And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them,
The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men:
All Commentaries on Matthew 17:22 Go To Matthew 17
Cyril of Alexandria
AD 444
Therefore he brought the disciples to the mountain and showed them the glory with which he will shine on the universe in the future. Then coming down from the mountain he freed a person from a rough and evil spirit. It was altogether necessary for him to undergo his saving Passion for us and to suffer the violence of the Jews. When this happened, it was quite likely that the disciples would be alarmed and would ponder it and say among themselves: “He has raised so many from the dead by divine power, he commands the seas and winds, he overwhelms Satan with his words—how has he now been taken and fallen to the noose of his murderers? Then maybe we were deceived when we thought that he was God?” So that they should know the future fully and completely, therefore, he foretells to them the mystery of the Passion.