MatthewChapter 17
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1Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John the brother of James with him. He led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2There his appearance was changed in front of them. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became as white as the light.a 3All at once Moses and Elijah appeared in front of them. They were talking with Jesus. 4Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, I will set up three shelters. One will be for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 5Peter was still speaking when a bright cloud covered them. A voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love. I am very pleased with him. Listen to him!" 6When the disciples heard this, they fell with their faces to the ground. They were terrified. 7Then Jesus came over and touched them. "Get up," he said. "Don't be afraid." 8When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus. 9They were coming down the mountain. Jesus gave them an order. "Don't tell anyone about this vision until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead." 10The disciples asked him, "Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" 11Jesus answered, "It's true that Elijah comes. And he will make all things right again. 12But I tell you, Elijah has already come. They did not know who he was. Instead, they did to him whatever they wanted. In the same way, the Son of Man will suffer at their hands." 13Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist. 14They came to the crowd. A man came up to Jesus and knelt in front of him. 15"Lord, have mercy on my son," he said. "He has seizures, and he is suffering terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. 16I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him." 17"You people have no faith, and you are so twisted!" Jesus answered. "How long must I stay with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me." 18Then Jesus spoke sharply to the demon. It came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment on. 19Later the disciples came to Jesus in private. They asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" 20"Because your faith is so small," he answered. "For I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." 21—b 22They gathered together in Galilee. Jesus told them, "The Son of Man is about to be handed over to people. 23They will kill him. And on the third day he will be raised to life." The disciples were filled with deep sorrow. 24Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum. The men who collected the temple tax came to Peter. They asked, "Doesn't your Teacher pay the temple tax?"c 25"Yes, he does," Peter answered. Peter went into the house. Jesus spoke to him first. "What do you think, Simon?" he asked. "The kings of the earth collect duties and taxes. Who do they collect them from? Their own sons, or others?" 26"From others," Peter answered. "Then the sons don't have to pay," Jesus said to him. 27"But we don't want to offend them. So go to the sea and throw out a hook. Take the first fish you catch. Open its mouth, and you will find a coin worth the tax for two. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours."d