And they asked him, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.”

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬-‭17‬ ‭AMP‬‬
When Zacharias saw the angel, he was troubled and overcome with fear. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, because your petition [in prayer] was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. You will have great joy and delight, and many will rejoice over his birth, for he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord; and will never drink wine or liquor, and he will be filled with and empowered to act by the Holy Spirit while still in his mother’s womb. [Num 6:3] He will turn many of the sons of Israel back [from sin] to [love and serve] the Lord their God. It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous [which is to seek and submit to the will of God]—in order to make ready a people [perfectly] prepared [spiritually and morally] for the Lord.” [Is 40:3; Mal 4:5, 6]”‭‭

Malachi‬ ‭4‬:‭5‬-‭6‬
[God speaking]
See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.

“And they asked him, ‘Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?’” It is a good question that the disciples ask. It is good to question teachers and their conclusions at times. Why? Because it drives us to investigate the answers. Good teachers, in humility, recognize the value of the question (to their statement) is not always in the answer alone. Sometimes there is much more value in the process of the student investigating the answer and learning how to seek hard and find the truth. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
(‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭7‬, Jesus speaking)

Conversely, proud and arrogant teachers do not appreciate questions to their conclusions. Instead they shoot them down and try to make the questioner feel stupid. Why? They hope to maintain power and position over those following them and determine that fear and dominance will do the trick.

And now to Jesus’ statement: Elijah did come first. John came in the power and Spirit of Elijah. He was most likely what this prophecy refers to. But also, Elijah did appear at the transfixion of Jesus on the mountain. So he came in person, appearing in his resurrected body only to Jesus, John, Peter, and James. And he came in spirit and in power through the birth and life of John the Baptist.

So the follow up question is: How did the teachers of the law and Pharisees miss the second coming of Elijah? First, they did not listen to the prophets and seek to understand the meaning of the prophecy. They only looked at it from one angle — their interpretation of it: There requirements were likely something like this: 1) Elijah must appear to them in person and verify he was Elijah. 2) They must recognize him physically. 3) They must recognize his power. 4) He must prove his power to them.

This is a very limited and legalistic approach to understanding the prophesies of God. It focuses on a man-made test.

But God prophesied through his angel appearing to the priest Zachariah, his father, that John the Baptist would be the second coming “in spirit” of Elijah. And he fulfilled the prophecies of Micah and Isaiah, as listed in our parallel verses. John drew crowds into the desert and many repented of their sins. He discipled many, at least a couple of which became disciples of Jesus.

While the teachers of the law had tons of knowledge and studied the Bible, they lacked Godly wisdom, because their hearts were arrogant and hard. And so it is with many church-goers today. “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, …” & “ — having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” ‭‭(II Timothy‬ ‭3‬:‭2‬a, ‭5‬)

Jesus here was stating a fact. John was his Elijah-like forerunner. He also adds a question they did not ask, as if suggesting they should have asked it: “Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected?” He wanted them to understand why he must suffer, be rejected, and ultimately die. Why? If they understood his “why”, they would also fully understand the DEPTH OF THE LOVE he had for them!

Prayer: The Apostle Paul references this love in his prayer for the Ephesians. He prays that they “may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭3‬:‭18‬-‭19‬). And this is my prayer today as well. May it be so in me, Lord!