NOTES for Mat 20:17-28
17 And Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them, |
18 Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, |
19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again. |
20 Then came to him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. |
21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. |
22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. |
23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. |
24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. |
25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. |
26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; |
27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: |
28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. |
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The deafness of those who listen to Christ is sometimes astounding. This applies, however, not only to His earthly contemporaries, but also to us today. He has just warned the disciples once again about what must happen to Him in Jerusalem, and immediately the mother of two of them is busy asking Him to secure better places for her children. One can, of course, try to interpret her request as an expression of faith in Christ's final triumph, but the optimism of such faith looks far too easy, closing its eyes to the sufferings that must precede the triumph.
Meanwhile Christ, by asking the disciples whether they are ready to drink the same cup as He does, warns them precisely about the sufferings of the cross and asks whether they are ready to share them with Him. They answered that they were able, scarcely understanding at that moment what they had agreed to. But with time they became ready for this, and their words became true.
It is characteristic that the other disciples, who also scarcely realized the full measure of what the Teacher would have to endure, began to be indignant at the brothers over the wish expressed by their mother. Christ, however, at that moment does not let them fall upon their brothers with personal accusations; He shifts the conversation to a discussion of the basic question of domination. Here Christ offers the disciples completely unprecedented norms of relationships - not to dominate anyone, but to serve one another. This means that apostleship too is not power over souls, but service.
And here He also reveals that He Himself came into the world not so that anyone would serve Him. But if He does not want people to serve Him, then whom do we resemble before Him when we try to push others around? Do we not resemble the forgiven debtor who tries to tear the debt from someone who in turn owes him?
Readings for 7 August 2025
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