Matthew 17:14-27New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

Jesus Cures a Boy with a Demon

¹⁴ When they came to the crowd, a man came to him, knelt before him, ¹⁵ and said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly; he often falls into the fire and often into the water. ¹⁶ And I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.” ¹⁷ Jesus answered, “You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.” ¹⁸ And Jesus rebuked the demon,^[a] and it^[b] came out of him, and the boy was cured instantly. ¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰ He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a^[c] mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”^[d]

Jesus Again Foretells His Death and Resurrection

²² As they were gathering^[e] in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, ²³ and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.” And they were greatly distressed.

Jesus and the Temple Tax

²⁴ When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax^[f] came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?”^{[g] 25} He said, “Yes, he does.” And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?” ²⁶ When Peter^[h] said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the children are free. ²⁷ However, so that we do not give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin;^[i] take that and give it to them for you and me.”

Meditation Prayer and Question:

Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit, living in Mary, and heal my soul and body by your love.

• How does the story encourage you to pray for others?
• How do you describe the attitude of the father of the epileptic boy when he approached Jesus?
• In what attitude to pray to God?
• Why the disciples were not able to heal the sick boy?
• Why is faith so important to perform a miracle?
• What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ in your life?
• Why did Jesus foretell His death and resurrection?

Lord, I do believe in You, help my unbelief