Yes — the disciples did not understand, because God hid it from them.
God sovereignly hid the understanding of Jesus' death and resurrection from the disciples at that time. Jesus told them plainly what would happen, but they comprehended none of it, and even after His death they did not expect Him to rise. Their absence from the tomb Sunday morning confirms they did not understand.
Luke 18:34 — This verse directly states that the disciples understood none of these things because it was hid from them.
John 20:9 — Shows that even after the resurrection, Peter and John did not know the Scripture that He must rise again.
The Gospel of Luke records that Jesus told His disciples plainly: "For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death: and the third day He shall rise again" (Luke 18:32-33). Yet the very next verse says, "And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken" (Luke 18:34). John's Gospel confirms that even after the resurrection, Peter and John, upon seeing the empty tomb, "knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead" (John 20:9). The Bible makes it clear that the disciples did not expect Jesus to die or rise again, despite His explicit predictions.
Les Feldick teaches that the disciples' failure to understand was not due to a lack of clarity in Jesus' words, but because God deliberately hid it from them. He emphasizes that God did not open their eyes to the crucifixion and resurrection at that time. Les points out that had they understood, they would have been waiting outside the tomb on Sunday morning, but instead they had all given up and went home, thinking it was all over. Les also uses this to show that Jesus and the Twelve did not preach the gospel of death, burial, and resurrection as Paul later did. They didn't believe it themselves, so they couldn't preach it. Even after the resurrection, Peter and John did not know the Scripture that He must rise again. This was all part of God's sovereign timing — He would reveal these things in His own time.
Yes. Jesus told them in plain language that He would be delivered to the Gentiles, mocked, scourged, put to death, and rise again on the third day. The Bible says this was "plain language, as plain as you can get it." Yet they still did not understand.
Les Feldick teaches that God Himself hid it from them. He says, "Who hid it? God did. God did. It wasn't time for them to know."
Les points out that had they expected the resurrection, they would have been waiting outside the tomb on Sunday morning. But they weren't. They all went home and thought it was all over. Even Mary Magdalene came only to anoint Jesus' body with spices, not expecting Him to be alive.
Les notes that even after the resurrection, Peter and John, upon seeing the empty tomb, still did not know the Scripture that Jesus must rise again (John 20:9). They were amazed and aghast, but did not understand until later.
Jesus' Clear Prediction Yet No Comprehension
Les sets the stage: Jesus told them plainly, but they comprehended none of it — they had no idea He would die or rise again, as shown by their absence Sunday morning.
God Hid It From Them
Les explains that God hid the understanding from them, so they had no idea He would die or rise. They went back to Galilee, thinking it was all over.
God's Sovereign Hiding and the Empty Tomb
Les reiterates that God never opened their eyes; had they understood, they would have been at the tomb waiting Sunday morning.
No Expectation of Resurrection
Les demonstrates their lack of understanding: they had given up, and even Mary Magdalene was shocked to find the tomb empty because she didn't expect Jesus to be alive.
Jesus and the Twelve Didn't Believe or Preach Death, Burial, and Resurrection
Les emphasizes that the Twelve didn't even believe in the death and resurrection themselves, so they couldn't preach it — this was the gospel later revealed to Paul.
Peter and John Didn't Know Scripture in John 20:9
Les points to John 20:9 to show that even after seeing the empty tomb, Peter and John did not know the Scripture that Jesus must rise again.
Plain Language Yet Hidden
Les highlights that Jesus' words were plain, but the disciples understood none because God hid it from them — it wasn't time for them to know.
God's Sovereign Timing
Les explains that a sovereign God hid these things because it wasn't time for them to understand, and even after the resurrection, Peter and John didn't understand until later.
Luke 18:31-34: Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
Directly states Jesus' prediction and the disciples' lack of understanding because it was hid from them.
John 20:9: For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.
Shows that even after the resurrection, Peter and John did not understand the scriptural necessity of the resurrection.
Matthew 28:1: In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.
The women came to the tomb, not expecting a resurrection, but to anoint the body — showing lack of understanding.
Yes, Jesus told them in plain language multiple times. He said He would be put to death and rise again on the third day. Yet the Bible says they understood none of these things because it was hid from them (Luke 18:31-34).
According to Les Feldick, God Himself hid it from them. He said, 'Who hid it? God did. It wasn't time for them to know.' God sovereignly kept them from understanding at that time.
They were not at the tomb on Sunday morning. Mary Magdalene came only to anoint Jesus' body with spices, and they all had given up, thinking it was all over. Had they expected the resurrection, they would have been waiting outside the tomb.
Even after seeing the empty tomb, Peter and John did not know the Scripture that Jesus must rise again (John 20:9). It was only later, when God revealed it in His own time, that they fully understood.
Watch the Teaching: Revelation vs. Instruction: How Paul Received the Gospel