The juxtaposition of 9:37–43a with the transfiguration is striking because after his glorious manifestation Jesus encounters the unbelief and frailty of human beings (9:41). The father of a demonized boy is close to despair because no one can help his son. Luke’s description emphasizes the severity of the boy’s condition. The goal of the story, then, is to show that only Jesus can help him, and the crowd responds by remarking on God’s greatness as manifested through Jesus.
People are marveling about Jesus’s works (see the preceding exorcism), but J…
Baker Publishing Group, The Baker Illustrated Bible Commentary, by Gary M. Burge