“And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.”
But Jesus came and touched them, saying: rise, and have no fear. The touch of Jesus and the rise, have no fear are the compassionate response to the disciples' terror. The pattern — divine encounter produces prostration and fear; Jesus touches and reassures — is the pattern of every divine encounter in Matthew's Gospel. The one who can produce the terror is the one who can relieve it.
Church Fathers on Matthew 17:7
While they thought only of an earthly tabernacle of boughs or tents, they are overshadowed by the covering of a bright cloud; 'While he yet spake there came a bright cloud and overshadowed them.
When the Lord threatens, He shews a dark cloud, as on Sinai [margin note: Ex 19:9,16]; but here where He sought not to terrify but to teach, there appeared a bright cloud.
The bright cloud overshadowing the Saints is the Power of the Father, or perhaps the Holy Spirit; or I may also venture to call the Saviour that bright cloud which overshadows the Gospel, the Law, and the Prophets, as they understand who can behold His light in all these three.
Read all 17 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a reflection on this verse
No reflections on this verse yet. Be the first to write one!