But I tell you of a truth: There are some standing here that shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God.
λεγω δε υμιν αληθως εισιν τινες των ωδε εστωτων οι ου μη γευσωνται θανατου εως αν ιδωσιν την βασιλειαν του θεου
15 Church Fathers comment on this verse · 28 commentaries
Now the Saviour of His great mercy and lovingkindness will have no one serve Him unwillingly and from constraint, but those only who come of their own accord, and are grateful for being allowed to serve Him. And so not by compelling men and putting a yoke upon them, but by persuasion and kindness, He draws unto Him every where those who are willing, saying, If any man will, &c.
By the cross, He speaks of an ignominious death, meaning, that if any one will follow Christ, he must not for his own sake flee from even an ignominious death.
He is ashamed of Christ who says, Am I to believe on Him that is crucified? He also is ashamed of His words who despises the simplicity of the Gospel. But of him shall the Lord be ashamed in His kingdom, in the same manner as if a master of a household should have a bad servant, and be ashamed to have him.
That is, the glory in which the righteous shall be. Now He said this of His transfiguration, which was the type of the glory to come; as if He said, There are some standing here, Peter, James, and John, who shall not reach death before they have seen at the time of My transfiguration what will be the glory of those who confess Me.
Great and noble leaders provoke the mighty in arms to deeds of valour, not only by promising them the honours of victory, but by declaring that suffering is in itself glorious. Such we see is the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. For He had foretold to His disciples, that He must needs suffer the accusations of the Jews, be slain, and rise again on the third day. Lest then they should think that Christ indeed was to suffer persecution for the life of the world, but that they might lead a soft life, He shews them that they must needs pass through similar struggles, if they desired to obtain His glory. Hence it is said, And he said unto all.
But that incomparable exercise of the passion of Christ, which surpasses the delights and precious things of the world, is alluded to when he adds, What is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world and lose himself, or be a cast away? As if he says, When a man, through his looking after the present delights, gains pleasure, and refuses indeed to suffer, but chooses to live splendidly in his riches, what advantage will he get then, when he has lost his soul? For the fashion of this world passeth away, and pleasant things depart as a shadow. (1 Cor. 7:31. Sap. 5:9.) For the treasures of ungodliness shall not profit, but righteousness snatches a man from death. (Prov. 10:2.)
Now he strikes fear into their hearts, when He says that He will descend from heaven, not in His former humility and condition proportioned to our capacities for receiving Him, but in the glory of the Father, with the Angels ministering unto Him. For it follows, When he shall come in his own glory, and his Father’s, and of the holy angels. Awful then and fatal will it be, to be branded as an enemy, and slothful in business, when so great a Judge shall descend with the armies of Angels standing round Him. But from this you may perceive, that though He has taken to Himself our flesh and blood, the Son is no less God, seeing that He promises to come in the glory of God the Father, and that Angels shall minister to Him as the Judge of all, Who was made man like unto us.
Now a desire of suffering death for Christ and a mortification of one’s members which are upon the earth, and a manful resolution to undergo any danger for Christ, and an indifference towards the present life, this it is to take up one’s cross. Hence it is added, And let him take up his cross daily.
But He has left His own life for an example of blameless conversation to those who are willing to obey Him; as He says, Come after me, meaning thereby not a following of His body, for that would be impossible to all, since our Lord is in heaven, but a due imitation of His life according to their capacities.
A denial of one’s self is indeed a total forgetfulness of things past, and a forsaking of his own will and affection.
Herein then stands a man’s perfection, that he should have his affections hardened, even towards life itself, and have ever about him the answer (ἀποκρίμα.) of death a, that he should by no means trust in himself. (2 Cor. 1:9.) But perfection takes its beginning from the relinquishment of things foreign to it; suppose these to be possessions or vain-glory, or affection for things that profit not.
Now our Lord while He ever raises us to look to the future reward of virtue, and teaches us how good it is to despise worldly things, so also He supports the weakness of the human mind by a present recompense. For it is a hard thing to take up the cross, and expose your life to danger and your body to death; to give up what you are, when you wish to be what you are not; and even the loftiest virtue seldom exchanges things present for future. The good Master then, lest any man should be broken down by despair or weariness, straightway promises that He will be seen by the faithful, in these words, But I say unto you, There are some standing here who shall not taste of death till they see the kingdom of God.
If then we also wish not to fear death, let us stand where Christ is. For they only cannot taste death who are able to stand with Christ, wherein we may consider from the nature of the very word, that they will not experience even the slightest perception of death, who are thought worthy to obtain union with Christ. At least let us suppose that the death of the body is tasted by touch, the life of the soul preserved by possession; for here not the death of the body, but of the soul, is denied.
In the final verses of Matthew's Gospel, it is recorded that the promise of seeing the Son of Man coming in His kingdom is made. This declaration emphasizes the profound truth of Christ's glory and His eventual reign.
A man also denies himself when by a sufficient alteration of manners or a good conversation he changes a life of habitual wickedness. He who has long lived in lasciviousness, abandons his lustful self when he becomes chaste, and in like manner a forsaking of any crimes is a denial of one’s self.
He assigns the cause of this when He adds, For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; that is, whosoever will according to the present life keep his own soul fixed on things of sense, the same shall lose it, never reaching to the bounds of happiness. But on the other hand He adds, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake, shall save it. That is, whosoever forsakes the things of sense looking upon truth, and exposes himself to death, as it were losing his life for Christ, shall the rather save it. If then it is a blessed thing to save our life, (with regard to that safety which is in God,) there must be also a certain good surrender of life which is made by looking upon Christ.
It seems also to me from resemblance to that denying of one’s self which has been before spoken of, that it becomes us to lose a certain sinful life of ours, to take up that which is saved by virtue.
He rightly joins these two, Let him deny himself, and let him take up his cross, for as he who is prepared to ascend the cross conceives in his mind the intention of death, and so goes on thinking to have no more part in this life, so he who is willing to follow our Lord, ought first to deny himself, and so take up his cross, that his will may be ready to endure every calamity.
In two ways also is the cross taken up, either when the body is afflicted through abstinence, or the mind; touched by sympathy.
Since then the holy Church has one time of persecution, another time of peace, our Lord has noticed both times in His command to us. For at the time of persecution we must lay down our soul, that is our life, which He signified, saying, Whosoever shall lose his life. But in time of peace, those things which have the greatest power to subdue us, our earthly desires, must be vanquished; which He signified, saying, What does it profit a man, &c. Now we commonly despise all fleeting things, but still we are so checked by that feeling of shame so common to man, that we are yet unable to express in words the uprightness which we preserve in our hearts. But to this wound the Lord indeed subjoins a suitable application, saying, For whoever shall be ashamed of me and my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed.
Or, by the kingdom of God in this place, is meant the present Church; and some of His disciples were to live in the body up to that time, when they should behold the Church of God built and raised up against the glory of the world.
He rightly addressed Himself to all, since He treats of the higher things (which relate to the belief in His birth and passion) apart with His disciples.
Now unless a man renounces himself, he comes not near to Him, who is above him; it is said therefore, Let him deny himself.
We are bid then to take up the cross of which we have above spoken, and having taken it, to follow our Lord who bore His own cross. Hence it follows, And let him follow me.
Given the necessity of suffering and death, shaped by the circumstances of the time and the inherent nature of the reality, it was essential for the followers of Christ to undergo such trials, even if not always in a tangible way, certainly in a spiritual one. The concept of suffering and mortality could appear perplexing and at odds with the notion of Christ’s kingdom, resonating not only with Peter but also with others. In a moment when the Lord shifted focus from speaking about Himself to addressing the Apostles and the onlookers, He proclaimed emphatically: "Whoever wishes to follow Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and then follow Me.
Whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory, and the glory of His Father, and of the holy angels." In these statements, the Lord introduced a new dimension to the prophetic understanding of His sufferings (the cross), while also affirming His assurance to those willing to follow Him, signaling His future glorious return. He remarked that the kingdom of God would soon be manifested on earth, saying, "Some of those standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God come with power" (for it has not yet come with power). This further strengthens the truth of His words regarding the necessity of His suffering and death. It was undeniable, yet challenging to dismiss the prevalent views of the Messiah, which did not take such sufferings into account. This conversation ought to have made a profound impact on the hearts of the Apostles, especially those who were closest to Him, who ardently and lovingly longed to witness Jesus in His glory and the unveiling of His kingdom on earth.
The gospel writers Mark and Luke note that these teachings from Jesus Christ were proclaimed openly to the crowds. The context for this was provided by the disciples' dissent regarding Christ’s foretelling of His own suffering and death. In this moment, Jesus emphasizes and reaffirms the necessity of His sufferings and death, making it clear that while He must endure these trials, all who have faith in Him are also called to follow Him in this regard. The essence of these teachings aligns with the message found in Matthew 10:37-39.
To alleviate any concerns the Apostles might have had, He swiftly comforted them by declaring that some of them would witness the kingdom of God manifesting in power (Mark 9:1). Commentators such as John Chrysostom, Theophylact, and Bishop Michael interpret this statement as a reference to the Transfiguration. However, considering that Christ was speaking of a future event, one that would only be experienced by a few of His listeners, and given that the Transfiguration occurred just six days afterward, this interpretation seems difficult to uphold.
Among the Apostles present, John was the last to pass away, and by the time of his death, the body of believers, bound by love for God and one another, had grown so significantly despite facing adversities that he truly had the privilege of witnessing the kingdom of God come in power.
After unveiling to His disciples the profound mystery of the impending trials associated with His earthly departure, the Savior did not abandon them in despair. Instead, He strengthened their faith through a subsequent glorious manifestation of His divine majesty.
Following the correction of the disciple's misguided admonition, Jesus Christ spoke to the entire nation, imparting to all His followers the teaching of the cross and the call to self-sacrifice. He stated clearly that it is not about compulsion, but rather the freedom to choose: “If anyone desires to follow me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” The act of self-denial, as articulated by St. Philaret of Moscow, does not imply neglecting one’s soul and body, but instead involves rejecting an attachment to physical desires and the fleeting comforts of this life, as well as the pleasures of the soul and the inclinations of our own will.
The term 'cross' should be understood as representing every trial, loss, humiliation, hardship, and prolonged suffering or unfortunate demise that we experience according to God's plan.
Without imposing a heavy burden on us that we could not bear, He calls each individual to accept their own personal cross, meaning to be prepared to endure whatever trials and temptations, both external and internal, as well as the chastising, purifying, and merciful decree of Divine Providence, which governs each life distinctly. Jesus affirmed that the path of self-denial is indeed the path to salvation with His words: “If anyone wants to save his soul, he will lose it; but whoever loses his soul for my sake and the gospel will save it.” He further questioned, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?” He warned that anyone who is ashamed of Him and His teachings in this sinful and adulterous generation will face the same shame when He returns in glory with His Father and His angels, rewarding each according to their actions.
Moreover, even before the fullness of the eternal kingdom of Christ is revealed, some will have the blessing of witnessing His reign on earth. The Lord concluded with a promise: “Amen I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom, and the kingdom of God coming in power.”
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 21 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS