Why Jesus' Words Were Hidden in Luke 9:45
Luke 9:45 states, "But they didn’t understand this saying. It was concealed from them, that they should not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying" (World English Bible [1]). This verse immediately follows Jesus' second prediction of his passion, where he tells his disciples that the Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men [1]. The disciples' lack of understanding and their fear to question Jesus highlight a recurring theme in the Gospels: their struggle to grasp the true nature of Jesus' mission, particularly his suffering and death [2, 3].
The concealment of Jesus' words from the disciples was not merely a failure on their part to comprehend, but an intentional divine act [1]. The phrase "it was concealed from them" (Greek: ēn paralelymménon ap’ autōn) indicates that their inability to understand was part of God's plan [1]. This aligns with other instances where Jesus' teachings were hidden from those who would not understand, such as the parables, which revealed "the secrets of the Kingdom of God" to some while obscuring them from others, fulfilling Isaiah 6:9 [8]. The disciples' "eyes were blinded to the truth until after the resurrection" [2].
The significance of Jesus' death and resurrection was not fully grasped by the disciples until after these events had occurred [3]. For instance, after his resurrection, Jesus explained to two disciples on the road to Emmaus how the scriptures foretold his suffering and glory, opening their minds to understand [3]. Augustine notes that Jesus often manifested himself differently after his resurrection, appearing to his disciples when doors were shut, indicating a new mode of presence [5].
The hiding of Jesus' words or actions also served strategic purposes. On other occasions, Jesus concealed his movements to avoid plots against him, as when he went up to a feast "not openly, but as it were in secret" [7]. Similarly, when his audience understood his claim to divinity and sought to stone him, Jesus was "hidden from them" because God had appointed a different time for his death [4]. Thomas Aquinas discusses how Christ's doctrine could be hidden, not out of envy, but for various reasons, including the capacity of the hearers [9]. The disciples, even after witnessing the Transfiguration and being charged by Christ to keep it secret, "told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen" [6]. This pattern of concealment underscores a divine timing for revelation, where full understanding was reserved for a later, post-resurrection period [2, 3].
Sources
- Luke “But they didn’t understand this saying. It was concealed from them, that they should not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying. -- Luke 9:45”
- Luke (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Luke 9:45: 9:45 Its significance was hidden from them: The disciples were often slow to understand, partly because their eyes were blinded to the truth until after the resurrection (see study note on Mark 6:52).”
- Luke (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Luke 18:34: 18:34 The significance of his words was hidden from them: Not until after the resurrection did the disciples grasp the saving significance of Jesus’ death (see 9:45; 24:13-34).”
- John (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on John 8:59: 8:59 Jesus’ audience finally understood his claim to divinity (8:58), and they were furious. They believed they had heard blasphemy and picked up stones to throw at him, which was the proper legal response (Lev 24:16). • Jesus was hidden from them because God had appointed a different time for his death (see study note on John 12:23; see also 7:30, 44; Luke 4:29-30).”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 6: Augustine — Homilies on the Gospels — CHAP. XXV.--OF CHRIST'S SUBSEQUENT MANIFESTATIONS OF HIMSELF TO THE DISCIPLES, AND OF THE QUESTION WHETHER A THOROUGH HARMONY CAN BE ESTABLISHED BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT NARRATIVES WHEN THE NOTICES GIVEN (part 9): and His feet."(3) It is to this act, by which the Lord showed Himself after His resurrection, that John is also understood to refer when he discourses as follows: "Then, when it was late on the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus, and stood in the midst,”
- Luke (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Luke 9:33: And there came, a voice out of the cloud,.... See Gill on Mat 17:5. . Luke 9:36 luk 9:36 luk 9:36 luk 9:36And when, the voice was past,.... The above words were delivered, and it was heard no more: Jesus was found alone; by his disciples; Moses and Elias being gone, and he in the same form in which he was before his transfiguration. And they kept it close; as Christ strictly charged them, when coming down from the mount with them; Mat 17:9. And told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen; no, not any of their fellow disciples, until that Chr”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 6: Augustine — Homilies on the Gospels — ON THE WORDS OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN VII. 6, ETC., WHERE JESUS SAID THAT HE WAS NOT GOING UP UNTO THE FEAST, AND NOTWITHSTANDING WENT UP. (part 9): He was coming, and plots be prepared; He said, "I go not up to this feast day."[5] He said, "I go not up," that He might be hid; He added "this," that He might not lie. Something He expressed,[6] something He suppressed, something He repressed; yet said He nothing false, for "nothing false proceedeth out of His Mouth." Finally, after He had said these words, "When His brethren were gone up;"[7] the G”
- Luke (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Luke 8:10: 8:10 the secrets of the Kingdom of God: What was hidden in the past about God’s reign was now revealed through Jesus’ words and actions. • When they look . . . they won’t understand: This quote is from Isa 6:9 (Greek version), a passage repeatedly used in the New Testament to explain Israel’s rejection of the gospel (see also Matt 13:14-15; Mark 4:12; John 12:40; Acts 28:26-27). In its original context, the passage refers to God’s certain judgment of Israel at the hands of the Assyrians. Israel’s sin and rebelliousness had taken them beyond the point of no return, s”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Third Part (Tertia Pars), Of Christ's Doctrine, Art. 3: Article: Whether Christ should have taught all things openly? I answer that, Anyone's doctrine may be hidden in three ways. First, on the part of the intention of the teacher, who does not wish to make his doctrine known to many, but rather to hide it. And this may happen in two ways---sometimes through envy on the part of the teacher, who desires to excel in his knowledge, wherefore he is unwilling to communicate it to others. But this was not the case with Christ, in whose person the following words are spoke”