Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 17:7
And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
Verse 7. Jesus came and touched them] Exactly parallel to this account is Da 8:18, I was in a deep sleep, i, e. (a trance) on my face towards the ground; but he TOUCHED me, and set me upright. From Jesus alone are we to expect Divine communications, and by his power only are we able to bear and improve them. It is very likely that this transfiguration took place in the night, which was a more proper season to show forth its glory than the day time, in which a part of the splendour must necessarily be lost by the presence of the solar light. Besides, St. Luke, Lu 9:37, expressly says, that it was on the next day after the transfiguration that our Lord came down from the mount.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And Jesus came and touched them,…. The disciples were at some little distance from Christ, but he observing the fear and surprise they were in, came to their relief and assistance; which he did not disdain to give, notwithstanding the glory he was covered with; but acts the part of a mediator between God and them, and lays hold on them to raise them up, whom the majesty of God’s voice had cast down: the Persic version renders it, “he came and brought them to themselves”; who were just fainting and swooning away, at the awfulness of the voice:
and said, arise, and be not afraid: it is not the voice of an angry God, but of God well pleased with me, and in me with you; it is the voice of my God, and your God, of my Father, and your Father; arise, stand on your feet, take heart, and be of good courage, no hurt will come to you.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
And touched them ( ). Tenderness in their time of fear.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
7. Then Jesus approaching touched them. Christ raises them up when they had fallen, and by so doing performs his office; for he came down to us for this very purpose, that by his guidance believers might boldly enter into the presence of God, and that his majesty, which otherwise would swallow up all flesh, might no longer fill them with terror. Nor is it only by his words that he comforts, but by touching also that he encourages them.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(7) Jesus came and touched them.Act and words were both expressive of an almost brotherly tenderness. The touch of the hand they had so often graspedas, e.g., in Mat. 14:31the familiar words that had brought courage to their fainting hearts in. the hour of danger (Mat. 14:27), these recall them again to the realities of life. They need not fear the glory of the divine Presence, for He is with them still as its most perfect manifestation.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
7. Jesus came and touched them be not afraid So the same Saviour touched John in the Apocalypse, (Rev 1:17.) He “laid his right hand upon him, saying unto him, Fear not.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘And Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only.’
The three disciples had been so very much afraid at the realisation of the nearness of God, accompanied no doubt by a deep awareness an sense of His presence, that they had fallen on their faces, hiding their eyes in the ground. Thus we are not told what followed, for they knew nothing more until Jesus came to them and touched them, telling them to stand up and not be afraid. And when they then lifted up their eyes the vision had gone and they were alone with Jesus. ‘They saw no man but Jesus only.’
Their being touched by Jesus in this way parallels the touching of Daniel by the angel whose description has lent something to this narrative (Dan 10:10). But it is not just a matter of borrowing ideas, for as we have been told, Jesus constantly touches people (e.g. Mat 8:3; Mat 8:15; Mat 9:29; Mat 20:34). The point is that the disciples were traumatised, just as Daniel had been, and in need of supernatural help. There the angel had helped Daniel up. Jesus may well have done the same here. It is a reminder that when we are desolated we can be sure that Jesus will always approach us and touch us when we fall before Him. But in this case it was more than that, and perhaps the sequence of hearing a voice, falling on their faces, being afraid, receiving a touch, and being told not to be afraid was intended to indicate that what they had seen was a heavenly visitation as in Daniel.
They must have experienced a feeling of great relief, and at the same time of great disappointment, when they rose to their feet. On the one hand they had failed to see the end of what was being enacted out, and now it was gone, but in another they had now got Jesus back, seemingly just as He was before, although they would never be able to see Him in quite the same way again. The lesson had, however, been learned. Others could go on looking to the past. But they now knew that the past pointed to Jesus, and that He was the future, for those who were the greatest of the past had themselves said so. So they not only ‘saw Jesus only’, but knew that He was all that they would need for the future. They could still learn from Moses and the prophets, but now only because they pointed to Jesus.
As we close this passage we should stop for a moment and try to consider and experience its deeper significance. We can become so tied up with our explanations of ‘this and that’ that we overlook the whole. The experience would never be forgotten and would forever be spoken of in the future with an awed voice (2Pe 1:15-18). The manifestation of the eternal glory of Jesus in a light that outshone the sun, and of His purity as revealed by the unearthly and dazzling whiteness of His clothing, the appearance from the past, and from beyond, of the great Moses and the fiery Elijah, the bright cloud that overshadowed them, the sense of the presence of a holy God in a way never known by them before, the terrible voice speaking from the cloud concerning His beloved Son, all were reminders of the purpose for which they had been chosen, even though as yet their conceptions of what it was were so small. They knew now that this was something beyond anything that they could have previously conceived. Jesus was the Son of the living God indeed.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
7 And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
Ver. 7. Jesus came and touched them ] Christ therefore kills his, that he may quicken them; casts them down, that he may revive and raise them in the opportunity of time ( , Hos 6:1-2 1Pe 5:6 ): not so the devil, that destroyer, that hath not his names for nought, Apollyon and Abaddon.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mat 17:7 . : a touch and a word, human and kindly, from Jesus, restore strength and composure.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
not. Greek. me. App-105.
saw. App-133.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Mat 17:7. , touched) They were prostrated by what they saw and heard; they were raised again by His familiar and efficacious touch.- cease to fear.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
touched: Dan 8:18, Dan 9:21, Dan 10:10, Dan 10:18, Rev 1:17
Arise: Luk 24:5, Act 9:6
Reciprocal: Num 14:27 – How long Eze 2:1 – stand
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
17:7
Jesus assured his apostles that nothing would harm them.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mat 17:7. Came and touched them. Comp, similar occurrences, Isa 6:5-7; Dan 10:9-10; Rev 1:17.