The sign of Jonah – Matthew 16:4
No
sign will be
given …
except the
sign of
Jonah. This is the second of three times that the OT prophet Jonah was mentioned by Jesus. Later in Matthew 16 Jonah's name will be used in referring to Peter as "
Simon son of
Jonah" (Matt. 16:17). Earlier in 12:39-42 Jesus used the story of Jonah in the belly of the great fish to refer to his future death and burial. Jesus also claimed that he is greater than Jonah. Matt. 12:39 described his time in burial before his resurrection as "the
sign of
Jonah" and this must be the same sign Jesus was referring to here.
The yeast of the Pharisees – Matthew 16:6
Yeast of the
Pharisees and
Sadducees. Yeast refers to the ingredient in dough that spreads, affects the whole lump (Matt. 13:33), and causes the dough to rise. Here Jesus was using yeast as an image of the wrong teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Matt. 16:12; 23:2-36) that spreads and affects people, including possibly Jesus' own disciples.
Do you not yet perceive? - Matthew 16:9
Do you not yet perceive? Jesus said that the only people who could truly understand his teaching were those whom God has revealed himself to (Matt. 11:25; 13:11-17). Yet Jesus' disciples still struggle to understand the mysteries of the kingdom that Jesus is teaching (Matt. 15:16) because of their "little faith" (Matt. 6:30; 8:26; 14:31; 16:8). In 16:10-12 Jesus reminded them of his two miraculous wilderness feedings and about the seven and twelve basketfuls remaining. This finally helped them understand that he was speaking metaphorically about the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Hypocrisy of the Pharisees and Sadducees - Matthew 16:12
The
teaching of the
Pharisees and
Sadducees. Jesus critiqued the Jewish leaders of his day for being hypocrites — for focusing their teaching on external righteousness while not loving God from the heart or inner person (Matt. 5:17-7:12; 12:1-13; 15:1-20; 23:1-36). The teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees refers to their hypocritical religious instructions.
The True Confession - Matthew 16:13-17
When Jesus asked his disciples who people expected the Son of Man to be they answered that he was some kind of prophet — John, Elijah, Jeremiah, or another. But the true answer can only be given through divine revelation Matt. (11:25-27; 16:17) — Jesus the Son of Man is the Christ (the Davidic Messiah) who is the Son of the Living God. See
HC 21.
The Promise of the Church – Matthew 16:18-19
Simon Peter has already been shown to be the leader of the disciples (Matt. 10:2-4) and will take this role in the early church as well (Acts 1:15; 2:13; 3:1-6, 12; 15:7). Jesus gave Simon a new name, Peter, which means "rock," because like Abraham in the OT (whose name was also changed, cf. Gen. 17:5), Peter will play a special role in God's work in the world. Jesus is the cornerstone and Peter and the other apostles form a rock foundation. Jesus also promised that the church that he was forming will be strong and prevail over death and Satan, even as Jesus himself will (Matt. 4:1-11; 28:1-10).
Gates of Hades – Matthew 16:18
Gates of
Hades. The "
gates of
Hades" represents death and the power of Satan. See
WCF 25.5;
BC 27;
HC 54, 123.
The keys of the kingdom – Matthew 16:19
Keys of the
kingdom …
bind …
loose. Keys refer to Peter's appointed role as a leader in Jesus' church to administrate, provide for, and oversee the ministry of the gospel of the kingdom. Similarly, in Isa. 22:22 God appointed a special steward to have "the
key of the
house of
David," enabling him to open and shut doors, that is, to have authoritative responsibility. The same language of Matt. 16:19 is used again in 18:18 to refer to the whole church's responsibility to determine who is a part of the faithful church and who is not. This shows that that this authority does not reside only in Peter himself but with Peter as a representative leader within the church. See
WCF 23.3, 30.2;
WLC 108;
HC 83, 84.
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