disciples brought their questions to Jesus, to hear what he might have to say. I bring the things that make me wonder, that raise questions for me and I lay them before Jesus in prayer. I listen carefully for his word.

Neither John the Baptist nor Jesus was always recognised. I pray for the humility I need to act as Jesus did.

God's messengers, whether it was Elijah, John the Baptist or even the Son of Man, tended to be rejected and even eliminated. This is a bitter truth about our human condition in the midst of our Advent journey. Advent still calls us to a fulfilment promised and guaranteed by God. In my prayer can I hold together both the promise and the shadow? It is good to talk to the Lord about these things.

This child soon to come will soon suffer. The eastern icons of Christmas have the manger in the form of a coffin. The crib is at its most realistic when the cross is somewhere in the background. All his life Jesus was aware that he would suffer; and not alone he himself, but John the Baptist and all who would follow him. The following of Jesus will challenge us on all the areas of our life - how we love, how we treat the poor and needy, and how we give some time in our lives to God and the things of God

The disciples brought their questions to Jesus, to hear what he might have to say. I bring the things that make me wonder, that raise questions for me and lay them before Jesus in prayer. I listen carefully for his word.