Matthew 17:27

17:27 But so that we don’t offend them, go to the lake and throw out a hook. Take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth, you will find a four drachma coin. ¹  Take that and give it to them for me and you.”

Matthew 9:6

9:6 But so that you may know ²  that the Son of Man ³  has authority on earth to forgive sins” – then he said to the paralytic ⁴  – “Stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.” ⁵ 

Matthew 12:11

12:11 He said to them, “Would not any one of you, if he had one sheep that fell into a pit on the Sabbath, take hold of it and lift it out?

Matthew 12:18

12:18 “Here is ⁶  my servant whom I have chosen,

the one I love, in whom I take great delight. ⁷ 

I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

Matthew 17:5

17:5 While he was still speaking, a ⁸  bright cloud ⁹  overshadowed ¹⁰  them, and a voice from the cloud said, ¹¹  “This is my one dear Son, ¹²  in whom I take great delight. Listen to him!” ¹³ 

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¹ sn The four drachma coin was a stater (στατήρ, stathr), a silver coin worth four drachmas. One drachma was equivalent to one denarius, the standard pay for a day’s labor (L&N 6.80).

² sn Now Jesus put the two actions together. The walking of the man would be proof (so that you may know) that his sins were forgiven and that God had worked through Jesus (i.e., the Son of Man).

³ sn The term Son of Man, which is a title in Greek, comes from a pictorial description in Dan 7:13 of one “like a son of man” (i.e., a human being). It is Jesus’ favorite way to refer to himself. Jesus did not reveal the background of the term here, which mixes human and divine imagery as the man in Daniel rides a cloud, something only God does. He just used it. It also could be an idiom in Aramaic meaning either “some person” or “me.” So there is a little ambiguity in its use here, since its origin is not clear at this point. However, the action makes it clear that Jesus used it to refer to himself here.

⁴ sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.

⁵ tn Grk “to your house.”

⁶ tn Grk “Behold my servant.”

⁷ tn Grk “in whom my soul is well pleased.”

⁸ tn Grk “behold, a.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated here or in the following clause because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

⁹ sn This cloud is the cloud of God’s presence and the voice is his as well.

¹⁰ tn Or “surrounded.”

¹¹ tn Grk “behold, a voice from the cloud, saying.” This is an incomplete sentence in Greek which portrays intensity and emotion. The participle λέγουσα (legousa) was translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style.

¹² tn Grk “my beloved Son,” or “my Son, the beloved [one].” The force of ἀγαπητός (agaphtos) is often “pertaining to one who is the only one of his or her class, but at the same time is particularly loved and cherished” (L&N 58.53; cf. also BDAG 7 s.v. 1).

¹³ sn The expression listen to him comes from Deut 18:15 and makes two points: 1) Jesus is a prophet like Moses, a leader-prophet, and 2) they have much yet to learn from him.