Mark 8:31Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

After His disciples acknowledged Him as the true Messiah, the Lord disclosed to them the enigma of the Cross. However, He did not fully unveil its significance, as the apostles struggled to grasp His words and could not comprehend the concept of resurrection, believing instead that it would be preferable for Him to avoid suffering altogether.

Peter's faith mirrored that of the other apostles, as what was bestowed upon one was also shared among them all. At that time, the Lord chose not to reveal His identity as the Messiah to the public so as to prevent any actions that would contradict His divine purpose. Instead, He disclosed to them for the first time His impending sufferings and crucifixion in Jerusalem, which were essential for the establishment of His kingdom. He pointed out that His death would come at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and scribes, all members of the Sanhedrin, indicating that His death would be a public event rather than a secretive one. Additionally, the Lord assured them that He would rise again after three days.

From that moment onward, Jesus began to share with His disciples regarding His impending suffering and death. The Gospel of Mark adds that He spoke candidly about these matters, shedding light on His earlier statements. While Jesus had previously disclosed His sufferings and death in private discussions, in this instance, after fortifying their faith and considering the soon-approaching culmination of His earthly journey, where the disciples would face a significant test of their faith, He now communicates His impending trials with greater clarity. This revelation troubled the disciples and dampened their fervor, preparing them to endure the forthcoming ordeal.

In His discussions with the apostles regarding His approaching sacrifice, the disciples needed to be fortified in their belief and prepared for the reality of His forthcoming affliction, death, and resurrection. Therefore, once they recognized Jesus as the genuine Messiah, He promptly began to explain that the true Messiah would not embody the earthly king the Jews envisioned. His sovereign reign was not of this temporal realm nor adorned in worldly magnificence, but instead encompassed greatness and holiness of spirit. The authentic Messiah would not be a tyrant over the nations, nor would He dominate or oppress them; rather, He would serve all and endure suffering to liberate them from the bondage of sin. He foretold His crucifixion, His death, and promised that on the third day He would rise again.

The notion of a suffering Messiah was profoundly contrary to the established beliefs of the time. Consequently, it became essential for Christ to elucidate to the apostles the impending tragedy in Jerusalem that He had foreseen from the beginning, which was now nearing fulfillment, and to help them grasp that this tragedy was an integral part of God’s sovereign plan to establish a new spiritual kingdom. Some of the religious scholars during Christ's time were aware of the belief that the Messiah would endure suffering and death, a concept derived from the well-known scriptures of the prophet Isaiah, who spoke of the servant of God suffering for our transgressions. However, this belief was not widely accepted and starkly contrasted with the prevailing views of the populace.

The Lord's foretelling of His suffering, death, and resurrection, along with Peter's interruption, is reported by Luke. Mark presents the same prophecy using nearly the same wording as Matthew. In Matthew’s account (see Matthew 16:21-23 and commentary), the phrases “to be rejected” and “to suffer” carry a weightier implication than in Luke. Matthew emphasizes that He was to be rejected—meaning that the leaders of the Jewish people and, by extension, the entire nation would fail to recognize Him as the Messiah, despite the fact that the entire narrative of the Jewish nation was intended to prepare them for the acceptance of the Messiah.

The Lord Jesus Christ, whom the apostles recognized as the Son of God, equipped them for the forthcoming events, foreshadowing the glory of His resurrection that awaited Him at the conclusion of His earthly life, along with the suffering and demise He would endure. He instructed His followers that the expectations of worldly accolades and benefits in the Messiah's kingdom were misguided, emphasizing instead the path of salvation through self-denial and the cross. No longer resorting to parables or ambiguous references, He spoke plainly, conveying that it was requisite for the Son of Man to suffer many things, face temptation from the elders, priests, and scribes, and ultimately be killed, only to rise again on the third day.