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He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.” And the disciples were filled with grief.
Matthew 17:23 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB and they will kill him, and the third day he will be raised up.” They were exceedingly sorry.
  • KJV And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry.
  • BSB They will kill Him, and on the third day He will be raised to life.” And the disciples were deeply grieved.
  • NKJV and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up.” And they were exceedingly sorrowful.
  • NASB and they will kill Him, and He will be raised on the third day.” And they were deeply grieved.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Jesus says he will be killed and raised on the third day, and the disciples are deeply grieved. They hear the death but seem to miss the promise of resurrection.

Overview

The prediction joins crucifixion and resurrection together, the heart of the gospel. Yet the disciples respond only with sorrow, not yet grasping the hope of his rising. Their grief shows how hard it was to accept a suffering Messiah, and it magnifies the comfort the resurrection would later bring.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 14

  • Isa 53:10–12Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him. He has caused him to suffer. When you make his soul an offering for sin, he will see his offspring. He will prolong his days, and Yahweh’s pleasure will prosper in his hand.
  • Matt 16:21From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up.
  • Zech 13:7“Awake, sword, against my shepherd, and against the man who is close to me,” says Yahweh of Armies. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; and I will turn my hand against the little ones.
  • Mark 8:31He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
  • Isa 53:7He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he didn’t open his mouth. As a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he didn’t open his mouth.
  • Ps 22:22–31I will declare your name to my brothers. Among the assembly, I will praise you.
  • John 16:6But because I have told you these things, sorrow has filled your heart.
  • John 16:20–22Most certainly I tell you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.
  • John 2:19Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
  • Ps 22:15My strength is dried up like a potsherd. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have brought me into the dust of death.
  • 1 Cor 15:3–4For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
  • Acts 2:23–31him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;
  • Dan 9:26After the sixty-two weeks the Anointed One shall be cut off, and shall have nothing: and the people of the prince who shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and its end shall be with a flood, and even to the end shall be war; desolations are determined.
  • Ps 16:10For you will not leave my soul in Sheol, neither will you allow your holy one to see corruption.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Matthew videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Matthew 17:23YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MatthewMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'

How Matthew 17:23 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.