Matthew 17:23

And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry.

Matthew 17:23 (KJV)

Context

Jesus speaks these words to His disciples in Galilee, shortly after the Transfiguration, where Peter, James, and John had seen His glory. In the preceding verse, Jesus plainly predicts His betrayal, death, and resurrection (Matthew 17:22-23). This is the second time He has foretold His suffering, and He will repeat it again on the road to Jerusalem (Matthew 20:17-19). The disciples’ sorrow shows they understood the reality of His death, but they did not yet grasp the promise of His resurrection.

Meaning

The verse has two parts: a prediction and a response. First, Jesus states that “they shall kill him“—referring to the religious leaders and authorities who would deliver Him to death—”and the third day he shall be raised again.” The resurrection is not an afterthought; it is the divine vindication of His mission. Second, the disciples “were exceeding sorry.” Their grief is honest and understandable, yet incomplete because it does not yet embrace the hope of the resurrection. This pattern recurs throughout the Gospels: the disciples hear the prophecy of death but fail to comprehend the necessity and glory of the rising again.

Biblical connections

Jesus’ prediction echoes His earlier words in Matthew 16:21 and is paralleled in Mark 10:34 and Luke 18:33, where He also speaks of being killed and rising again. These parallel accounts confirm that this was a central and repeated teaching. The specific detail of “the third day” points to the divine timetable of redemption, fulfilled in Christ’s resurrection on the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1-7). The disciples’ sorrow also recalls the grief of the Emmaus disciples, who said, “we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel” (Luke 24:21), before Jesus opened their understanding to the Scriptures.

Application

For believers, this verse teaches that suffering and death are not the final word. God’s purposes include resurrection and victory. The disciples’ honest grief models the reality of sorrow in a fallen world, but their example also calls us to move from grief to hope. When we face trials that seem to end in death—whether physical, relational, or spiritual—we can trust that God’s plan, even when it involves suffering, leads to life. The resurrection is not merely a future hope; it is the assurance that God can bring life out of death in our own circumstances.

Reflection

Jesus did not hide the cost of discipleship from His followers. He spoke plainly of His death, yet He always paired it with the promise of resurrection. The disciples were sorrowful because they focused on the cross without seeing the empty tomb. How often do we do the same? We may grieve over our trials and forget that God’s purposes are not complete until resurrection. Let us learn to hear both parts of Jesus’ words: the reality of suffering and the certainty of victory. The third day is coming.