“Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.”
My Notes
What Does Matthew 26:31 Mean?
Jesus tells the disciples plainly: all of them will be scandalized (skandalizo — caused to stumble, offended, tripped up) because of him that very night. He quotes Zechariah 13:7: "I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad." The scattering is prophesied, scriptural, and inevitable.
The "all" is absolute — not some, not most, all. Jesus looks at his closest friends and says: every one of you will fail tonight. Peter's denial is the most famous failure, but Jesus says the collapse will be universal. The entire community of disciples will scatter when the shepherd is struck.
The Zechariah quotation places the scattering within God's plan. God smites the shepherd; the sheep scatter. The violence against Jesus isn't just human malice — it's divine purpose. And the disciples' failure isn't just personal weakness — it's the prophesied result of the shepherd being struck. The scattering was written before it happened.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How does knowing 'all' the disciples failed comfort you about your own failures?
- 2.What does the Zechariah quotation teach about the relationship between divine purpose and human weakness?
- 3.When was your 'all of you, tonight' moment — and what came after the scattering?
- 4.How does Jesus predicting both the failure AND the gathering (verse 32) change how you process your own spiritual collapses?
Devotional
All of you. Tonight. Every single one. Jesus doesn't soften it. He doesn't say "some of you might struggle." He says all of you will be offended because of me. Tonight.
The absolute nature of the prediction should devastate any confidence in spiritual performance. These are the twelve — the inner circle, the ones who left everything, who walked on water (at least Peter tried), who cast out demons, who were personally trained by Jesus for three years. And all of them will fail. Tonight. Not eventually. Tonight.
The Zechariah quotation adds divine purpose to the human failure. God smites the shepherd. The sheep scatter. This isn't just the disciples losing their nerve — it's God's plan being executed through their weakness. The scattering is in the script. Jesus' arrest, the disciples' flight — both are prophesied, both are necessary, both are part of the same divine orchestration.
This doesn't excuse the failure. But it contextualizes it. Your worst night of faith — the night you ran, denied, hid, scattered — might have been in the script all along. Not because God caused your failure, but because God's plan included it. The shepherd was struck. You scattered. And the same Jesus who predicted the scattering also predicted the gathering (verse 32: "after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee").
The scattering isn't the end of the story. It's the middle. And the gathering is already planned.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
But after I am risen again,.... This he says for their comfort, that though he, their shepherd, should be apprehended,…
Jesus foretells the fall of Peter - This is also recorded in Mar 14:27-31; Luk 22:31-34; Joh 13:34-38. Mat 26:31 Then…
All shall be offended
Mar 14:26-31; Luk 22:32-34. Cp. Joh 16:32
31. I will smite the shepherd Zec 13:7. The words do…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture