And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not cure him.
All Commentaries on Matthew 17:16 Go To Matthew 17
John Chrysostom
AD 407
The Scripture shows that this man is very weak in faith. This is evident from many things: from Christ’s saying, “All things are possible to him who believes,” and from the fact that the man himself as he approached said, “Help my unbelief.” And it is evident from Christ’s ordering the demon “never to enter him again” and from the man’s saying again to Christ, “If you can.” But you will say, “If his unbelief was the reason why the demon had not gone out of the boy, why does he blame the disciples?” To show that they can often cure the sick, even though no one brings them in with faith. For just as the faith of the one bringing in the sick was often sufficient for receiving a cure even from lesser ministers, so the virtue of the minister was also sufficient to achieve a miracle even without the faith of those bringing them in. Both of these are demonstrated in the Scriptures; for those around Cornelius drew to them the power of the Spirit by their faith. And in the time of Elisha, when no one believed, a dead man was raised. The Gospel of Matthew, Homily
