Luke 9:59Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

“For He said, ‘Follow Me,’” He instructs.

We must first contemplate the preceding account where a man approached Him, declaring, “Master, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest,” yet he was firmly rejected by Christ as a deceiver, someone who pretended to seek honors that God grants solely to those truly deserving. Such worthy individuals are recognized for their exemplary virtues and their proficiency in performing good works, receiving praise from Christ and being designated among the holy instructors. In contrast, the man seeking to follow was deemed unsuitable and rebuked due to his heart being a refuge for evil influences and filled with impurities. The Savior alluded to this situation by saying, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” In our recent discussion, we examined how to interpret this passage.

However, it was not the self-styled disciple nor the presumptive individual promising noble deeds who approached Christ, but instead the person whom Christ had designated for apostleship, deemed fit for such a calling. He had been duly honored by divine authority and manifested holiness and integrity suitable for fulfilling the gospel's purpose. Yet, he was uncertain about how to navigate this profound responsibility, aware that he had an aging father, believing that he was commendable in demonstrating care and deep affection for him. Naturally, he understood from the Law that the Creator of all had commanded this, saying, “Honor your father and your mother, that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth.” Thus, while called to the sacred ministry and to the task of proclaiming the gospel—this being the meaning of Christ’s directive to follow Him—he found himself perplexed by human rationality and requested additional time to look after his father's old age. His plea was, “Let me first go and bury my father.” It is important to note that he didn’t ask permission to inter a father who had already died, for Christ would not have disallowed that. Rather, he employed the term “bury” in lieu of “that I may care for him until his burial.”

If we acknowledge the sacred practice of burial, why does the Lord dismiss the burial of the father? This is to teach us to prioritize the divine over the human. While there is commendable diligence, it presents a significant challenge—pursuing multiple objectives can dilute one's efforts, leading to a delay in achieving those goals. Hence, the most vital tasks must be addressed first. The apostles, wishing to maintain their fervor for preaching, appointed deacons to tend to the needs of the poor (Acts 6:2-6). When sent out to share the message, the Lord commanded them not to greet anyone along the way (Luke 10:4), not because He disfavored kindness, but because He valued the earnest intention to demonstrate devotion to God through action.

But how can the dead bury the dead? Here, we must recognize two kinds of death: the physical and the death of sin. There is also a third death, in which we die to sin and are made alive to God, reflecting Christ who died to sin once, yet lives to God (Rom. 6:10). This first death separates the soul from the body; it is not something to be dreaded or feared, but rather seen as a transition. The courageous do not fear it, the wise seek it, while the wretched await it. As it is written, Men shall seek death, but shall not find it (Rev. 9:6).

Another type of death involves the cessation of worldly desires; this is not the death of nature, but the end of transgressions. We experience this in baptism, identifying with Christ's death and being buried with Him to the world's elements (Rom. 6:10; Col. 3:3; Gal. 4:3), and allowing our former actions to fade away. Balaam, during his prophecy, longed for this death so that he might live for God, declaring, Let my soul die with the righteous, and let my offspring be as their offspring (Num. 23:10).

The third death pertains to those who do not know Christ, who is our life. To know Christ is eternal life (John 17:3), which is presently experienced by the righteous as a shadow but will be revealed fully in the future (1 Cor. 13:12). Christ, the spirit of life present among us, was spoken of by the prophet: In His shadow we shall dwell among the Gentiles (Lamentations 4:20). David found hope in the shadow of His wings, and the Church longed to dwell there (Ps. 56:2; Song 2:3).

If your shadow is so beneficial, Lord Jesus, how much greater is your very presence! What will our existence be like when we are not just in the shadow, but fully in your being? Currently, our lives are hidden with Christ in God. But when Christ, who is our life, is revealed, we will also be revealed with Him in glory (Col. 3:3-4). Truly, blessed is the life devoid of death, for our physical existence is inherently tied to death, which can often feel desirable (Rev. 9:6). The soul faces death primarily through the burden of sin, as it is said, the soul that sins shall die (Ezek. 18:4). Yet when the soul, reassured of the beatitudes, stops yielding to sin, it will be immortal and experience eternal life.

Let us hasten toward this life, dear brethren! In this age, we mourn because we are distanced from the Lord (2 Cor. 5:6); indeed, when one does not depart from the body, they are departing from the Lord. It is far superior to leave the body and be with God (Phil. 1:23), so that we may become one with the Almighty and behold the Only Begotten Son of God (John 1:14; John 17:21).

The Lord does not prohibit the burial of a father, but emphasizes that divine honor takes precedence over earthly obligations: the care for the latter is left to relatives, while the former is entrusted to the chosen ones. The mouth of the wicked is like an open grave (Ps. 5:10), and thus we are instructed to forget the names of those whose merits perish with the body. Although a son is not forbidden from honoring his father, the faithful are called to separate themselves from the faithless.

The righteous experience a different form of burial, as it is written: Having anointed My body, she prepared Me for burial (Matt. 26:12). He who carries Christ within through true faith that he will rise with Him should not harbor evil within.

There is also a prophetic burial; when we honor the tombs of our ancestors with what is understood by you, the reader, yet not comprehensible to those without faith. This speaks of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, which involves the remains of the saints. It is not solely about eating or drinking (cf. Tob. 4:17), rather it is the sacred participation in the Holy Sacrifice that is revealed. We are not forbidden from fulfilling our duties but are commanded to uphold the mystery of divine honor. We shall not engage with the dead of the nations! The sacraments are for the living, and those alive in Christ are not dead.

In one instance, a scribe seeks to follow Jesus but is denied. This refusal reveals that Christ discerned the scribe's earthly ambitions and Messianic expectations; he anticipated a swift and glorious proclamation of Jesus as the Messiah-King, with hopes of securing a prominent position within His kingdom. The scribe's motives for wanting to join Jesus stemmed from a self-serving desire.

Another individual, not a scribe but a disciple in a broader sense, received an invitation from the Lord (as noted by Luke), yet he requested to first bury his father. Jesus responded with: “Let the dead bury their own dead.” Each individual receives an answer reflective of their mindset. It is clear that this disciple was not unlike the third individual mentioned by Luke; he was still clinging to past attachments, unwilling to entirely forsake worldly distractions for the sake of Christ. Allowing him to return home for a burial would expose him to influences contrary to his commitment to Jesus, risking his complete disconnection from the faith. However, if he were to exercise significant self-denial for Christ's sake from the outset, he would strengthen his dedication as a true follower.

This individual might also have considered adhering to the tradition of thirty days of mourning for the deceased, during which hesitations and delays could arise, needing to be addressed. Notably, Jewish rabbis demanded similar commitments from those who sought to study the law. A prospective disciple had to choose between honoring the burial of a close relative or immediately engaging in the service of the law, which included performing burials for others as a secondary duty. Christ's words were therefore clear to His follower, lacking any notion of cruelty or insensitivity, as some have suggested. Jesus recognized that those pursuing the wellspring of eternal life must allow the spiritually dead to tend to their physical dead.

But first, let me say farewell to those at home.” The Lord answered him, “No one having put his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God.” To illustrate His point, the Lord used a familiar analogy from rural life: a farmer plowing a field must keep his focus forward to ensure a straight furrow, as only with such concentration does his work prosper. In the same way, a disciple of Christ must not be distracted by the worldly treasures that could divert him from the path of salvation he has embraced, nor should he revive the attachments he has sacrificed for the supreme love of God (Mt. 10:37).