Matthew 27:34

27:34 and offered Jesus ¹  wine mixed with gall to drink. ²  But after tasting it, he would not drink it.

Matthew 16:28

16:28 I tell you the truth, ³  there are some standing here who will not ⁴  experience ⁵  death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” ⁶ 

[27:34]  ¹ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:34]  ² sn It is difficult to say for certain who gave Jesus this drink of wine mixed with gall (e.g., the executioner, or perhaps women from Jerusalem). In any case, whoever gave it to him most likely did so in order to relieve his pain, but Jesus was unwilling to take it.

[16:28]  ³ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[16:28]  ⁴ tn The Greek negative here (οὐ μή, ou mh) is the strongest possible.

[16:28]  ⁵ tn Grk “will not taste.” Here the Greek verb does not mean “sample a small amount” (as a typical English reader might infer from the word “taste”), but “experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something” (cf. BDAG 195 s.v. γεύομαι 2).

[16:28]  ⁶ sn Several suggestions have been made as to the referent for the phrase the Son of Man coming in his kingdom: (1) the transfiguration itself, which immediately follows in the narrative; (2) Jesus’ resurrection and ascension; (3) the coming of the Spirit; (4) Christ’s role in the Church; (5) the destruction of Jerusalem; (6) Jesus’ second coming and the establishment of the kingdom. The reference to six days later in 17:1 seems to indicate that Matthew had the transfiguration in mind insofar as it was a substantial prefiguring of the consummation of the kingdom (although this interpretation is not without its problems). As such, the transfiguration would be a tremendous confirmation to the disciples that even though Jesus had just finished speaking of his death (in vv. 21-23), he was nonetheless the promised Messiah and things were proceeding according to God’s plan.