Summary
JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God's saving act for humanity. is exasperated by an encounter with a demonA demon is an evil spirit often depicted in human or animal form. Sometimes frightening, sometimes alluring, the unclean spirit represents destructive power. whom the disciples could not cast out. He chastises them afterward for their little faith.
Analysis
Some equate the Gospel of MatthewA tax collector who became one of Jesus' 12 disciples. with an emphasis on deeds because of the Sermon on the Mount. The Gospel, however, places an equal emphasis on the importance of words and faith (see for example Matthew 12:33-37 Good from Good, Bad from Bad). In Matthew, Jesus rejects signs as unnecessary, focusing instead on the way in which the Ninevites repented at Jonah’s preaching and the Queen of Sheba came to hear Solomon’s wisdomWisdom encompasses the qualities of experience, knowledge, and good judgment. The Old Testament book of Proverbs, which sometimes invokes a Woman as the personification of Wisdom, is a collection of aphorisms and moral teachings. Along with other biblical passages, it teaches, "The fear of the....
In this pericope the question of the relationship between deeds and faith comes together, as the disciples find themselves unable to perform the deed of casting out a demon from a young boy. Jesus responds with what can only be characterized as exasperation, asking how much longer he has to put up with this “faithless and perverse generation” (17:17). Jesus then explains to the disciples that their lack of faith prevented them from casting out the demon. He goes so far as to say that their faith was smaller than a mustard seed, a seed proverbial for its smallness (see for example the parableA parable is a brief story with a setting, an action, and a result. A prominent aspect of Jesus' teaching was telling parables to illustrate something about the kingdom, or reign, of God. of the mustard seed, Matthew 13:31-32).
