1After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves.2He was changed before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light.3Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.
4Peter answered, and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, let’s make three tents here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
1 After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves.
2 He was changed before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light.
3 Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.
4 Peter answered, and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, let’s make three tents here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
TYNDALETyndale New Testament (1534)
1 And after. vi. dayes Iesus toke Peter and Iames and Ihon his brother and brought them vp into an hye mountayne out of the waye
2 and was transfygured before them: and his face did shyne as the sunne and his clothes were as whyte as the light.
3 And beholde ther appered vnto the Moses and Helyas talkinge with him.
4 Then answered Peter and sayde to Iesus: master here is good beinge for vs. If thou wylt leet vs make here.iii. tabernacles one for the and one for Moses and one for Helyas.
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GNVGeneva Bible (1599)
1 And after sixe dayes, Iesus tooke Peter, and Iames and Iohn his brother, and brought them vp into an hie mountaine apart,
2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the Sunne, and his clothes were as white as the light.
3 And beholde, there appeared vnto them Moses, and Elias, talking with him.
4 Then answered Peter, and saide to Iesus, Master, it is good for vs to be here: if thou wilt, let vs make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
Luke 9:28-36(v1)About eight days after these sayings, he took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up onto the mountain to pray. As he was praying,…
Psalms 104:2(v2)He covers himself with light as with a garment. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain.
Matthew 28:3(v2)His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.
Matthew 26:37(v1)He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and severely troubled.
Mark 9:5-6(v4)Peter answered Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let’s make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” For he…
Show all 50 cross-references
Luke 9:29(v2)As he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became white and dazzling.
John 1:14(v2)The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Luke 9:33(vv3–4)As they were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let’s make three tents: one for you, one for…
Mark 5:37(v1)He allowed no one to follow him, except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.
Revelation 10:1(v2)I saw a mighty angel coming down out of the sky, clothed with a cloud. A rainbow was on his head. His face was like the sun, and his feet…
John 17:24(vv2, 4)Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me be with me where I am, that they may see my glory, which you have given me, for you…
Revelation 20:11(v2)I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. There was found no place for them.
Mark 9:3(v2)His clothing became glistening, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them.
2 Corinthians 13:1(v1)This is the third time I am coming to you. “At the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.”
2 Peter 1:18(v1)We heard this voice come out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.
Revelation 19:12-13(v2)His eyes are a flame of fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has names written and a name written which no one knows but he himself.…
Exodus 34:29-35(v2)When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mountain, Moses…
Malachi 4:5(v3)Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Yahweh comes.
Mark 9:2-13(v1)After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John, and brought them up onto a high mountain privately by themselves, and he was…
Luke 24:44(v3)He said to them, “This is what I told you, while I was still with you, that all things which are written in the law of Moses, the prophets,…
Acts 26:13-15(v2)at noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me. When we…
Philippians 2:6-7(v2)who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a…
Revelation 1:13-17(v2)And among the lamp stands was one like a son of man, clothed with a robe reaching down to his feet, and with a golden sash around his…
Revelation 22:3-5(v4)There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face,…
Deuteronomy 34:10(v3)Since then, there has not arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom Yahweh knew face to face,
1 Kings 18:36-40(v3)At the time of the evening offering, Elijah the prophet came near, and said, “Yahweh, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it…
Mark 9:4(v3)Elijah and Moses appeared to them, and they were talking with Jesus.
Luke 8:51(v1)When he came to the house, he didn’t allow anyone to enter in, except Peter, John, James, the father of the child, and her mother.
Romans 12:2(v2)Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing,…
1 John 3:2(v4)Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be; but we know that when he is revealed, we will be like him; for…
Deuteronomy 18:18(v3)I will raise them up a prophet from among their brothers, like you. I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I…
Deuteronomy 34:5-6(v3)So Moses the servant of Yahweh died there in the land of Moab, according to Yahweh’s word. He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab…
1 Kings 17:1(v3)Elijah the Tishbite, who was one of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there…
2 Kings 2:11-14(v3)As they continued on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated them, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into…
Psalms 63:1-5(v4)God, you are my God. I will earnestly seek you. My soul thirsts for you. My flesh longs for you, in a dry and weary land, where there is no…
Matthew 17:10-13(v3)His disciples asked him, saying, “Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus answered them, “Elijah indeed comes…
Luke 1:17(v3)He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the…
Luke 9:30-31(v3)Behold, two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory, and spoke of his departure, which he was about to…
Luke 16:16(v3)The law and the prophets were until John. From that time the Good News of God’s Kingdom is preached, and everyone is forcing his way into…
Luke 24:27(v3)Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
John 14:8-9(v4)Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you such a long time,…
2 Corinthians 3:7-11(v3)But if the service of death, written engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly on the…
Exodus 33:18-19(v4)Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim Yahweh’s name before you.…
Psalms 4:6(v4)Many say, “Who will show us any good?” Yahweh, let the light of your face shine on us.
Psalms 16:11(v4)You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy. In your right hand there are pleasures forever more.
Isaiah 33:17(v4)Your eyes will see the king in his beauty. They will see a distant land.
Matthew 11:13-14(v3)For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. If you are willing to receive it, this is Elijah, who is to come.
John 1:17(v3)For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
John 5:45-47(v3)“Don’t think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you, even Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you…
Hebrews 3:1-6(v3)Therefore, holy brothers, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession: Jesus, who was faithful…
50 distinct cross-references across this passage (52 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn vv1–2Christ is in such sort humble in the Gospel,…
Christ is in such sort humble in the Gospel, that in the mean season he is Lord both of heaven and earth.
Luke reckoneth eight days, containing in that number the first and last, and Matthew speaketh but of them that were betwixt them.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv1–41 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James,…
1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
Ver. 1. And after six days] Luke saith {Luk 9:28} about eight days after. It comes all to one. For Matthew puts exclusively those days only that went between, and were finished; but Luke puts the two utmost days also into the reckoning.
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Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John] So Mat 5:37, when he raised the damsel he took with him these three only; haply as best beloved, because bold; Boanergeses, more zealous than the rest; or the better to fit them for further trial: great feelings often precede great afflictions. However, it is no small favour of God to make us witnesses of his great works, and so let us take it. As all Israel might see Moses go toward the rock of Rephidim, none but the elders might see him strike it. That God crucifies his Son before us, that he fetcheth the true water of life out of the rock in our sight, is a high prerogative. And no less surely that we are again transported in prayer, carried out of the body in divine meditation, and lost in the endless maze of spiritual ravishments; that we return from the public ordinances, as Moses did from the Mount, with our faces shining; that we are transfigured and transformed into the same image from glory to glory, and that the angel of the covenant doth wondrously, during the time of the sacrifice, while Manoah and his wife look on, &c. These are special privileges communicated to none but the communion of saints.
And bringeth them up into an high mountain] The name of this mountain no evangelist expresseth; but by connnon consent it was Mount Tabor (which Josephus calleth Itabirion), whereof Jerome writeth copiously and elegantly in his commentary upon the fifth of Hosea. Our Saviour, when he had some special work to do, went usually up into a mountain; to teach us to soar aloft in great performances especially, and to be heavenly minded, taking a turn or two, ever and anon, with Christ in Mount Tabor, treading upon the moon, with the Church, Rev 12:1; having our feet at least where other men’s heads are, on things on earth (Pro 15:24; "The way of life is above to the wise"); delighting ourselves in high flying, as eagles; never merry till gotten into the air or on the top of trees, with the lesser birds. Zaccheus could not see Christ till he had climbed the fig tree. Nor can we see the consolation of Israel till elevated in divine contemplation, till gotten up into God’s holy hill. The people tasted not manna till they had left the leaven of Egypt.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv1, 3Both Mark and Luke have recorded this history. Mark…
Both Mark and Luke have recorded this history. Mark saith, Mar 9:3, his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. Luke saith, Luk 9:28,29; And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter, and John, and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering. All three agree the place, upon a mountain. Matthew saith it was six, Luke saith eight days after the preceding discourses. Luke mentions our Lord’s praying, which neither of the others mentions, and saith his transfiguration began while that he was praying. They all agree the company that was with our Saviour,
Peter, James, and John; which were the three our Saviour took with him when he went to pray before his passion, Mat 26:37. Peter was to be a great instrument in carrying on the works of the gospel. James was he whom Herod killed, Act 12:2. John was he who outlived all the apostles. He intended to have these three witnesses of his agony, Mat 26:37; he prepareth them for that, and for the future testimony they were to give him, by making them eye witnesses of this his glorious transfiguration. This, as to his person, lay in the change of his countenance, looking gloriously as the sun, and his raiment looking extraordinarily white.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt1703 · Public DomainOn vv1, 3, 4The former part of this chapter gives us an…
The former part of this chapter gives us an account of our Saviour’s glorious transfiguration, he laid as it were the garments of frail humanity and mortality aside for a little time, and assuming to himself the robes of majesty and glory, the rays of his divinity darted forth, his face shined with a pleasing brightness, and his raiment with such a glorious lustre, as did at once both dazzle and delight the eyes of the beholders.
Here observe, 1. The reasons of our Lord’s transfiguration,
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1. To demonstrate and testify the truth of his divinity; that he was Christ the Son of the living God; according to St. Peter’s confession just before. This divine glory was an evidence of his divine nature.
2. Christ was thus transfigured, to prefigure the glory of his second coming to judgment, when he shall be admired of his saints, as here he was admired by his disciples.
Observe, 2. The choice which our Saviour makes of the witnesses of his transfiguration, his three disciples, Peter, James and John. But why disciples? Why three disciples? Why these three?
1. This transfiguration was a type and shadow of the glory of heaven: Christ therefore vouchsafes the earnest and first fruits of that glory only to saints; upon whom he intended to bestow the full harvest.
2. Three disciples were witnesses sufficient to testify this miracle. Judas was unworthy of this favour, yet lest he should murmur or be discontented at his being left out, others are also left out besides him.
3. These three, rather than others; because,
1. These disciples are more eminent for grace, zeal, and love to Christ; and, consequently, are most highly dignified and honoured by him. The most eminent manifestations of glory, are made by God to those that are most eminent in grace.
2. These three were witnesses of Christ’s agony and passion, to prepare them for which, they are here made witnesses of his transfiguration. This glorious vision from Mount Tabor fitted them to abide the terrors of mount Calvary.
Learn, that those whom God singles out for the greatest trials, he will sit beforehand with the best enablements.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Henry1710 · Public DomainOn v1We have here the story of Christ's transfiguration; he…
We have here the story of Christ's transfiguration; he had said that the Son of man should shortly come in his kingdom, with which promise all the three evangelists industriously connect this story; as if Christ's transfiguration were intended for a specimen and an earnest of the kingdom of Christ, and of that light and love of his, which therein appears to his select and sanctified ones. Peter speaks of this as the power and coming of our Lord Jesus (Pe2 1:16); because it was an emanation of his power, and a previous notice of his coming, which was fitly introduced by such prefaces.
When Christ was here in his humiliation, though his state, in the main, was a state of abasement and afflictions, there were some glimpses of his glory intermixed, that he himself might be the more encouraged in his sufferings, and others the less offended. His birth, his baptism, his temptation, and his death, were the most remarkable instances of his humiliation; and these were each of them attended with some signal points of glory, and the smiles of heaven. But the series of his public ministry being a continued humiliation, here, just in the midst of that, comes in this discovery of his glory. As, now that he is in heaven, he has his condescensions, so, when he was on earth, he had his advancements.
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Now concerning Christ's transfiguration, observe,
I. The circumstances of it, which are here noted, Mat 17:1.
1. The time; six days after he had the solemn conference with his disciples, Mat 16:21. St Luke saith, It was about eight days after, six whole days intervening, and this the eighth day, that day seven-night. Nothing is recorded to be said or done by our Lord Jesus for six days before his transfiguration; thus, before some great appearances, there was silence in heaven for the space of half an hour, Rev 8:1. Then when Christ seems to be doing nothing for his church, expect, ere long, something more than ordinary.
2. The place; it was on top of a high mountain apart. Christ chose a mountain, (1.) As a secret place. He went apart; for though a city upon a hill can hardly be hid, two or three persons upon a hill can hardly be found; therefore their private oratories were commonly on mountains. Christ chose a retired place to be transfigured in, because his appearing publicly in his glory was not agreeable to his present state; and thus he would show his humility, and teach us that privacy much befriends our communion with God. Those that would maintain intercourse with Heaven, must frequently withdraw from the converse and business of this world; and they will find themselves never less alone than when alone, for the Father is with them. (2.) Though a sublime place, elevated above things below. Note, Those that would have a transforming fellowship with God, must not only retire, but ascend; lift up their hearts, and seek things above. The call is, Come up hither, Rev 4:1.
3. The witnesses of it. He took with him Peter and James and John. (1.) He took three, a competent number to testify what they should see; for out of the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. Christ makes his appearances certain enough, but not too common; not to all the people, but to witnesses (Act 10:41), that they might be blessed, who have not seen, and yet have believed. (2.) He took these three because they were the chief of his disciples, the first three of the worthies of the Son of David; probably they excelled in gifts and graces; they were Christ's favourites, singled out to be the witnesses of his retirements. They were present when he raised the damsel to life, Mar 5:37. They were afterward to be the witnesses of his agony, and this was to prepare them for that. Note, A sight of Christ's glory, while we are here in this world, is a good preparative for our sufferings with him, as these are preparatives for the sight of his glory in the other world. Paul, who had abundance of trouble, had abundance of revelations.
II. The manner of it (Mat 17:2); He was transfigured before them. The substance of his body remained the same, but the accidents and appearances of it were greatly altered; he was not turned into a spirit, but his body, which had appeared in weakness and dishonour, now appeared in power and glory. He was transfigured, metamorphōthē - he was metamorphosed. The profane poets amused and abused the world with idle extravagant stories of metamorphoses, especially the metamorphoses of their gods, such as were disparaging and diminishing to them, equally false and ridiculous; to these some think Peter has an eye, when, being about to mention this transfiguration of Christ, he saith, We have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made it known unto you, Pe2 1:16. Christ was both God and man; but, in the days of his flesh, he took on him the form of a servant - morphēn doulou, Phi 2:7. He drew a veil over the glory of his godhead; but now, in his transfiguration, he put by that veil, appeared en morphē theou - in the form of God (Phi 2:6), and gave his disciples a glimpse of his glory, which could not but change his form.
The great truth which we declare, is, that God is light (Jo1 1:5), dwells in the light (Ti1 6:16), covers himself with light, Psa 104:2. And therefore when Christ would appear in the form of God, he appeared in light, the most glorious of all visible beings, the first-born of the creation, and most nearly resembling the eternal Parent. Christ is the Light; while he was in the world, he shined in darkness, and therefore the world knew him not (Joh 1:5, Joh 1:10); but, at this time, that Light shined out of the darkness.
Now his transfiguration appeared in two things:
1. His face did shine as the sun. The face is the principal part of the body, by which we are known; therefore such a brightness was put on Christ's face, that face which afterward he hid not from shame and spitting. It shone as the sun when he goes forth in his strength, so clear, so bright; for he is the Sun of righteousness, the Light of the world. The face of Moses shone but as the moon, with a borrowed reflected light, but Christ's shone as the sun, with an innate inherent light, which was the more sensibly glorious, because it suddenly broke out, as it were, from behind a black cloud.
2. His raiment was white as the light. All his body was altered, as his face was; so that beams of light, darting from every part through his clothes, made them white and glittering. The shining of the face of Moses was so weak, that it could easily be concealed by a thin veil; but such was the glory of Christ's body, that his clothes were enlightened by it.
III. The companions of it. He will come, at last, with ten thousands of his saints; and, as a specimen of that, there now appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him, Mat 17:3. Observe, 1. There were glorified saints attending him, that, when there were three to bear record on earth, Peter, James, and John, there might be some to bear record from heaven too. Thus here was a lively resemblance of Christ's kingdom, which is made up of saints in heaven and saints on earth, and to which belong the spirits of just men made perfect. We see here, that they who are fallen asleep in Christ are not perished, but exist in a separate state, and shall be forthcoming when there is occasion. 2. These two were Moses and Elias, men very eminent in their day. They had both fasted forty days and forty nights, as Christ did, and wrought other miracles, and were both remarkable at their going out of the world as well as in their living in the world. Elias was carried to heaven in a fiery chariot, and died not. The body of Moses was never found, possibly it was preserved from corruption, and reserved for this appearance. The Jews had great respect for the memory of Moses and Elias, and therefore they came to witness of him, they came to carry tidings concerning him to the upper world. In them the law and the prophets honoured Christ, and bore testimony to him. Moses and Elias appeared to the disciples; they saw them, and heard them talk, and, either by their discourse or by information from Christ, they knew them to be Moses and Elias; glorified saints shall know one another in heaven. They talked with Christ. Note, Christ has communion with the blessed, and will be no stranger to any of the members of that glorified corporation. Christ was now to be sealed in his prophetic office, and therefore these two great prophets were fittest to attend him, as transferring all their honour and interest to him; for in these last days God speaks to us by his Son, Heb 1:1.
IV. The great pleasure and satisfaction that the disciples took in the sight of Christ's glory. Peter, as usual, spoke or the rest; Lord, it is good for us to be here. Peter here expresses,
1. The delight they had in this converse; Lord, it is good to be here. Though upon a high mountain, which we may suppose rough and unpleasant, bleak and cold, yet it is good to be here. He speaks the sense of his fellow-disciples; It is good not only for me, but for us. He did not covet to monopolize this favour, but gladly takes them in. He saith this to Christ. Pious and devout affections love to pour out themselves before the Lord Jesus. The soul that loves Christ, and loves to be with him, loves to go and tell him so; Lord, it is good for us to be here. This intimates a thankful acknowledgment of his kindness in admitting them to this favour. Note, Communion with Christ is the delight of Christians. All the disciples of the Lord Jesus reckon it is good for them to be with him in the holy mount. It is good to be here where Christ is, and whither he brings us along with him by his appointment; it is good to be here, retired and alone with Christ; to be here, where we may behold the beauty of the Lord Jesus, Psa 27:4. It is pleasant to hear Christ compare notes with Moses and the prophets, to see how all the institutions of the law, and all the predictions of the prophets, pointed at Christ, and were fulfilled in him.
2. The desire they had of the continuance of it; Let us make here three tabernacles. There was in this, as in many other of Peter's sayings, a mixture of weakness and of goodwill, more zeal than discretion.
(1.) Here was a zeal for this converse with heavenly things, a laudable complacency in the sight they had of Christ's glory. Note, Those that by faith behold the beauty of the Lord in his house, cannot but desire to dwell there all the days of their life. It is good having a nail in God's holy place (Ezr 9:8), a constant abode; to be in holy ordinances as a man at home, not as a wayfaring man. Peter thought this mountain was a fine spot of ground to build upon, and he was for making tabernacles there; as Moses in the wilderness made a tabernacle for the Shechinah, or divine glory.
It argued great respect for his Master and the heavenly guests, with some commendable forgetfulness of himself and his fellow-disciples, that he would have tabernacles for Christ, and Moses, and Elias, but none for himself. He would be content to lie in the open air, on the cold ground, in such good company; if his Master have but where to lay his head, no matter whether he himself has or no.
(2.) Yet in this zeal he betrayed a great deal of weakness and ignorance. What need had Moses and Elias of tabernacles? They belonged to that blessed world, where they hunger no more, nor doth the sun light upon them. Christ had lately foretold his sufferings, and bidden his disciples expect the like; Peter forgets this, or, to prevent it, will needs be building tabernacles in the mount of glory, out of the way of trouble. Still he harps upon, Master, spare thyself, though he had been so lately checked for it. Note, There is a proneness in good men to expect the crown without the cross. Peter was for laying hold of this as the prize, though he had not yet fought his fight, nor finished his course, as those other disciples, Mat 20:21. We are out in our aim, if we look for a heaven here upon earth. It is not for strangers and pilgrims (such as we are in our best circumstances in this world), to talk of building, or to expect a continuing city.
Yet it is some excuse for the incongruity of Peter's proposal, not only that he knew not what he said (Luk 9:33), but also that he submitted the proposal to the wisdom of Christ; If thou wilt, let us make tabernacles. Note, Whatever tabernacles we propose to make to ourselves in this world, we must always remember to ask Christ's leave.
Now to this which Peter said, there was no reply made; the disappearing of the glory would soon answer it. They that promise themselves great things on earth will soon be undeceived by their own experience.
V. The glorious testimony which God the Father gave to our Lord Jesus, in which he received from him honour and glory (Pe2 1:17), when there came this voice from the excellent glory. This was like proclaiming the titles of honour or the royal style of a prince, when, at his coronation, he appears in his robes of state; and be it known, to the comfort of mankind, the royal style of Christ is taken from his mediation. Thus, in vision, he appeared with a rainbow, the seal of the covenant, about his throne (Rev 4:3); for it is his glory to be our Redeemer.
Now concerning this testimony from heaven to Christ, observe.
1. How it came, and in what manner it was introduced.
(1.) There was a cloud. We find often in the Old Testament, that a cloud was the visible token of God's presence; he came down upon mount Sinai in a cloud (Exo 19:9), and so to Moses, Exo 34:5; Num 11:25. He took possession of the tabernacle in a cloud, and afterwards of the temple; where Christ was in his glory, the temple was, and there God showed himself present. We know not the balancing of the clouds, but we know that much of the intercourse and communication between heaven and earth is maintained by them. By the clouds vapours ascend, and rains descend; therefore God is said to make the clouds his chariots; so he did here when he descended upon this mount.
(2.) It was a bright cloud. Under the law it was commonly a thick and dark cloud that God made the token of his presence; he came down upon mount Sinai in a thick cloud (Exo 19:16), and said he would dwell in thick darkness; see Kg1 8:12. But we are now come, not to the mount that was covered with thick blackness and darkness (Heb 12:18), but to the mount that is crowned with a bright cloud. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament dispensation had tokens of God's presence; but that was a dispensation of darkness, and terror, and bondage, this of light, love, and liberty.
(3.) It overshadowed them. This cloud was intended to break the force of that great light which otherwise would have overcome the disciples, and have been intolerable; it was like the veil which Moses put upon his face when it shone. God, in manifesting himself to his people, considers their frame. This cloud was to their eyes as parables to their understandings, to convey spiritual things by things sensible, as they were able to bear them.
(4.) There came a voice out of the cloud, and it was the voice of God, who now, as of old, spake in the cloudy pillar, Psa 99:7. Here was no thunder, or lightning, or voice of a trumpet, as there was when the law was given by Moses, but only a voice, a still small voice, and that not ushered in with a strong wind, or an earthquake, or fire, as when God spake to Elias, Kg1 19:11, Kg1 19:12. Moses then and Elias were witnesses, that in these last days God hath spoken to us by his Son, in another way than he spoke formerly to them. This voice came from the excellent glory (Pe2 1:17), the glory which excelleth, in comparison of which the former had no glory; though the excellent glory was clouded, yet thence came a voice, for faith comes by hearing.
2. What this testimony from heaven was; This is my beloved Son, hear ye him. Here we have,
(1.) The great gospel mystery revealed; This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. This was the very same that was spoken from heaven at his baptism (Mat 3:17); and it was the best news that ever came from heaven to earth since man sinned. It is to the same purport with that great doctrine (Co2 5:19), That God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. Moses and Elias were great men, and favourites of Heaven, yet they were but servants, and servants that God was not always well pleased in; for Moses spoke unadvisedly, and Elias was a man subject to passions; but Christ is a Son, and in him God was always well pleased. Moses and Elias were sometimes instruments of reconciliation between God and Israel; Moses was a great intercessor, and Elias a great reformer; but in Christ God is reconciling the world; his intercession is more prevalent than that of Moses, and his reformation more effectual than that of Elias.
This repetition of the same voice that came from heaven at his baptism was no vain repetition; but, like the doubling of Pharoah's dream, was to show the thing was established. What God hath thus spoken once, yea twice, no doubt he will stand to, and he expects we should take notice of it. It was spoken at his baptism, because then he was entering upon his temptation, and his public ministry; and now it was repeated, because he was entering upon his sufferings, which are to be dated from hence; for now, and not before, he began to foretel them, and immediately after his transfiguration it is said (Luk 9:51), that the time was come that he should be received up; this therefore was then repeated, to arm him against the terror, and his disciples against the offence, of the cross. When sufferings begin to abound, consolations are given in more abundantly, Co2 1:5.
(2.) The great gospel duty required, and it is the condition of our benefit by Christ; Hear ye him. God is well pleased with none in Christ but those that hear him. It is not enough to give him the hearing (what will that avail us?) but we must hear him and believe him, as the great Prophet and Teacher; hear him, and be ruled by him, as the great Prince and Lawgiver; hear him, and heed him. Whoever would know the mind of God, must hearken to Jesus Christ; for by him God has in these last days spoken to us. This voice from heaven has made all the sayings of Christ as authentic as if they had been thus spoken out of a cloud. God does here, as it were, turn us over to Christ for all the revelations of his mind; and it refers to that prediction concerning the Prophet God would raise up like unto Moses (Deu 18:18); him shall ye hear.
Christ now appeared in glory; and the more we see of Christ's glory, the more cause we shall see to hearken to him: but the disciples were gazing on that glory of his which they saw; they are therefore bid not to look at him, but to hear him. Their sight of his glory was soon intercepted by the cloud, but their business was to hear him. We walk by faith, which comes by hearing, not by sight, Co2 5:7.
Moses and Elias were now with him; the law and the prophets; hitherto it was said, Hear them, Luk 16:29. The disciples were ready to equal them with Christ, when they must have tabernacles for them as well as for him. They had been talking with Christ, and probably the disciples were very desirous to know what they said, and to hear something more from them; No, saith God, hear him, and that is enough; him, and not Moses and Elias, who were present, and whose silence gave consent to this voice; they had nothing to say to the contrary; whatever interest they had in the world as prophets, they were willing to see it all transferred to Christ, that in all things he might have the pre-eminence. Be not troubled that Moses and Elias make so short a stay with you; hear Christ, and you will not want them.
IV. The fright which the disciples were put into by this voice, and the encouragement Christ gave them.
1. The disciples fell on their faces, and were sore afraid. The greatness of the light, and the surprise of it, might have a natural influence upon them, to dispirit them. But that was not all, ever since man sinned, and heard God's voice in the garden, extraordinary appearances of God have ever been terrible to man, who, knowing he has no reason to expect any good, has been afraid to hear any thing immediately from God. Note, even then when fair weather comes out of the secret place, yet with God is terrible majesty, Job 37:22. See what dreadful work the voice of the Lord makes, Psa 29:4. It is well for us that God speaks to us by men like ourselves, whose terror shall not make us afraid.
2. Christ graciously raised them up with abundance of tenderness. Note, The glories and advancements of our Lord Jesus do not at all lessen his regard to, and concern for, his people that are compassed about with infirmity. It is comfortable to think, that now, in his exalted state, he has a compassion for, and condescends to, the meanest true believer. Observe here, (1.). What he did; he came, and touched them. His approaches banished their fears; and when they apprehended that they were apprehended of Christ, there needed no more to make them easy. Christ laid his right hand upon John is a like case, and upon Daniel, Rev 1:17; Dan 8:18; Dan 10:18. Christ's touches were often healing, and here they were strengthening and comforting. (2.) What he said; Arise, and be not afraid. Note, Though a fear of reverence in our converse with Heaven is pleasing to Christ, yet a fear of amazement is not so, but must be striven against. Christ said, Arise. Note, It is Christ by his word, and the power of his grace going along with it, that raises up good men from their dejections, and silences their fears; and none but Christ can do it; Arise, be not afraid. Note, causeless fears would soon vanish, if we would not yield to them, and lie down under them, but get up, and do what we can against them. considering what they had seen and heard, they had more reason to rejoice than to fear, and yet, it seems, they needed this caution. Note, Through the infirmity of the flesh, we often frighten ourselves with that wherewith we should encourage ourselves. Observe, After they had an express command from heaven to hear Christ, the first word they had from him was, Be not afraid, hear that. Note, Christ's errand into the world was to give comfort to good people, that, being delivered out of the hands of their enemies, they might serve God without fear, Luk 1:74, Luk 1:75.
VII. The disappearing of the vision (Mat 17:8); They lift up themselves, and then lift up their eyes, and saw no man, save Jesus only. Moses and Elias were gone, the rays of Christ's glory were laid aside, or veiled again. They hoped this had been the day of Christ's entrance into his kingdom, and his public appearance in that external splendour which they dreamed of; but see how they are disappointed. Note, It is not wisdom to raise our expectations high in this world, for the most valuable of our glories and joys here are vanishing, even those of near communion with God are so, not a continual feast, but a running banquet. If sometimes we are favoured with special manifestations of divine grace, glimpses and pledges of future glory, yet they are withdrawn presently; two heavens are too much for those to expect that never deserve one. Now they saw no man, save Jesus only. Note, Christ will tarry with us when Moses and Elias are gone. The prophets do not live for ever (Zac 1:5), and we see the period of our ministers' conversation; but Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and for ever, Heb 13:7, Heb 13:8.
VIII. The discourse between Christ and his disciples as they came down from the mountain, Mat 17:9-13.
Observe, 1. They came down from the mountain. Note, We must come down from the holy mountains, where we have communion with God, and complacency in that communion, and of which we are saying. It is good to be here; even there we have no continuing city. Blessed be God, there is a mountain of glory and joy before us, whence we shall never come down. But observe, When the disciples came down, Jesus came with them. Note, When we return to the world again after an ordinance, it must be our care to take Christ with us, and then it may be our comfort that he is with us.
2. As they came down, they talked of Christ. Note, When we are returning from holy ordinance, it is good to entertain ourselves and one another with discourse suitable to the work we have been about. That communication which is good to the use of edifying is then in a special manner seasonable; as, on the contrary, that which is corrupt, is worse then than at another time.
Here is, (1.) The charge that Christ gave the disciples to keep the vision very private for the present (Mat 17:9); Tell it to no man till the Son of man is risen. If they had proclaimed it, the credibility of it would have been shocked by his sufferings, which were now hastening on. But let the publication of it be adjourned till after his resurrection, and then that and his subsequent glory will be a great confirmation of it. Note, Christ observed a method in the manifestation of himself; he would have his works put together, mutually to explain and illustrate each other, that they might appear in their full strength and convincing evidence. Every thing is beautiful in its season. Christ's resurrection was properly the beginning of the gospel state and kingdom, to which all before was but preparatory and by way of preface; and therefore, though this was transacted before, it must not be produced as evidence till then (and then it appears to have been much insisted on by Pe2 1:16-18), when the religion it was designed for the confirmation of was brought to its full consistence and maturity. Christ's time is the best and fittest for the manifesting of himself and must be attended to by us.
(2.) An objection which the disciples made against something Christ had said (Mat 17:10); "Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? If Elias make so short a stay, and is gone so suddenly, and we must say nothing of him; why have we been taught out of the law to expect his public appearance in the world immediately before the setting up of the Messiah's kingdom? Must the coming of Elias be a secret, which every body looks for?" or thus; "If the resurrection of the Messiah, and with it the beginning of his kingdom, be at hand, what becomes of that glorious preface and introduction to it, which we expect in the coming of Elias?" The scribes, who were the public expositors of the law, said this according to the scripture (Mal 4:5); Behold I send you Elijah the prophet. The disciples spoke the common language of the Jews, who made that the saying of the scribes which was the saying of the scripture, whereas of that which ministers speak to us according to the word of God, we should say, "God speaks to us, not the ministers;" for we must not receive it as the word of men, Th1 2:13. Observe, When the disciples could not reconcile what Christ said with what they had heard out of the Old Testament, they desired him to explain it to them. Note, When we are puzzled with scripture difficulties, we must apply ourselves to Christ by prayer for his Spirit to open our understandings and to lead us into all truth.
(3.) The solving of this objection. Ask, and it shall be given, ask instruction, and it shall be given.
[1.] Christ allows the prediction (Mat 17:11); "Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things; so far you are in the right." Christ did not come to alter or invalidate any thing foretold in the Old Testament. Note, Corrupt and mistaken glosses may be sufficiently rejected and exploded, without diminishing or derogating from the authority or dignity of the sacred text. New Testament prophecies are true and good, and are to be received and improved, though some hot foolish men may have misinterpreted them and drawn wrong inferences from them. He shall come, and restore all things; not restore them to their former state (John Baptist went not about to do that), but he shall accomplish all things (so it may be read), all things that were written of him, all the predictions of the coming of Elias. John Baptist came to restore things spiritually, to revive the decays of religion, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children; which means the same with this, he shall restore all things. John preached repentance, and that restores all things.
[2.] He asserts the accomplishment. The scribes say true, that Elias is come, Mat 17:12. Note, God's promises are often fulfilled, and men perceive it not, but enquire, Where is the promise? when it is already performed. Elias is come, and they knew him not; they knew him not to be the Elias promised, the forerunner of the Messiah. The scribes busied themselves in criticizing upon the scripture, but understood not by the signs of the times the fulfilling of the scripture. Note, It is easier to explain the word of God than to apply it and make a right use of it. But it is no wonder that the morning star was not observed, when he who is the Sun itself, was in the world, and the world knew him not.
Because they knew him not, they have done to him whatsoever they listed; if they had known, they would not have crucified Christ, or beheaded John, Co1 2:8. They ridiculed John, persecuted him, and at last put him to death; which was Herod's doing, but is here charged upon the whole generation of unbelieving Jews, and particularly the scribes, who, though they could not prosecute John themselves, were pleased with what Herod did. He adds, Likewise also shall the Son of man suffer of them. Marvel not that Elias should be abused and killed by those who pretended, with a great deal of reverence, to expect him, when the Messiah himself will be in like manner treated. Note, The sufferings of Christ took off the strangeness of all other sufferings (Joh 15:18); when they had imbrued their hands in the blood of John Baptist, they were ready to do the like to Christ. Note, As men deal with Christ's servants, so they would deal with him himself; and they that are drunk with the blood of the martyrs still cry, Give, give, Act 12:1-3.
(4.) The disciples' satisfaction in Christ's reply to their objection (Mat 17:13); They understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. He did not name John, but gives them such a description of him as would put them in mind of what he had said to them formerly concerning him; This is Elias. This is a profitable way of teaching; it engages the learners' own thoughts, and makes them, if not their own teachers, yet their own remembrancers; and thus knowledge becomes easy to him that understands. When we diligently use the means of knowledge, how strangely are mists scattered and mistakes rectified!
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv2–4And was transfigured before them,.... Peter, James, and John,…
And was transfigured before them,.... Peter, James, and John, before whom he was metamorphosed, or changed into another form; for not the substance of his body was changed, nor even the shape of it altered, only it received a more glorious form; that whereas before he appeared in the form of a servant, and looked mean and despicable, now he appeared in the form and majesty of God; or there was a divine glory; which from his deity showed itself in a visible manner through his flesh:
and his face did shine as the sun it had still the same appearance of an human face, but had such a dazzling glory upon it, as equalled the sun shining in its full strength:
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and his raiment was white as the light: he did not put off his clothes, nor were the nature and substance, and fashion of them changed; but such rays of glory darted through his flesh, and through his clothes, as made them as bright and shining, as the light of the sun at noon day. Mark says, they became "exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller on earth can white them". The Vulgate Latin reads, "as snow", here; and so do the Ethiopic version, and Munster's Hebrew Gospel. Snow has a peculiar whiteness in it, and is therefore made use of, to express the glittering brightness of Christ's raiment; and the fuller is mentioned, who by the Jews (a) is called and means one that whitens wool, or raiment, and such an one is here designed: not that any fuller makes garments of another colour white; for though this may be done, it is not the work of fullers, but dyers: but fullers, whatever colour garments are of, if sullied and spotted, can restore them to their native colour; and if white, can bring them to their former whiteness: now Christ's garments were as white, yea, whiter, than any such men could possibly make garments, that were white at first: what colour Christ's garments were of before, is not certain; now they appeared white, to the greatest degree of whiteness. Dr. Hammond (b) has a conjecture, that in the phrase "on earth", reference is had to the earth fullers make use of in cleaning, and which is called "fullers' earth"; and that the words are to be rendered, "as no fuller, by or with earth can white them"; but if this will not bear, the sense is, that there is no fuller, nor ever was, or ever will be upon earth, that can make raiment so white as Christ's was.
(a) Maimon. in Misn. Bava Kama, c. 10. sect. 10, (b) In Mark ix. 3.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn vv1–4A high mountain - Probably Mount Tabor. Mark ix,…
A high mountain - Probably Mount Tabor. Mark ix, 2; Luke ix, 28.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv1–4The transfiguration of Christ, 1-8.
CHAPTER XVII.
The transfiguration of Christ, 1-8.
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Christ's discourse with his disciples on the subject, 9-13.
He heals a lunatic, 14-18.
His discourse with his disciples on this subject also, 19-21.
He foretells his own sufferings and death, 22, 23.
He is required to pay tribute at Capernaum, 24-26;
and provides the money by a miracle, 27.
NOTES ON CHAP. XVII.
Verse 1. After six days] Mr 9:2, has the same number; but Luke says, Lu 9:28, after eight days. The reason of this difference seems to be the following: Matthew and Mark reckon the days from that mentioned in the preceding chapter, to that mentioned in this; Luke includes both days, as well as the six intermediate: hence, the one makes eight, the other six, without any contradiction.
Peter, James, and John] He chose those that they might be witnesses of his transfiguration: two or three witnesses being required by the Scripture to substantiate any fact. Eminent communications of the Divine favour prepare for, and entitle to, great services and great conflicts. The same three were made witnesses of his agony in the garden, Mt 26:37.
A high mountain] This was one of the mountains of Galilee; but whether Mount Tabor or not, is uncertain. Some think it was Mount Hermon. St. Luke says, Christ and his disciples went up into the mountain to pray, Lu 9:28.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn vv1, 3Mat 17:1-2. After six days — Reckoning exclusively from…
Mat 17:1-2. After six days — Reckoning exclusively from that in which the discourse recorded in the preceding chapter was delivered, to that on which the transfiguration took place, or, including those two days, about eight days after, as Luke has it: Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother — The three disciples whom he honoured with a peculiar intimacy, (see Mar 5:37; and Mat 26:37,) and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart — From the people and his other disciples. Jerome tells us, that there was a tradition in his days, handed down from the times of the apostles, that this was mount Tabor, famed in ancient history for the victory which Deborah and Barak gained over Sisera, Jdg 4:14. Dr. Macknight, however, thinks “the order of the history determines the transfiguration to some mountain not far from Cesarea Philippi, rather than to Tabor, which was situated in the south of Galilee. For after the transfiguration, it is said, Mar 9:30, that they departed and passed through Galilee, and then came to Capernaum. Now it is not very probable that the evangelist would in this manner have narrated our Lord’s journey from the mount of transfiguration to Capernaum, if that mountain had been in Galilee, the region in which Capernaum stood. Yet upon the faith of the tradition mentioned above, the Christians very early built a monastery and church on the top of Tabor, which church was dedicated to Jesus and his two attendants, Moses and Elias. And from 2Pe 1:18, they called the mountain itself, the holy mountain. And he was transfigured before them — Namely, before these three disciples. It was necessary that so remarkable an occurrence should be supported by sufficient witnesses; and hence it was that the three above mentioned were chosen, because so many were required among the Jews to establish a fact, and no more were chosen, because this number was sufficient. The word μετεμορφωθη, rendered here, transfigured, may either imply that there was a transformation made in the substance of his body, according to the import of the word in Ovid, and other writers; or that the outward appearance only of his body was altered, which seems most probable from the expression used by Luke, who says, το ειδος του προσωπου αυτου ετερον, the appearance of his countenance, or person: was changed: and this change, according to that evangelist, took place while he was praying, chap. Mat 9:29. And his face did shine as the sun — Became radiant and dazzling, and shone like the sun in its unclouded, meridian clearness; and so was incomparably more glorious than the face of Moses at the giving of the law. And his raiment was white as the light — Became, says Mark, shining exceeding white, as snow, so as no fuller on earth could white it. Was white and glistering, says Luke, or white as lightning, as λευκος εξαστραπτων properly signifies. It seems it was bright and sweetly refulgent, but in a degree inferior to the radiancy of his countenance. “The indwelling Deity,” says Mr. Wesley, “darted out its rays through the veil of his flesh: and that with such transcendent splendour, that he no longer bore the form of a servant. His face shone with divine majesty, like the sun in its strength; and all his body was so irradiated by it, that his clothes could not conceal his glory, but became white and glistering as the very light, with which he covered himself as with a garment.”
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn vv1–4Mat 17:1-9. See also Mar 9:2-10; Luk 9:28-36.
Mat 17:1-9. See also Mar 9:2-10; Luk 9:28-36.
And after six days - That is, six days from the conversation recorded in the last chapter.
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Luke Luk 9:28 says, about an eight days after. Matthew mentions the six days that intervened between the day of the conversation and the transfiguration. Luke includes both those days, and thus reckons eight. Besides, Luke does not pretend to fix the precise time. He says, “about an eight days after.”
Taketh Peter, and James, and John - These three disciples were with him, also, in the garden of Gethsemane, Mar 14:33. He designed to prepare them in an eminent degree for the work of the gospel ministry by the previous manifestations of his glory, and of his patience in suffering.
Into a high mountain apart - That is, apart from the other disciples. It is commonly supposed that this was Mount Tabor, a high mountain in Galilee. The name of the mountain is not, however, mentioned in the New Testament. Luke adds Luk 9:28 that he went up there to pray. Our Saviour prayed much. When he did it he chose to be alone. For this purpose he often ascended mountains or went into the deserts. There is something in the solitude and deep and awful stillness of a lofty mountain favorable to devotion.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary1859 · Public DomainOn vv1–3And after six days. St. Matthew reckons neither the…
And after six days. St. Matthew reckons neither the day of the promise, nor the day of the transfiguration; St. Luke, including both, calls the interval about eight days, Greek: osei emerai okto. (St. John Chrysostom) --- He took Peter, as head of the apostolic college; James, as first to shed his blood for the faith; and John, as he was survive all the rest, and to transmit to posterity the circumstances of this glorious mystery; or, according to St. John Chrysostom on account of their more excellent love, zeal, courage, sufferings and predilection. The mountain is generally believed to be Thabor, and as such is considered by Christians as holy, and was much frequented by pilgrims, as St. Jerome testifies. Ven. Bede tells us that three churches were built upon it; and Mr. Maundrell, in his Journey from Aleppo to Jerusalem, p. 112, says there are still three grottoes, made to represent the three tabernacles proposed by St. Peter. According to Le Brun, Thabor is situated about 12 miles from the sea of Galilee, and eight from Nazareth. Others, however, do not think the transfiguration took place on Mount Thabor, which was in the middle of Lower Galilee, because St. Mark (ix. 29,) says, that Christ and his apostles, departing thence, passed through Galilee, and not out of Galilee, and suppose it might be Libanus, because it was near Cæsarea Philippi; in the borders of which Christ appears at this time to have been, at least the promise of the transfiguration was made there, and this place is distant about 60 miles from Mount Thabor. (Matthew xvi. 13.) --- Mount Lebanus is the highest in Palestine, according to St. Jerome; and of it Isaias prophesied: "the glory of Libanus is given to it, the beauty of Carmel and Saron; they shall see the glory of our God," xxxv. 2. (Tirinus) --- But, as we said above, Thabor is very generally supposed to have been the mountain.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
John Nelson Darby1862 · Public DomainOn v1Matthew Chapter 17
Matthew Chapter 17
Jesus leads them up into a high mountain, and there is transfigured before them: “His face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.” Moses and Elias appeared also, talking with Him. I leave the subject of their discourse, which is deeply interesting, till we come to the Gospel of Luke, who adds a few other circumstances, which, in some respects, give another aspect to this scene.
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Here the Lord appears in glory, and Moses and Elias with Him: the one the legislator of the Jews; the other (almost equally distinguished) the prophet who sought to bring back the ten apostate tribes to the worship of Jehovah, and who, despairing of the people, went back to Horeb, whence the law was given, and afterwards was taken up to heaven without passing through death.
These two persons, pre-eminently illustrious in the dealings of God with Israel, as the founder and the restorer of the people in connection with the law, appear in company with Jesus. Peter (struck with this apparition, rejoicing to see his Master associated with these pillars of the Jewish system, with such eminent servants of God, ignorant of the glory of the Son of man, and forgetting the revelation of the glory of His Person as the Son of God) desires to make three tabernacles, and to place the three on the same level as oracles. But the glory of God manifests itself; that is to say, the sign known in Israel as the abode (shechinah) of that glory; [48] and the voice of the Father is heard. Grace may put Moses and Elias in the same glory as that of the Son of God, and associate them with Him; but if the folly of man, in his ignorance, would place them together as having in themselves equal authority over the heart of the believer, the Father must at once vindicate the rights of His Son. Not a moment elapses before the Father’s voice proclaims the glory of the Person of His Son, His relation to Himself, that He is the object of His entire affection, in whom is all His delight. It is He whom the disciples are to hear. Moses and Elias have disappeared. Christ is there alone, as the One to be glorified, the One to teach those who hear the Father’s voice. The Father Himself distinguishes Him, presents Him to the notice of the disciples, not as being worthy of their love, but as the object of His own delight. In Jesus He was Himself well pleased. Thus the Father’s affections are presented as ruling ours-setting before us one common object. What a position for poor creatures like us! What grace! [49]
At the same time the law, and all idea of the restoration of the law under the old covenant, were passed away; and Jesus, glorified as Son of man, and Son of the living God, remains the sole dispenser of the knowledge and the mind of God. The disciples fall on their faces, sore afraid, on hearing the voice of God. Jesus, to whom this glory and this voice were natural, encourages them, as He always did when on earth, saying, “Be not afraid.” Being with Him who was the object of the Father’s love, why should they fear? Their best Friend was the manifestation of God on the earth; the glory belonged to Him. Moses and Elias had disappeared, and the glory also, which the disciples were not yet able to bear; Jesus-who had been thus manifested to them in the glory given Him, and in the rights of His glorious Person, in His relations with the Father-Jesus remains the same to them as they had ever known Him. But this glory was not to be the subject of their testimony until He, the Son of man, was risen from the dead-the suffering Son of man. The great proof should then be given, that He was the Son of God with power. Testimony thereunto should be rendered, and He would ascend personally into that glory which had just shone forth before their eyes.
But a difficulty arises in the minds of the disciples caused by the doctrine of the scribes with regard to Elias. These had said that Elias must come before the manifestation of the Messiah; and in fact the prophecy of Malachi authorised this expectation. Why then, ask they, say the scribes that Elias must first come? (that is to say, before the manifestation of the Messiah); whereas we have now seen that Thou art He, without the coming of Elias. Jesus confirms the words of the prophecy, adding, that Elias should restore all things. “But,” continues the Lord, “I say unto you, that he is come already, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed; likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.” Then understood they that He spoke of John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elias, as the Holy Ghost had declared by Zacharias his father.
Let us say a few words on this passage. First of all, when the Lord says, “Elias truly cometh first, and shall restore all things,” He does but confirm that which the scribes had spoken, according to Malachi’s prophecy, as though He had said, “They are in the right.” He then declares the effect of the coming of Elias: “He shall restore all things.” But the Son of man was yet to come. Jesus had said to His disciples, “Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of man be come.” Nevertheless He had come, and was even now speaking with them. But this coming of the Son of man of which He spoke, is His coming in glory, when He shall be manifested as the Son of man in judgment according to Dan 7:1-28. It was thus that all which had been said to the Jews should be accomplished; and in Matthew’s Gospel He speaks to them in connection with this expectation. Nevertheless it was needful that Jesus should be presented to the nation and should suffer. It was needful that the nation should be tested by the presentation of the Messiah according to the promise. This was done, and as God had also foretold by the prophets, “He was rejected of men.” Thus also John went before Him, according to Isa 40:1-31, as the voice in the wilderness, even in the spirit and power of Elias; he was rejected as the Son of man should also be. [50]
The Lord then, by these words, declares to His disciples, in connection with the scene they had just left, and with all this part of our Gospel, that the Son of man, as now presented to the Jews, was to be rejected. This same Son of man was to be manifested in glory, as they had seen for a moment on the Mount. Elias indeed was to come, as the scribes had said; but that John the Baptist had fulfilled that office in power for this presentation of the Son of man; which (the Jews being left, as was fitting, to their own responsibility) would only end in His rejection, and in the setting aside of the nation until the days in which God would begin again to connect Himself with His people, still dear to Him, whatever their condition might be. He would then restore all things (a glorious work, which He would accomplish by bringing again His Firstborn into the world). The expression “restore all things” refers here to the Jews, and is used morally. In Act 3:1-26 it refers to the effect of the Son of man’s own presence.
The temporary presence of the Son of man was the moment in which a work was accomplished on which eternal glory depends, in which God has been fully glorified, above and beyond all dispensation and in which God and so man has been revealed, a work of which even the outward glory of the Son of man is but the fruit, so far as that depends on His work, and not on His divine Person; a work in which morally He was perfectly glorified in perfectly glorifying God. Still, with respect to the promises made to the Jews, it was but the last step in the testing to which they were subjected by grace. God well knew that they would reject His Son; but He would not hold them as definitively guilty until they had really done it. Thus in His divine wisdom (while afterwards fulfilling His unchangeable promises) He presents Jesus to them-His Son, their Messiah. He gives them every necessary proof. He sends them John the Baptist in the spirit and power of Elias, as His forerunner. The Son of David is born at Bethlehem with all the signs that should have convinced them; but they were blinded by their pride and self-righteousness, and rejected it all. Nevertheless it became Jesus in grace to adapt Himself, as to His position, to the wretched condition of His people. Thus also, the Antitype of the David rejected in his day, He shared the affliction of His people. If the Gentiles oppressed them, their King must be associated with their distress, while giving every proof of what He was and seeking them in love. He rejected, all becomes pure grace. They have no longer a right to anything according to the promises, and are reduced to receive all from that grace, even as a poor Gentile would do. God will not fail in grace. Thus God has put them on the true footing of sinners, and will nevertheless fulfil His promises. This is the subject of Rom 11:1-36.
Now the Son of man who shall return will be this same Jesus who went away. The heavens will receive Him until the times of the restitution of all things of which the prophets have spoken. But he who was to be His forerunner in this temporary presence here could not be the same Elias. Accordingly John was conformed to the then manifestation of the Son of man, saving the difference that necessarily flowed from the Person of the Son of man, who could be but one, while that could not be the case with John the Baptist and Elias. But even as Jesus manifested all the power of the Messiah, all His rights to everything that belonged to that Messiah, without assuming as yet the outward glory, His time not being come Joh 7:1-53), so John fulfilled morally and in power the mission of Elias to prepare the way of the Lord before Him (according to the we character of His coming, as then accomplished), and answered literally to Isa 40:1-31 and even to Mal 3:1-18, the only passages applied to him. This is the reason that John said hewas not Elias, and that the Lord said, “If ye can receive it, this is Elias which was for to come.” Therefore also John never applied Mal 4:5-6 to himself; but he announces himself as fulfilling Isa 40:3-5, and this in each of the Gospels, whatever may be its particular character. [51]
But let us go on with our chapter. If the Lord takes up into the glory, He comes down into this world, even now in Spirit and in sympathy, and meets the crowd and Satan’s power with which we have to do. While the Lord was on the Mount, a poor father had brought to the disciples his son who was a lunatic and possessed by a devil. Here is developed another character of man’s unbelief, that even of the believer-inability to make use of the power which is, so to say, at his disposal in the Lord. Christ, Son of God, Messiah, Son of man, had overcome the enemy, had bound the strong man and had a right to cast him out. As man, the obedient One in spite of Satan’s temptations, He had overcome him in the wilderness, and had thus a right as man to dispossess him of his dominion over a man as to this world; and this He did. In casting out devils and healing the sick, He delivered man from the power of the enemy. “God,” said Peter, “anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power, and he went about doing good and healing all those that were oppressed by the devil.” Now this power should have been used by the disciples, who ought to have known how to avail themselves by faith of that which Jesus had thus manifested on earth; but they were not able to do it. Yet what availed it to bring this power down here, if the disciples had not faith to use it? The power was there: man might profit by it for complete deliverance from all the oppression of the enemy; but he had not faith to do so-even believers had not. The presence of Christ on earth was useless, when even His own disciples knew not how to profit by it. There was more faith in the man that brought his child than in them, for felt want brought him to its remedy. All therefore come under the Lord’s sentence, “O faithless and perverse generation!” He must leave them, and that which the glory had revealed above, unbelief shall realise below.
Observe here, that it is not evil in the world which puts an end to a particular intervention of God; on the contrary, it occasions the intervention in grace. It was on account of Satan’s dominion over men that Christ came. He departs, because those who had received Him are incapable of using the power that He brought with Him, or that He bestows for their deliverance; they cannot profit by the very advantages then enjoyed. Faith was wanting. Nevertheless observe also this important and touching truth that, as long as such dispensation from God continues, Jesus does not fail to meet individual faith with blessing, even when His disciples cannot glorify Him by the exercise of faith. The same sentence that judges the unbelief of the disciples calls the distressed father to the enjoyment of the blessing. After all, to be able to avail ourselves of His power, we must be in communion with Him by the practical energy of faith.
He blesses then the poor father according to his need; and, full of patience, He resumes the course of instruction He was giving His disciples on the subject of His rejection and His resurrection as the Son of man. Loving the Lord, and unable to carry their ideas beyond the circumstances of the moment, they are troubled; and yet this was redemption, salvation, the glory of Christ.
Before however going farther, and teaching them that which became the disciples of a Master thus rejected and the position they were to occupy, He sets before them His divine glory, and their association with Him who had it, in the most touching manner, if they could but have understood it; and at the same time with perfect condescension and tenderness He places Himself with them, or rather He places them in the same place with Himself, as Son of the great King of the temple and of all the earth.
Those who collected the tribute-money for the service of the temple come and ask Peter if his Master does not pay it. Ever ready to put himself forward, forgetful of the glory he had seen, and the revelation made to him by the Father, Peter, coming down to the ordinary level of his own thoughts, anxious that his Master should be esteemed a good Jew and without consulting Him, replies that He does. The Lord anticipates Peter on his coming in, and shews him His divine knowledge of that which took place at a distance from Himself. At the same time, He speaks of Peter and Himself as both children of the King of the temple (Son of God still keeping in patient goodness His lowly place as a Jew), and both therefore free from the tribute. But they should not offend. He then commands creation, (for He can do all things, as He knows all things,) and causes a fish to bring precisely the sum required, coupling anew the name of Peter with His own. He had said, “Lest we offend them”; and now, “Give unto them for me and thee.” Marvellous and divine condescension! He who is the searcher of hearts, and who disposes at will of the whole creation, the Son of the sovereign Lord of the temple, puts His poor disciples into this same relationship with His heavenly Father, with the God who was worshipped in that temple. He submits to the demands that would have been rightly made on strangers, but He places His disciples in all His own privileges as Son. We see very plainly the connection between this touching expression of divine grace and the subject of these chapters. It demonstrates all the significance of the change that was taking place.
It is interesting to remark that the first epistle of Peter is founded on Mat 16:1-28, and the second on chapter 17, which we have just been considering. [52] In chapter 16 Peter taught of the Father, confessed the Lord to be the Son of the living God; and the Lord said that on this rock He would build His church, and that he who had the power of death should not prevail against it. Thus also Peter, in his first epistle, declares that they were born again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Now it is by this resurrection that the power of the life of the living God was manifested. Afterwards he calls Christ the living stone, in coming unto whom we, as living stones, are built up a holy temple to the Lord.
In his second epistle he recalls, in a peculiar manner, the glory of the transfiguration, as a proof of the coming and the kingdom of the Son of man. Accordingly he speaks in that epistle of the judgment of the Lord.
Footnotes for Matthew Chapter 17
48: Peter, taught of the Holy Ghost, calls it “the excellent glory.”
49: It was not in connection with the divine validity of their testimony, that Moses and Elias disappear. There could not be a stronger confirmation of it, as indeed Peter says, than this scene. But not only they were not the subjects of God’s testimony as Christ was, but their testimony did not refer nor their exhortations reach to the heavenly things which were now to be revealed in association with the Son from heaven. Even John the Baptist makes this difference (Joh 3:13; Joh 3:31-34). Hence as there set forth, the Son of man must be lifted up. So here, the Lord charges the disciples not to say He was the Messiah, for the Son of man must suffer. It was the turning-point of the Lord’s life and ministry, and the coming glory of the kingdom shewn to the disciples, but then He must suffer (see Joh 12:27). The Jewish history was closed in chapter 12, indeed in chapter 11, and the ground of the change laid John and He both rejected, perfect submission, then all things delivered unto Him of His Father, and He revealing the Father (compare Joh 13:1-38; Joh 14:1-31). But Mat 13:1-58 -apart from Judaism, He begins with what He brought, not looking for fruit in man.
50: Hence also John Baptist rejects the application of Mal 4:5-6, to himself; while Isa 40:1-31 and Mal 3:1 are applied to him in Luk 1:76; Luk 7:27.
51: See previous note.
52: Both these epistles, after stating redemption by the precious blood of Christ and being born of the incorruptible seed of the word, treat of the government of God; the first, its application to His own, preserving them, the second, to the wicked and the world, going on thus to the elements melting with fervent heat, and the new heavens and the new earth.
John Nelson Darby — Synopsis of the Books of the Bible: the New Testament (c. 1857–1862) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures1864 · Public DomainOn v1C. The Church as a Spiritual Communion, in opposition…
C. The Church as a Spiritual Communion, in opposition to the Solitary Tabernacles of Spurious Separation from the World. Mat_17:1-9
(The Gospel for the 6th Sunday after Epiphany.—Parallels: Mar_9:2-9; Luk_9:28-36)
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1And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, [and, καί] James, and John his brother, and 2bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,1 And [he] was transfigured before them: and his face did shine [shone]2 as the sun, and his raiment [garments] was [became, ἐγένετο] white as the light. 3And, behold, there appeared3 unto them Moses and Elias 4[Elijah] talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make [I will make]4 here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias [Elijah]. 5While he yet spake [was yet speaking], behold, a bright [luminous, φωτεινή] could5 overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said [saying, λέγουσα], This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. 6And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. 7And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. 8And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. 9And as they came down from [out of]6 the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be [is] risen again7 from the dead.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Mat_17:1. Since the fourth century tradition has fixed on Mount Tabor, in Galilee, as the locality of this event. See the description of it in Schubert and others. This opinion is, however, evidently untenable. Not only was Mount Tabor inhabited to its summit at the time (see Robinson), but it seems exceedingly improbable that Jesus would have so suddenly left His retreat in the highlands of Gaulonitis, and transferred the scene of one of His most secret revelations to Galilee, where He was everywhere persecuted. Besides, Mat_17:22 implies that the change of residence to Galilee took place at a later period, while in Mar_9:30 it is distinctly stated, that after these events Jesus had secretly passed through Galilee.
The highest mountain-top in Gaulonitis was Mount Hermon. Accordingly, some fix upon Hermon itself as the scene of this event; others on Mount panius, near Cæsarea Philippi. But from the description of the mountain, and the statement in Mat_17:9, that “they came down” from its height, it seems likely to have been Hermon.
After six days.—So Matthew and Mark. Luke has it ὡσ εὶἡ μέραι ὀκ τώ. According to the common phraseology, the expression, about eight days, denoted a week—or, after six days, adding the day of Peter’s confession. During a whole week the disciples had been bearing about, and meditating upon, the revelation which Christ had made concerning His cross. At the close of it, the Lord prepared for them the first Sabbath of the New Testament,—an earnest and foretaste both of His resurrection and of the Christian Sabbath.
[Alford and others suppose that the transfiguration probably took place in the night, for the following reasons: 1) Jesus had gone up to the mountain to pray, Luk_9:28, which He usually did at night (Luk_6:12; Luk_21:37; Luk_22:39; Mat_14:23-24). 2) The Apostles were asleep, and are described as having kept awake through this occurrence, διαγρηγορήσαντες, Luk_9:32. 3) They did not descend till the next day, Luk_9:37. 4) The transfiguration itself could be seen to better advantage at night than in daylight.—P. S.]
Mat_17:2. And He was transfigured.—Matthew and Mark use the term μετεμορφώθη; Luke expresses it, ἑγένετο τὸ εἶδος τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἕτερον, κ.τ.λ. According to Luke, this transformation of His appearance took place while He was praying. According to Matthew, His face shone as the sun, and His garments became white (bright) as the light. Luke has it: “the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His raiment was white and glistering [λευκὸς ἑξαστράπτων, white-glistening, weissleuchtend]” Mark dwells upon the brightness of the raiment: “it became shining, exceeding white as snow, so [such] as no fuller on earth can white [whiten] them.” Meyer observes, that “this event is not to be regarded as a parallel to what is recorded in Exo_34:29, since the shining of Moses’ face was the consequence of the preceding appearance of God.” As if the text did not refer to a different presence of God from that recorded in Exodus 34! “We know how the human countenance is often lit up by joy, beautified by affection, or wonderfully transformed by the peace and blessedness realized in the hour of death. The revelations vouchsafed to the prophets often made them pale as death (Daniel 10), at other times resplendent with joy. The face of Moses shone when he came down from Mount Sinai, so that no one could bear to look upon his countenance. In the text, we have the highest instance of this kind which could possibly occur in human experience. The infinite fulness of the Spirit was poured out over His whole being; the heavenly glory of His nature, which was still concealed under His earthly appearance (and during His conflict with the kingdom of darkness), now broke forth.” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, 905)8 Meyer rightly remarks, that this manifestation of His δόξα was an anticipation of His future state of glory (Joh_12:16; Joh_12:23; Joh_17:5; Joh_17:22-24; 2Co_3:18; Mat_13:43).
Mat_17:3. And behold!—Indicating that this was even more marvellous than His own transformation.
There appeared unto them.—The readingώ̓φθη, B., D., does not alter the sense. The vision of Moses and Elijah was outward and actual, though implying, at the same time, a peculiar subjective state on the part of the disciples, which was caused by their communion with Jesus. Luke [a physician by profession] furnishes what might be called a psychological account of the matter, when he describes them as heavy with sleep and yet awake throughout. The proximity of these glorified spirits produced, not indeed a morbid state of somnambulism, but a peculiar moral state, like that of the ancient seers. It is an idle inquiry, how they came to know the persons who appeared on this occasion; we presume that they immediately recognized the vision in the same manner as they beheld it.
Moses and Elijah.—The appearing of these blessed spirits explains the change which passed on the Lord. For the time He exchanged His intercourse with this world for that with the world above. The fact that a person looks very differently in the midst of festive joy, and when engaged in the ordinary labor of his calling—on a journey, or surveying the scene from a mountain height, and surrounded by his daily cares—while triumphantly standing forth on behalf of some great principle, and when weighed down by temptation or trials,—affords a very faint analogy of this transformation. Commonly, Jesus was engaged in conflict either with the lust or the sorrow of this world; on this occasion, it was the festive celebration of the Messiah.
Talking with Him.—Meyer remarks that we have no information as to this conversation. But the Evangelist Luke states that “they spake of His departure which He should fulfil at Jerusalem.” This also furnishes the key to the meaning and object of this vision. It presents the two chief representatives of the Old Covenant as the forerunners of the Messiah, and as acquainted with and cognizant of His impending course of suffering. Hence this may be regarded as an evidence of the agreement of the Old and New Testaments in reference to the sufferings of the Messiah.
Mat_17:4. Lord, it is good for us to be here.—Not: It is well that we the disciples are here (Paulus, Baumgarten-Crusius, Meyer), that we may provide dwellings for a longer stay; for, although ἡμᾶς precedes ὧδε, the expression evidently includes the Lord. Hence we adopt the common explanation of the verse (proposed by Chrysostom, etc.): It is good for us to be in this place—in opposition to Jerusalem; but not as contrasted with the impending sufferings, as is often assumed. The latter would imply that Peter had again lapsed into the carnal views expressed in Mat_16:22, which were incompatible with that kingdom of Messiah which was to be established by suffering. On the contrary, we understand the words of Peter as implying that he was even willing to give up the prospect of that coming glory, satisfied if, separated from the world, he could continue, with the Lord and His companions, in spiritual communion with Moses and Elijah. At a still later period we find him ready for suffering, though in the sense of a conflict of suffering by the sword. Hence we may trace the following course of development in his spiritual history: 1. Anticipation of the glory of Messiah in connection with the ancient national polity; 2. in opposition to that polity, but as victorious over it; 3. relinquishment of the hope of the Messianic kingdom in this world, both in its sufferings and its glories; 4. willingness to suffer—but with the sword in hand; 5. after his denial of the Saviour, simple willingness to suffer—in hope; 6. anticipation of the glory of the kingdom through suffering and conflict by the sword of the Spirit. These various stages of his experience may be regarded as respectively typifying the Jewish Church—the Gentile Church under Constantine the Great—the monastic Church—the Popish Church, with its two swords—and (5 and 6) the true Church, with its sword of the Spirit.
Three tabernacles.—Arbors, forest tents, hermitages.
Mat_17:5. Behold—and behold.—A threefold progression, commencing in Mat_17:3. The first miracle was Christ transfigured and surrounded by the beatified spirits of the representatives of the Old Covenant. The second miracle was the bright cloud, which constituted the sign from heaven, refused to the Jewish authorities who had asked for it, and now granted, unsolicited, to the disciples. The third miracle was the revelation of the Father by a voice from heaven.
A luminous cloud.—The expression νεφέληφω τεινή denotes a light-like, luminous cloud, and not merely “a bright cloud or mist lit up by the sun” (Paulus), (φωτεινὸς ἥλιος). It was of the same kind as the cloud at the ascension, or the clouds of heaven at the advent of the Son of man (Mat_24:30 : καὶ τότε φανήσεται τὸ σημεῖον τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἑν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Mar_13:26 : καὶ τότε ό̓ψονται τὸν νἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐρχόμενον ἐν νεφέλαις μετὰ δυνάμεως πολλῆς καὶ δόξης. Luk_21:27 : ἐν νεφέλῃ μετὰ δυνάμεως καὶ δόξης πολλν͂ς. Comp. Dan_7:13). Hence, this was the sign from heaven, the real Shechinah (שְׁכִינָה Talmud. prœsentia Dei; from שָׁכִן to lie down, to rest, to dwell), of which that in Exo_13:21; Exo_40:34, formed the type, and which in turn was a symbol of the spiritual glory resting on the New Testament Church, separating between the holy and the unholy (Isa_4:5), and at the same time also a type of the splendor of the New Jerusalem, Rev_21:23.
Overshadowed them; αὐτούς.—According to Le Clerc, all present; according to Wolf, Bengel, etc., the disciples; according to de Wette and Meyer, Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. De Wette appeals in confirmation of his view to the account given by Luke. But to us his narrative conveys the impression that all present were overshadowed by a dazzling light, which, as it were, separated them from the earth generally; while Jesus, Moses, and Elijah entered into the cloud which hovered over them, floating along with it. There seems to have been a mutual attraction—of the cloud downward, and of the glorified figures upward. A prelude this of the ascension. Olshausen explains the expression “overshadowed,” as implying that the light was so overpowering and dazzling as to prevent their looking into the cloud. “The strongest light is = σκότος. Hence the latter is used in Scripture instead of the former. The Lord is said to dwell in φὼς ἀπρόσιτον, and again in darkness, 1Ki_8:12; Exo_20:21.” Meyer misses the point in remarking that such a cloud would overshadow or place the figures in semi-darkness, etc. The effect of the cloud was to overshadow the disciples, or for the time to separate them, on the one hand, from the immediate bodily vision of Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, and of God coming to them; and, on the other, from the profane world. The shadows of a heavenly night were closing around them. Thus Mary had been overshadowed by the δύναμις ὑψιστου. Under the Shechinah which overshadowed the Virgin, and separated her from the whole ancient world, bringing her into the most immediate divine presence, Christ was conceived, through the inspiration of heavenly faith.
A voice.—Comp. Luk_2:14; Mat_3:17; Mar_1:11; Luk_3:22; Joh_12:28. Similarly in 2Pe_1:17; Joh_1:33. The solemn attestation of the Messiah and Son of God, vouchsafed to the Jewish theocracy by the voice from heaven, heard by John the Baptist, and through him by the whole nation, had been rejected by the unbelief of the representatives of the synagogue and of the schools. Hence another direct testimony was now granted, this time to the Apostles as the representatives of the ὲκκλησί.—Hear ye Him,—αὐτοῦ ἀκούετε, in an emphatic sense. The divine attestation of Jesus which they had just witnessed, implied the duty of perfect obedience, and of complete self-surrender. At the same time, this command would also convey to the disciples that ideas such as those which Peter entertained, about the kingdom of the Messiah and about the Church, must be laid aside.
Mat_17:7. And Jesus came and touched them.—Comp. Isa_6:5-7; Dan_10:9-10; Rev_1:17.
Mat_17:8. Save Jesus only.—The moment had now arrived when the Lord required no further testimony from Moses or Elijah in the presence of His disciples. Hitherto the Old Testament had been their warrant and evidence for the New. But now the New Covenant was not only self-evidenced, but serving as confirmation of the Old. The expression also indicates that the hour of festive joy, in anticipation of the coming glory, was now past. From their fellowship with the spirits of the blessed, they were now to descend into the world and into fresh conflicts.
Mat_17:9. The vision.—Ὅραμ α; the outward and objective manifestation which they had seen in a state of prophetic inspiration. Different views are entertained about the reason of this prohibition. Meyer suggests that the Lord wished to prevent erroneous expectations of Elijah. We are inclined to take a more general view of the matter. For the object aimed at, it sufficed that the principal nucleus of the Church, or the confidential disciples of Jesus, should be strengthened by this glance of spiritual realities, while the secrecy with which it was invested would tend to preserve the deep and powerful impression. Besides, the vision could not have been related to the other disciples without including Judas among them. In all likelihood it would have incited envy, carnal hopes, or doubts in their minds. The people were, of course, not prepared to receive such a communication. Those among them who were favorably disposed would again have given way to outbursts of enthusiasm; while the adversaries would have either directed their hatred and persecutions to the three disciples who had witnessed the glory of Christ, or else sought to controvert and to shake their blessed conviction of the spiritual realities which had opened before them. Not till after the resurrection of Christ from Sheol was the world to be taught how much better and happier than, in their dread of death, they had hitherto imagined, was the state of the pious in Sheol (for example, Moses and Elijah). The fact that Christ—the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever—had all along lit up the gloom of Sheol, was only to appear when, at and by His resurrection, Sheol it self ceased to exist.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. See the Exegetical an Critical Notes.
2. The history of the Transfiguration.—Various views are entertained on this subject: 1. It has been regarded as merely a vision. Thus Tertullian (Contra Marc. iv. 22), Herder, and Gratz. 2. Meyer regards it as partly a vision, and partly an objective reality. The appearance of Moses and Elijah was, in his opinion, merely a vision; while the glorious change in the outward appearance of Jesus was an objective reality. 3. All the ancient dogmatic writers characterize it as a purely outward and visible event. To this Meyer objects, that it would imply that the resurrection of Moses was past; as if the spirits of the blessed were necessarily destitute of all corporeity or form. To the same effect Grotius remarks: Hæc corpora videri possunt a Deo in hunc usum asservata; while Thomas Aquinas suggests that Moses made use of a body not his own.9 4. A number of natural explanations of the event have been hazarded. Thus it has been represented—(a) as a vision in a dream (Gabler, Rau, Kuinoel, even Neander); (b) accompanied by a thunder-storm (Gabler); (c) as a meeting between Jesus and two secret, unknown adherents (Kuinoel, Venturini, Paulus, Hase); (d) as an atmospheric phenomenon (Paulus, Ammon). 5. Ewald regards it as a real occurrence, but with mythical embellishments. 6. Schulz, Strauss, and others represent it as a pure myth, on the ground of the injunction to keep it a secret, which they regard as a fiction.10 7. It has been viewed as an allegory, or a figurative representation of the spiritual light imparted on that occasion to the disciples respecting the character and work of Jesus (Weisse). 8. In our opinion, it belongs to a higher sphere of existence, combining the two elements of outward manifestation and spiritual vision (see Leben Jesu, ii. 2, p. 904; and on the general question, ii. 1, p. 41). Even Meyer, who represents one part of the narrative as an objective reality, and the other as merely a vision, admits that although the voice from heaven was a spiritual and inward transaction, yet it seemed an outward perception to those who were in a state of vision.
3. The transfiguration of the Lord was a manifestation of the spiritual world in the midst of earthly life. It was as if the Lord had already entered His mansions of glory. Viewing it as a stage in the history of His personal development, the transfiguration may be characterized as occupying a place intermediate between the walking on the sea, and the hearing the voice from heaven in the precincts of the temple, John 12. “In certain diseases, a luminous appearance of the body has been observed by physicians as a strange and rare symptom. This may serve at least to show the physical possibility of such an emission of light from the body, although it has never been noticed as marking the highest state of health and vigor.” Both the founder and the restorer of the kingdom of God under the Old dispensation, who had equally been removed from this world in a miraculous manner (Deu_34:6; 2Ki_2:11) and Jesus Himself (whose resurrection was at hand), were transfigured into the same glorified state. O. von Gerlach: “At His baptism Jesus had as the Son of Man entered that new kingdom of God upon earth which He Himself had founded. But at the transfiguration He had reached the period of His history, when, having fully shown His active obedience, He was to display chiefly His passive obedience. This may be described as a season of rest in His half-accomplished victory.”
4. The meeting of the Lord with Moses and Elijah conveys a threefold lesson. (a) It shows the bearing of the future upon the present world. The dead are waiting the appearance of the Lord. He lit up the gloom of hades, brought life to its inmates, and threw open its gates. The most exalted of the departed spirits here do homage to Him. (b) It discloses the bearing of the visible upon the invisible world. The event here recorded may be regarded as the earnest and commencement of Christ’s preaching to the spirits in prison. It was succeeded by the movement which took place among the dead when Christ arose (Mat_27:42), and fully realized when He descended into hades to preach the gospel there (Mat_12:40; Eph_4:9; 1Pe_3:19; 1Pe_4:6).11 (c) We gather how this world and the next meet, so to speak, and coalesce in the resurrection of Jesus. The difference of time and circumstances here gives place to a higher unity. The disciples were now taught that the sufferings and death of the Messiah did not sever the connection between Him and the Old Testament,—more especially, that between Jesus and the lawgiver who condemned blasphemers to death, and even the zealous prophet who had called down fire from heaven; while these very sufferings constituted the superiority of the Saviour over the representatives of the Old dispensation. “Again, as at Jordan, did the representatives of the two covenants meet.” Besides, the gulf of space was also bridged over by this event. In the person of Christ the barriers which separate between this and the other world began to give way. They gave place to a higher unity. This transition was completed at His resurrection. Hence also this meeting may be characterized as an anticipation of the final “reconciling” of things in heaven and in earth (Col_1:20).
5. The cloud.—(“Not a dark cloud, like that which rested on Sinai.” O. von Gerlach.)—It served not merely as a figure of the presence of God, but, like the pillar of cloud and of fire which intervened between Israel and the Egyptians, it had a twofold aspect—bringing light to the one party, and concealing it from the other. “As the brightness which overshadowed them may be regarded as a manifestation of heavenly in the midst of earthly life, so the luminous cloud as the outward garb which heavenly life prepares for itself from earthly objects, since it cannot appear in all its inherent glory. Similarly is the light of heaven tempered for our earth by the intervention of clouds,” which reflect that light for us as need requireth. To us it appears exceedingly significant, that the cloud which separated the disciples from the Lord appeared at the very moment when Peter uttered a saying which, as we have seen, was indicative of his peculiar state of mind. Hence the command, “Hear ye Him,” may be regarded as in a special manner addressed to him.
6. From Luk_9:33 we gather that Peter addressed this proposal to the Lord when he saw Moses and Elijah about to part from Him. It was then that the cloud overshadowed them, and the voice from heaven was heard. It seems as if Peter would have outwardly detained those blessed spirits to protract the glory of that hour. “He wished to institute a sort of high-church establishment,12 or to found a monastic order. The communion which he was about to inaugurate was to have Christ for its leader, Moses for its lawgiver, and Elijah for its zealot,—in short, there was to be an outward amalgamation of the Old and New Testaments. Hence the attempt to detain those who now enjoyed a spiritual existence, and to perpetuate their terrestrial appearance in this world. Thus spake Simon, not Peter—a type of that Church which still appeals to his authority. The Evangelists add, by way of apology, ‘He wist not what he said’ ” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, p. 907). He was now ready in one sense to renounce the world; but his surrender was merely outward. The proposal forcibly recalls to our minds a later scene and utterance: “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.”
7. The prostration of the disciples at the vision, reminds us of the similar experience of the prophets. At another time, John experienced the same awe (Revelation 1), showing the infinite majesty of Christ’s appearance. Such also shall be the effect of the sign from heaven on the nations of the earth in the day of judgment (Mat_24:30).
8. The object of this vision.—Before the disciples could with safety descend into the depths of temptation connected with the cross of Christ, they were, so to speak, fastened to heaven by the cords of this vision. “The Church was to have fellowship with spiritual realities, and with the world of spirits, before those weak hearts could be converted into bold and triumphant witnesses to meet the world, death, and hell” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, 909).
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
The anticipation of Christ’s final glory.—The miraculous transfiguration of the Lord a pledge of our miraculous transfiguration by the Lord.—And after six days; or, the first week of suffering on the part of the disciples, previous to the sufferings of the Lord Himself: 1. Its beginning: the confession of Peter, and the announcement of the Lord’s sufferings. 2. Its employment: familiarizing their minds with thoughts of the cross. 3. Its close: a glorious Sabbath on the holy mount.—The three intimate disciples of the Lord an image of His close followers in the Church: 1. John, as representing the friends of Jesus who rest on His breast; 2. Peter, or the servants of Christ who prepare the extension of His kingdom; 3. James, or the courageous and persevering witnesses of His cross: Or, contemplation, preaching, and martyrdom.—We must be willing to follow the Lord to the summit of a high mountain, if we wish to see His own glorious light shed over the deep valley of His humiliation and sufferings.—The holy mountains.—Prayer the path to glory (see the Psalms which ascend from supplication to praise).—Prayer the direction of the heart toward heaven.—How by prayer the heart of the pilgrim may outstrip his footsteps to the heights of transfiguration.—The transfiguration of Jesus on the mount at once the deepest mystery and the most glorious revelation.—The transfiguration of the Lord an earnest of the transfiguration of His sufferings.—The brightness of spiritual joy, as reflected by the flame of the sacrifice of a heart which surrenders all unto God.—The shining raiment of Christ the garb of believers.—The natural body destined to become a spiritual body, 1 Corinthians 15.—The Church of Christ at its first festive season appearing as a spiritual communion: 1. A communion of the saints of the Old and New Covenant; 2. of the Church below and the Church above; 3. of the Lord and His disciples; 4. of the Father, and of all the blessed spirits who serve the Son.—The suffering Saviour in His relationship to Moses and Elijah.—The office of the law, and that of the gospel, 2Co_3:7.—The three glorified figures, and the three non-glorified figures—between them the Father—a picture of the Church universal, militant and triumphant.—Moses a witness of immortality under the New Testament.—The history of Peter’s spiritual development a type of that of the Church.—The good intention, and the error of Peter: 1. He was anxious to display the agreement between the Old and New Covenants; but by an outward amalgamation, not by their internal connection. 2. He was ready to renounce the world; but by an outward institution (such as monasticism and anchoretism), not by an inward Acts 3. He wished to perpetuate this season of spiritual fellowship; but by giving it an outward and fixed form, not by converting it into a spring of hidden life.—That form of antichristian error which appeals to the authority of Peter has given rise to the erection of three tabernacles (Moses: the Greek Church; Elijah: the Roman Church; Christ: the Evangelical Church).—While Peter was speaking, a cloud intervened, which for a while separated the disciples from their Lord.—The bright overshadowing cloud, a figure of the gospel as the great revealed mystery, 1Ti_3:16.—How the heavenly voice ever continues to resound through the Church: “This is My beloved Son!” (See 2Pe_1:17.)—How the disciples received a fresh prophetic consecration when they were overawed by the majesty of God.—The awe of the elect under the manifestations of the Lord.—How Christ restored His disciples from the awe produced by this revelation, in order that they might experience its blessedness!—When they raised their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus alone—true of religious experience generally: 1. It applied to the disciples in reference to Moses and Elijah; 2. to the Reformers and their knowledge; 3. to believers and the ground of their salvation.—During our whole earthly pilgrimage we must always again come down from the Mount of Refreshment.—In order to rise the higher, we must ever be ready to descend lower and lower.—We should jealously watch over our Christian experiences, and not lightly divulge them.—All our spiritual comforts are granted to strengthen us for the conflicts which we have to encounter, until the last decisive conflict.—The transformation on the mount, a symbol of Christ’s eternal glory, John 17.
Starke:—Nova Bibl. Tub.: How blessed to enjoy close fellowship with Jesus! for then shall we be allowed to see His glory.—The Lord bestows a peculiar measure of heavenly comfort on those whom He calls to greater than ordinary trials.—Special revelations and communications are special gifts which all are not able to bear.—Christ’s glory on the mount a foretoken of His greater glory in heaven, Rev_1:12.—How great will be the brightness of the saints in glory, when they shall be transformed into the image of the glorified body of Christ! 1Co_15:41.—Majus: All the glory of this world is not worthy to be compared with the transcendent glory of eternity.—Canstein: Satan and his kingdom is darkness; Christ and His glory (His kingdom) pure light.—Hedinger: The blessed communion of the saints in glory.—The communion of the Church militant and triumphant.—Zeisius: Thus the doctrine of immortality is established and sure.—The saints of former ages will return in greater glory.—Osiander: Those who have tasted (even in small measure) of the powers of the world to come, will forget all that is transitory, even though it have been glorious. Zeisius: If Peter so soon recognized Moses and Elias, whom he had never seen, what must be the mutual recognition of the elect, and what their communion in heaven!—See to it, that you be found in Christ and God will also be well pleased in you, Eph_1:6.—Canstein: Sinful men cannot approach unto God without a Mediator.—Cramer: Christ’s hand is strong to heal; whatever He touches becomes vigorous, strong, and sound.—Osiander: God reveals Himself unto us, not to destroy, but to save.—Such also will be Christ’s voice at the last day, “Arise, and be not afraid!” Joh_5:25.—In Christ the law and the prophets are fulfilled: hence Moses and Elias must vanish, and Christ alone remain; for there is salvation in none other, Act_4:12.—Zeisius: Truths have their destined time of revelation from God, Dan_12:4; Dan_12:8-9.—High revelations should not exalt any one, 2Co_12:7.—Cramer: In the discharge of our ministerial duties we should do nothing without a special call, or for the purpose of advancing our own reputation and glory.
Braune: The lawgiver (Moses) and the preacher of repentance (Elijah) give way at last before the glory of the Son of God.—Jesus alone.
Gerlach:13—When entering upon His sufferings, the Lord Jesus was confirmed in His dignity.—In this vision the disciples were to recognize—1. The unity and connection of the Old and New Covenants; 2. that of the kingdom of grace and of glory; 3. of out perishable earthly, and of the glorified body.—With what calmness Christ entered into a state by which His disciples, in their weakness and carnality, were overpowered.—The similarity of the glory of Christ and that of Moses, and their difference (2 Corinthians 3; Exo_34:29). 1. Moses only reflected a higher light; Christ was received into it. 2. The glory of Moses was dazzling and terrifying; that of Christ, though overpowering, was full of comfort. 3. The glory of Moses gradually vanished; while the transfiguration of Christ remained till the cloud concealed Him from view.
Lisco:—This foretaste of blessedness must have lightened the cross, strengthened the disciples for the coming conflict, and awakened within them a longing after full perfection.
Heubner:—The transfiguration of the Lord in its practical import: 1. So far as the Lord Himself was concerned, it served to strengthen Him on the path of sorrow and suffering on which He was about to enter. 2. So far as the disciples were concerned, it served as an evidence that Jesus was the Son of God; it implied a promise of support under severe trials, and a pledge of the resurrection of the body.
Sermons on the transfiguration, by Ephraim Syrus, Theremin.—J. Müller (in Fliedner’s Ein Herr, ein Glaube): the three stages in the Christian life: the transfiguration of Jesus, the emotion of the disciples, the thronging of the people.—Uhle: How we should act when hearing reports of extraordinary operations of grace: 1. We are not at once to reject the account; 2. nor to attempt exciting or forcing a revival; 3. but in the humble and faithful discharge of our work, to await a gracious manifestation from on high.—Rambach: Heaven on earth: 1. Where it may be found: (a) In secret fellowship with God; (b) in a life of spiritual love and friendship; (c) in the courts and at the altar of the Lord. 2. How it should be sought: (a) By preserving purity of heart (or by perseverance in the faith); (b) by constant increase of spirituality in our wishes and inclinations (or sanctification); (c) by ever keeping before our minds and hearts our eternal calling (or watching and prayer).—Carstädt in Zurn’s Predigt-Buch, Matt 1843: How Christ is still transfigured in those who follow Him up to the mountain.—Hagenbach: Seasons of transfiguration in the life of Christians.—Gruner: The spirits of our friends in glory hovering around us so long as we continue worthy of them. [Compare a most eloquent sermon of Dr. Fr. W. Krummacher on the Transfiguration, at the close of his Elijah the Tishbite.—P. S.]
Footnotes:
[1] Mat_17:1.—[After apart there ought to be a period, and he inserted after And in Mat_17:2.—P. S.]
[2] Mat_17:2.—[There is no necessity for did in translating έ̓λαμψε.—P. S.]
[3] Mat_17:3.—[The third person singular, ὤφθη, is preferred by Lachmann, Tischendorf, and Alford, and is better attested, especially by Codd. Vaticanus and Sinaiticus, than ὤφθησαν, but it has no effect upon the English translation. Lange translates: erschienen, not erschien.—P. S.]
[4] Mat_17:4.—Codd. B., C., etc., read: ποιήω, I will make. So Lachmann, Tischendorf, [Alford]. The lect. rec., ποιήσωμεν, let us make, corresponds with the text in Mark and Luke. [The first person singular, ποιτ́σω, is also supported by Cod. Sinait., and is more in keeping with the ardent temperament and self-confidence of Peter.—P. S.]
[5] Mat_17:5.—B., D., and most of the authorities read νεφέλη φωτεινή (bright cloud), against νεφ. φωτός (cloud of light). The sense is essentially the same.
[6] Mat_17:9.—The critical authorities and editions favor ἐκ, out of, against ἀπό from. It indicates probably that they proceeded from a mountain-cave.
[7] Mat_17:9.—B., D., etc., ἐγερθῇ
[8][This bursting forth of the inherent glory of Christ is hardly sufficient to account for the brilliancy of His garments. I see no objection to call to aid an external heavenly illumination, which undoubtedly surrounded Moses and Elijah as they descended from heaven.—P. S.]
[9][Delitzsch, Bibl. Psychologie. p. 369, supposes that Moses assumed an immaterial yet external visible (?) appearance conformable to his former body.—P. S.]
[10][Strauss views the transfiguration as a poetic imitation of the event related, Exo_24:1; Exo_34:29 sq., when Moses went up to Mount Sinai into the presence or Jehovah, and on returning “his face shone,” that the children of Israel were afraid to come nigh him. Strauss thinks the only alternative lies between his mytho-poetic and the old orthodox view. See his new Leben Jesu, 1864, p. 516 sqq. But the circumstantial agreement of the three Evangelists in their account the definite chronological date of the event, its connection with what follows, the allusion to it by one of the wit cases in 2Pe_1:16-18, and the many peculiar traits to which no parallel is found in the transfiguration of Moses, make the mythical view impossible here. Renan, in his Vie de Jesus, ignores the transfiguration.—P. S.]
[11][Compare here my note on p. 228 sqq.—P. S.]
[12][In German: Hochkirche, a term often improperly used by German writers as a noun, and as identical with the established church of England, when high church, low church, and broad church are adjectives only to designate the different parties or theological schools in the Anglican Church, or in the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States. It is surprising that the Edinb. translation literally renders High Church, which, to the best of my Knowledge, is never used as a noun in good English.—P. S.]
[13]Gerlach and Lisco adhere to the tradition that Tabor was the mount of transfiguration. But it would betray weakness and want of freedom to insist upon this point in a sermon simply on account of the catholic tradition.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn vv1–4§ 75. — THE TRANSFIGURATION, Mat_17:1-12.
§ 75. — THE TRANSFIGURATION, Mat_17:1-12.
1. After six days — Luke says “about eight days;” that is, after the conversation mentioned in the last chapter. Luke counts and Matthew omits the first and last days. Taketh… bringeth them. He selects and leads them. Peter, James, and John — The rock and the two sons of thunder. They were the select three of several occasions. Their traits of character rendered them capable of special revelations and manifestations. (Mar_5:37; Mat_26:27; Luk_8:51.) Into a high mountain — It was formerly supposed to be Tabor, in Galilee; but as our Lord on coming down immediately joins the other disciples, and seems not to have left the region of Cesarea Philippi for Galilee until after the curing of the demoniac, (Mar_9:30,) so distant a mountain as Tabor can hardly have been the scene. Hermon, called Great Hermon, northeast of Gennesaret, is now considered by scholars as the more probable locality.
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“It is impossible to look up from the plain to the towering peaks of Hermon, almost the only mountain which deserves the name in Palestine, and not be struck with its appropriateness to the scene. That magnificent height, mingling with all the views of Northern Palestine, from Shechem upwards, though often alluded to as the northern barrier of the Holy Land, is connected with no historical event in the Old or New Testament. Yet this fact of its rising high above all the other hills of Palestine, and of its setting the last limit to the wanderings of Him who was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, concurs with the supposition which the words of the Scripture narrative inevitably force upon us. High up on its southern slopes there must be many a point where the disciples could be taken ‘apart by themselves.’ Even the transient comparison of the celestial splendour with the snow, where alone it could be seen in Palestine, should not, perhaps, be wholly overlooked.” — Stanley.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv1–4Ch. Mat_17:1-13. The Transfiguration
Ch. Mat_17:1-13. The Transfiguration
Mar_9:2-13; Luk_9:28-36
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1. after six days] Within a week of Peter’s confession. St Luke has “about an eight days after,” according to the common Jewish reckoning, by which each part of a day is counted as a day.
Peter, James, and John] The three who were chosen to be with their Master on two other occasions, (1) the raising of Jairus’ daughter, (2) the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
a high mountain] A contrast suggests itself, between this mountain of the Kingdom of God, and the mountain of the kingdoms of the world, ch. Mat_4:8.
An old tradition placed the scene of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. It is known, however, that the summit of Tabor was at this period occupied by a fortress, and there is no hint given of Jesus being in that neighbourhood. Many regard one of the spurs of the snowcapped Hermon as the most likely spot. Cæsarea Philippi, the last named locality, lies under Hermon, and its glittering cone of snow may have suggested the expression in Mark “exceeding white as snow,” if, indeed, the words “as snow” are to be admitted into the text.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv1–4(1) After six days.—St. Luke’s “about eight days” (Luk_9:28)…
XVII.
(1) After six days.—St. Luke’s “about eight days” (Luk_9:28) may be noted as an example of the mode of reckoning which spoke of the interval between our Lord’s death and resurrection, about six-and-thirty hours, as three days.
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Peter, James, and John.—The three retain their position, as in the raising of Jairus’s daughter, as the elect among the elect. (Comp. also Mat_26:37; Mar_13:3.) Looking to the grouping of the Apostles it might have seemed natural that Andrew also should have been there, but his character seems to have been always retiring, and, it may be, was wanting in the intensity of faith which belonged to his brother, the Rock-Apostle, and to the two Sons of Thunder.
Into an high mountain.—A tradition of uncertain date fixes on Tabor as the scene of the Transfiguration, but this was probably due to the conspicuous position of that mountain, as it rises abruptly from the plain of Esdraelon. The Gospel narratives leave the locality altogether uncertain, but as Cæsarea Philippi was the last place mentioned, and a journey through Galilee follows (Mar_9:30), it is more probable that the scene is to be found on one of the heights of Hermon. Tabor, it may be added, was crowned with a fortress, which at this time was likely to be occupied, and this is obviously inconsistent with the solitude which the narrative implies.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv1–4Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration of Jesus. (Mar_9:2-13 Luk_9:28-36)
Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration of Jesus. (Mar_9:2-13 Luk_9:28-36)
This mysterious event was intended primarily to confirm the faith of the three apostles who were to have the chief hand in founding the Church. The Lord had just announced his future sufferings and death. This prediction had been a grievous blow to Peter, and doubtless to the others also. He had stumbled at the cross, and had brought on himself a stern rebuke for his slowness and worldliness. So to comfort the chosen three under the thought of what awaited their Master, they were shown a glimpse of the glory which he has in heaven; they saw the Law and the prophets yielding subjection to him; they heard the voice of the Father announcing his Sonship. Henceforward they might take courage under all circumstances; the cross would be no infamy or disgrace would open the way to victory and glory. Here was a foretaste of the blessedness of heaven to be with Christ and his saints in his kingdom. Such was the Transfiguration to the three witnesses. To the world, when in due time it was made known, it taught lessons of the Incarnation, the resurrection of the body, the glory that shall be the portion of the righteous. For Christ himself it was the culminating point of his earthly life, "the solemn installation of our Lord to his sufferings and their result" (Alford).
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After six days. St. Luke says, "about an eight days after these sayings," either speaking indefinitely, or using the inclusive method of reckoning which we find in the recounts of our Lord"s resurrection. The days are counted from the time of Peter"s confession and Christ"s subsequent announcement. The little company were still in the neighbourhood of Caesarea Philippi, though we know not exactly in what place, and nothing is told of the events of this week. The memorable day may be specially noticed as being the same day of the week as that on which the great confession was made in the previous sunlight; or, if we regard the typical bearing of numbers in Scripture, the six days signify the world and daily labour, the seventh, "after six days," typifies heaven and rest. Peter, James, and John. These three, the chosen of the chosen, had already witnessed Christ"s power over death in the chamber of Jairus"s daughter; later they were present at the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. They who had seen his glory were strengthened to behold his sweat of blood. These men formed the inner circle of his friends; to them he gave the privilege of knowing more of his inner life and nature. They were selected for various reasons Peter, for his energy, zeal, and love, and the part he was to play in the founding of the Church; John, because he was beloved by Christ, and was to be the recipient of Divine revelation; James, because he was to be the head of the Church of Jerusalem, and soon to drink of Christ"s cup and war a good warfare. The James here named is the son of Zebedee, and brother of John, and was put to death by Herod Agrippa. (Ac 12) A high mountain. The only tradition concerning the locality of the Transfiguration (which none of the inspired narratives further identifies) affixes it to Mount Tabor, the beautiful isolated mountain, which rises some eighteen hundred feet on the northeast of the Plain of Esdraelon. This tradition, as far as we know, was first published in the fourth century A.D, by St. Cyril of Jerusalem ("Catech.," 12:16) and St. Jerome (Ep. 44. "Ad Marcell.;" Ep. 108. "Ad Eustoch."), and thence was generally adopted and upheld till the sixteenth century, both by commentators and travellers. Since then more accurate examination and historical criticism have thrown grave doubts on this identification. The summit of Tabor has from a very early age been occupied by habitations. It is spoken of in 1Ch_6:77 as including in its limits a city and its suburbs. Later it was stronglyfortified, and the whole area was surrounded with a wall, of which the ruins can still be traced. In our Lord"s time the town and the fortress covered the level portion of the hill, and there would have been no place of retirement where he could have withdrawn apart for the purpose of the vision. There is another reason that makes Tabor unlikely to have been the scene of the Transfiguration. The last geographical notice left our Lord and his disciples outside Galilee in the neighbourhood of Paneas. It was about a three days" journey thence to Esdraelon; but no mention is made of any such movement during this week, and it is after the Transfiguration that the synoptists intimate that the return to Galilee took place. (see ver. 22; Mar_9:30) We must therefore surrender the old tradition, and look in the vicinity of Caesarea for the high mountain of our narrative. There was no lack of such in that region, and it was doubtless on one of the offshoots of Hermon that the glorious vision was vouchsafed, though more precise identification is impossible. Hermon itself is called by the Arabs Jebel-esh-Sheikh, "The Chief Mountain," and the way in which the locality is introduced in the narrative, without further specification, seems to point to some eminence of the most obvious and best known hill of the district. St. Peter, when in after years he alluded to it, called it merely "the holy mount"; (2Pe_1:18) and we may conclude that we are not intended to know more about it, lest we should be tempted to make more of the material circumstances than of the great reality. St. Luke notifies that the Lord retired to this place in order to pray. It may have been that he prayed for the enlightemnent of the apostles that they might receive the teaching of the Transfiguration and the subsequent sayings.
Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration.
I THE GLORY.
1. The attendant circumstances. Six days had elapsed since the memorable conversation in the parts of Casarea Philippi. That conversation must have filled the hearts of the apostles with strange, awful thoughts. He with whom they had lived so long in the intercourse of familiar friendship was indeed the Christ, the Son of the living God. They had marked the dignity of his Person, the authority of his words, the power of his miracles; and they had felt that there was something in their Master that was more than human, very holy and majestic. Now he had accepted the homage of Peter, and had asserted the truth of that great confession he was the Son of God. Very solemn it must have been to be with him those six days, looking into his face, hearing Ms words, and to know, as the disciples were beginning to know, who he really was. It must have been like the first moments of a true conversion, when the soul first realizes in its depth and blessedness the presence and the love of God. But other also and very different thoughts must have agitated the apostles" minds during those six days. Doubtless they all shared the feelings of Peter; their soul recoiled in unspeakable horror from the prospect which the Lord had set before them; they could not associate the thought of failure and shame and death with the Messiahship; they could scarcely believe that the Christ, the Son of the living God, could suffer such things at the hand of mortal men; they could not bear to think that the Master whom they loved so very dearly was destined to drink the bitter cup of suffering. He had told them so very plainly; but they could not take into their hearts the full meaning of his words. They only half believed them; probably they did not wholly believe till the event proved their truth. But yet those solemn words, even if only half believed, must have caused them exceeding great distress, and must have filled them with restless, torturing anxiety. The Lord, in his thoughtful love, would comfort them, would confirm their faith, would prepare them to face the tremendous shock which awaited them.
2. The retirement. The six days were over. We long to know the secrets of those days; they must have been days of deep thought, of intense prayer, of close communion with the Lord. Now they were over; and the Lord took with him Peter, James, and John, the chosen three, who alone had seen the raising of the daughter of Jairus, who alone were to witness the mysterious agony. He carried them up it is a remarkable word, the same word which is used (Luk_24:51) in describing the Ascension into a high mountain apart. The locality, the height, the snow alluded to in Mar_9:3, the simple title used by St. Luke, "the mountain," all seem to suggest Hermon, the most conspicuous mountain in Palestine, the snow-clad mountain which, with its towering heights, closed the prospect to the north of Caesarea Philippi. Thither the Lord carried up the highly favoured three; he took them apart. The holiest manifestations of God"s grace and presence are made in secret to those chosen ones who live nearest to God; they are very sweet and precious, but very, very sacred too sacred to be talked about save in Christian communion with like minded servants of the Lord. Christian men do well to retire from time to time to the high mountain apart from the world, there to hold close communion with the Lord in companionship with a few proved and humble hearted disciples.
3. The glorious change. The Lord was praying, St. Luke tells us; it was for prayer that he had sought retirement; and "as he prayed" he was transfigured. The effulgent splendour of the Godhead poured itself through the earthly tabernacle in which it dwelt, as in ancient times the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand there to minister. (1Ki_8:11) The sacred body of the Lord Jesus Christ was the truest temple; "for in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily". (Col_2:9) That splendour had hitherto been concealed; he had laid his glory by in the tender condescension of his ineffable love; but now, for the more confirmation of the faith of the apostles and, through them, of the Christian Church, he allowed it to appear for a brief space in such measure as the human eye could bear. "None can see my face and live," God had said to Moses when he prayed, "I beseech thee, show me thy glory;" but, hidden in a cleft of the rock, he saw the goodness of the Lord as his glory passed by. (Exo_33:18-23) Such a glorious vision was now vouchsafed to the three chosen witnesses. Their Master"s face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light, glistering, exceeding white as snow. He is the Light of the world, he is the Sun of Righteousness; night is not night to the Christian when that Sun shineth upon him. The darkness of that night was dispelled by the radiant glory that issued from the Person of the Saviour.
The vivid recollection of that glory never passed away; the two apostles who remained (St. James went early to his reward) mention it in their writings. (Joh_1:14 2Pe_1:18) It was "as he prayed" that this glorious change took place. The humble, faithful Christian is made by the grace of Christ like unto his Lord. "Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed "transfigured;" the Greek verb is the same as that used here into the same image from glory to glory". (2Co_3:18) And surely it is as they pray that that blessed change comes upon the servants of the Lord. Faithful prayer lifts them into his presence, to the holy mount, as it were; they behold by faith his glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father; and that glory of holiness exerts a transforming energy over those who in the power of prayer by faith behold the Lord. It is when Christian people present their bodies "a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God," that, as St. Paul (Rom_12:2) says, using again the same word, they are "transformed by the renewing of their mind." The transfiguration of the Lord was an anticipation of the glory of his ascension; it was to the apostles a foretaste of the beatific vision; it is to us a parable of the great change which must pass over the soul of every one of God"s elect. We too must shine, if by his grace we attain to any measure of real holiness, as lights in the world by his reflected glory; we too must wash our robes, and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. "Lord, thy Spirit"s power transforming Through our inmost being pour, Heart and thought and wish conforming To thine image more and more.
4. Moses and Elijah. They were the central figures of the Old Testament, the representatives of the Law and the prophets. They had both been admitted into a very close communion with God, and had both, in the ecstasy of Divine contemplation, been sustained through the miraculous fast of forty days. Now they appeared in glory. Peter recognized them by some power of spiritual intuition. Then surely we may believe that there will be some means of mutual recognition among departed saints. They came from the realms of the blessed to hold intercourse with the Son of God. The angels desire to look into the mysteries of redemption; and if the angels, how much more those glorified spirits who were once compassed with infirmities, and knew by their own experience the power of temptation, and the deep need of atonement and sanctification! They came to commune with him in whom all the ritual of the Law found its fulfilment, of whom all the prophets spake; and they talked with him (St. Luke tells us) "of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." The precious death of Christ, the death prefigured by the serpent which Moses long ago had lifted up in the wilderness, was the theme of their high discourse. What they said, what they heard from Christ, we cannot tell. The apostles seem in some way to have heard or apprehended in their spirits the sacred words. Thus much we learn, that there can be no higher, holier subject of thought; no higher, holier subject of solemn conversation among Christian men than the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Moses and Elijah longed to know the awful, blessed meaning of the cross. The Lord unfolded to them the mysteries of his love. May we be filled with the same holy desire; may the same heavenly Teacher teach us the deep things of his salvation!
5. Peter. He is eager and impulsive as usual He and his companions had been heavy with sleep. The dazzling glory of the transfigured Lord aroused them. They kept awake, St. Luke says; they saw in full waking consciousness the celestial sight. They heard, it seems, something of the wondrous conversation; they found that his decease, the mention of which had given them such extreme anguish, was a theme of deep interest and hallowed thought in the mysterious world of spirits. The marvellous interview was drawing to an end, the glorious visitors were departing, when Peter, in his intense excitement, not knowing what he said, addressed the Lord, "Lord," he said, "it is good for us to be here beautiful and elevating. It was beautiful indeed to contemplate the glorious form of Christ; it was beautiful to see how those whom the Jews most highly honoured came from their homes of bliss to commune with him. Peter would gladly have shared in that holy intercourse; he longed to hear more, to see more; they were departing too soon, he thought. "It is good for us to be here," he said: "let us make or, perhaps, according to the reading of three very ancient manuscripts, "I wilt make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias." He knew not what he said. He would have remained on the holy mount in the enjoyment of the heavenly vision; but it might not be. These glimpses of heavenly sweetness are not for long. God has work for his servants upon earth. Sometimes he "bringeth them up into a high mountain apart" for a while. It seems good for them to be there; but they must soon descend, and work for his Name"s sake among the poor, the ignorant, and the sinful
6. The voice from heaven. There was no answer given to Peter"s words. But there came a bright cloud, a cloud full of light, the Shechinah surely, the tabernacle of light which revealed the presence of God. It overshadowed the Lord and his adoring visitors; the disciples I cared as they saw them enter into the cloud. And forth from the cloud there came an awful voice, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." It was not enough that Moses and Elijah should come to do the Saviour honour. The Father himself bore witness to the dignity, the holiness, of the only begotten Son. The like words had been heard before by John the Baptist, the representative of the ancient Jewish Church. Now the same attestation is vouchsafed to the three apostles, the representatives of the Christian Church. That voice made a deep impression upon them, an impression which was never forgotten. St. Peter alludes to it in a remarkable passage in his Second Epistle, (2Pe_1:16-18) in which several words are repeated which occur in the description of the Transfiguration. It confirmed their faith; they could doubt no longer. He was indeed the Son of the living God, though he was to be rejected and to suffer and to die. All this had seemed strange and incredible to men brought up among Jewish surroundings, with Jewish hopes and expectations. But it was true. The Father was well pleased in the Son of his love, well pleased in his voluntary humiliation, in his self-sacrifice. The salvation of mankind through the cross and Passion of the Son of God was to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness; but it was the purpose of the all-wise, all-holy God. God was well pleased in the Lord Christ. He is well pleased in those who follow Christ"s example. He bids us hear him. The cross is the only way to everlasting life. The cross of the Lord Jesus is the life of the world. We can enter into life only by following him, bearing each of us his cross, denying ourselves, as the Lord bore the cross, and died upon the cross for us, and is exalted to God"s right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour.
7. The end of the vision. The voice of God is sweet to hear, but it must be very awful to sinful flesh and blood. The disciples fell on their faces and were sore afraid. But the Lord came and touched them. It was a human touch the touch of human, loving sympathy. It told the apostles that the high Son of God, whom they had just seen awful in the majesty of the Godhead, was their own tender human Friend. Still the touch of Jesus felt by faith comforts his people when the terror of the Lord fills their souls with dread. "Arise," he said, "be not afraid." So he had said before, "It is I; be not afraid." So, thank God, he speaks even now to the Christian soul, "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." His touch, his gentle words, bring peace and holy calm. It was so with the apostles. They lifted up their eyes, and saw Jesus only. The vision had gone, with all its awful splendour; only the Lord was left, looking on them, as he was wont to look, in love and tenderness, clad in the well known raiment, speaking in the well known tones. The vision was gone. Again they were on the lonely mountain side, the snowy heights of Hermon towering above them, the stars looking down on them from heaven; only Jesus was with them. The Law and the prophets pass away, but Christ abideth a King forever. Earthly hopes, earthly ambitions, fade away and die. Jesus is still with the soul that trusteth in him. Seasons of high spiritual delight, when the Sun of Righteousness beams upon the heart, fade into twilight. But Jesus is still with his chosen; with them as certainly when they go down into the work and the trials and the temptations of the commonplace routine of daily life, as he was when they were with him on the mount entranced in sacred rapture.
II THE LORD"S LESSONS.
1. They were to tell no man. To tell their fellow apostles might excite feelings of self-exaltation in themselves, of envy in the rest. Perhaps also the nine were not yet able to receive such a report. They did not yet understand the spiritual nature of the Messiah"s kingdom. We must remember, too, that Judas was among them. Still less was the outer circle of the disciples capable of receiving the wondrous story. The experiences of the Christian soul in close communion with God are very precious, but very, very sacred. They are not to be thoughtlessly divulged; not to be talked about commonly; they are too deep and holy. Free talk on such subjects tends to produce spiritual pride in some, irreverence in others. The true Christian wilt speak of these blessed tastes of God"s graciousness only to the like minded, and that with deep humility and godly fear, mingled with devout thankfulness.
2. Elias. The apostles had much to learn and much to unlearn. They could not understand "what the rising from the dead should mean", (Mar_9:10) though Christ had twice before spoken of his resurrection on the third day. They were much perplexed also about the appearing of Elijah. Could this transient manifestation which they had just seen be the coming of which they had so often heard from the rabbis? The name of Elijah was often on the lips of the Jews, as indeed it is still. When he comes (they said) he shall restore all things. He shall bring back the pot of manna and the rod of Aaron, and restore Israel to its ancient glory. It was true, the Lord said, that Elijah was to come. But he had come; and they who had so long expected him knew him not when he came, but treated him according to their own evil will. Then the apostles felt that the Lord had spoken of him who had gone "before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." The forerunner of the Christ had met the martyr"s death; Christ himself would soon be called to suffer. The Lord sought to draw the thoughts of the apostles from difficult and perplexing questions to what now lay in the near future his sufferings and death. We cannot think too much on the cross. Difficult matters of controversy may be of great interest, but they do not bear very closely upon the salvation of our souls. Let us keep the cross before our thoughts; let us try to realize its awful and blessed meaning by constant and earnest meditation.
LESSONS.
1. It is good for us to be sometimes alone with God; use such seasons of solitude for prayer and meditation.
2. We need a transfiguration, a transformation of the heart and will; pray earnestly for it.
3. Moses and Elijah talked with Christ of his decease; we should commune with him on that same blessed and awful subject.
4. Flee from spiritual pride; humble silence is better than presumptuous talk.
HOMILIES BY MARCUS DODS Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
The intention of this scene seems to have been to inaugurate the sufferings of Christ, and to set him apart as the Lamb of God who was to take away the sin of the world. Being a public event, it behoved that it should be witnessed, and the same three men are chosen as witnesses of the rehearsal of his sufferings who are afterwards witnesses of the sufferings themselves in Gethsemane the three most closely bound to him in affection. On both occasions their conduct proved how utterly helpless we are in the matter of our own salvation. One would have expected they would have been forward to aid their Master, or, if not to aid, at least to sympathize with him. But on both occasions they fell asleep. The world"s redemption had really to be transacted in spite of the world; the best men of the world were indifferent, were asleep, when the crisis of the battle was passing, when its Redeemer was agonizing on its behalf. To our Lord the strength received from the Father by prayer was more needful than the restoring sweetness of sleep. In it was to be found more real detachment from care, more vital renewal of energy. It was probably for his encouragement and that of the disciples that this earnest was given of his triumph over death, and of his glorified condition. The significance of the reappearance of Moses and Elias is not hard to discern. They came as representatives of the two great economies through which God had dealt with men, and guided them to himself, to lay down their office, and recognize Christ as the One in whom the Law and the prophets were fulfilled. Every acceptable sacrifice of the Mosaic economy was acceptable through the sacrifice of Christ. Every hope kindled by the prophets rested for its fulfilment on him. And how do they testify their homage? "They spake," says Luke, "of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." The Law was to find its highest fulfilment in the most lawless of transgressions; prophecy found its richest in that which seemed to destroy hope itself. In the persons of these two our Lord would see as at one view all who had put their trust in God from the foundation of the world; all who had put their faith in sacrifice, believing that God would find a true Propitiation; all who had hoped in his tender mercy, and through dark and troublous times had strained to see the Consolation of Israel. The whole anxiety of guilty consciences, the whole longing sigh for the promised Messiah that had breathed through the ancient Church, at once becomes audible to his ear, and confirms his resolution that their trust shall not be put to shame. Steadfastly does he set his face to go to Jerusalem, more than ever determined that the glorified state which Moses and Elias have attained shall, by his shame and death, be secured to them, and to all those of whom they are the firstfruits. To complete the act of installation it was requisite, not only that the former mediators should resign their office, but that the real Mediator should be definitely nominated; and therefore a voice is heard from the cloud saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." And so, with no witnesses but these disciples, the world"s history is transacted. It is summed up in these three, God commanding, God encouraging, God fulfilling; and these three are summed up in one God saving. "When the disciples lifted up their eyes, they saw no mall, save Jesus only.
I First, we learn that CHRIST IS NOW THE ONE MEDIATOR BETWEEN GOD AND MAN. The one command now is, Hear ye him." When Moses and Elias retired, and the disciples saw no man, save Jesus only, the whole burden of legal ceremonial fell from their shoulders. With the one temple of the Lord"s body left to view, how simple must all religion and service have seemed, consisting simply in their loving and cleaving to their Lord and Master the compassionate, considerate, righteous Lord Jesus Christ! We are often satisfied with the means of grace, the things that lead to Christ. But God calls you to come to Christ"s self. "Hear ye him." You have a life-and-death question to settle, and for the settling of it there is for you, in the world, "no man, save Jesus only.
II CHRIST IS OUR SUFFICIENT SAVIOUR. If your troubles and difficulties seem the most real things in the world to you, remember him who chose suffering for his portion, that you might be partakers of his glory. If you are despondent on account of your spiritual condition, remember this sure foundation of all preaching, this proclamation of Christ by God himself. The one utterance of God in New Testament times is this intimation, three times heard by Christ, that by laying down his life for sinners God was well pleased with him. Only by coming can you please him. Indifference to the voice would have been guilt in the apostles; it is equal guilt in you.
III THE CONDUCT OF PETER WARNS US AGAINST TOO MUCH DREAD OF SUFFERING, OR OF BEING CALLED TO ENTER A CLOUD; and against too much desire to rest in any one experience or state. The darkest cloud your Lord calls you to enter will be irradiated by his presence. And if by any experience you have obtained stronger faith or a more lively sense of Christ"s worth, be not anxious to build a tabernacle for sweet experiences, while there are countless works of charity, patience, energy, awaiting you. Believe that the whole line of earthly experiences can be lit up with God"s present favour. D.
HOMILIES BY J.A. MACDONALD Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
"And six days after." This note refers to the conversation Jesus had with his disciples, in which he said, "The Son of man shall come," etc. (quote Mat_16:27, Mat_16:28) But the apostles are all dead, and the kingdom is still future. The Transfiguration, then, must be viewed as a symbolic anticipation and pledge of the kingdom, and Peter and James and John were those referred to who should not taste death until they had seen the Son of man coming in his kingdom; and they saw this when they were "eyewitnesses of his majesty on the holy mount." We propose to show
I THAT THE SPIRITUAL GLORY OF THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST IS SET FORTH IN THE TRANSFIGURATION.
1. It exhibits the signs of a new dispensation.
(1) Here is humanity the shrine of Deity. This as a fact existed in the Incarnation. It is roundest in the Transfiguration. This is a new thing. Formerly the Holy Spirit was with men, now he is in them. (see Joh_14:17) The indwelling of the witnessing Spirit characterizes this dispensation.
(2) Moses and Elijah shine in the glory of Jesus. The Law is illustrated by the light of the gospel. Its sacrifices and ablutions now become full of glorious meaning. So are the prophets illustrated. Their personal history is seen to have been typical. Their predictions of Messiah are fulfilled.
(3) Christ is the source of gospel law. The "voice" rebuked Peter"s mistake in proposing to make equal tabernacles. "Hear ye him." No longer listen to Moses and the prophets otherwise than as they are heard in the accents of Jesus.
2. It exhibits the signs of a spiritual dispensation.
(1) Here is a remarkable concurrence. Moses fasted forty days in the wilderness of Sinai. So did Elijah. Jesus likewise fasted forty days in "the wilderness probably the same. Of no other is this recorded. Here are all those together in glory.
(2) The life of those forty days proclaimed that "man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word the precept and the promise "of God." This spiritual life may be studied in the history of that remarkable forty days of the life of Jesus after his resurrection. We are "risen with Christ.
(3) While they fasted from natural food, they feasted on spiritual. While the Israelites fasted during their forty years in the wilderness, they feasted on the bread from heaven.
(4) So the sun-clothed woman the true Church of Christ was nourished in the wilderness by the pure Word of God during these "forty and two months" in which she fled from the face of the Jezebel of Rome. The counterpart of this was the feeding of the prophets in the caves by good Obadiah, when they fled from the persecutions of the meretricious Queen of Samaria.
3. It exhibits the tokens of gospel grace.
(1) However glorified, Jesus still remembers Calvary. The matter of the conversation m the mount of.glory was the decease he should accomplish at Jerusalem. And now he is in the height of heaven he lives there to make intercession for us.
(2) Calvary is the theme of celestial rapture. It is the burden of the song of the redeemed. Holy angels take up the strain.
(3) Prejudices are dissipated in the light of eternity. "Peter answered," viz. to the conversation about the decease, "Lord, it is good for us to be here." This was the same Peter who, six days earlier, had the presumption to rebuke Jesus for referring to the same decease. (see Mat_16:22)
II THAT THE PHYSICAL GLORY OF THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST IS SET FORTH IN THE TRANSFIGURATION.
1. Jesus will yet appear in royal state.
(1) In the visions of the prophets the two advents of Messiah are blended; and it is only in the fulfilment of the circumstances of the first advent in humiliation that we get clear views of those of the second advent in glory.
(2) Of this glory there were remarkable prophetic anticipations in the glorious Divine forms or similitudes of Old Testament times.
(3) The Transfiguration is a still clearer anticipation. For here we have not only the semblance of a beatified humanity; we have the true humanity of Jesus beatified by the glory of the Godhead.
2. The bright cloud manifested the presence of angels.
(1) If we compare the passages in which the glorious advent of Christ is described, we shall see that those which mention the "clouds" omit the mention of accompanying angels; and so contrariwise, those which mention the "angels" omit the mention of clouds.
(2) Wherever Christ"s presence is promised, the presence of his retinue of angels is understood, if not expressed. They are ever present with him in the assemblies of his saints. (see Ecc_7:6 1Co_11:10)
(3) Clouds and angels are promiscuously the chariots of God. The clouds of angels were with him in his ascension. (cf. Psa_68:17, 18 Eph_4:8-10; see also Psa_18:10 Psa_104:1-4)
3. Moses represented the sainted dead.
(1) His appearance upon the mount was a kind of specimen of the resurrection. He had a grand death when, on the mountain summit, God bowed his august head out of heaven and kissed away the soul of his servant. His body was buried. Then there was a contention about this. (see Jud_1:9) Was it with respect to the appearance of Moses in this scene?
(2) It was a sample of the first resurrection. The resurrection of the just will take place in two acts. (see Rev_20:4-6) In the first resurrection the "ancients" will appear in glory with Christ (cf. Isa_24:23; Dan_12:1-3);
(3) May we hope for this distinction? (see Php_3:8-11) Let us strive.
4. Elijah represented the living who shall be changed.
(1) Paul had special revelation on this subject. (cf. 1Co_15:51-54 1Th_4:13-18)
(2) These transfigurations will occur during the course of the reign of Christ over the earth. Sinners will die off quickly. Saints will be changed translated. (see Luk_17:34-37)
(3) Of these, Elijah was a specimen. He was translated to heaven in a fiery chariot, and must have been transfigured in his transit. Flesh and blood cannot enter heaven.
(4) What a mingled scene is here! Christ with the glory of the Father. Clouds of angels. Elijah representing the quick. Moses representing the dead. The apostles representing the Church on earth. Heaven and earth will be thus blended in the kingdom of Messiah.
(5) Have we not a note of the time of the kingdom in the "six days interval? Does it not correspond with the six ages of Barnabas mentioned in his Epistle? Is this wholly without countenance from Scripture? (cf. Dan_12:12, 13 Hos_6:2 Heb_4:9 2Pe_3:8) There is a wonderful future for the Christian. J.A.M.
HOMILIES BY W.F. ADENEY Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
Raphael"s famous picture at the Vatican gives us an external representation of this wonderful event. But we want to get behind the canvas and discover the meaning of it, if it is to be something more to us than a theatrical transformation scene, something better than a spectacular display.
I THE GLORY OF CHRIST. The external splendour had a meaning. If it was not a purely artificial radiance created in order to dazzle the eyes of the disciples, it must have corresponded to a wonderful illumination and glory in the soul of Jesus. Moses" face shone after he had been communing with God on Sinai. (Exo_34:29) The face of Stephen took on an angelic lustre in view of martyrdom. (Act_6:15) Jesus had been speaking of his approaching death quite recently, (Mat_16:21) and of the victory of self-sacrifice. (Mat_16:25) During the Transfiguration his death was the topic of his conversation. (Luk_9:31) Then we may justly infer that the splendour that shone out from him corresponded to his exaltation of spirit in devoting himself to death. It was the glory of sacrifice. Jesus is most glorious in freely giving himself up for the salvation of the world.
II THE HEAVENLY VISITORS. It is commonly assumed that Moses and Elijah had come to complete the picture that was displayed before the wondering eyes of the chosen three. But would they have been sent for so slight an object? It is more probable that, like the angels who ministered to him on other occasions, they were sent to cheer Jesus himself. He had looked for sympathy from his disciples when he had confided in them the dark secret of his doom, but he had failed to receive it, and instead he had heard the voice of the tempter in the impatient reply of one of his most intimate friends. (Mat_16:22, Mat_16:23) Thus he was left alone in his meditations of death. But the sympathy which failed him on earth was afforded by the founder of Judaism and the leader of the prophets both men whose end on earth was mysterious returning from the heavenly world.
III THE PERPLEXED DISCIPLES. The splendour overwhelmed the three. Two were speechless. The third had not the gift of silence; and wishing to say something when he had nothing to say, he made a foolish remark. This showed, again, how far the Master was above his disciples, how little they could enter into his life. But it also showed a measure of right feeling in St. Peter. It was good to be on the mount with Christ. We cannot retain the ravishing moments of heavenly rapture. But we can cherish them if ever we are visited with them. At least we can learn that it is good to be anywhere with Jesus, good to meditate on his Passion, good to behold his glory.
IV THE DIVINE VOICE. The voice which had been heard before at the baptism (Mat_3:17) is heard again on the mount, but with an addition to its message.
1. God owns his Son with delight. Was this voice for the cheering of Jesus as well as for the guidance of the disciples? Under the circumstances this seems probable. God was not only pleased with Jesus because he was his Son, but also because his Son pleased him. At first this was on account of the innocent character of Jesus, and his resolve to dedicate himself to his work in baptism; now it is because of the courage and devotion with which he will face death.
2. God commends his Son to men. "Hear ye him." This is the addition. Christ has disciples now; and Christ has proved his right to be heard. It is not enough to adore him in his glory; we must listen to his voice of teaching and obey his word of command. W.F.A.
HOMILIES BY R. TUCK Ver. 1. The mission of the selected ones.
On three occasions it is reported that our Lord took three of the disciples apart with him; and it was always the same three. We need not, however, assume that the reported cases were the only cases. Observing them, we note that they were representative instances. In the first case, the raising of the little maid, special witnesses were needed for the surprising miracle, the restoration of the dead. In the other two cases Transfiguration and Gethsemane we have glimpses of the private life and experience of Jesus with which the ordinary disciples had no direct concern. It need not have been told us how, or when, or where Jesus conducted his private devotions, or what happened on such occasions. Jesus had these three with him for two reasons.
1. For company.
2. That the revelation of his mystery might be kept for a while, and revealed when the life manifestation was complete, and his Divine Person and mission could be understood. The reason for the selection of these three is to be found in our Lord"s estimate of character. He illustrates the Divine election, which is always a Divine selection, in view of fitness for position. In these three men we can see a power of faith, and a power of enthusiastic personal attachment, which suffice to account for their selection.
I THEIR MISSION WAS TO KEEP THEIR SAVIOUR COMPANY. It is strange that in times of distress and excitement we both crave to be alone, and crave to have some one trustworthy with us. We have mingled feelings we want to be alone; we cannot bear to be alone. In his fellowship with us in this peculiarity we gain a full impression of our Lord"s humanity. It comes out even in a more striking way in Gethsemane.
II THEIR MISSION WAS TO RECEIVE IMPRESSIONS FROM OUR LORD"S PRIVATE LIFE. It would not have been a private scene if all the disciples had been on the mount. Our Lord had a private life quite distinct from that public life which was the common property of disciples. Our Lord had right to that private life undisturbed. And yet some of the best revelations of his "Person" and "mission" came to view in such strictly private experiences as Gethsemane and Transfiguration; so a selection from the apostolate was permitted to invade his privacy.
III THEIR MISSION WAS TO KEEP SECRET FOR A TIME THEIR IMPRESSIONS. The twelve would never have kept such a secret. The three might, especially as they really did not understand the scene. They had to keep it as a mystery which time would unfold.
IV THEIR MISSION WAS TO REVEAL THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST"S PRIVATE LIFE WHEN THAT COULD BE MADE EFFECTIVE. See St. Peter"s use of his experiences. R.T. (2Pe_1:16-18)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John A. Broadus1886 · Public DomainOn v1Mat 17:1-13.
Mat 17:1-13.
The Transfiguration
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This is described also in Mar 9:2-13;
Luk 9:28-36. The scene of the Transfiguration is popularly supposed to have been Mount Tabor, in Lower Galilee. This opinion is expressed in the fourth century, and Origen cites from the "Gospel according to the Hebrews" a passage which probably relates to the Transfiguration, and would show that some held this view in the second century. Yet the tradition is almost certainly incorrect. The conversation (Mat 16:21-28)
which preceded the Transfiguration by six days was very closely connected (see on "Mat 16:21") with Peter’s great confession, and this occurred in the district of Cesarea Philippi. It is of course possible that in these six days Jesus should have come back to Galilee and gone south to Mount Tabor, but we know that he was at this period keeping away from Galilee for many important reasons (compare on Mat 16:5). Moreover, we find in Mark that from the place of the Transfiguration they went forth and passed through Galilee as privately as possible to Capernaum, (Mar 9:14, Mar 9:30, Mar 9:33) and thence went towards Jerusalem. All this leaves the hypothesis of a hasty journey to Tabor and back violently improbable. Besides, Robinson has shown that there was a fortified city on Mount Tabor at that time, which must have rendered its narrow and rounded summit anything else than a place of seclusion. In view of these facts nearly all recent writers agree that the Transfiguration must have occurred in the neighbourhood of Cesarea Philippi.
Mat 17:1. Into a high mountain, might be any one of the numerous spurs of the Hermon range in the vicinity of the city. We can hardly suppose one of the three highest peaks of Hermon to be meant, because to climb any one of them on foot and return is a fatiguing journey of ten or twelve hours (McGarvey, Thomson). And it would be too cold to spend a night there without shelter. Conder found it very cold in a tent. After six days. So also Mark. Luke says ’about eight days,’ i. e., about a week, which was often called eight days, counting both the first and the last (see on "Mat 12:40"), just as in the French and German languages a week is frequently called "eight days," and a fortnight "fifteen days." If Matthew and Mark say ’six days’ and Luke ’about a week,’ there is certainly no conflict. It is not well to suppose (Chrys., Jerome) that Matthew and Mark give only the intervening days, while Luke adds the first and last, for this is supposing them to reckon in a way quite unnatural for Hebrew or Greek usage, and such artificial harmonistic hypotheses are to be deprecated. The real point to be observed is that all three Evangelists declare the Transfiguration to have occurred only a few days after the prediction that Jesus must suffer and be killed. Jesus taketh with him, as in Mat 2:13, Mat 4:5, Mat 12:45. Peter, James, and John, alone were also admitted to see the raising of Jairus’ daughter, (Mar 5:37) and to be near the Master in Gethsemane. (Mat 26:37) They belonged to the first group of four among the Twelve (see on "Mat 10:2"), and were evidently received to a peculiar intimacy. The conviction wrought in their minds by what they witnessed would impart itself to all, through their tone and general influence. Apart. Such an unearthly, almost heavenly scene must have no unsympathizing spectators. Luke says (Luk 9:28. Rev. Ver.) that he ’went up into the mountain to pray’(compare above on Mat 14:23), and that the wonderful change of appearance took place as he was praying. We have several times found mention of special seasons of prayer at great crises of our Lord’s history. (Luk 3:21 Mar 1:35 Luk 6:12 Mat 14:23) As the three disciples were oppressed with sleep during the scene (Luke), and his return to the other disciples was ’on the next day’, (Luk 9:37) it seems clear that the Transfiguration occurred at night. The shining of our Lord’s face and garments, and the bright cloud, would thus be more manifest, and the whole scene more striking.
Mat 17:2. And was transfigured, literally, his form was changed, meaning however, so far as we can see, merely a change in his appearance. Before them, within their full view, so that they could bear witness. His face did shine as the sun, compare as partially similar, Exo 34:29 Act 6:15. And his raiment, or, garments, was—or, became—white as the light;[1] Mark, Rev. Ver., ’glittering, exceedingly white", Luke, ’white and dazzling,’. (compare Mat 28:3) All this was a temporary and partial anticipation of the glory that awaited him; (Joh 12:23; Joh 17:5 Php 3:21) compare his appearance to one of these three disciples in Patmos. (Rev 1:13-16)
[1] The "Western" type of text added a comparison to snow in Mar 9:3, and substituted it for ’light’ in Matt. It was doubtless derived from Mat 28:3 Dan 7:9. This addition in Mark was adopted in the "Syrian" text, and came down to our common Greek text, and Com. Ver. Being found spurious, it cannot be used, as by Stanley, in considering the question of locality.
Mat 17:3 f. There are here (Godet) three distinct points: the personal glorification of Jesus (Mat 17:2), the appearance and conversation of Moses and Elijah (Mat 17:3.), the theophany and divine voice (Mat 17:5). Moses, and Elias, (Elijah), recognized at once (Mat 17:4), and doubtless by intuition, as a part of the supernatural scene. Any question as to whether Moses appeared in a resurrection body lies beyond our knowledge and is idle. "The law and the prophets were until John; from that time the kingdom of God is preached." (Luk 16:16) Thus the Messianic reign is distinguished from the dispensation of the law and the prophets, though not intended to abrogate them. (Mat 5:17) Accordingly we find the founder of the law, and the great reforming prophet, coming to attend on the Messianic King; and as they disappear, a heavenly voice calls on men to hear him. The Rabbis frequently speak of Moses and Elijah together; and a writer of several centuries after Christ says they were to come together in the days of the Messiah. Talking with him Luke says,(Luk 9:32) "spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem,"the announcement of which, a few days before, had so startled and pained the disciples. Plumptre : "It is significant that the word for ’decease’ (exodos) re-appears in this sense once only in the New Testament, and then in close connection with a reference to the Transfiguration." (2Pe 1:15) It is not clear whether the disciples heard this conversation; at any rate it was partly designed for the Saviour’s own benefit, that he might be supported in view of the sufferings and death to which his mind was now especially turning. (Luk 12:50) Then answered Peter, not an answer to something said to him, but a response to the suggestions of the situation, an utterance called forth by the impression made on his mind. (Compare on Mat 11:25) Lord. Mark has Rabbi, and Luke epistates, ’master,’ see on Mat 8:19. It is good for us to be here. Full of strange, bewildered, but delightful feelings, Peter wanted to stay there permanently, and not have the Master go to Jerusalem for the predicted sufferings and death. Keim fancies that Peter wished to summon the other disciples and the people from every direction to witness this opening manifestation of the Messianic glory—which is pure hypothesis, but not impossible. Meyer and Weiss imagine that Peter means, "It is a good thing that we are here," so as to take the necessary steps. The Greek will bear this sense, but the tone of the narrative will not.—It was indeed good to be there, but they could not stay. Down again must Jesus and his disciples go, amid human sorrow and sin, (Mat 17:15) down to witness distressing unbelief, (Mat 17:17) and presently to set out on the journey towards Jerusalem and the cross. As Moses and Elijah were parting from Jesus (Luke), Peter proposed to detain them by making three tabernacles, or ’booths,’ shelters formed of branches of trees, such as the people were accustomed to make for the Feast of Tabernacles at Jerusalem. In these their glorious Lord and his heavenly visitors might abide in comfort; as for the disciples themselves, they could remain without shelter, being accustomed to the open air in hot weather, even at night. This was a strange proposal with reference to beings come from the other world, and Mark adds, ’for he knew not what to answer; for they were (or became) sorely afraid.’ I will make, is read by the earliest manuscripts, and was easily changed by copyists to let us make, through assimilation to Mark and Luke. It accords with Peter’s ardent and self-reliant character, (Mat 14:22) that he should propose to make them himself.
Mat 17:5. A bright cloud. Clouds are usually dark, but this was a cloud full of light (same word as in Mat 6:22), which in the night must have been a sublime spectacle. Compare in Old Testament theophanies, Exo 38:9, 1Ki 8:10. The three disciples seem to have been outside of the luminous cloud; Luke, in the correct Greek text, leaves this uncertain, as Matt. does; but a voice out of the cloud suggests that those who heard it were without. Matthew repeats behold three times in quick succession (Mat 17:3, Mat 17:5), the events being each very remarkable. On two other occasions a supernatural voice bore testimony to Jesus. (Mat 3:17 Joh 12:28) The words here spoken are the same as at the baptism (see on "Mat 3:17"), except the addition here (in all three Gospels) of hear ye him, a solemn call to listen to his teachings and submit to his authority. The phrase, ’in whom I am well pleased,’ is not here given by Mark and Luke, and instead of ’beloved’ the correct Greek text of Luke (Luk 9:35) is ’chosen.’ Of course the words cannot have been spoken in all these forms; an unquestionable proof, if it were needed, that the Evangelists do not always undertake to give the exact words. (Compare on Mat 3:17) The words ’hear ye him’ probably refer to Deu 18:15, "a prophet.... like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken." It may be that Peter recalled them when he quoted that passage in addressing the Jews.(Act 8:32)
Mat 17:6-8. This solemn voice increased the awe and terror with which the disciples were overwhelmed. They fell on their face (compare Deu 5:25 f.; Heb 12:19), and were sore afraid, that fear which the supernatural so readily excites. (Compare on Mat 14:26) This fear is mentioned by Mark as explaining Peter’s mental confusion and strange proposition; by Luke, as felt when they saw Jesus with Moses and Elijah, entering the cloud; by Matt., as felt when they heard the voice out of the cloud. We readily understand that it was felt throughout, and might be emphasized at various points with equal propriety. And Jesus came and touched them, as the angel touched Daniel. (Mat 8:18, Mat 10:18) One can almost see the kindly Saviour stooping to touch each of the prostrate forms, so as to arouse them to attention, and saying, Arise, and be not afraid. They looked up (Mark, ’suddenly’)—the luminous cloud was gone, and with it the bright forms of Moses and Elijah—they saw no man (or no one) save Jesus only. This means simply that the others were gone and Jesus was alone; the wonderful scene was ended. It is quite unwarrantable to "accommodate" the words as a text in the way sometimes adopted—trust Jesus only, obey Jesus only, take Jesus only as prophet, priest, and king—all correct in themselves, but by no means here taught.
Mat 17:9. As they came (were coming) down from the mountain, more exactly, out of the mountain. People who live near a mountain constantly say, "he is gone up in the mountain," "when he comes down out of the mountain"; he is not in the earth composing the mountain, but is in the mountain as a locality. The evidence is overwhelmingly in favour of, ’out of,’ in Matthew, and probably so in Mar 9:9; it was changed by copyists to apo, ’from,’ by way of assimilation to Luke, (Luk 9:37) just as it was changed in Mar 1:10 by assimilation to Mat 3:16 (see on "Mat 3:16"). This descent in the summer morning must have been accompanied by delightful reflections on what they had witnessed. Here was new and wondrous confirmation of their faith that Jesus was the Messiah. They would naturally wish to speak of it to the other disciples and all the people; and were doubtless surprised! and disappointed when Jesus not only said to them, but charged them, Tell the vision, or sight, (Act 7:31) the word meaning simply something seen, to no man, more exactly, to no one, until the Son of man, the Messiah (see on "Mat 8:20"), be risen from the dead. He is repeating what he had said a week before, (Mat 16:21) that he must die and rise again.
But they do not understand. Mark says, (Mar 9:10) ’They kept the saying, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean.’ They were familiar with the idea of a general resurrection, but could not see how the Messiah was to be killed and come to life again (see on "Mat 16:21"). They doubtless supposed it must mean something figurative, and never thought of understanding it literally. The other disciples would naturally feel a similar difficulty concerning the prediction as made before and repeated afterwards; (Mat 17:23, Mat 20:19) but some of them mentioned that such a prediction had been made, and when the rulers heard of it, they thought only of a pretended literal resurrection, which they endeavoured to prevent.
In considering the design of the Transfiguration, we may be aided by this fact that it was not to be made known till after the resurrection of Jesus, and by the question which the disciples proceeded to ask (Mat 17:10), showing a deep conviction that he was the Messiah. The wonderful scene was suited to fix this belief so firmly in the minds of these three leading disciples that it would not be shaken by the repeated prediction, nor utterly destroyed by the heart-rending reality, of his ignominious death. Henceforth, no disappointment of their cherished Messianic expectations, no humiliation instead of honour, and death instead of triumph, could ever make them doubt that he whom they had seen in such a form of glory, and receiving such testimony, was indeed the Messiah. Even when Peter so mournfully fell, he did not utterly lose this conviction, even as Jesus said the night before, ’I made supplication for thee, that thy faith fail not.’ (Luk 22:32, R.V.) This unconquerable conviction on the part of the three foremost disciples would keep the rest also from wavering, though they could not be told what had occurred. When their lips were unsealed, we may be sure that they delighted to tell the sublime story, even as Peter speaks of it in glowing terms in his last Epistle, (2Pe 1:16 ff.) and John perhaps alludes to it in his Gospel. (Mat 1:14) As to the effect of the Transfiguration upon Jesus himself, see on "Mat 17:3". But why could it not be told until after his resurrection? He had forbidden the disciples to tell any one that he was the Messiah. (Mat 16:20) An account of this wonderful scene, if given to the people in general, with their mistaken conceptions of Messiah, would only have excited fanaticism and precipitated the crisis. When his resurrection and ascension had put an end to the thought of a mere temporal kingdom, and the minds of believers had been lifted up to a just conception of their exalted Lord, then the story could be appreciated, and would do good and not harm.
Mat 17:10-13. His disciples, viz., the three. (Mar 9:2) Why then? There is now no doubt that he is the Messiah. Why then, say the scribes that Elias (Elijah) must first come? The thought of Elijah had been suggested by his appearance on the Mount. The Scribes were accustomed to teach that Elijah in proper person would come before the Messiah, and prepare the way for him by a new work of reformation—thus interpreting literally the prediction of Mal 4:5 (compare on Mat 16:14). Some of the Jews held that Elijah would anoint the Messiah. But here is Messiah present beyond question, and no such preparatory ministry of Elijah has occurred. They ask him therefore to explain why the Scribes say that Elijah must come before the Messiah; and this he proceeded to do. Meyer and others suppose, with far less probability, that the disciples took this appearance of Elijah on the mount to be the predicted coming, and were only perplexed that Elijah had not come first, but after the Messiah had appeared. And Jesus (he) answered and said. The words ’Jesus’ and ’to them’ are not part of the correct text; nor is ’first’ in Mat 17:11, though genuine in Mat 17:10. Elias (Elijah) truly shall come. ’Indeed,’ or ’truly,’ expresses contrast with something to follow, as in Mat 9:37. That Elijah cometh is the divine arrangement, and the prediction of Scripture. (For such uses of the present tense, see Winer, p. 265 332.) And restore all things. Malachi predicted (Mat 4:6) of Elijah, "he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children," etc., viz., as a preparation for the great day of the Lord. This ’shall turn’ is translated in the Sept. ’shall restore,’ and hence doubtless (Bengel, Fritz.) the word here and in Mark. (Mat 9:12) Elijah will effect a preparatory reformation, compare Luk 1:17, ’to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.’ Our Lord means to say that so the prediction stands. The future tense does not appear to mean, as Chrys. and others have imagined, that there was to be some other coming of Elijah still future when our Lord was speaking. Elias (Elijah) is come already, compare Mat 11:14. Whatsoever they listed, or wished, the old English listed being a modified form of lusted, i. e., desired. ’They’ is here impersonal; a very common use in Hebrew of the third person plural, like the Eng. ’they say.’ The reference is to the way John had been treated by the people in general, and by Herod in particular. John was not Elijah reappearing in his own proper person, but he was Elijah in "spirit and power", (Luk 1:17) in character and reforming influence. (Compare on Mat 3:1) Some of the rabbinical writers represent that Elijah will bring back the ark, the pot of manna, etc.; Jesus regards him as coming to affect a moral renovation or restoration. In Act 3:21, Peter points forward to a future "restoration of all things" in connection with the second coming of the Messiah. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them, viz., at the hands of the people, not necessarily the same persons who had maltreated John, but the same generation. He here recalls to the three the prediction of a week before, which Peter had found it so hard to bear.
Homiletical And Practical
Mat 17:1-8. The Transfiguration. (1) The glorious appearance. (2) The holy visitants. (3) The Father’s voice. (4) The effect upon the disciples. (5) The lessons for us; (a) as to the Saviour’s glory, (b) his authority, (c) our service of him.
Mat 17:3. Hall: "A strange opportunity! in his highest exaltation to speak of his sufferings; when his head shone with glory, to tell him how it must bleed with thorns; when his face shone like the sun, to tell him it must be spit upon; when his garments glistened with that celestial brightness, to tell him they must be stripped and divided; when he was seen between two saints, to tell him how he must be seen between two malefactors."
Mat 17:4. Henry: "We are out in our aim, if we look for a heaven here upon earth. It is not for strangers and pilgrims to talk of building. Whatever tabernacles we propose to make to ourselves in this world, we must always remember to ask Christ’s leave."
Mat 17:5. Hear him. (1) As completer of the law. (Mat 5:17) (2) As last and greatest of God’s messengers. (Heb 1:1 f.) (3) As the suffering Saviour. (Mat 16:21) (4) As destined to be the final Judge. (Mat 16:27)
Mat 17:6. Henry: "Through the infirmity of the flesh, we often frighten ourselves with that wherewith we should encourage ourselves."
Mat 17:8. Chrys.: "If we will, we also shall behold Christ, not as they then on the mount, but in far greater brightness. For then, to spare his disciples, he discovered so much only of his brightness as they were able to bear; hereafter ’he shall come in the very glory of the Father, not with Moses and Elijah only, but with the infinite host of the angels, not having a cloud over his head, but even heaven itself being folded up so that all men shall see him sitting, and he will make answers to them by himself, ’Come, ye blessed of my Father,’ ’Depart from me, ye cursed.’"
Mat 17:9. Tell the vision to no one. (1) It is a difficult and important duty sometimes to keep silence when we burn to speak. (2) Some points of religious truth are best withheld from persons not prepared to understand. (3) Delay in telling sometimes prepares us to tell more intelligently and impressively.
John A. Broadus, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew (American Baptist Publication Society, 1886) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn v1And was transfigured before them.
Mat_17:1-13
And was transfigured before them.
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The mount of vision
I. Take what is taught in the passage as to Christs humanity and its aspects. Among all the aspects in which the Saviour is presented to us, this one assuredly is plain, the Saviour as man. And the story of the Transfiguration shows Christ as the man in three ways.
1. It speaks of a human need, the need, namely, of encouragement and strength. Indeed, it seems that the Transfiguration was a turning-point in the mission He had come to accomplish, when His work as a Prophet passed into the background and His work as a Priest came to the front. Not for the disciples only, but for Himself, the establishing of His courage and the reassuring of His hope, was the vision on the mount, with the voice that accompanied it. So low does a Saviour stoop in His humility, that He touches our sinless infirmities at their lowest, and is not ashamed to be our companion and our example in all.
2. And this brings me to the next point, and to pass from considering the human need to consider the human exercise. That exercise was prayer. He went up, says St. Luke, to a mountain to pray. He was asking for the wisdom that discerned the Fathers will, for the submission that embraced it, for the perseverance that adhered to it, for the joy that illumined it. If you can dispense with prayer, Christ could not.
3. Again, we have here a human experience. Was not the Transfiguration rather a token that associated itself with the Saviours divinity, an honour that pertained to Him, not as the man, but as God? There is truth in this; but two things must be noticed at the same time. First, that even if it was the Godhead that lent the radiance, it was the manhood that was actually irradiated; and secondly, that what the Godhead effected in Christ, what is Godlike effects in His followers. Do not put the Transfiguration of Christ aside as a privilege that is purely supernatural; it is, in one sense, only the transcendent exhibition as it is the efficacious pledge of the changes which grace may work in ourselves. Such transfigurations as these are both symptomatic and prophetic. They are symptomatic of what has already begun, and prophetic of what shall yet be revealed, when the temporary gives place to the permanent, and the partial is drowned in the perfect, and a glorified soul shall create a glorified vesture, from which the last stain of sin shall be purged, and the last line of pain be smoothed out. Oh, our Kinsman-Redeemer, we have found Thee our companion in manhoods weakness, we hail Thee as the type of manhoods coming glory! As Thou has borne the image of the earthly with us, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly with Thee.
II. But again, we have here Christs death and its meaning.
1. The death of Christ is the glory of the Old Dispensation; its glory, because its fulfilment and crown. That is why Moses and Elias were there. Moses was there to bear witness that in the decease of a Saviour at Jerusalem a nobler Rock would be smitten than the rock he had struck in the wilderness, and that a richer fountain would flow forth than the water that gushed from its flinty clefts. Elijah was there to bear witness that in this same decease at Jerusalem a greater sacrifice would be offered than the sacrifice he had laid upon Carmels altar, even a Saviours precious blood, and a more wondrous confirmation be granted than the fire that gave testimony before Carmels hosts, even a Saviours glorious Resurrection.
2. The death of Christ is the glory of the New Dispensation. For as it was the glory of the Old Dispensation as its fulfilment, it is the glory of the New as its foundation. That is why the disciples were there. They were there as the sponsors of a Church to be, just as Moses and Elijah were there as the sponsors of a Church and a ritual that had vanished. If Moses and Elias were the flower of the Old Dispensation, Peter and James and John were the germs of the New.
3. The death of the cross is the glory of Jesus Himself. For those that had eyes to see, there was triumph in the very shame, and the crucifixion was itself a coro-nation-it was His glory in the very endurance, as well as in the ultimate results.
III. But again, we have here something taught us as to christs church and its fellowship. Let us now look at Christ as the living Bond of eternal union. The relation of the Church beneath to the Church above is a question that throbs with a lasting interest. That there is some relation we know; though divided, the companies are in some fashion one. But what is that relation? Certainly not a visible one any longer. There is a knowledge of our friends alter the flesh no more. It was, after all, a knowledge of the flesh that Peter was thinking of when he said, in his rashness and witlessness, Lord, let us make three tabernacles. And that is Christs answer to Peter. It is as if He had said, Not as you think, will the relation between us be perpetuated-by fellowship such as you would maintain, in tabernacles such as you would build. There is but one tabernacle prepared for us all, and behold, it is now coming down-the tabernacle and pavilion of Him who is as a wall of fire round His people, and the glory in the midst of them. Stand in the fear and the presence of God, as the disciples stood under the cloud, and that will be the sphere of communion; found your interests and your hopes on the cross of Christ, and that will be the means of communion; press near to the person of the Crucified, and that will be the centre of communion. There is intercourse in no other way.
IV. But again, we have something taught us as to Christs message and its authority. Was it not as if God meant to say, Hear the Son, not the prophets of the Old Dispensation merely? Hear the Son, not messengers from heaven, though august as the deputies you have seen. And what God said to the disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration He says this day to ourselves, reminding us once more of the whole duty of man-the reception of the message, and the submission to the purpose of His well-beloved Son. Listen to Him, and not to the world. The world passeth away, and the lust thereof. Listen to Him, and not to the flesh. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; who can know it? Listen to Him, not to ministers. They are frail, earthly vessels at the best. No man can serve two masters. Hear that. Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Hear that.
V. And once more, in this passage, we have here the presence of Christ and its all-sufficiency. He who has come before us in this incident as Mall, as Redeemer, as Uniter, and as Prophet, is brought before us in the last place as a Friend. For the time came when Transfiguration experiences ended-the disciples looked up and saw no man save Jesus only. Ah yes, there is a something in our religious life that is transitory, and there is a something that always abides. What is transitory is an experience such as that which the disciples had when they were wrapped with the glory; what is abiding is the Person and Presence of Christ, which form the centre of attraction while Transfiguration experiences last, and which remain to make up for their absence when Transfiguration experiences cease. Happy are they who, when the glamour dies from their sky and the company vanishes from their path, and life looks bare and common, like the path down Hermon for the descending disciples, have a faith that will strengthen them when feelings pass, and a guidance that will cheer them when friendships are dissolved, and who, lifting up their eyes, see Jesus-Jesus alone, it may be, but a Jesus who is all-sufficient. (William A. Gray.)
Tabor flights
First, let me remark that it was only once in Christs life on this earth, and that that once was only given to a chosen few. Some Christians seem to think that they must be always going up to mounts of extraordinary joy and revelation: this is not after Gods method. Those spiritual visits to high places, and that wonderful intercourse with the unseen world, are not in the promises; the daily life of invisible communion is. And it is enough! We shall have the exceptional revelation if it be right for us. When the Master was there, three disciples had it, and nine had it not! And why it was when it was, and why those three were selected, we can see but few reasons. They were the three who walked the closest and dwelt the nearest to the heart of Jesus. They were also the three who were about to have their faith and their feelings strained to the uttermost by witnessing, most closely, the deepest agonies of their dear Lord. Peter was to found the Church; James was to be the first martyr of the Apostolic College; John, the writer of the Revelation. For these reasons, and perhaps also because their characters specially required the encouragements that were the most adapted to the occasion, they were selected. Do not envy others their higher joys or greater privileges. These things are talents. They do not seem to have been either the wiser, or the happier, or the better-at least at the time-for the marvellous vision. If we had to select the most dreadful position in which ever men were placed, we should fix directly on Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the burning fiery furnace. And if we had to choose the most favoured-Peter, James and John. Yet Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were calm and entirely happy in the fire; Peter, James, and John were fearful and troubled on the Mount. Those on Tabor represented the three great states of Gods Universal Church-this earth, the intermediate state, and glory; Christ, in heaven; Moses, upon this earth; Elijah, in paradise. (J. Vaughan, M. A.)
The doctrine taught and shadowed forth by the Transfiguration is probably greater, fuller, richer than is taught in any other episode in our Lords life. It teaches-
(1) The perfect union of the human and the Divine in the Person of Jesus Christ;
(2) that the future life of the children of God is not a mere pietistic, sentimental dream, but a glorious reality;
(3) that the good, when they depart hence, do not go down into the darkness, but up into the light, and live unto God in a fuller, grander life;
(4) that heaven is vitally, closely connected with earth by sympathy and ministry;
(5) that the denizens are deeply and profoundly interested in the inhabitants of this sin-stricken world;
(6) that Christs death on the cross was not a surprise, not an accident, but a work which He came to accomplish;
(7) that good men cannot for ever dwell in ease and rapture on the mount, but must toil and suffer in the great world below;
(8) that mortal man cannot have unveiled audience with God;
(9) that Jesus Christ will not abandon His disciples when they are sore afraid, but will draw nigh and comfort them; (10) that the mission of the servants of God is to lead men to Christ and to leave them with Him. (E. D. Solomon.)
Creed, worship, and work
I. The Church is led to a creed. The time has now come for estimating the effects of the ministry of Jesus. Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?
II. In the transfiguration itself the Church is led on to a foretaste of glorious worship and high communion-the meeting for awhile of the Church militant with the Church triumphant.
1. As to the reality of the Transfiguration. We have the calmness of history in the narratives of the synoptics; we have dates and circumstances. The glory above is as historical as the epileptic writhing below.
2. As to the purposes of the Transfiguration. It had a purpose in relation to the human nature of Jesus. A sense of suffering came upon His soul, and He wanted rest. The instinct which draws so many of the highest human spirits to the quiet and elevation of the hills, led Him up into the higher mountain-range of Paneas or Hermon. If one might refer to a long-forgotten controversy, the Transfiguration was not a miracle. For such splendour was natural to a body like His, with the perfect soul and its union with Divinity. The repression was miraculous; the Transfiguration was the temporary cessation of that miraculous repression.
III. But further, in the transfiguration Jesus leads His Church to a work-a work which, indeed, they could not at first perform. What a contrast for Him and for them! For them: Lord, it is beautiful for us to be here. A contrast for Him also. A contrast between the spirits of just men made perfect, and the faithless and crooked generation, of whom even His patience cried, How long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? They find a sufferer below. Strange contrast, as we have said. Above: the pure heaven; the words of Divine attestation; the forms of saints floating in light; the glory and honour and majesty given to Jesus. Below: the reproach; the well-meant but baffled effort; the foam on the cut lip; the withered body; the sullen muteness broken by epileptic cries. Yet there is a fresh, unselfish joy in the energy which Jesus throws into that victorious work. Thus, on the whole, in this section of the Transfiguration, Jesus leads His Church in the person of His disciples on to a world of thought, up to a world of worship, down to a world of work.
1. The three words, creed, worship, work, surely indicate, as far as single words can, the leading purpose of the three great periods which the Church has already traversed. The primitive centuries were occupied mainly, but not exclusively, in moulding Christological dogma: the Middle Ages (over and above the scholastic philosophy) were busy in elaborating worship: before the eye of the modern Church social problems have come out with a tremendous significance.
2. Again, we have here a summary of elements which must always, more or less, co-exist in a living Church. Confession, devotions, effort, must be found in her. Without the confession, devotion becomes fanaticism; without the devotion, confession becomes a congelation of dogma; without the confession and the devotion, the effort is soon left to police magistrates and poor-law guardians.
3. It may, I think, further be observed that the Transfiguration stands in our New Testament as one recognition of the sense of beauty, of which it has been cynically said that it never furthered a single duty. Nay, more; it is a refutation of him who has told us that beauty is inconsistent with the gospel. It shows Jesus not doing something definite for us; but showing earth for a moment what He is in His beauty. I conclude by drawing two lessons for the spiritual life of each of us:
I. Our individual life must follow and summarize the section of the Transfiguration.
1. We must lay the foundation strong and deep in the confession of Peter.
2. This must be accompanied by a second condition. There must be the love of prayer, of communion with the world unseen.
II. Let us think for a few moments of our transfiguration as the result of His. Even our fallen humanity affords hints of this. (Bishop Alexander, D. D.)
The Epiphany upon the Mount
Some have questioned whether this is to be received as real history. Rationalism calls it The dream of Peter. Some talk of it as a mere scenic display, to awaken the dull and sleepy disciples, but of no further moment or significance. Even some comparatively sound theologians have satisfied themselves with assigning it a basis of historic truth, but much exaggerated by the dreamy imaginations of the witnesses. A dream! It is not likely that three men would each dream precisely the same thing, at the same time; or that they would all be so perfectly deceived as to tell it for fact m their most serious discourses and writings. Nor do I know by what authority we are to regard that as a dream, which the record says the witnesses beheld when they were wide awake. We will notice-
I. The peace. This is specifically described as up in an high mountain. There is much said in the Scriptures about mountains, and many of the most memorable events of sacred history transpired upon mountains. The Law was given upon a mountain: the last decisive conflict with the prophets of Baal, and the last of the three great conflicts of our Saviour with Satan, occurred on mountains. The offering up of Isaac, the great type, and the subsequent offering up of Christ, the antitype, were accomplished upon mountains. All this is not mere accident. Mountainous elevations are particularly fitted to the sacred and the Divine. They are Natures symbols of the Majesty of God. They have a natural harmony with His everlasting purity, power, and Godhead.
II. The witnesses. Peter, James, and John his brother. There were different circles, even within the little circle of the twelve, to which different degrees of privilege and trust were given. Not all the members of our natural bodies have the same functions, or the same honour; and so the members of Christ have not all the same office. And yet we are to covet earnestly the best gifts.
III. The transformation-He was transfigured before them.
IV. The time, particularly as related to the act in which the Saviour was occupied-prayer. Prayer is a transfiguring power. It is the opening of the earthly nature to the inflowing of the heavenly. Prayer is the drawing near of the soul to the light and majesty of heaven, and always gathers to itself the gilding of that light. It not only ascends to heaven, but it calls heaven into itself, and illumines with the grace of heaven, and makes, not only the face, but the whole man, more heavenly.
V. The accompanying apparitions-And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with Him. However alone we may seem to be in our devotions, we are never alone. Though effectually withdrawn from this world, beings of another then join us.
VI. But, finally, notice the particular meaning of all this. It had, first of all, an important relation to the fore announcements which the Saviour had just been making of His approaching sufferings and death (Mat_16:21; Mar_9:31; Luk_9:22). These sad things had greatly disturbed, perplexed, and disheartened the disciples. And it was necessary that they should be strongly certified of the Saviours Divine glory before He went down into those dreadful depths, lest their faith should utterly fail them when the facts should occur. We are also fully authorized to take the Transfiguration as a picture and earnest of His future coming and kingdom, which is to embody the consummated results of His obedience unto death. If it was a foretaste and pledge of the glory that should follow from His sufferings, it must needs be of the same kind and nature with that of which it was a section given in advance. Brethren, it doth not yet appear what we shall be. (J. A. Seiss, D. D.)
The Transfiguration
I. The place.
II. Let us direct our attention to the persons assembled on the Mount. We learn, I think, that saints, after death, know each other. Moses and Elias did so; and even the disciples, in a way not explained, were enabled to identify their celestial associates. Are we to say, then, that an earthly mountain was more than the heavenly Zion? It further appears, from what has been said, that the recompense of saints after death has some proportion to their prior discipleship. Jesus on this occasion had special honour to confer on some members of the heavenly Church, and whom did He select to be the subjects of distinction? In short, we learn here that saints may see more of the Church and of the world after death than before it. Moses desired, prayed for admission to Canaan. The request was denied, and yet here he is-all as you wished, and as he wished-within Palestine, and surveying from no foreign Pisgah, but from one of its own mountains, the inheritance of his people.
III. Let us consider the condition in which these persons appeared on the mount. It is unnecessary that I should expatiate on the aspect of the disciples. No intimation is given of any change in their state. They remained as they had been, and their bodies displayed all the frailties common to our frame. The most interesting fact in their case is that they were not changed; and we hence see the folly of looking for transformation of our natures from any juncture of circumstances. It was otherwise with Moses and Elias. We are told by St. Luke that they appeared in glory. That glory is manifest when we compare what they once were with what they have now become. Moses has no more need of Aaron and Hur to sustain his arm for the discomfiture of Amalek. Though fifteen hundred years have passed over him they have brought no frailties of age, but the inextinguishable fires of an immortal youth. Mark the disparity between them and the apostles. Both parties were on the summit of a mountain, but how different their manner of reaching it! On the one hand the approach was from beneath, by slow, tedious, arduous steps. On the other hand the approach was from above, from the holiest of all in the third heavens, and was effected by a descent which no barrier could obstruct and no distance protract. When a bright cloud came and overshadowed them, the disciples, as we learn from St. Luke, feared to enter into the cloud; its lustre dazzled or appalled them. There was no such apprehension on the part of Moses and Elias; the wide universe contained not that which could frighten them; and as to the glory of God, its light, so inaccessible to mortals, was their element of joy. The disciples fell asleep, overcome by consternation and fatigue. But while they slept Moses and Elias talked with Jesus, and freely discussed the deep things of God. But I am restricting your attention to mere men, when one and another and many are saying, We would see Jesus. His face did shine as the sun. Usually it was darkened by grief; but now gloom is gone.
IV. Let us now direct our attention to their discourse. The subject discussed by such an assembly must surely have been important: it was important to all there assembled. You require no proof that the event spoken of was important to Jesus, for He was to be the sufferer. The subject was also important to Moses and Elias. No doubt they were glorified saints, but all this blessing they had acquired in virtue of the Messiahs anticipated sufferings; and not a plant bloomed in their paradise, not a note thrilled in their songs, not a gem gleamed in their crowns, but was due to the decease which Christ should accomplish at Jerusalem. The three disciples had a like stake in the event, which was not the less precious to them that they were insensible to its consequence. But these disciples were representatives of the New Testament Church, and if so, what was important to them is important to us. Christ died, not for their sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world. (David King, LL. D.)
Lessons of the Transfiguration
I. It was designed to make the things of the future world more a reality, a distinct conception. The veil between us and the world of spiritual glory is, as it were, drawn aside, and we are permitted to view the unseen. Humanity, our humanity, is capable of a refinement of feature and expression united to a higher spiritual development in a purer state than the present.
II. We are taught that Christs kingdom is not of this world, its glories being as much above it as its principles.
III. The kingdom of God is not confined to, and does not consist in a particular place, but in an inward condition of the person; that inward condition will inevitably make itself visible, shining through the restraints of adverse and even fleshly circumstances. (W. I. Keay.)
The Transfiguration of Christ
On this stupendous and yet delightful manifestation we offer a few general remarks.
I. The transfiguration is to be considered as one of those solemn acts by which Christ was inducted into his office as the teacher and saviour of the world. This is the principal truth taught by it. All the old prophets were appointed by some special designation and call of God. But Christ being at once the greatest of all Prophets, it was to be expected that His designation should be accompanied by circumstances which should mark this distinction and superiority.
1. There was their frequency. The prophets were generally designated by one glorious appearance of Him who called them. But Christ, by a series of wonders. Then there was the manner. The prophets had a glory conferred upon them, but to the Master belonged the greater glory. Hear ye Him. The command still applies to you.
II. From the subject of the discourse held with Christ by Moses and Elias we learn that there was in his death something special and emphatic. The mode of expression, indeed, shows this. It was a departure from life which He had to fulfil, etc. His was a sacrificial death. The Old Testament saints were saved in anticipation of this. Let that be the subject of our thought and converse here, which shall be the theme of heaven itself.
III. The confirmation which this event gave to the ancient prophetic dispensation (2Pe_1:17-19). The transfiguration thus confirms the word of prophecy, in several remarkable particulars.
1. The ancient prophets speak of the Messias in terms indicating a strange union of the extremes of debasement and glory. Very strikingly was this illustrated here.
2. The ancient dispensation was marked with special care as to the quality of the sacrifices to be offered to God. Here we see the shadow giving place to the substance. The victim is distinctly marked-This is My beloved Son.
3. The doctrine of the prophets was that the Messiah should die for the sins of the people. Here the doctrine is both illustrated and confirmed.
4. The law and the prophets were continually holding forth some better thing than themselves. Now both Moses and Elias converse with Him, to show the harmony of the whole; and He being declared by the voice from heaven to be the supreme Teacher, they surrender, as it were, their commission into His hands, and then depart, leaving Him the sole object on which the eye of the world should rest for ever.
5. The ancient dispensation was founded on the doctrine of the souls immortality, and of rewards and punishments in a future life. Here it is confirmed and made clear. In these scenes life and immortality burst upon us.
6. The ancient prophets speak of an advent of Christ in glory. Behold it confirmed.
Conclusion: The prophetic word being thus confirmed, there are two important lessons to be learnt.
1. Take heed to it. It is intended to usher in Christ, and the day of salvation. All other light is delusive.
2. The whole history is most encouraging to those who truly believe in Christ. See how He shares His glory with His disciples. And if you suffer with Him, you shall also reign with Him. (Richard Watson.)
The Transfiguration
I. Took place amid the grandeurs of nature.
II. Was witnessed by three of Christs most favoured disciples.
III. Consisted in an outshining of the enshrined Divinity.
IV. Was heightened by the presence of two of the greatest men of past history.
V. Was accompanied by a voice of approval from heaven.
VI. Did not destroy the human sympathies of the Saviour. He did not rebuke the ecstatic idea of St. Peter. He calmed their fears. (Anon.)
The Transfiguration
I. The circumstances and manner of it.
II. Its chief design.
1. The inauguration of Christ as the Lords anointed.
2. A direct confirmation of former dispensations.
3. The law in the fulness of the time to be clone away … they saw no man save Jesus only.
III. A few subsidiary moral uses.
1. It assured the disciples in sensuous manner that Jesus was the Son of God.
2. The immortality of the soul.
3. An evidence of the nature of our glorified humanity, and of our mutual recognition in the world to come.
4. Christ is one with us in earthly shame and heavenly glory. (D. Moore, M. A.)
The disciples beholding their transfigured Lord
1. We must no longer expect any visible or external manifestations of Christ to be made to us.
2. All Christs true disciples have some manifestations or discoveries of Christ made to them.
3. All Christs true disciples have not the same manifestations or discoveries made to them; some not taken to the mount. Now turn to the text:-
I. Peters proposal.
1. The principal thing right in it is the delight it manifests in the Redeemers glory.
2. The wrong thing in it is a forgetfulness of the main business of life.
II. The answer given to Peters proposal.
1. Our highest enjoyments are sometimes put an end to by God. A cloud came between them and the vision.
2. When God interrupts our enjoyments, He has always some other blessing ready for us, and generally better. The voice which came out of the cloud was something better.
3. We must not judge ourselves by religious ecstasy. (C. Bradley.)
The Transfiguration
The necessity of having a few intimate friends upon whom one can rest in all the confidence of fraternal sympathy and love seems inexorable. Even our Lord sought such friends in Peter, and James, and John.
2. There was only one Transfiguration in the life of Jesus. Nor were all the disciples permitted to behold even that. This shows that the business of the Christian is hard work, and not the nursing of visions. Visions are rare, and sent only for the refreshment, not for the daily food of the soul.
3. Our nearness to the spiritual world and its supernal glories. Moses and Elias and the rest still continue to be interested in the plan of redemption, and in our personal relation to it.
4. Happy for us if, like Peter, we recognize the value of good company, and are ready to say when in it, Lord, it is good for us to be here.
5. Glory and suffering are yoked together in this life. The Transfiguration is only a preparation for Calvary.
6. Moses, Elijah, Jesus, the law, the prophets, the gospel; but the personal Christ is the centre, and the theme of all is the cross. And this will be the theme of the redeemed for ever. (T. S. Doolittle, D. D.)
The Transfiguration of Christ, its designs
I. To confirm the faith of the disciples in their Lord as the Son of God and the promised Redeemer. To His enemies He would give no sign; to the disciples He gave this.
II. To inaugurate the Lord Jesus Christ as the supreme head and lawgiver of the church.
III. To apprise the disciples of the deep and intense interest felt by heaven in the redemption about to be effected by the death of Jesus,
IV. To sustain the human nature of our Lord in the immediate prospect and the actual endurance of his unequalled sufferings.
V. To deepen the conviction of the disciples and our own of the immortality of the soul and of the blessedness of departed saints even in a disembodied state. (G. Brooks.)
Let us contemplate-
I. The Lord transfigured before us. Can we not truly say, in viewing Him, It is good for us to be here?
II. Saints holding communion round about us.
III. The world and its misery beneath us. (C. Gerok, D. D.)
Lord, it is good for us to be here
It was good for the disciples now, for the following reasons.
I. It confirmed their belief in a future state.
II. It taught them that there was a spiritual body.
III. It revealed to them Christs Divine character and mission.
IV. It prepared them for coming trials. Sorrow often follows closely upon joy. The joy prepares us for the sorrow.
1. It was good to be there; it would not have been good to remain there. There was work to be done, sorrow to be lightened, sin to be grappled with and overcome. (F. J. A.)
Peters ecstasy of the mount
I. The place. The mountain emblematical of Gods sanctuary. As distinctly separate from the world. As the place of happy intercourse with kindred minds. As a place of hallowed instruction. As a place of glorious manifestation.
II. The advantages. It is good-As it is acceptable to God, as it is elevating to the mind, as it is joyous to the heart, as it is truly profitable to the soul, as it prepares us for the services of heaven.
III. The spirit which it should produce. A spirit of diligence in rightly using the means of grace, of love and zeal for the prosperity of Zion, of ardent longing for the perfected scenes of heaven. Application: Can you experimentally employ the language of the text? Seek the end of these Christian ordinances. (J. Burns, LL. D.)
I. This is my beloved son.
1. The Father here comes forth from His concealment, and audibly addresses the disciples.
2. The momentous truth to which He bears witness is-the Sonship of Christ. This showed Divine love to man. This constituted Christs fitness for the work of redemption. This forms the basis of our confidence in the atonement.
3. He characterizes Christ as His beloved Son.
4. For such a declaration there was the most urgent call. It had a reference to Christ, as about to have His Fathers face hid, etc. It had a reference to His disciples, as about to be tried.
II. In whom I am well pleased.
1. The Father having declared His paternal love, next declares His satisfaction and complacency in Christ as the Surety of man. This regarded His Person, offices, work, people.
2. This testimony was repeated at His resurrection, exaltation, outpouring of the Spirit, every instance of a sinners being saved.
III. Hear ye him. As a Lawgiver and King, as a Prophet. The manner in which He is heard. (J. Stewart.)
Prayer is the transfiguration of the soul
1. Because in it the soul receives light from God, that she may know Him and herself and all things more clearly.
2. By it the soul seeks and obtains grace to blot out the stains and vices by which she is deformed. In it she receives consolation for desolation; out of weakness she is made strong; from slothful she becomes fervent; for perplexity she hath understanding; for sadness, gladness; and for cowardice, courage.
3. She is raised above herself, and is lifted up to God in heaven, where she learns and sees that all the things of earth are fragile and worthless, so that from her lofty height she looks down upon them as fit only for children. She perceives that the true riches, honours, and pleasures are nowhere but in heaven.
4. In prayer she unites herself to God. (Lapide.)
Spiritual suggestions of the Transfiguration
I. This incident is valuable as bringing prominently forward the objective element in Christianity.
II. As bringing prominently forward the devotional element in Christianity.
III. The propitiatory element.
IV. The divine element. The eternal Sonship of Christ.
V. The practical element. (A. L. R. Foote.)
The Transfiguration
Lord, it is good for us to be here.
I. This event had a special evidential value; it proved to St. Peter and-to the other apostles with him that their Masters claims were not exaggerated; that in giving up all to follow Him, they were not making a mistake; that the religion He had taught them, and of which He was Himself the centre, had come from heaven. These Jews see their Master in the correspondence with the great lawgiver and the prophets. Also they were assured by the voice out of the cloud. Then our Lords glorious appearance at the Transfiguration was exactly fitted to remove a prevalent objection to the second advent. That objection was due to sluggish imagination rather than to offended reason. The picture of the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven seemed to a certain order of minds too remote from all experience to be conceivable, and St. Peters answer in effect is this: We have been witnesses of an event which has prepared us for the second advent; we saw in the Transfiguration a rehearsal of the glories beyond.
II. Besides contributing an evidence of the truth, the Transfiguration marked the character of the religion of Christ. It enabled the apostles to distinguish the inner and real value of their Master and His religion from the public estimate of Him. We are all of us affected by the spirit of the men around us. When they saw their Master transfigured, they saw that the vulgar estimate was not the true one; He was not to be measured by that which ordinarily met the eye. The form of a servant was but a veil; beneath it were the lineaments of the Lord of glory. In our own day there is a like difference between the popular estimate of the religion of Christ and the true one. But if a man can retire into the solitude of prayer, he may learn to take a different view of religious truth and life. It is not that he invests it with ideal qualities that do not properly belong to it; it is that he escapes from the obscure traditions which have hidden from him the reality. The Transfiguration marked Christianity as a distinctly supernatural religion. We can conceive that Christianity might have been merely natural; in such a system the Transfiguration would have been out of character. The soul requires an object above this world. The Transfiguration is an answer to this need.
III. The Transfiguration was a scene of glory; but it was something more,-it was a preparation for a scene of suffering. His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem. Does not this show us the true use of a time of prosperity, whether in material or in spiritual things; to prepare for time of trial. Thus is it with nations: times of peace and plenty enable us to prepare for reverse. On the Mount of Transfiguration we should always hear whispers of Calvary.
IV. The religious value of occasional withdrawal from the absorbing interest of ordinary life. Not seldom does He now, as of old, take Peter and James and John into a mountain apart, and is transfigured before them. He detaches men by some unforseen providence, by some great perplexity, by some great humiliation, by some heart-searching sorrow, from their surroundings, and from their past; He takes them with Him into a high mountain of thought and feeling to which they were previously unaccustomed, and they see how little hitherto they have understood either themselves or Him. Hitherto they have known Christ after the flesh; henceforth know they Him so no more. The prayers which had been long used, but with little sense of their meaning, are lighted up with force and pathos that makes them the very language of the soul; the Scriptures, which had been read only as a more interesting department of literature, are found to be, indeed, as St. Augustine calls them, Letters from the heavenly country, describing all that is most important to know about God and about man; the sacraments, which had been scarcely thought of, or which had been noticed only as graceless forms, are now seen to be channels of the life of the Divine Redeemer; fellow-Christians who had in former days been deemed uninteresting or stupid are now reverently looked up to as characters of rare and of unselfish beauty, whom it is a privilege and a blessing to approach. (Canon Liddon.)
The Transfiguration
I have seen men transfigured by love, by duty, and, in death, by faith.
1. Love was within Christ, perfect, undefiled, intense, filled with the joy of giving and blessing. On the mountain He let His love loose, and oh, what the face of Christ must have been then, when infinite love overflowed His eyes and trembled on His mouth, no tongue can tell.
2. And the mighty stress of duty, filled full with the ideas, infinite in beauty, majestic in truth, which He was yet to accomplish-that and these arose like a tide of light into His expression.
3. And He, too, had come to endure death, cud here, on Hermons side, He realized the last sacrifice. And death seemed to Him then, in that hour of the ecstasy of love and duty, not sad as it was when its power to subdue was brought home to Him by the sin and sorrow of earth, but most beautiful and joyous, full of glory and life. It was beautiful, for it was death for the sake of ideas of eternal beauty; it was joyous, for it was filled with impassioned love; it was glorious, for it was filled with the splendour of the truths He was through death to make alive among men. Therefore as He spoke of His death His face shone like the sun.
II. We see Christ here in the uttermost realization of spiritual communion with God. Always God and He were at one; but the rapture of that union was not always present. From end to end, body, soul, spirit, brain, and heart were all vividly happy with the indwelling God. This the highest conception of prayer ever given to the world-the transfiguration of man through perfect and rapturous union of being with God. There were two special means through which that was reached, and they had been wrought by Christ always.
1. Obedience to Gods will. A man must be free to pray perfectly, and no man is free who is under the yoke of his own will to do wrong, who loves pleasure more than Gods righteousness. There must be the freedom of love; the man can pray and feel himself one with God. It is possible for him at rare moments to stand on the Mount with Christ and be transfigured.
2. The other element in Christ which secured this communion was loving as God loved. God is love. In giving He is blest and blesses. Such prayer cannot be ours; we are not able to obey and love as Christ did.
III. How Is that prayer to be lived? Not in continued solitary contemplation. In the common tasks of life; making them the Fathers business; in it finding communion, prayer. (S. A. Brooke, M. A;)
The permanent use of religious ecstasy
How short in this vale of tears are those moments-which we most rightly call the most salutary and most blissful of our lives-which beam on our mortal career, soon to be replaced by darkness; yet they are not altogether lost; they leave a dew which does not dry up; a meteor that anticipates our course; a fulness of hidden strength which never abates; a light against tempests, which shines upon us as sweetly as the rays of the moon. One takes, though unconsciously, from such moments a new scrip for the long voyage; a new pilgrims staff for the steep road, and a flask newly filled for the days of abode in the desert, wherewith the spirit is refreshed; the sails swell freely, the compass points with more force to the pole, and a season draws nigh when we delight in remembering the enraptured scenes on the Mount. (Dr. Krummacher.)
The fading of the light on Jesus face
When or how the light died away we are not told. My own fancy is that it went on shining, but paling all the night upon the lonely Mount, to vanish in the dawn of a new day. When He came down from the mountain the virtue that dwelt in Him went forth no more in light to the eyes, but in healing to the poor, torn frame of the epileptic boy. So He vanished at last from the eyes of His friends, only to draw nearer-with a more intense and healing presence-to their hearts and minds. Even so come, Lord Jesus! (George Macdonald.)
The Transfiguration a window
The story of the Transfiguration is as it were a window through which we gain a momentary glimpse of the region whence all miracles appear. We find a marvellous change, a lovely miracle, pass upon the form itself, whence the miracles flowed, as if the pent-up grace wrought mightily upon the vessel which contained it. (George Macdonald.)
The influence of prayer on the face
Gambold, in a letter written while Wesley was in Georgia, tells us that Wesley at Oxford was always cheerful, but never arrogant. By strict watchfulness he heat down the impetuosity of his nature into a childlike simplicity. His piety was nourished by continual communion with God, for he thought prayer to be his greatest duty; and often did Gambold see him come out of his closet of devotion with a serenity of countenance that was next to shining.
The watch before the battle
For the disciples, the Transfiguration was intended to illuminate with a ray of glory the dark days that were about to begin; it was designed also to strengthen Jesus for His conflict. It was His first watch before the battle. (De Pressense.)
The mountain, probably Hermon
It is impossible to look up from the plain to the towering peaks of Hermon, almost the only mountain which deserves the name in Palestine-and one of those ancient titles (the Lofty Peak) was derived from this very circumstance-and not be struck with its appropriateness to the scene … High up on its southern slopes there must be many a point where the disciples could be taken apart by themselves. Even the transient comparison of the celestial splendour with the snow, where alone it could be seen from Palestine, should not, perhaps, be wholly overlooked. (Dean Stanley.)
Cloud on Mount Hermon
A strange peculiarity has been noticed about Hermon, in the extreme rapidity of the formation of cloud on the summit. In a few minutes a thick cap forms over the top of the mountain, and as quickly disperses and entirely disappears. (C. R. Conder.)
It almost seems as if this, like the natural position of Hermon itself, was, if not to be connected with, yet, so to speak, to form the background to what was to be enacted. Suddenly a cloud passed over the clear brow of the mountain-not an ordinary, but a luminous cloud, a cloud uplift, filled with light. (Edersheim.)
The shining face
The face of Moses had shone, but as the moon, with a borrowed, reflected light; but Christs shone as the sun, with an innate, inherent light, which was the more sensibly glorious because it suddenly broke out as it were from behind a black cloud. (Matthew Henry.)
Witness of Judaism to Christ
While false Judaism rejects the Messiah, the true owns and adores him in the persons of its two most illustrious representatives. The old covenant and the new meet together on the glorious Mount, as righteousness and peace shall soon meet on that other hill which is already before the eye of Jesus. (E. De Pressense.)
The conversation
The very mention of Christs death by such men as Moses and Elias, without any marks of surprise or dissatisfaction, was of itself sufficient to cause a great change in the sentiments of the disciples respecting those sufferings. Christs assumption of this glorious appearance at the very time was a reasonable and striking proof to His disciples that those sufferings were perfectly consistent with the dignity of His character, and the highest state of glory to which He could be exalted. (Bishop Porteus.)
Peters enjoyment of the scene
But what if the contemplation of Christs glorified manhood so filled the apostle with joy that he was unwilling to be sundered from it, how shall it fare with those who attain to the contemplation of His glorious Godhead? And if it was so good a thing to dwell with two of His saints, how then to come to the heavenly Jerusalem, to the general assembly and Church of the first-born that are written in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to those, not seen through a glass and darkly, but face to face. (Anselm.)
We must come down from the holy mountains
Where we have communion with God, and complacency in that communion, and of which we are saying, It is good to be here: even there we have no continuing city. Blessed be God, there is a mountain of glory and joy before us, whence we shall never come down. But observe, when the disciples came down, Jesus came with them. When we return to the world again after an ordinance, it must be our care to take Christ with us, and then it may be our comfort that He is with us. (Matthew Henry.)
Hear the Son
I. The Fathers declaration-This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. No doubt there is an allusion here to Deu_18:18. He is My Son, My own Son (Rom_8:32).
II. The Fathers command-Hear ye Him. Hear ye Him, ye thoughtless men and women that dwell at ease (2Co_5:10). Hear ye Him, ye self-righteous souls (Act_4:12). Hear Him, ye that have gone on in the ways of ungodliness and wickedness, adding sin to sin, iniquity to iniquity (Isa_46:12). Hear Him, ye men of delay, whose watchword is, To-morrow. Hear Him, ye young sinners, whose is the bloom, the blossom, the springtime of existence, but who have not yet begun to live. Hear Him, ye aged sinners, whose is the hoary head, but that head not yet found in the way of righteousness (Pro_16:31). Hear Him, ye backsliders. Hear Him, ye His tried and tempted disciples. He speaks-It is I, be not afraid. (J. Evans, M. A.)
Attention
Hear ye Him.
I. Why should we hear him?
1. Because God Himself commands us.
2. Because He deserves to be heard.
3. Because His message concerns your present and future welfare.
4. With what zest should those of us hear Him who profess to be His disciples.
5. Sinners must hear Him in this day of grace, or in the day of judgment.
II. what are we to hear?
1. There is much to hear concerning the Person of Christ.
2. He has many varieties of utterance, but by whomsoever He speaks let us hear Him?
3. The word of the Lord is not always a voice of instruction, but of command.
4. He also gives the word of consolation.
III. How shall we hear him.
1. With devout reverence.
2. Believingly.
3. Obediently.
IV. When shall we hear him? (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Fear and its antidote
What was it the disciples feared? The voice from the opened heavens; the voice which some men think, if they only could hear, all doubts would vanish. If such men felt, under the Divine manifestation, so unnerved, what warrant have we for supposing that if a Divine voice spoke to us from heaven, we should gain any accession of faith? Let us learn to be thankful for the modes in which the Divine Presence is made known to us. Look at these disciples.
I. The loss of themselves through their great fear. And when they heard it they fell on their faces, etc. They were no longer the men they had been. This prostration sprang from the conscious nearness of God, and the voice from the cloud was the chief cause of this feeling. Are these not experiences which seem to rob us of our manhood: in great sorrow our powers seem paralyzed. We feel that it has brought us into the presence of God, and we are sore afraid.
II. The grave sense of responsibility which comes upon us in some crises of our life. Then the faculties we most want refuse to obey our bidding. The sudden out-flashing of some great truth may fill the mind with fear.
III. But there is yet another side to look at. We have been looking at the disciples, let us now turn to the Master. In the conduct of Christ towards these men there is much to cheer us. He did not leave them in their helpless condition. His love toward them is unchanged. He comforts as well as delivers from fear. (J. J. Goadby.)
Jesus only
I. what might have happened to the other disciples after they had seen the transfiguration. There were four things, either of which might have occurred.
1. They might have seen nobody with them on the holy mount; they might have found all gone but themselves. In such a case they would have been in a sorry plight, like those who, having begun to taste a banquet, suddenly find all the viands swept away; like thirsty men who have tasted the cooling crystal drops, and then seen the fountain dried up before their eyes. How many people after such experiences have nothing left of joy or comfort; the whole has been a splendid vision and nothing more. Nothing is left to bless the present hour. Christ is with us for ever by His Spirit.
2. They might have seen Moses only. Who would exchange Christ for Moses; the sun for the moon; love for law. There are many who see Moses only; they delight in outward ordinances, precepts and duties. They had bright visions once, but have relapsed into condemnation.
3. They might have seen Elijah only. Instead of the gentle Saviour they might have seen the stern-spirited Elias.
4. They might have seen Moses and Elias with Jesus, even as in the Transfiguration. Moses could preach the law and make men tremble, then Jesus could follow with His gospel of grace. Elias could flash the thunder bolt in their faces, and then Christ could have uplifted the humble spirits. Would not the assemblage of such diverse forces have contributed to the greatest success. They were all merged in Jesus only; as the morning star in the sun.
II. What really happened-They saw no man save Jesus only.
1. This was all they wanted to see for their comfort-Be not afraid. All the Saviour we want we find in Jesus only.
2. Jesus was enough for a Master-No man can serve two masters.
3. He was enough as their power for future life.
4. He is enough as our reward.
III. What he desire may happen. That the great object of our thoughts, motives, and acts may be Jesus only. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only as a doctrine
As you grow in graze you will find that many doctrines and points of church government which once appeared to you to be all-important, though you will still value them, will seem but of small consequence compared with Christ Himself. Like the traveller ascending the Alps to reach the summit of Mont Blanc; at first he observes that lord of the hills as one horn among many, and often in the twistings of his upward path he sees other peaks which appear more elevated than that monarch of mountains; but when at last he is near the summit, he sees all the rest of the hills beneath his feet, and like a mighty wedge of alabaster Mont Blanc pierces the very clouds. So, as we grow in grace, other things sink and Jesus rises. They must decrease, but Christ must increase; until He alone fills the full horizon of your soul, and rises clear and bright and glorious up into the very heaven of God. O that we may thus see Jesus only. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only as an experience
You will see your need all the better if you look at Jesus only. Many a time an appetite for a thing is created by the sight of it. Why, there are some of us who can hardly be trusted in a booksellers shop, because though we might have done very well at home without a certain volume, we no sooner see it than we are in urgent need of it. So often is it with some of you about other matters, so that it becomes most dangerous to let you see, because you want as soon as you see. A sight of Jesus, of what He is to sinners, of what He makes sinners, of what He is in Himself, will more tend to make you feel your need of Him than all your poring over your poor miserable self. You will get no further there, look to Jesus only. Ah, saith another, but I want to read my title clear, I want to know that I have an interest in Jesus. You will best read your interest in Christ by looking at Him. If I want to know whether a certain estate is mine, do I look into my own heart to see if I have a right to it? but I look into the archives of the estate, I search testaments and covenants. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only
Our life has its resting places, exposed to startling, rude alternations; but it has also, in the midst of all, its grand solace. The first of these truths is illustrated in-
1. Our external personal circumstances.
2. Our intercourse with men.
3. Our Christian feeling. High joys seldom last long. Jesus, so to speak, loses His splendour, and comes down again from the mount, as a man, to His humiliation. The supreme solace is that Jesus comes down from the mount along with us. We learn to prize Him in proportion as we learn the deceptiveness of all beside. Out of our ecstasies, which often hide the reality, there comes a gift of God more precious than all-Jesus Himself. Whatever form He may assume, He is still the same; still the same whether He goes up the mountain with us, or comes down with us from the mountain. Our illusions vanish, but Jesus does not disappear. (C. Bailhache.)
Jesus only
Here is set forth the central theme of Christianity-Jesus only. This is the theme of thought for the scholar, of proclamation by the preacher, of discussion by the student, of delight by the saint. Not the splendours of transfiguration, but Jesus only; not the blessedness of the saints in glory, but Jesus only; not the law of the old dispensation represented by Moses, but Jesus only; not the prophets of the intermediate dispensation, represented by Elijah, but Jesus only; not the apostles of the last dispensation, as represented by Peter, James, and John, but Jesus only. (Dr. J. H. Vincent.)
Jesus only
I. Our spiritual life on earth needs that we should have special seasons of communion with Jesus. It was from the midst of the activities of His ministry that our Lord took His disciples to this mountain apart. Our animal and mental life needs stimulating.
II. Our higher spiritual experiences will not have their right effect upon us unless they leave our attention fixed on Jesus only. Some seek the evidences of their saved state, and find all their comfort in emotional experiences. It is very good to be alone with Christ, and to behold His glory, but we may forget, and lose sight of Him in the sense of personal enjoyment. This was Peters error. The three disciples were permitted to behold this transfiguration of the Saviour, that their attention might henceforth be fixed more on Him and less on themselves. Do not seek rapturous religious experiences merely for their own sake.
III. No religion will do for us to live with, or to die with, but that in which we see Jesus only. Ethical theories, philosophy, etc., will not do for us to live or die on. The simple gospel alone can give peace to the soul in life and death. (T. Hands.)
Nothing but Jesus
A Spanish artist was employed to paint a representation of The Last Supper. It was his ambition to throw all the sublimity of his art into the figure and countenance of the Master; but he put on the table in the foreground some chased cups, the workmanship of which was exceedingly beautiful; and when his friends came to see the picture on the easel, every one was constrained to exclaim, What lovely cups! Ah! said he, I have made a mistake; these cups divert the eyes of the spectator from the Master, to whom I wished to direct the attention of the observer. He then took his brush, and deliberately painted them off the canvas; for he was determined that Jesus only should be the centre of attraction and admiration.
Contrasts in life
Here in London we find, side by side, anxious, earnest, dutiful work, and thoughtless, frivolous, selfish indolence; great intellect expanded by culture and exercise, and stolid ignorance which will not learn; splendid abundance, and squalid want; health radiant in its present joy, and sickness suffering in its gaunt despair; cruelty, and kindness; generosity, and meanness; courage, and cowardice; in the same street-in the same house-some of these antitheses in the same heart! Observe
I. In the streets. Apathy and zeal, honesty and fraud, the athlete and the cripple, the millionaire and the pauper, the abstainer and the drunkard, the sister of mercy and the painted harlot, meeting and touching each other-joy and sorrow, good and evil, life and death. I passed by a great mansion glowing with light from roof to basement, with long lines of carriages hard by; and tapers glowed, and music breathed, and beauty led the ball. Not many days after I passed it again, and the stones were thickly covered with litter to deaden the sound of wheels, and I knew that sickness was in that house. And yet once again, and the rooms were darkened which had been ablaze with light, and there was silence where I heard the joyous music, broken now only by the sigh of the sorrowful; and again there was a long line of carriages, but they were filled with mourners, and at the head of all was the hearse.
II. In our homes-what contrasts! Only an outer wall may separate the house where there is peace and contentment, where hearts are of each other sure, where there is the tenderness, the respect, the loyalty of true affection, where forethought and forbearance unite husband and wife, parent and child, brother and sister, master and servant, and bring domestic happiness-that only bliss of paradise which has survived the fall. Only an outer wall may divide this bright abode from the dwelling-place of jealous suspicion, fretful disquiet, sullen resistance, waste, lewdness, and tyranny.
III. In our hearts-ah! YOU know, you only, the bitterness and the joy. Yes, you know the cold, dark shadows and the sunny gleams succeeding in such swift and strange alternation, like the uncertain glories of an April day. (S. R. Hole, M. A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson1891 · Public DomainOn vv1–41. And after six days. Compare Mark 9:2–8; Luke…
1. And after six days. Compare Mark 9:2–8; Luke 9:28–36; John 1:14, and 2 Peter 1:18. Six days after the conversation recorded in the last chapter. Luke says, “about an eight days.” About, not exactly. Luke's eight days include the fractional days at the beginning and end of the day of the conversation and the day of transfiguration. Matthew's six days are the six complete days intervening between them. Jesus taketh Peter, James and John. The three apostles who were chosen to be nearest to the Lord. Into a high mountain. Not Mt. Tabor, as tradition holds, but probably Mt. Hermom. It could not have been Mt. Tabor, for, as we learn from Josephus, who lived in that time, the top of Mt. Tabor was then occupied by a town and fortress. On the other hand, the Lord was in the vicinity of Mt. Hermon (Matt. 16:13, note); Hermon was a “high mountain,” ten thousand feet high, visible over most of Palestine.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary1892 · Public DomainOn v1Mat_17:1. After six days.—Within a week of Peter’s confession.…
CRITICAL NOTES
Mat_17:1. After six days.—Within a week of Peter’s confession. St. Luke has “about an eight days after,” according to the common Jewish reckoning, by which each part of a day is counted as a day (Carr). An high mountain.—Since the fourth century tradition has fixed on Mount Tabor, in Galilee, as the locality of this event. This opinion is, however, evidently untenable. Not only was Mount Tabor inhabited to its summit at the time (see Robinson), but it seems exceedingly improbable that Jesus would have so suddenly left His retreat in the highlands of Gaulonitis, and transferred the scene of one of His most secret revelations to Galilee, where He was everywhere persecuted. The mountain seems likely to have been Hermon (Lange).
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Mat_17:2. Transfigured.—The transfiguration proper, the general statement that Jesus “was transfigured before them,” is immediately followed out into explanatory details. It was twofold: the radiance of His face, and the gleaming whiteness of His raiment, which shone “like the snow” on Hermon, smitten by the sunshine. Probably we are to think of the whole body as giving forth the same mysterious light, which made itself visible even through the white robe He wore. This would give beautiful accuracy and appropriateness to the distinction drawn in the two metaphors, that His face was “as the sun,” in which the undiluted glory was seen; and His garments as the light, which is sunshine diffused and weakened. There is no hint of any external source of the brightness. It does not seem to have been a reflection from the visible symbol of the Divine presence, as was the fading radiance on the face of Moses. That symbol does not come into view till the last stage of the incident. We are then to think of it as arising from within, not cast from without. We cannot tell whether it was voluntary or involuntary (Maclaren). Are we to think of night or of day? Perhaps the former is slightly the more probable, from the fact of the descent being made “the next day” (Luke). Our conception of the scene will be very different, as we think of that lustre from His face, and that bright cloud, as outshining the blaze of a Syrian sun, or as filling the night with glory. But we cannot settle which view is correct (ibid.).
Mat_17:3. Moses and Elias.—The appropriate representatives of the law and the prophets. And as all the distinguishing peculiarities of the law and the prophets pointed, as with outstretched finger, to the Messiah, and waited for their accomplishment in His person and in His work, it is not to be wondered at that Moses and Elijah should have had much in their hearts which they would like to say to Jesus, and that Jesus should have much in His heart which He would like to say to them. See Luk_9:31 (Morison).
Mat_17:4. Let us make.—I will make (R.V.). The transition to the singular is in keeping with Peter’s temperament (Carr). Tabernacles.—Little huts made out of boughs of trees or shrubs (ibid.).
Mat_17:9. The vision.—See Mar_9:9; Luk_9:36.
Mat_17:10. Elias must first come.—If Elijah was to come and prepare the way, why had he thus come from the unseen world for a moment only?
Mat_17:11. Elias truly shall first come.—Cometh (K.V.). Our Lord’s words are obviously enigmatic in their form, and, as such, admit of two very different interpretations. Taken literally, as they have been by very many both in earlier and later times, they seem to say that Elijah shall come in person before the yet future day of the Lord, the great second advent of the Christ. So, it has been argued, the prophecy of Mal_4:5 shall yet have a literal fulfilment, and John the Baptist when he confessed that he was not Elijah (Joh_1:21) was rightly expecting his appearance. The words that follow in the next verse are, however, more decisive (Plumptre).
Mat_17:12. Elias is come already.—So far as the prophecy of Malachi required the coming of Elijah, that prophecy had been fulfilled in the Baptist, all unconscious of it as he was, as coming in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luk_1:17) (ibid.).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Mat_17:1-13
A glimpse of glory.—This passage is connected very intimately with that immediately before it. The occurrence it describes took place about a week—about “six days” (Mat_17:1; Mar_9:2) according to one way of counting—about “eight days” (Luk_9:28) according to another way—“after” the prediction of Mat_16:28. We may look upon it, therefore, as a following up of what the Saviour had said in the concluding portion of that chapter (Mat_16:21-28) to the disciples at large, and as intended still further to prepare them all, by preparing three of the chief among them (two of whom were afterwards spoken of as “pillars,” Gal_2:9), for His (most unexpected) coming passion and death. And it certainly seems to have been well calculated to have this effect, partly by the impressive assurance which it gave to these three of the coming glory of Christ; and partly by the significant way in which it connected that glory with His previous passion and death.
I. The coming glory of Christ.—This was testified to them in various ways. First, by what they are now shown of His person. They see Him (Mat_17:2) as He is to appear when He comes in His “glory” (Mat_25:31)—“transfigured” till His very “garments” have the radiance of “light.” Next, by what they are shown of those who appear with Him in “glory” (Luk_9:31). Two chief representatives of the faith of the past, one representing the “law,” and one the “prophets,” are seen in attendance upon Him; and are heard “talking with Him” of that which had yet to be accomplished by Himself (Luk_9:31). Thirdly, by the striking effect thus produced on themselves. It fills them at once with rapture and fear. It overwhelms them, at the same moment, with both confusion and joy. What they ought to say they none of them know. What one of them does say shows what they all feel, viz., that nothing can be better, in their judgment, than for things to stay as they are (see Mat_17:4). Oh! what fervour and depth, what wonder and joy, what utter contentment there breathes in those words! And how prophetic they are also of that which is to be verified with regard to all faith at the end! (1Th_4:17). Fourthly, by that which they are now permitted to see of the glory of the Father Himself. For such we take that “bright cloud” of which we read here to have been—something akin to that mysterious “Shekinah” of which they had heard tell in old days, and which filled them with “fear,” therefore, as they “entered into it,” and felt it both above and around them, on every side. And lastly, by that which they are now permitted to hear of His voice—coming “out of the cloud,” as it did, and proclaiming aloud as well the supremacy and Sonship, as the faultless perfection of Jesus, and calling upon all those who would listen to the Father to listen to Him (end of Mat_17:8); and testifying to Him so as He who was to come hereafter in the “glory of the Father” (Mat_16:27). Almost all, in short, that is to mark the consummation itself is anticipated here, as it were. On that “high mountain apart,” these three disciples catch the radiancy of that yet unrisen Sun; and see in this vision what is at last to be seen openly by every eye in the world (Rev_1:7). The whole scene, in a word, is both a pledge and a sample of the future glory of Christ.
II. The previous passion of Christ.—This vision of His glory was connected with His passion in two remarkable ways. It was so, on the one hand, at the time of the vision itself. In the very midst of its glory, when the Saviour Himself is seen in “glory,” and when the same is true of those visitors from heaven who are heard speaking with Him, this subject of His passion is, as it were, that brought to the front. It is the subject, St. Luke tells us, of which they converse (Luk_9:31). They spake of it also under a peculiar title—viz., as a departure or “decease”—perhaps, because when looked at in the light of that glory it was not so much a death or dissolution of nature as a mere change of place, a going away. They spake of it, at the same time, as being something of great importance and necessity, something to which both they and He were then looking forward as that which had yet to be “accomplished.” They speak so much so, in fact, as even to name the place where it had to be done. And thus show, as it were, that to them His future glory was to follow His passion. First the cross and then the crown. First the shame and then the glory. First death, then fulness of life. So it is, in the very midst of that vision, that their language declares. Hardly less remarkable, next, in the same direction, is that which follows this vision. When it is all over, Jesus touches them and they gain courage thereby to “lift up their eyes” and look round. They see “no one save Jesus only” (Mat_17:8). Then, rising up together with Him, they come down from the mountain—apparently, for the present, too full of thought to say much. But their Master speaks; and that so as to show at once what is still in His thoughts. See the order of thought. In the distance that coming in glory of which the vision was an assurance. In the foreground that death of which He had previously told them, and which they had heard spoken of during the vision itself. Between the two His “rising again”—whatever that meant (Mar_9:10). Much the same is it, when, perplexed by this saying, they ask Him about Elias (Mat_17:10). For His answer is such as to fix their attention immediately on that fulfilment of the prophecy of Elias, which was to be found in the appearance of John the Baptist, and to that termination of the career of the Baptist which was a prophecy, as it were, of His death (Mat_17:11-12). That great catastrophe is what He is thinking of now the vision is over; as that was also what He had thought of and spoken of so plainly before (Mat_16:21) the vision began.
On the whole, therefore, we see how strikingly mingled is the character of this scene; and, therefore, how doubly calculated to effect the object apparently in view. By one, at least, of those mentioned here, we learn that this assurance of Christ’s future glory was never forgotten (2Pe_1:16-18). And we can well believe that it would be with the darker lines of the intimation (and with that touch of light in reference to the resurrection by which these were brightened in turn), as we know it was with that very similar twofold intimation of Joh_2:19-22. And thus would all the disciples through these three, and these three through this special deposit entrusted to them alone for the time (Mat_17:9), be prepared to overcome that coming trial which was to try them indeed. Forewarned and fore-encouraged; and so doubly forearmed!
HOMILIES ON THE VERSES
Mat_17:1-9. The transfiguration.—
I. The witnesses of the transfiguration: Peter, James, and John—why these three?
1. Because three could keep a secret, but twelve could not. The context shows that it was of extreme importance that the transfiguration should be kept hid till after the resurrection.
2. Because, probably, these three were in deeper sympathy with the Saviour.
3. Notwithstanding their sympathy, the A.V. represents them as falling asleep (Luk_9:23). Trench proposes another translation—“Having kept themselves awake throughout, they saw His glory and the two men that stood with Him.” The A.V. teaches that they slept at the commencement of the scene, but awoke before it was over. But according to the other rendering, they were eye-witnesses of the whole transaction. Either way the language implies that they felt drowsy, that they wanted to sleep. Was this drowsiness natural? Not altogether; the excessive splendour around them produced a sensation of heaviness.
II. The principle of the transfiguration.—
1. One of the Evangelists notes that as “He prayed” the marvellous change in His appearance was effected. In communion with His Father such intense rapture possessed His soul that it visibly glowed through the dark covering of the body. Are we to perceive in this notable occurrence a principle illustrated or a principle defied? Is there anything in it for the race? I believe there is; it is only a marked exemplification of a universal principle—that the outward form receives its lustre or its baseness from the spirit.
2. The word “transfigured” means literally “metamorphosed.”
3. Many critics of no mean ability maintain that the emphatic words in the verse are—“before them.” Professor Tayler Lewis, for instance, says that the tense of the verb suggests that transfiguration was not a rare exception in the Saviour’s career upon the earth. Communing night after night with His Father on solitary mountain tops, it was not unusual for Him to be transfigured; the sweet joy of His soul often pierced like sunbeams through His frail tenement of clay; the extraordinary thing on this occasion was that He permitted the Divine ecstasy to be witnessed by others. Professor Godwin in his “Notes” throws out a similar hint.
III. The celestial visitants at the transfiguration.—Moses and Elias.
1. These departed saints appeared probably as representatives of the ancient economy. Moses was the founder of Judaism, Elias its reformer. Now, the system which the one inaugurated and the other ratified, was about to undergo a change, not, indeed, of destruction but of transfiguration.
2. They further appeared, probably, as representatives of the other world. Jesus is on the eve of His passion. Consequently the attention of the other world is concentrated on this—two appear as a deputation to convey to Him the sympathy of the saints already made perfect. The grandest purpose of this scene was to gird Him for the hour of His agony and death.
3. “They appeared unto Him in glory, and spake of the decease,” literally, exodus or departure. What a strange commingling of colours! Glory and decease, heaven and death, are brought into close juxtaposition.
4. “They talked of the decease which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem.” In death others are passive, save as they struggle against the dissolution of the nature; but He was active, focussing the everlasting energies of His being upon its performance.
IV. The witness of the Father at the transfiguration.—
1. The bright light—a cloud made luminous by the Divine effulgence within.
2. The voice.
3. “Hear Him.”
V. The effect of the transfiguration.
1. The effect upon the disciples was to exhilarate them, to throw them into a rapture of wonder and joy which they could hardly restrain.
2. The effect upon the Saviour was to gird Him for the coming conflict.—J. C. Jones, D.D.
On the Holy Mount.—Some of the more general lessons which we may learn from this striking scene.
1. We are reminded that seclusion is needed for the highest sort of devotion. Luke tells us that the transfiguration of the Lord took place as He was praying, and so we are warranted in concluding that Jesus and His three disciples withdrew to the mountain-top for special communion with God.
2. We are reminded that a devotional spirit sees new glory in Christ and in His Word. When Peter and his brethren retired apart with Christ He was transfigured before them, and Moses and Elijah shared His brightness. Now, when we give ourselves to the devotional study of the Scriptures, new radiance breaks forth from its pages for us.
3. We are reminded that devotion is not the whole of life. Peter wanted to remain on that summit altogether. But he knew not what he said. There was a world to be redeemed, and how could that be accomplished if Jesus were held back there from the cross? There was, even at that very moment, a poor demoniac in the valley, waiting their descent, in order that he might be cured.
4. We are reminded that devotion furnishes support for the performance of the duties and the endurance of the trials of life. The Redeemer Himself, even in the garden and on the cross, was upheld by the remembrance of this voice from the midst of the cloud; and we know that Peter, long after, when contemplating his decease, looked back upon the whole scene as one of the strongest verifications of the gospel (2Pe_1:16-18).—W. M. Taylor, D.D.
The transfiguration.—When we set ourselves deliberately to consider what the obstructions were which then lay in the way of a true faith in Christ on the part of the Apostles, we can discern how singularly fitted, in its time, its mode, and all its attendant circumstances, this glimpse of the glorified condition of our Lord was to remove these obstructions and establish them in that faith. For:—
I. It helped them to rise to a true conception of the dignity of the Saviour’s person.
II. It was not a little perplexing, the position which Christ assumed towards the Jewish priesthood and the Mosaic ritual. But if there entered into the minds of our Lord’s Apostles a doubt as to the actual inner spiritual harmony between their Master’s teaching and that of Moses and the Prophets, the vision of the mount—the sight of Moses and Elias, the founder and the restorer, the two chief representatives of the old covenant, appearing in glory, entering into such fellowship with Jesus, owning Him as their Lord—must have cleared it away, satisfying them by an ocular demonstration that their Master came not to destroy the law and the prophets—not to destroy, but to fulfil.
III. The manner of Christ’s death was thus, and of itself, a huge stumbling-block in the way of faith—one over which, with all that had been done beforehand to prepare them, the Apostles at first stumbled and fell. It formed the one and only topic of that sublimest interview (Luk_9:31).
IV. The peculiar way in which Jesus spake of His relationship to God was another great difficulty in the way of faith. It seemed so strange, so presumptuous, so blasphemous, for a man—with nothing to mark him off as different from other men—to speak of God as His Father, not in any figurative or metaphorical sense, not as any one, every one of His creatures might do, but in such a sense as obviously to imply oneness of nature, of attributes, of authority, of possession. So from that cloudy glory which hung for a few moments above the mountaintop the Father’s own loving voice was heard, authenticating all that Jesus had said, or was to say, of the peculiar relationship to Him in which He stood, and saying, “This is My beloved Son,” etc.—W. Hanna, D.D.
Mat_17:8. Christ central and alone.—The surface lesson of the text is this, that Jesus Christ does not leave us when the extraordinary manifestations of His glory are taken away—when the joy and the splendour of the vision are gone He is still left to His faithful disciples. As Matthew Henry quaintly puts it: “After the special feast is over daily bread will yet be ours.” Let who will depart, then; He lives! He remains! “Jesus only”—it sums up the common heritage of the saints of God through the dim centuries of the past, and it will do so right on until the end.
I. Jesus Christ stands alone here, as elsewhere in Christian experience.—Moses is gone and Elias is gone; law-giver and prophet have vanished; the disciples see only the Master Himself, present in their midst. And this, too, is significant, for the gospel offers to us, not the law and not the prophets, but Christ, and Christ only; Christ linked with the law if you will, Christ fulfilling the law; Christ revealed in the prophets, Christ testified to by the prophets; but Christ standing alone in the matter of salvation to every one of us. To men with eyes turned heavenward, looking toward the unseen, longing, it may be, for visions and revelations, it offers “Jesus only”—the revelation of the Father in the face of the Son.
II. The pre-eminence, therefore, given to Jesus in these exalted moments of discipleship.—Moses and Elias appear, law-giver and prophet stand there, that they may “testify of His glory.” Then they have gone, and you may say of them their splendour has been dwindling ever since, even as the stars disappear when the sun itself has arisen. “These are they,” said Christ of all the prophets and of all the Scriptures, “that testify of Me.” And if you search the New Testament through and through it is always so of Him who is the Author and Finisher of this faith, the Prophet, Priest, and King of this new dispensation. And if men miss this they miss everything, the one point above all else of importance. For long centuries astronomy went wrong and made no progress, until it learned to place the sun in its true position as the centre of the solar system; and so it is with men and with creeds until they come to see Jesus as He is and as the Father has revealed Him.
III. All this points to the sufficiency of Jesus in the life left to these disciples coming down from the mount.—If the vision means anything it means this—whatever else it may imply—Jesus Christ is presented alone to His people, because Jesus Christ alone and in Himself is enough for His people.—W. Baxendale.
“Jesus only.”
1. It is the summing up of revelation.—All others vanish; He abides.
2. It is the summing up of the world’s history.—Thickening folds of oblivion wrap the past, and all its mighty names get forgotten; but His figure stands out, solitary against the background of the past, as some great mountain, which is seen long after the lower summits are sunk below the horizon.
3. Let us make this the summing up of our lives.—We can venture to take Him for our sole Helper, Pattern, Love, and Aim, because He, in His singleness, is enough for our hearts. There are many fragmentary precious things, but one pearl of great price.
4. Then this may be a prophecy of our deaths.—A brief darkness, a passing dread, and then His touch and His voice saying, “Arise, be not afraid.” So we shall lift up our eyes and find earth faded and its voices fallen dim, and see “no one any more, save Jesus only.”—A. Maclaren, D.D.
“Jesus only.”—Consider the words as they are connected with:—
I. Christian doctrine.—
1. The solitariness of Christ’s personal grandeur—Jesus only is the Son of God.
2. The exclusiveness of Christ’s official work—Jesus only is the Redeemer of the world.
3. The permanence of the dispensation of Christ—Moses and Elias are gone, but Jesus remains, and “Jesus only.”
II. Experience of the believer.—Christ is the only unchanging source of the believer’s comfort.
III. The only hope of the sinner.—“Jesus only” is the way to God. “There is none other name,” etc.—Edward Steane, D.D.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
William B. Godbey1900 · Public DomainOn v1Mat 17:1-13; Mar 9:2-13; Luk 9:28-36. Mark: “And after…
CHAPTER 37
TRANSFIGURATION
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Mat 17:1-13; Mar 9:2-13; Luk 9:28-36. Mark: “And after six days, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John, and carries them up into an exceedingly high mountain, privately, alone; and He was transfigured before them, and His garments became shining, exceedingly white as snow, such as no fuller on earth is able to whiten. And there appeared unto them Elijah, with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.” Luk 9:30 : “Behold, two men were talking with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who, being seen in glory, were speaking of His departure, which He was about to fulfill in Jerusalem. And Peter, and those who were along with Him, had been burdened with sleep. But keeping awake through the night, they saw His glory, and the two men who were standing with Him.” The transfiguration is the most unearthly scene mortal eyes were ever permitted to behold. Here, again, we see the signal honor conferred by our Lord on Peter, James, and John, who certainly did enjoy a deeper insight into Divine things than the other nine.
a. What was the character of that wonderful scene? It was a prelibation of heaven, come down to earth — i.e., a peep into the glory world; Jesus, for the time, putting on His glory in the presence of Peter, James, and John, that these notable apostles might be prepared to edify us all as eye- witnesses. Their descriptions are very graphic; Mark, Peter’s amanuensis, certifying that His raiment was whiter than any fuller on earth could possibly make it, His countenance and entire person shining with a brightness infinitely eclipsing the noonday sun in his meridian splendor. The scene transpired in the night, perhaps after several hours spent in prayer, in which their weary bodies became sleepy; the transcendent glory, when bursting on them, utterly expelling all drowsiness, so they had no trouble to keep wide awake all the balance of the night, so thrilled with the unearthly glory that they felt like remaining there forever; hence suggested “to build tabernacles.” Amid the scene, Moses and Elijah both appear.
How did the apostles know them? Either by their statues or Divine intuition, and more probably the latter. They appear in their glory, as both of their bodies had been long ago glorified. When Elijah mounted the fiery chariot, he lost all mortality, materiality, and every ounce of his weight, still retaining his identity, which had passed into celestial glory. If Moses was not translated from Pisgah’s pinnacle, he was raised from the dead, thus, in either case, escaping from Satan’s material prison, in consequence of which he gave the archangel Michael an awful battle (Jud 1:9), only to encounter signal defeat, while Moses, with the archangel, sweeps up the shining way, and joins the enraptured host in the city of God. We have in the glorified manifestation of Moses and Elijah a clear confirmation of the glorious destination of all God’s saints; those living on the earth at the Lord’s appearing being translated into the glorified state suddenly (1Th 4:13-18), like Elijah, when he mounted the chariot of fire; and all the buried saints resurrected, like Moses, when Michael came after him, and took him to heaven; thus Moses and Elijah, representing all the saints of all ages, and thus appearing in their glory, are an incontestable earnest of the glorification awaiting all the saints, some through transition, and others through the resurrection. Moses and Elijah, representing the two great departments of the old disperisation — i.e., the Law and the Prophets, the former being the lawgiver, and the latter, the greatest of the prophets; hence Moses and Elijah here appear in glory, not only confirming the glorification of all the saints, some by translation and others by the resurrection, but as the representatives of the Law and the Prophets, they here appear in the presence of Jesus, to whom they resign their delegated and expiring power, thus recognizing the supercession of the Law and the Prophets by the Kingdom of Heaven. They depart away before the scene is over, signifying the retreat of the old dispensation and the incoming of the new. Luk 9:33 : “And it came to pass, while they were departing from Him [i.e., Moses and Elijah], Peter said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three tabernacles, one for Thee, one for Moses, and one for Elijah; not knowing what he says.” No wonder Peter felt like staying there forever, as he had really witnessed a prelude of heavenly glory, practically spending those wonderful hours in heaven. Yet he did not understand what he was talking about, as Moses and Elijah had already finished their errand, and were moving back to heaven. Jesus must soon go, and Peter, James, and John, with the other nine, must go to the ends of the earth, preaching the gospel; hence permanently abiding there was utterly out of the question. Amid Pentecostal meetings, especially holiness camps, we frequently are permitted to tarry a little while on the Mount of Transfiguration, reluctant to come down; yet we must come down, and finish our work, fighting sin and Satan in the dark valleys of a lost world. “And He speaking these things, and there was a cloud, and it overshadowed them; and they were afraid while they were entering into the cloud. And there was a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is My Beloved Son: hear ye Him; and while the voice was sounding, Jesus was found alone, and they kept silent, and told no one, in those days, any of those things which they had seen.”
b. A world of investigation and controversy has labored through all bygone ages to locate the Mount of Transfiguration. When I was on Mount Tabor, which is a long way from Caesarea-Philippi, far out southwest, near Nazareth and the Mediterranean Sea, I saw three magnificent stone temples, somewhat in ruins, the Latin monk, in charge of the convent constantly occupied on that summit, pointing them out to me as these three tabernacles which Peter suggested to build — one for Jesus, one for Moses, and another for Elijah. The convent on that mountain perpetuates the memory of the transfiguration. Origen, who was born A. D. 185 — a great preacher and a martyr in his day; his father being a preacher and a martyr; also his grandfather; the latter, of course, having seen the apostles, and having been converted through their ministry — certified, and has left it in his writings, that Tabor was the Mount of Transfiguration. Saint Jerome, who spent thirty years in Palestine in the fourth century, and other Christian fathers, add their testimony, so that, through the ages past, Tabor has been visited by thousands of Christian pilgrims, believing, without a doubt, that while walking over its summit and worshipping in its three tabernacles, they were on the veritable spot of this wonderful heavenly scene, where our Lord brought a prelude of celestial glory down, and permitted mortal eyes to contemplate the unearthly splendors of the bright upper world. It seems almost a pity to mar the sanctity and glory of this illustrious mountain by even insinuating that the adoring myriads who have lived and died, believing without a doubt that they had actually trodden upon that hallowed spot, and lingered in the tabernacles built responsive to Peter’s suggestion, and with their mortal feet trodden the summit where Jesus, Moses, and Elijah once stood, invested with celestial glory. But facts are stubborn things, and I must say that they are unfavorable to the identity of Tabor with the Mount of Transfiguration.
c. Others have labored assiduously to identify it with the Mount of Beatitudes, on which our Lord’s celebrated sermon was delivered, lying a few miles back from Capernaum, and overshadowing it, as this mountain is quite lofty; and Capernaum is the first place mentioned after the transfiguration, and the events which transpired at the base of the mountain; presuming that the six days mentioned as transpiring before the transfiguration were, in all probability, spent traveling, giving them ample time to come from Caesarea-Philippi down to the Sea of Galilee.
d. As to the six days immediately preceding the transfiguration, in which we have not an intimation, much less a record, of anything said or done, it seems quite plausible that they have a symbolic signification, typifying the days of Jehovah.
“Let not this escape your memories, beloved, that one day with the Lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2Pe 3:8.)
The adverb “as” is hos, and means “about,” vindicating the indefiniteness of the period, simply a long time, about a thousand years, so that we must not emphasize human chronology too rigidly, as God is His own Timekeeper.
“For, not following cunningly devised fables, have we made known to you the power and coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but being made eyewitnesses of His majesty. For receiving from God the Father the honor and glory of such a voice, having been borne to Him from the excellent glory, This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. We heard this voice, borne from heaven, being with Him in the holy mount.” (1Pe 1:16-18.)
You see from this Scripture that Peter refers to it as a preliminary coming of the Lord, and a confirmation of His sure and certain second and glorious advent, which was thus adumbrated while on this mount, which was made holy by the heavenly scene which there transpired. Now these six days preceding the transfiguration here mentioned, symbolize the six Divine days, aggregating six thousand years, preceding the glorious coming of the Lord.
e. “And having come out from thence, they traveled through Galilee.”
(Mar 9:30.) This statement certainly sweeps away the theories in favor of Tabor, Beatitudes, and all other places, except that region in which they have spent several days in addition to the six here mentioned. Hence the facts certainly favor the conclusion that it was one of the mountains in the vicinity of Caesarea-Philippi. Strenuous efforts have been made to locate the transfiguration on the highest peak of Hermon. This is hardly probable, as it is about eighty miles from there to the loftiest summit, and directly away from Galilee, due north, whereas we have not an intimation that Jesus ever traveled north of Caesarea-Philippi in His earthly ministry. If He had gone so far, we certainly would have some specification of it. Hermon is the highest peak of the great Anti-Lebanon Range, which runs from Northern Syria south to the vicinity of the Galilean Sea, Caesarea- Philippi being in the Jordan Valley, down at the foot of this great range, and many lofty summits round about, well suited to verify the description here given of this celebrated holy mountain. I climbed a lofty mountain, belonging to the Hermon Range, overshadowing Caesarea Philippi, visiting the ruins of a large temple built by Herod the Great, where tradition says Jesus preached. I see no reason why that mountain, or some other one overhanging the Jordan Valley, through which they traveled back to Capernaum, might not have been the veritable Mount of Transfiguration f. Amid the multiplicity of claimants, through ages of superstition, we must conclude that no one knows that veritable mountain. There are so many summits about Caearea-Philippi, and rising along the Anti-Lebanon Range, hanging over the Jordan Valley, any one of which would satisfy the description, that we must leave the matter undecided, simply concluding that the preponderant argument favors some one of those mountains in the vicinity of Caesarea-Philippi, which are convenient to their journey down the Jordan, bearing in mind the affirmation (Mar 9:30), “Having come out from thence, they traveled through Galilee.” Now bear in mind, Galilee runs up almost to Caesarea-Philippi, favoring the conclusion that the Mount of Transfiguration must have been in that vicinity. Some have suggested that, as it took place in the night, they would have been uncomfortably cold on the summit of Hermon, ten thousand feet high.
While I do not believe they went to that summit, as it was too far north, the question of cold is relieved with reference to that mountain, or any other, by the fact that it was midsummer. As Capernaum is the first place mentioned, where they halted in their journey through Galilee, the facts certainly corroborate the conclusion that the mountain was up there near Caesarea Philippi, as they would travel through Galilee all the way to Capernaum. As our Lord knew what floods of superstition and actual idolatry would accumulate on that memorable spot — which has actually taken place on Tabor — I do not wonder that He dropped the veil over it, withholding its name. Peter, writing about it, gives us no clew to its identity, simply calling it the “holy mountain.” Consequently its identity is all at sea, and must so remain, till Peter, James, and John in glory return.
Mat 17:9. “And they, coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell no one the vision until the Son of man may be risen from the dead. His disciples asked Him, saying, Why then do the scribes say that it behooves Elijah first to come? And Jesus, responding, said to them, Indeed, Elijah cometh first, and will restore all things.” As Elijah here means John the Baptist, how did he restore, verify, complete, all things? John was the greatest of the prophets, and actually wound up the prophetical dispensation, which focalized in Christ, by not only preaching Him, but pointing Him out, and publicly introducing Him to the world. “But I say unto you, That Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but did unto him all things which they wished; the Son of man is thus about to suffer by them. Then His disciples understood that He spoke to them concerning John the Baptist.” This transfiguration, taking place about eight months before the crucifixion, was the solemn installation of our Lord into that momentous series of events destined to culminate in His arrest, arraignment, condemnation, execution, resurrection, and ascension, thus unveiling to mortal eyes the heavenly side of His Messiahship. O that you and I may so sink away into God, and lose sight of this world, yea, climb so high up the Mount of Transfiguration, that we shall reach an experience in which we have a constant panorama of these thrilling realities, revelatory of the heavenly state, which is so nigh, and only separated by an intervening veil, liable to drop at any moment, thus revealing to us the unutterable glories of celestial worlds, of which, in the transfiguration, we have a vivid adumbration!
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible1900 · Public DomainOn v1Mat 17:1-2
Mat 17:1-2
I. Not for the Apostles’ sake only was the glory of the Lord thus revealed. In them the whole Church since saw it, and to us, as to them, it is given as a support of faith, a kindling of our hope. To us, too, it is a witness of our Lord’s Divinity; nay, more, of His Divinity and humanity together; it is to us a faint gleam of that ineffable mystery, how man can be taken into God, how God can dwell in man, and fill him with the glory of the Father. Great is the comfort to us that He, our High Priest, our Intercessor, is thus glorified, is thus present with God, and is God. Yet does this mystery, in a still more definite way, open to us the greatness of our future hopes; it gives a glimpse of that which we have no thought to conceive, "the good things" which God has, in His boundless mercy, in store for those who love Him.
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II. We have been made partakers of Christ’s death, passion, resurrection, life; we also, if we be faithful, are being made partakers of His glory, for this the Apostle expressly says, that "we with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord," contemplating Him and seeking, by prayer and daily diligence, to have His image, line by line, retraced in us, are being changed into the same image from glory to glory, through the Lord the Spirit. Through that indwelling glory did the face of St. Stephen shine like the face of an angel. Even now do we sometimes see the faces of God’s saints gleam with unearthly purity and love; even now, as the parting spirit sometimes sees heaven open, and hears and almost feels the brushing by of the angels’ wings who shall carry it, or knows the room to be full of angels, or sees the Redeemer Himself, so does the body catch the light it is approaching; even now, ere. we resign the sacred remains to be sown in dishonour, the solemn peace and holy calm spread over them seem to tell us by whom they were inhabited; they seem yet, like the parted spirit, to live to Him; the evening, so closed in, seems the dawning of the resurrection.
III. Our Lord stretcheth forth His hands to bless us, but it is in the form of His cross. The transfiguration is our glory; it sets forth that glory to us, but also how it was to be won for us, by bearing the cross for us; by us, by bearing ours, after Him, in His strength and following Him.
Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times," vol. iii., p. 223.
References: Mat 17:1.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. x., p. 92. Mat 17:1, Mat 17:2.—S. A. Brooke, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xvi., p. 376. Mat 17:1-3.—R. C. Trench, Studies in the Gospels, p. 184; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. i., p. 37. Mat 17:1-8.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 476. Mat 17:1-9.—J. C. Jones, Studies in St. Matthew, p. 274. Mat 17:1-13.—A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve, p. 196; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 339; Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. iii., p. 19.
Mat 17:2
The portion of St. Matthew’s Gospel from which the text is taken may be called the Section of the Transfiguration. In it the Church is led by her Lord to a creed, to a worship, and to a work.
I. The Church is led to a creed. The time has now come for estimating the effects of the ministry of Jesus. "Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am?" The object of the Saviour’s education of His Apostles was twofold—to teach them that He is Messiah; to prepare them for the truth that Messiah is to be a sorrowing, bleeding, crucified man. The Church is led to the creed of the Divinity and Atonement as the prelude to the Transfiguration.
II. In the Transfiguration itself the Church is led on to a foretaste of glorious worship and high communion—the meeting for a while of the Church militant with the Church triumphant.
III. In the Transfiguration Jesus leads His Church to a work—a work which at first, indeed, they could not perform. On the next day, as they come down from the hill, they find a sufferer below. Strange contrast. Above, the pure heaven; the words of Divine attestation; the form of saints floating in light; the glory, and honour, and majesty given to Jesus. Below, the reproach; the well-meant but baffled effort; the foam on the cut lip; the withered body; the sullen muteness, broken by epileptic cries—the sad lines drawn by St. Mark in four pictorial words. Yet there is a fresh unselfish joy in the energy which Jesus throws into that victorious work. "And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour." It would not be difficult to point out in the Transfiguration (1) a remarkable prophetic symbol of the history of the Church, (2) a summary of the forms of her varied life.
IV. I conclude by drawing two lessons for the spiritual life of each of us: (1) Our individual life must follow and summarize the Section of the Transfiguration. (a) We must lay the foundation deep and strong in the confession of Peter. (b) There must be the love of prayer, of communion with the world unseen; there must be the sacramental feeding upon Christ, the Bread of life; there must be the upward drawing by Christ into the eternal hills. (2) Think of our transfiguration as the result of His. Even our fallen humanity affords hints of this. Each face and form aspires to an ideal which it is the work of art to find. High thoughts and pure emotions ennoble ordinary features. Dying believers catch a radiance from a hidden glory. Such as Christ is in His Transfiguration, such in their measure shall His faithful servants one day be. "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of the Father."
Bishop Alexander, The Great Question, p. 213.
References: Mat 17:2, Mat 17:3.—W. J. Keay, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxi., p. 397. Mat 17:2, Mat 17:9.—C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 207. Mat 17:4.—H. P. Liddon, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii., p. 145. Mat 17:5.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 909; see also Three Hundred Outlines on the New Testament, p. 22; H. Melvill, Penny Pulpit, No. 2,459. Mat 17:5-7.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxix., No. 1727. Mat 17:6, Mat 17:7.—J. Jackson Wray, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxiii., p. 90.
Mat 17:4
The disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration had—
I. A vision of Christ’s Divinity.
II. A vision of glorified saints.
III. A vision of the Father’s presence.
IV. A vision of Jesus only.
J. Jackson Wray, Light from the Old Lamp, p. 345.
Reference: Mat 17:5.—C. Girdlestone, Twenty Parochial Sermons, 3rd series, p. 153.
Mat 17:8
The Transfiguration, with all its heavenly loveliness, its purity, its fellowship, and its glory, had evidently not been an unmixed enjoyment to the three men who were elected to see it. They were not yet capable of such a scene. It was a comfort and relief to them when it all passed away, and they awoke and lifted up their eyes, and saw "Jesus only."
I. Thus it has been, and it is and it will be, with the pageant of life. There are thousands of things in the world which glisten brightly, and they are about us a little while, and we feel it good to be there. But they were never made to stay. At the best, they are but the poor copies of some great original, for which we were created, and to which they are pointing. And presently, just when we least expect it, it is all withdrawn. And what is left? Truth, reality, simplicity, love, light, the eternal. And what are all these? Have they an embodiment? Jesus—"Jesus only."
II. At the Transfiguration all the rest was only circumstance. It could come and go, wonderful and Divine as it was. But it was not essential; essence never goes, and the essence of everything which is good, and true, and happy, in all worlds, is Jesus. What we have continually to do is to separate circumstance from fact, the non-essential from the essential; to reduce everything to its first principles, to its germs; to see the "I Am"—"Jesus only." (1) See it in the great plan of our salvation. So long as you allot a fraction of the work to yourself, you will never have peace. It is all and only Jesus. (2) Or see it in our sanctification. The Holy Spirit does His own proper work. We fight our great battle with sin. The righteousness of Christ is accounted to us, laid on us like a robe. (3) Or look at the rich and hallowed things with which God has provided, and decked, and endowed His Church—its order, its ministry. They are all the visible expression of great, deep, invisible truths, which lie within them all like hidden mysteries.
III. Could you live upon the mountain of beatitude, and every scene be tipped with gladness, and all this dull existence be transformed into brilliancy, there would be a void. You would want something; you would not be quite happy—never, till you have "Jesus only." Jesus is the soul’s complement.
J. Vaughan, Sermons, 13th series, p. 45.
References: Mat 17:8.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 924; E. W. Shalders, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xvi., p. 187; E. D. Solomon, Ibid., vol. xx., p. 378; H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, Sunday Sermonettes for a Year, pp. 79, 138; G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 253. Mat 17:14-21.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 344; S. D. Thomas, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxix., p. 102. Mat 17:14-27.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. iii., p. 29. Mat 17:17.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xiv., No. 821.
Mat 17:19
I. There are two different ideas about the way in which the problems of the world are to be solved, the salvation of the world, whatever it is, is to be brought about. Pure irreligion looks to man to do it. Let man go on thinking, inventing, planning, governing, and the result must come. On the other hand, a certain kind of religion looks to God to do it. Let men lie still, purely submissive, without a movement or a will, and God, in His good time, will bring the happy end. The first of these two ideas has no faith, and it fails. The other idea fails also. Man standing aloof, and expecting to see God redeem the world, sees no such thing. Then, too, there is a lack of faith; man learns that simply to trust God with expectation that He will do everything is not faith. Then, in the failure of these two ideas about the world’s salvation, comes another, which is distinctly different from either. Not man alone, and not God alone, is going to purify the world. But man and God, made one by perfect sympathy, by the entire openness of life between them, they are the two together; nay, they two together are not two; they are the one which is to make the old world into the new world by the driving out of sin. The principle which makes God and man to be one power is faith.
II. In Christ there was the fulfilment of that which when men try to conceive of what the world needs most, is the complete expression of their fullest dreams—man in God, God in man, the Divine and human perfectly reconciled, perfectly united; not two forces, but one force. That was the Christ who went from haunt to haunt of the devils, and bade them flee; and they, the devils of hatred, cruelty, lust, selfishness, brutishness, superstition—they all fled at His presence. And now to fill the earth with Himself, that is His wish and purpose, that is what He is labouring for through all these slow, discouraging centuries, in which, beneath the turmoil and distress upon the surface, the watchful ear can never fail to hear below the sounds which tell us that He is still at work. What is the real meaning of His purpose? Is He not trying to make His brethren what He was, to assert in them, as it was asserted in Him, that it is an Incarnation, a God in man, that is to save the world?
Phillips Brooks, Sermons in English Churches, p. 179.
References: Mat 17:19.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 346; T. Kelly, Pulpit Trees and Homiletic Undergrowth, p. 36; S. Macnaughton, Real Religion and Real Life, p. 232.
Mat 17:19-20
Christ our Pattern.
I. There are two things very hard to our moral natures, and yet most necessary to our happiness; the one of these is that we should be very much afraid of sin, the other that we should not be afraid of death. We know quite well that we ought to be both the one and the other. But this is not enough; we require to learn how we may become so, as well as to know that we ought to become so. Now it was for this end that Christ lived and died openly amongst us, and that the particulars of His life and death were recorded. He might have borne our nature as truly, and died for our sins as truly, had His life been passed away from the sight of men, or had He, like Moses, resigned His spirit on the top of some lonely mountain into the hands of His heavenly Father. But how much of the best support of our souls should we have lost had this been so. We are not only told briefly that He took our nature upon Him, that He lived upon earth for more than thirty years; but we are made, in a manner, the witnesses of His birth, the companions of His ripened manhood. We see Him forsaken, and we see Him insulted; we see Him enduring the extremity of bodily pain; we see Him—and it is the divinest mercy of all—suffering the extremity of inward trouble, of desolateness and fear. We see Him in all these, and we see Him triumph over them all; and we hear Him, when all were over-past, giving up His spirit into the hands of God, to show that in all things we too may be more than conquerors "through Him that loved us."
II. The book in which we may read this is in our hands, and we can use it when we will. It hardly matters what particular chapter of the Gospels we open, for Christ’s life is in every part of it more or less our pattern. The readiest way to have our faith so strengthened as that it may cast out the evil of our hearts is to make ourselves fully acquainted with all the particulars of Christ’s character and life and death. Making His words, on every occasion, familiar to us; so bringing before our minds His actions, so imaging—for surely we may and should try to do so—His very voice and look, may we bring our souls into constant communion with Him.
T. Arnold, Sermons, vol. iii., p. 17.
Consider the principles which flow from this text.
I. We have an unvarying power. (1) We have a Gospel which can never grow old. (2) We have an abiding spirit. (3) We have a Lord, "the same yesterday, and today, and for ever."
II. The condition of exercising this power is faith.
III. Our faith is ever threatened by subtle unbelief.
IV. Our faith can only be maintained by constant devotion and rigid self-denial.
A. Maclaren, The Secret of Power, p. 1.
References: Mat 17:19-21.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. x., No. 549; Three Hundred Outlines on the New Testament, p. 23; S. R. Hole, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. ii., p. 154.
Mat 17:20
The ground of faith in God and immortality is not authority or demonstration, but our sense of right.
I. First, the very fact of our having a sense of right makes it probable that God exists. We do not know where that sense of right comes from. It is the one thing which the theory of development has to stop short of; it is the one thing it cannot give any credible reason for. It seems that there must be an intelligent Will outside of us who is the source of truth, a living Goodness which does not grow into being in us through ages of development, but which has been always and is.
II. Let us take this sense of right with us, and look at the world around us. How shall we explain its being? There are two theories of the world—the Atheistic and the Theistic. We are bound, as scientific men, to choose that theory as probably true which explains best the greatest number of facts, which agrees and harmonizes best with what we have observed. We find order, intelligence, progress to an end, unity among infinite diversity; and the conclusion is that it is probable, in a very high degree, that there is a thoughtful Will behind and in the universe.
III. I turn to the spiritual world. I find existing in myself, and in the greater number of mankind, a whole world of feelings which belong to this idea of God; I find, on looking back through history, that these and similar feelings existed in all civilized communities, nay, that in savage nations, even before the social ideas took shape, these existed in rude form. Did these ideas develop out of nothing? Are they going in the end to nothing? All my sense of right in matters of feeling denies that. I must suppose some One who is Himself the feeling source of all this feeling, and who is its end. Thus probability is added to probability in our minds, and by such addition faith is built up—built up not out of spiritual feeling only, but also out of the confessions of probability which the intellectual sense of truth and the moral sense of right are induced to make.
S. A. Brooke, The Fight of Faith, p. 38.
References: Mat 17:20.—D. W. Simon, Expositor, 1st series, vol. ix., p. 307; H. Goodwin, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxi., p. 296. Mat 17:21.—H. W. Beecher, Ibid., p. 2.83; G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 223. Mat 17:24, Mat 17:25.—W. F. Hook, Sermons on the Miracles, vol. ii., p. 180. Mat 17:24-27.—A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve, p. 223; T. Birkett Dover, The Ministry of Mercy, p. 182. Mat 17:25, Mat 17:26.—H. Melvill, Penny Pulpit, No. 1,780.
Mat 17:27
The story of the tribute-money is not one of the great miracles, and yet its lessons are well worth our careful study.
I. There is what, for the want of a better word, we must call the modesty of Jesus. Rather than offend the prejudices of the people, He would waive His claim. Are not we who call ourselves His disciples too ready to put forth our titles to men’s respect and to stand upon our dignity? Let us not be too exacting, but seek the spirit of Christ, "who, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross."
II. We learn something of the poverty of Jesus. If ever there was a poor man, it was the Lord of life and glory. There is something of greater moment than wealth, and that is character. Money may not elevate, good deeds do. In the conventional meaning of the words, Christ was not worth fifteen pence; yet He could heal the sick and raise the dead. It will be worth our while to weigh ourselves in the true balances, and to find out Heaven’s assessment of our belongings.
III. The story gives us a peep into Christ’s resources. Though He had not the money by Him, He knew where it was. The gold and silver are all His. It could be brought out if the Lord willed it, and yet His treasury is often empty.
IV. We learn that God does not often act without human agency. Christ could have done without Peter. It would have been easy to have willed it, and the fish would have swum to His feet as He stood by the side of the lake, and have dropped the coin within His reach. But He knew that Peter could catch the fish, and so he was sent to do what he was able. It appears to be the Divine plan to do what men cannot, but not to act for us.
V. The story teaches us that he who works for Jesus is sure to get his pay. Christ wanted fifteen pence, and Peter took out of the fish’s mouth half-a-crown. And thus in obeying Christ he paid his own taxes. In keeping His commandments there is great reward.
T. Champness, New Coins from Old Gold, p. 102.
References: Mat 17:27.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. v., p. 316; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. x., p. 118.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow1909 · Public DomainOn v1The Transfiguration
The Transfiguration
1-8. The Transfiguration (Mar_9:2; Luk_9:28).
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St. Leo rightly apprehended the historical situation when he said that in the Transfiguration the principal object aimed at was that in the hearts of the disciples the scandal of the cross might be removed, and that throughout the terrible and humiliating events which were shortly to happen they might be sustained by the remembrance of the revelation which they had been vouchsafed.
The Transfiguration revealed Christ in His divine glory as Son of God. If, as is generally supposed, it took place at night (see Luk_9:37), the spectacle of the face of Christ, shining like the sun in its strength, must have been inexpressibly glorious. His form shone, not like that of Moses with borrowed light, but with a glory which came from within, and was His own. 'We were eye-witnesses of His majesty,' said one of the witnesses (if 2 Peter is authentic). 'And we beheld His glory,' said another, 'the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth': 2Pe_1:16-18; Joh_1:14.
Moses and Elijah appeared, the former as representing the Law, and the latter the prophets, and Christ was seen in the midst of them as greater than both. 'The unity of the Old and New Covenant is wonderfully attested by this apparition of the princes of the Old in solemn yet familiar intercourse with the Lord of the New; and not the unity only, but with this unity the subordination of the Old to the New, that “Christ is the end of the Law” (Rom_10:4), and the object to which all prophecy pointed. (Luk_24:44; Act_10:13; Act_28:23; Rom_3:21), that therefore the great purpose of these had now been fulfilled; all which was declared in the fact that, after their testimony thus given, Moses and Elias disappear, while Christ only remains' (Trench).
Whether the Transfiguration was a vision seen in trance, or a waking reality, has often been discussed. In favour of the former view it is urged that their eyes were 'heavy with sleep,' but St. Luke, who alone mentions this fact, is careful to add that 'they remained awake throughout,' or at least (for the expression is somewhat ambiguous) that they were thoroughly awake at the actual time of the vision. That it was a real objective occurrence, and not a mere illusion, is shown, (1) by its appearing simultaneously to the three apostles; (2) by the conversation between Christ and the visitors. The appearance of Christ with two of His saints apparently in glorified bodies is an earnest of the time of the 'redemption of the body,' when the Lord Jesus Christ 'shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of His glory.' The narrative in St. Matthew and St. Mark is derived from St. Peter. That in St. Luke is largely independent, and may be in part derived from St. John, the only other surviving witness when St. Luke wrote.
1. After six days] Lk 'after about eight days,' either an independent calculation or another way of reckoning. An high mountain] not Mt. Tabor, the top of which was occupied by a fortress, but more probably Hermon, which is near Caesarea Philippi, and is an 'exceeding high mountain '(9,000 ft.), which Tabor is not (1,800 ft.). 2. Transfigured] lit. 'metamorphosed.' The glory of the Godhead burst through the veil of flesh. St. Luke alone mentions that the change took place while Jesus was praying.
3. Moses and Elijah were recognised through the supernatural power of insight which enabled them to be seen.
4. Three tabernacles] or, 'booths.' Peter wished to prolong the stay of the heavenly visitants, and offered to build them temporary houses on the mountain for their accommodation. He felt that it was good to be there in such glorious surroundings, and by no means wished to descend to earth again, to begin the fatal journey to Jerusalem of which Moses and Elijah were speaking (St. Luke). St. Mark adds: 'He wist not what to answer, for they were sore afraid.'
5. A bright cloud] i.e. the visible glory which, according to Jewish ideas, manifested the divine presence. It is the same as the pillar of cloud and fire in the wilderness, the cloud that filled Solomon's Temple, and the visible glory which, according to the rabbis, rested upon the ark, and was called the 'Shechinah.' This is my beloved Son] Lk 'This is my Son, my chosen.' These words, in which the Father Himself testified to Christ's divine Sonship, are similar to those spoken at the Baptism; but whereas those were spoken in part at least to Christ Himself, these were spoken entirely to the disciples. They contain a striking confirmation of Peters late confession, and further teach what the Apostles found it so hard to learn, that the old dispensation was to be entirely superseded by the new. 'Hear,' said the voice of the Father, 'not Moses and Elias, but my beloved Son.'
9-13. Elijah and the Baptist (Mar_9:11).
9. The vision] lit. 'the thing seen.' The word does not imply the unreality of the occurrence. To no man] Not to the multitudes, lest they should be carried away by political enthusiasm; nor to the other disciples, because they were not yet in a fit state to receive the lesson that it taught. To be witnesses of the Transfiguration was a special reward of the Three for their greater faith and greater spiritual receptiveness. 'To him that hath shall be given.' Risen again] Another clear prophecy of the Resurrection.
10. Why then say the scribes?] Jesus, by forbidding the incident to be spoken of (Mat_17:9), seemed to attach little importance to the present appearance of Elijah. 'Why then,' ask the disciples, 'do the scribes attach so much importance to it? And why are we forbidden to reply to their leading objection to your Messiahship, by saying that Elijah has come, and that we have seen him.' Elias must first come] The Jews expected a personal return of Elijah to prepare the way for the Messiah, not another prophet like him: see on Luk_1:17. It was supposed that his peculiar activity would consist in settling ceremonial and ritual questions, doubts and difficulties, and that he would restore to Israel, (1) the golden pot of manna, (2) the vessel containing the anointing oil, (3) the vessel containing the waters of purification, (4) Aaron's rod that budded and bore fruit.
11. Elias truly, etc.] RV 'Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things.' The future 'shall restore' is best explained as a quotation of the exact words of the scribes, and not as a prophecy that Elijah will come in person to prepare the way for Christ's Second Advent, though some understood it to mean this. Restore all things] see Mal_4:6; Act_3:21. The Baptist, to whom Jesus alluded, did not in fact 'restore all things,' nor bring about the perfect moral purification anticipated by the prophet Malachi, but that was the fault of his hearers. The possibility of the Baptist's failure was distinctly contemplated by Malachi, for he adds, 'lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.' Malachi spoke of, and Christ understood by his words, a moral restoration of the nation. The scribes looked for the restoration of the pot of manna, stricter ceremonies, and similar frivolities.
12. But have done] Herod, not the scribes, actually killed John, but Herod only did what the scribes would have been glad to do: cp. Luk_7:30, Luk_7:33.
14-20. Healing of the lunatic (epileptic) (Mar_9:14; Luk_9:37). St. Mark's account is much the fullest. Christ descends from the mount to resume His works of benevolence. He who had communed with God and His prophets in the very atmosphere of heaven, now mingles in the common life of men, and concerns Himself with their troubles. He was full of grace as well as truth. Raphael brings this out in his great picture, which depicts the Transfiguration and the healing of the epileptic boy upon the same canvas.
The scribes had taken advantage of Christ's absence to undermine His influence with the multitude, and their designs had been assisted by the failure of His disciples to heal a peculiarly severe case of epilepsy (Mk). The return of Jesus discomfited the scribes. The epileptic was healed, 'and they were all astonished at the majesty of God' (LK). J. Lightfoot remarks, 'It was very usual with the Jews to attribute the more grievous diseases to evil spirits, especially those wherein either the body was distorted, or the mind disturbed or tossed with a frenzy.' The demon of epilepsy, in the case of infants, was called 'Shibta,' in the case of adults, 'Cordicus.' How far the language of Christ about demons is an accommodation to the ideas of the time is discussed at end of Matthew 4.
15. Lunatick] i.e. epileptic, because epileptics were supposed to be affected by the changes of the moon (luna).
17. O faithless] The rebuke is addressed not only to the discipies, but also to the father of the lad and the multitude.
20. Unbelief] RV 'little faith.'
Faith as a grain of mustard] i.e. the smallest amount: see on Mat_13:31. Ye shall say unto this mountain, etc.] a proverbial expression: see on Mat_21:21;
21. The RV and Westcott and Hort omit the whole v., but it is too strongly attested to be lightly rejected. The parallel in Mk (RV) omits 'and fasting': see on Mar_9:29.
22, 23. Jesus predicts His passion (Mar_9:30; Luk_9:43).
22. Abode] RV 'were gathering themselves together.' Galilee] mentioned because the last miracle had taken place beyond its borders, near Caesarea Philippi.
23. Sorry] They thought only of the Passion, not of the Resurrection, the allusion to which they did not in the least understand. St. Mark says, 'But they understood not the sayjng, and were afraid to ask him.'
24-27. The halfshekel or Temple tribute (peculiar to St. Matthew). Jesus is asked to pay the usual tax towards the maintenance of the temple services. As son of God He claims exemption, yet pays lest He should be thought to dispise the temple. A significant indication of Christ's conciousness of a special relationship to god, unlike that of other men.
24. They that received tribute money] RV 'the half-shekel' (Gk. didrachama). Every male Isralite above the age of twenty was required by the Law (Exo_30:11-16; Exo_38:25-26) to pay half a shekel annually (i.e. about eighteen-pence) towards the maintenance of the Temple worship, as 'a ransom for his soul unto the Lord.' It was usually paid between the fifteenth and twenty-fifth of Adar (March), i.e. about Passover time, so that the money was now considerably overdue.
25. Custom] i.e. taxes on merchandise. Tribute] i.e. taxes on persons and property.
26. Then are the children (RV 'the sons') free] Therefore Jesus, being the Son of the Heavenly King, is free from the Temple tax. 'Children' (sons) is not meant to include the apostles or Christians generally. The plural is only part of the simile.
27. Lest we should offend them] i.e. 'lest we give the collectors, who do not know that I am the Son of God, the false impression that I dishonour the Temple, and so hinder their conversion, go thou,' etc. Offend] RV 'cause to stumble.' A piece of money] lit. 'a stater.' A silver stater was exactly four drachmæ or denarii, i.e. a shekel, enough to pay for two. For me and thee] not 'for us.' The two cases were different. In our Lord's case the payment was a condescension, in Peter's a debt.
There are many authentic historical instances of valuables being found inside fish. Polycrates, tyrant of Samos (6th cent. b.c.), threw into the sea an emerald signet set with gold, the work of the Samian artist Theodorus. A few days later his cook found the signet inside a large fish, which a fisherman had presented to the monarch.
Although the supernatural element in this miracle is not greater than in the other physical miracles, yet its dramatic character, and the absence of the motive of benevolence which so generally characterises our Lord's miracles, suggest to some critics that we have here not strict history, but a mixture of history and tradition, the nucleus of historic fact being that our Lord sent St. Peter to catch a fish, and that this fish, when sold, realised a shekel. This explanation of the incident is quite possible.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey1914 · Public DomainOn v1J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [LXX. D. The…
J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [LXX. D. The Transfiguration].
LXX. THIRD WITHDRAWAL FROM HEROD'S TERRITORY. Subdivision D. THE TRANSFIGURATION. CONCERNING ELIJAH. (A Spur of Hermon, near Cæsarea Philippi.) aMATT. XVII. 1-13; bMARK IX. 2-13; cLUKE IX. 28-36.
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c28 And it came to pass about eight days asix days cafter these sayings [Mark agrees with Matthew in saying six days. Luke qualifies his estimate by saying "about." But if we regard him as including the day of the "sayings" and also the day of the transfiguration, and the other two as excluding these days, then the three statements tally exactly. The "sayings" referred to were the words of Jesus with regard to his suffering at Jerusalem], that aJesus taketh ctook awith him Peter, and James, and John his brother [These three, as leaders among the apostles, needed the special encouragement which was about to be given. For further comment, see Mar_9:30). Moreover there is little doubt that at that time and for centuries previous there was an inhabited fortress upon Mt. Tabor ( Jos_19:12; Jos. B. J. i. 8, 7; Vit. 37). Moreover, Mt. Tabor is not a high mountain, its elevation above the sea being but 1,748 feet. Hermon, on the contrary, is the highest mountain in Palestine, its elevation, according to Reclus, being 9,400 feet. It was Jesus' custom to withdraw for prayer by night ( Mat_14:23, Mat_14:24, Luk_6:12, Luk_21:37, Luk_22:39) and the transfiguration took place at night.] 29 And as he was praying, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment i became white and dazzling. a2 and he was transfigured [i. e., transformed; the description shows to what extent] before [418] them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. bglistering, exceeding white; so as no fuller on earth can whiten them. [We may conceive of the body of Jesus becoming luminous and imparting its light to his garments. The Christian looks forward to beholding such a transfiguration and also to participating in it-- 1Jo_3:2.] a3 And, behold, there appeared unto them ctwo men, who were Moses and bwith cElijah; band they were talking with Jesus. [The three apostles could identify Moses and Elijah by the course of this conversation, though it is possible that miraculous knowledge may have accompanied miraculous sight.] c31 who [i. e., Moses and Elijah] who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. [The word for decease is "exodus," an unusual word for death. It means a departure and is, as Bengel says, a very weighty word, since it includes the passion, crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.] 32 Now Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep [it being night]; but when they were fully awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him. 33 And it came to pass, as they were departing from him, aPeter answered and said banswereth and saith aunto Jesus, bRabbi, cMaster, aLord, it is good for us to be here: band let us make three tabernacles; aif thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. cnot knowing what he said. b6 For he knew not what to answer; for they became sore afraid. [Peter's fears overcame his discretion, but did not silence his tongue. Though he trembled at the fellowship of Moses and Elijah, he also realized the blessedness of it and could not let them depart without an effort to detain them, though the best inducement that he could offer was to build three booths, or arbors, made of the branches of trees, for their and Christ's accommodation. By thus speaking, Peter placed Jesus upon the same level with Moses [419] and Elijah--all three being worthy of a booth.] c34 And while he said these things, a5 While he yet speaking, behold, bthere came aa bright cloud bovershadowing them: cand overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. [Clouds often roll against the sides of Mt. Hermon, but the brightness of this cloud and the fear which it produced suggests that it was the Shekinah, or cloud of glory, which was the symbol of God's peculiar presence-- Exo_13:21, Exo_13:22, Exo_19:9, Exo_19:18, Exo_24:16, Exo_40:34, Exo_40:35, 1Ki_8:10.] aand behold, bthere came a voice out of the cloud, asaying, This is my beloved Son, cmy chosen: ain whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. [This command contains the chief significance of the entire scene. Spoken in the presence of Moses and Elijah, it gave Jesus that pre-eminence which a son has over servants. He is to be heard. His words have pre-eminence over those of the lawgiver and the prophet ( Heb_1:1, Heb_1:2). Peter recognized Jesus as thus honored by this voice-- 2Pe_1:16-18.] 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. [As every man is who hears the voice of God.] 7 And Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid. [As mediator between man and God, Jesus removes fear.] b8 And suddenly looking round about, a8 And lifting up their eyes, bthey saw no one any more, save Jesus only with themselves. c36 And when the voice came, Jesus was found alone. [Leaders and prophets depart, but Christ abides-- Heb_3:5, Heb_3:6.] b9 And as they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them, that they should tell no man what things they had seen, save when the Son of man should have risen again from the dead. a9 And Jesus commanded them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen from the dead. [The people were not ready for the publication of such an event. To have told it now would only have been to raise doubts as to their veracity.] b10 And they kept the saying, [420] questioning among themselves what the rising from the dead should mean. [Jesus spake so often in parables and made so frequent use of metaphors that the apostles did not take his words concerning the resurrection in a literal sense. They regarded his language as figurative, and sought to interpret the figure.] cAnd they held their peace, and told no man in those days any of the things which they had seen. a10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? bHow is it that the scribes say that Elijah must first come? [They were puzzled by the disappearance of Elijah. They looked upon him as having come to fulfill the prophecy of Malachi ( Mal_4:5, Mal_4:6), but they marveled that, having come, he should so soon withdraw, and that they should be forbidden to tell that they had seen him, since the sight of him would be some sign of Jesus' Messiahship.] a11 And he answered and bsaid unto them, Elijah indeed cometh first, and restoreth ashall restore all things [this sentence leads some to think that Elijah will appear again before the second coming of our Lord, but the words are to be interpreted in connection with the rest of the passage]: band how it is written of the Son of man, that he should suffer many things, and be set at naught? [If the writings concerning Elijah perplexed the apostles, those concerning the Messiah perplexed them also. From one set of prophecies they might learn something about the other. Elijah came, but the Scriptures concerning him were so little understood that he was put to death. The Messiah also came, and the prophecies concerning him were so little understood that he, too, would be set at naught.] 13 But I say unto you, that Elijah is come, aalready, and they knew him not, but did band they have also done unto him whatsoever they would. Even as it is written of him. aEven so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. 13 Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. [Malachi used the name of Elijah figuratively to represent John the Baptist. [421] See pp. 102, 284. That there shall be a second coming of Elijah in fulfillment of this prophecy is hardly possible, for the office of Elijah is prophetically outlined as that of the restorer. But Elijah could not restore Judaism, for that dispensation had been done away with in Christ. He could hardly have chosen to restore Christianity, for even if it should need such a restoration, a Jewish prophet would be ill-suited to such an office. One of the apostles would be vastly preferable.]
[FFG 418-422]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
C. I. Scofield1917 · Public DomainOn vv1–2(See Scofield "Mat 4:21")
James
(See Scofield "Mat 4:21")
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein1922 · Public DomainOn v15. The Coming Glory;
5. The Coming Glory;
the Helpless Disciples and the Power of the King. The Tribute Money.
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CHAPTER 17
1. The Transfiguration. (Mat 17:1-13.)
2. The Helpless Disciples and the Power of the King. (Mat 17:14-21.)
3. The Second Announcement of His Death and Resurrection. (Mat 17:22-23.)
4. The Tribute Money.( Mat 17:24-27.)
The first part of this chapter gives us the record of the transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ. The portion before us is one of the richest in the entire book of Matthew; so full of precious teachings and suggestions that one almost shrinks from attempting an exposition, for it seems impossible to touch on all the phases and lessons coming from this great event.
Let us remember that the Holy Spirit has given us three accounts of the transfiguration. Besides the one here we have one in Mark and in Luke. In each, special points of the great event are made prominent in full accord with the meaning and scope of the three Gospels. We find no record of the transfiguration in the fourth Gospel. It would be out of place in that Gospel, for John is the instrument to reveal Christ as the Son of God and the eternal Life. In Luke we find that something is said which is not found in the other two accounts. We read there: “And as He prayed the fashion of His countenance became different and His raiment white and effulgent.” The Gospel of Luke presents our Lord as Son of Man and we read there often that He prayed, and thus the information given to us in Luke is in full accord with that Gospel. In Matthew we learn something which is only reported there, namely, that His face shone as the sun. The importance of this fact we shall discover in the course of the exposition. In Mark and Luke the voice out of the cloud says, “This is my beloved Son; hear Him”; but in Matthew alone we read, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight; hear Him.” These and other differences are the mark of divine inspiration; the Holy Spirit, being the narrator of the event, reports the occurrence in harmony with the purpose of each one of these Gospels.
And now as we turn to the divine record of the transfiguration in the Gospel of Matthew we desire first of all to quote the inspired words of the man who stands out so prominently in the sixteenth chapter and who is likewise one of the witnesses of the transfiguration; that is Peter. In his last Epistle we read: “For we have not made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, following cleverly imagined fables, but having been eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from the Father honor and glory, such a voice being uttered to Him by the excellent glory: This is my beloved Son, in whom I found my delight; (The “Hear Him” is here omitted.) and this voice we heard uttered from heaven, being with Him in the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic Word made surer, to which ye do well taking heed as to a lamp shining in an obscure place until the day dawn and the morning star arise in your hearts” (2Pe 1:16-20).
That Peter refers in these words once more to the scene of glory on that mountain top which his eyes beheld long ago needs no further proof. He does so “knowing that the putting off of my tabernacle is speedily to take place” (Mat 17:14).
We learn therefore that the transfiguration as interpreted not by men but by the Holy Spirit, is the pattern of the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. That wonderful scene on the holy mountain of which Peter had been eye-witness was a pattern of the return of the Lord, visibly and gloriously to the earth surrounded by His saints. The entire Old Testament prophetic word speaks of this great event, and for this reason the transfiguration of the Lord is a confirmation of these prophetic predictions, and more than that, the earnest of their final and complete fulfilment. We have the prophetic word made surer in the scene on the holy mountain, for in the transfiguration we behold that which prophet after prophet had declared.
What we have just stated is a most important key to the right understanding of the passage before. Let us call to mind again, the Holy Spirit tells us that the transfiguration is the pattern of the coming of the Lord.
Now this should silence once and for all the strange interpretations which are made of the last verse of the preceding chapter, which is, by the unfortunate division of these chapters, wrested from its true place. Some, the Lord had said, were standing with Him there who should not taste death at all until they should see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom. The favorite expositions are that the Lord meant “the destruction of Jerusalem,” and others tell us “they were to see the Lord coming in the triumphs of the Gospel,” etc.
All these opinions are the opinions of men. Some of those standing there did not taste death until they saw Him coming, for after six days Peter, James and John beheld Him in His power and Glory, a pattern of the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.
“After six days.” -- Even the number six is full of meaning as the number “eight” has a similar meaning in Luke where it says, “After these words, about eight days.” The number eight is the number of resurrection, and as the Son of Man in resurrection He appears in Luke; while “six” is man’s number, the number signifying the days of work -- after six days -- after work and man’s day is run out, the day of the Lord, the kingdom. And with Him He takes Peter, and James, and John his brother, and brings them into a high mountain apart. The mountain may have been Hermon, which is not far from Caesarea-Philippi. The men who were later with Him in the garden in that awful night scene, when they slept, while He prayed and His sweat became as great drops of blood, falling down upon the earth, are here on the mountain with Him to witness His Glory. But here, too, while He prayed they were oppressed with sleep (Luk 9:32). How this manifests what man is and how it brings out the perfection of Himself! The fact that the disciples were oppressed with sleep makes it evident that the transfiguration must have been at night. The Lord so often spent His nights in prayer and came down in the morning. Blessed type of His presence with the Father now as our intercessor and advocate and His coming again.
“And He was transfigured before them. And His face shone as the sun and His garments became white as the light” (Mat 17:2). What a transformation it must have been! How the garment of light and glory is put upon Him and rays of glory shot forth from His person, the One whom Pharisees a little while ago had blasphemed and who had said, “The foxes have holes and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has not where to lay His head.” The One who had hidden His glory beneath the form of a servant bursts forth in glory, and it was His glory. The word used here in the original for “transfigured” is used only twice besides in this passage. We find it in Rom 12:2 and 2Co 3:18. His Grace transforms us now, and by and bye in resurrection we shall be transformed according to the same image -- “conformed to the image of His Son, so that He should be the first born among many brethren.” We shall be like Him for we shall see Him as He is. Thus may we, as children of God, look upon His glory here and know it is our Glory. Beloved! look upon Him and rejoice, for “when the Christ is manifested, who is our life, then shall ye also be manifested with Him in glory.”
And His face shone like the sun. He is the Sun, the Sun of righteousness, and as we have in Matthew the dispensational side, it is once more the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to put this description here and omit it in the other Gospels. The sun is the great light which rules the day, and when the sun is absent night rules. He does not shine now as Sun of Righteousness, the moon only -- the type of the church -- gives her faint light; it is night. But day will come and the Sun of Righteousness rises with healing in His wings. Then He the Sun cometh forth “as a bridegroom of His chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and His circuit unto the ends of it, and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof” (Psa 19:5-6). Thus shall He come again, and the Sun He created will pale before Him in His wonderful Glory.
“And lo, Moses and Elias appeared to them talking with Him.” Two departed saints come into view first of all. Moses, the representative of the law, one who had passed through death, and Elias, standing for the prophets, the one who had never seen death, but had been removed in a fiery chariot, appear alongside the Lord. We may well think of Him as standing in the middle. He is the center of the Heavens and of heavenly beings. In the Gospel of Luke we read that Moses and Elias, appearing in glory, spoke of His departure which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem. Both Law and Prophets speak of His suffering and of His Glory as well. He the one in the middle is the fulfilment of the Law and the Prophets.
Looked upon from the standpoint of a pattern of His coming into His kingdom, Moses is the type of those saints who died in Christ, who were put to sleep through Jesus, and whom the Lord will bring with Him when He comes. Elias, the one who did not see death, who was caught up from the earth, is the type of those believers who shall not sleep but be changed in the twinkling of an eye -- caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So we have even here the precious revelation in 1Th 4:13-18 “made surer.” When He comes He will bring us all with Him.
And of course Moses and Elias were known. Their individuality was not swallowed up by death or removal from the earth without death. This should answer definitely the oft made inquiry, shall we know each other in resurrection glory? Of course we will. As Moses and Elias were easily recognized by the disciples, so shall every saint be recognized. What joy it will be then to see him first of all and to be with Him, whom we have never seen and whom we shall see as he is, the Man in Glory. What joy to look upon a Paul, John, Peter and all the beloved of God! Yes we shall know each other, though all human, earthly relationship ceases forever in resurrection.
The three disciples who gazed upon this glorious scene typify here the remnant of Israel, those who in the night look up and see Him coming in the clouds of heaven. Thus the kingdom scene is complete.
And Peter answering said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good we should be here. If thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; for thee one, and for Moses one, and one for Elias” (Mat 17:4).
Poor Peter! What a failure he makes of it again. Once more he acts as spokesman for his fellow disciples and intrudes himself upon the scene of glory. He had absolutely no conception of what all this meant. He had of course later by the Holy Spirit come down from heaven and opening the eyes of his heart. (How often in prayer meetings one hears requests that feelings of joy and blessing may come upon the meeting, that they might say “it is good for us to be here -- let us make here three tabernacles.” This is a much used phrase and indicates how little the vision is understood by Christian people.) But what was the harm in making the suggestion? It was simply the flesh speaking and Peter uttered still words as he did previously, which flowed from a mind which is not on the things which are of God, but that are of men. In the sixteenth chapter he rebuked His Lord and tried to keep Him back from going to the cross and was an instrument of the enemy, and here once more his words show the subtle cunning of the same enemy, whose tool Peter so readily became even on that holy mountain.
He lowers the dignity and person of his Lord by putting Him on the same level with Moses and Elias. And behind it lurked another thought, the very same attempt to keep the Lord from being obedient unto the death of the cross, which was made in the temptations in the wilderness, which was hid in Peter’s “God be favorable unto Thee,” is made here once more. Peter would have a Christ in Glory and the state of the kingdom there without the cross, and he is even willing with his two associates to work for it, for he says, “Let us make here three tabernacles.”
All this foreshadows what would be done with the Lord of glory. The corrupt forms of Christianity have put the Lord Jesus Christ alongside of holy men (holy in their estimation), or alongside of great men of the world, and thus robbed Him of His Glory. Not for a moment could this be tolerated. Peter is still babbling -- while he was still speaking something happens. It is God the Father Himself who interferes and who bears witness that this Jesus, this Son of Man, is His Son, is God. “While he was still speaking, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them, and lo a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight, hear Him” (Mat 17:5).
Wonderful heavenly answer. “And the disciples hearing it, fell upon their faces and were greatly terrified.” The heavens opened and the Glory of the Lord in that bright cloud is manifested. These three men well knew what that cloud meant. It was the cloud which spoke of Jehovah’s presence. That cloud which had been withdrawn from Israel for centuries had all at once appeared again. Then Jehovah had returned and condescended to be with His people once more. They knew they stood in His presence as Isaiah knew it when he saw the glorious vision. Therefore, they were terrified, for they knew as sinful men they stood in the Holy of Holiest and they had no sacrifice. And now the voice out of the cloud. The Father speaks and He speaks of the Son. He bears witness to the eternal relationship of Himself with Him, who was ever with Him and ever His delight. He calls them away from occupation with Moses and Elias; neither law nor prophets can help you and make you acceptable. Here He is -- my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear Him! He has pleased the Father and in Him the Father and the Father’s heart is revealed. Men are to hear Him, and refusing Him means refusing God. In Him we are brought to God. Of course the work of the cross is here anticipated. And thus in Him the Father speaks, to Him the Father directs us, through Him we are brought to the Father, and by Him the heavens are opened. And all the precious thoughts which here crowd to the heart and the mind we must leave untouched. Oh, may we find our delight in Him in whom God finds His delight! Never can we make too much of Him. As then the cloud appeared and there was an open manifestation of the Glory and Jehovah’s presence, so in the coming day of His return all will be repeated. Then He must be heard.
“And Jesus coming to them touched them, and said, Rise up and be not terrified. And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus alone” (Mat 17:8).
He touched them as He will touch His poor frightened people, the remnant of Israel, in that day. But they saw Jesus alone. Blessed are we if we see Him and Him alone.
We have learned then from the transfiguration that we have in it a perfect picture of the kingdom to come. Christ in Glory, His face like the Sun, in the center. Resurrected saints and those who were caught up are with Him. His Glory covers Him and them. Living men are in His presence terrified. The heavens are opened and mercy and peace flow forth.
“And as they descended from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man be risen up from among the dead” (Mat 17:9).
The sounding forth of His Kingdom glory was no longer in order, for the Kingdom had been rejected; after His resurrection this vision was to be made known and fully understood, but not before. The disciples, the witnesses of the transfiguration, had indeed little knowledge of its meaning. From the Gospel of Mark we learn that they kept this saying and questioned themselves what rising from the dead was (Mar 9:10). How all this became changed after the Lord had risen, ascended on high, and the Holy Spirit had come down from heaven!
The appearance of Elijah in that glorious vision on the holy mountain leads to a question which the disciples bring to their Master. The coming of Elijah as the forerunner of King Messiah was firmly believed by every Jew, and it is still held by all orthodox Jews. Elijah is first to come, and when he is come then the Messiah is about to come and with His coming begins the _olam _habo (the world or age to come), this is a strong article of talmudical Judaism. The disciples bring their question, “Why then say the scribes that Elias must first have come? And He answering said to them, Elias indeed comes first and will restore all things. But I say unto you that Elias has already come, and they have not known him, but have done unto him whatever they would. Thus also the Son of Man is about to suffer from them. Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist” (Mat 17:10-13). The difficulty which the disciples had about Elias was about the prophecy contained in the last prophetic book of the Old Testament: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to the fathers lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Mal 4:5-6). They had seen Elias in glory. In the land and among the people all was dark; no restoration, no turning of the heart of the fathers to the children and the children to their fathers was noticeable. On the contrary, they had witnessed how He in whom they believed as the promised Messiah, the King of Israel, was being rejected and the nation knew Him not. And still they hoped for the kingdom and that age of blessing for Jerusalem. What then about Elias? Would he yet appear and restore all things? The Lord answers their difficulty, as He always does when His own turn to Him and put their difficulties before Him. He does not deny the fact that Elias comes first and will restore all things. Furthermore, He told them that he had come and they had not received him, but rejected him and his testimony. As he was rejected, so He the Son of Man was now about to suffer from them, is His third statement. All at once they understood that He meant John the Baptist. They were right. John the Baptist had come in the power and spirit of Elijah. He was the voice in the wilderness, the way preparer, the one in whom the last prophecy in Malachi might have been fulfilled, but they did not know Him. His rejection was the prelude to the rejection of the Lord as we have seen before (chapter 11). John surely was the Elias for that time.
But this does not fulfill Malachi’s prophecy. That prophecy is yet to see its fulfilment. Before the Lord returns to earth in power and glory another forerunner, an Elijah, will come and his testimony will not be rejected then; he will indeed be Elijah who restores all things and he will be followed by the coming of the King to set up His kingdom. This brings before us the questions, when will the Elijah who restores all things appear? where will he appear, and what will his work be? These questions are important in view of men who have of late arisen claiming that they are Elijah, one especially calling himself Elijah the Restorer, and boldly and boastingly declares that his mission is to establish a Zion in the earth and restore things before the Lord comes. When will Elijah appear? He will come upon the scene at the time of the end. This prophetic time of the end is specified in the entire prophetic Word; it is Jewish history resumed. As long as the church is in the earth that end time does not begin. The removal of the church will be followed by the last stage of the ending of the age. During that time, the great tribulation, Elijah appears. Any believer who holds the scriptural doctrine of the coming of the Lord for His saints before the great tribulation is in no danger to follow deceivers who claim to be something, for he knows he shall see not Elijah nor the Antichrist.
Where will Elijah appear? Certainly not in America, Australia or Europe, but in Israel ‘s land, where Elijah of old witnessed and John the Baptist, as herald of the King, stood. His ministry is confined to the land of Israel. What will his work be? It will not be a work to restore Christendom or to restore the church, or to purify the politics of this world and rid society of certain evils, but his work is exclusively among the people who are the kingdom people. His witness is to the remnant of Israel. Like John’s call to repentance, he will preach repentance and his testimony will be received; he will accomplish the mission of Mal 4:5-6.
The appearance of Elijah, therefore, does not come as long as the church is present; he appears in Israel’s land and his work is not among Gentiles, but among the remnant of Israel. This stamps every man who arises at this time with the assertion that he is Elijah as one who is deceived or a deceiver, perhaps, both, deceived and a deceiver. It is not at all strange that such men find listening ears among Christians.
And now the Lord and His disciples are down in the valley again. They had descended from the holy mountain and once more they are among the multitude, who perhaps had waited through the night for Him. At the dawn of the morning He appears.
“And when they came to the multitude, a man came to Him, falling on his knees before Him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is lunatic and suffers sorely; for often he falls into the fire and often into the water. And I brought him to the disciples and they were not able to heal him. And Jesus answering said, O, unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to me. And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon went out from him and the boy was healed from that hour. Then the disciples, coming to Jesus apart, said to Him, Why were we not able to cast him out? And He says to them, Because of your unbelief; for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say to this mountain, Be transported hence to yonder place, and it shall transport itself; and nothing shall be impossible to you. But this kind does not go out but by prayer and fasting” (Mat 17:14-21). (It is interesting to know that the twenty-first verse is not found in the two oldest manuscripts dating back to the fourth century, the Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus.)
This is another very suggestive passage. It has many dispensational and spiritual lessons. The coming down of the Lord, the one who has been transfigured, from the mountain in the morning is clearly typical of His coming again in Glory. And what does He find when He comes? He finds Satan exercising his soul and body-destroying power. The boy possessed by a demon suffering sorely is the type of Satan’s dominion when the Son of Man comes again. Multitudes wait for His return, and when He comes He finds misery, suffering and unbelief. The disciples had the power conferred upon them to cast out demons, but they were helpless; they could not do it, and unbelief was plainly at the root of their inability. We must, however, be cautious to apply this in the right way. It would be incorrect to make these disciples the church. We have seen before that they represent the Jewish remnant (chapter 10). Such a remnant of Jewish believers will be in existence after the body of Christ, the church, is complete and come into the presence of the Lord. This future Jewish remnant will preach the Gospel of the kingdom and they will go once more through the cities of Israel manifesting the powers of the kingdom. And yet they will not be able to cast out the demon which holds dominion. The coming Lord can do this and does it with His manifestation.
However, the principles underlying the incident have a deeper spiritual application. Here is a company of believers, for such were the disciples, and the Lord had put power into their hands, yet they were not able to use it. Perhaps, as over and over again they attempted to drive out the demon and failure followed, the multitude jeered at them, and the effect upon the child must have been awful. Their failure made the case worse. Thus we are as believers in the midst of an evil world, which is under the sway of its god, the devil, and his demons. Complete victory and power over the world and its god is given to us by, in and through our Lord Jesus Christ, and yet here are many of God’s people as helpless and powerless as were these disciples at the foot of the mountain. Weakness and failure is seen everywhere, and instead of exercising full control and having full power over that which is evil, the evil has full control. And why? Oh, let us put the words prominently before the eyes of our hearts, “Because of your unbelief.” Unbelief is the only reason for this failure. Unbelief gives the world and Satan all their power. Faith lays him low and the walls of Jericho (the world) must crumble to dust without even a single hand lifted up against them. Nothing is impossible for him who believes. Faith can remove and does remove mountains, which mean obstacles and difficulties in our way. How little such faith is exercised among believers. And we may go still further and ask what is the reason of lack of faith? A severed communion with the Lord and occupation with self. If the Lord is ever before our hearts and self is out of sight, faith can readily be exercised. Therefore the Lord gives the remedy, “Prayer and Fasting.” Prayer means communion with the Lord and dependence on Him. Fasting (the least meaning of it, abstinence from food), the losing sight of self; self-denial.
The healing of the lunatic is followed by a second announcement of His suffering, death and resurrection. “And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said to them, The Son of Man is about to be delivered up into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and the third day He shall be raised up. And they were greatly grieved” (Mat 17:22-23). This new declaration of His passion, following the transfiguration scene and the manifestation of His power over the devil, is a reminder that through the cross alone the glory could be accomplished. In the sixteenth chapter the announcement of the fact that He would build His church is followed by the first statement of His suffering, and there the elders, chief priests and scribes are mentioned, and His glory as the Son of Man is manifested. He speaks again of His death, and the chief priests and elders are not mentioned, but He speaks of being about to be delivered into the hands of men. This head of the body, His church, and head of the new creation as Second Man He was to become by death and resurrection. And His disciples, in hearing these words, were greatly grieved. All these sayings of the Lord were mysterious unto them. They knew not that all the hope of glory and the kingdom could only be realized by His death and triumphant resurrection, or they would not have been grieved.
The closing paragraph of the seventeenth chapter contains a most precious incident, which we shall find again full of most suggestive and blessed teachings. The scene is at Capernaum, meaning village of comfort. Let us read the text first. “And when they came to Capernaum, those who received the didrachmas came to Peter and said, Does your teacher not pay the didrachmas? He says, Yes. And when he came to the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, What dost thou think, Simon? the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive custom or tribute? from their own sons or from strangers? Peter says to Him, From strangers. Jesus said to him, Then are the sons free. But that we may not be an offence to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish which comes up, and when thou hast opened its mouth thou wilt find a stater; take that and give it to them for me and thee” (Mat 17:24-27).
One is at a loss how to give out a little of the wonderful riches of grace and glory which are manifested in this little incident there by the sea of Galilee. And even if we would bring out every point and lesson the Holy Spirit has put here for us, it would all be but imperfect stammering. The grace and glory of Himself is here most wonderfully brought forth. He manifests Himself as the omnipotent Lord; His divine majesty and power is shown forth in the miracle of the fish, and in wonderful condescension this Lord is servant, to make us sons with Himself, and as such, free. But let us point out the details.
The temple-tribute is here meant, which, according to Jewish custom, was collected at the end of the month Adar (March). That it was not the ransom money for the soul, spoken of in Exo 30:11-16, is obvious. The amount of tribute was in our money about sixty cents. The collector came to Peter, perhaps for the reason that the Lord was not present. And Peter acts once more in his hasty manner. Without thinking he answers with a ready “yes.” But, Peter, hast thou forgotten thy wonderful confession, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God?” Is the vision from the holy mountain so quickly gone that thou canst put again thy Lord down on the level with every other Jew who is obliged to pay temple-tribute? Alas! even so it was. The dignity and glory of His Lord was quite forgotten and out of sight.
We see Peter after his hasty reply in the house surprised by the Lord. He knew his heart and the question which had been asked, as well as the answer which Peter had given. Jesus anticipated him, and addressing him as Simon, He asks, “the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive tribute? from their own sons or from strangers?” What a strong proof this is once more of the Divinity of the humble Jesus. He knew the thoughts of His disciple; this Jesus is the omniscient God, God manifested in the flesh. Peter now gives the correct answer, “From strangers;” to which Jesus replies, “Then are the sons free.” In this declaration all His glory is once more revealed. He is the Son, He is Jehovah, whose glory had appeared in the temple; how could He then pay tribute to that which is His own? As Son He was free, no such obligation was upon Him. Oh, how the dignity of His Person stands before us in these simple words. He shows His place as Son, and as such He is exempt from the tribute. But while thus He shows His divine right, He does not insist upon it. “But that we may not be an offence to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when thou hast opened its mouth, thou wilt find a stater; take that and give it to them for me and thee.”
And here still greater grace and glory is revealed for our hearts to enjoy. First notice that the Lord speaks not of Himself alone, but also of Peter. He had not said that He as the Son is free, but the “sons are free.” In speaking of giving offence He says “we,” and when the money is miraculously provided it was to be “for me and thee,” for the Lord and for Peter. What precious thoughts these facts bring to us! The Lord, the Son of God, who is free, identifies Himself with His disciple, with Peter, who, as we have seen before, is the representative of the disciples. In this gracious identification of the Lord with His own, every believer is included. He is Son and we are sons with Him; He is free and He has made us free. “If therefore the Son shall set you free ye shall be really free” -- He has identified Himself with us and we are sharers of His grace, His humiliation and His glory. But what an example it is which He in His gracious action puts here before us for our consideration and “to go and do likewise.” He surrenders His personal right for the sake of “not giving offence.” Surely “He has left us an example that we should follow in His steps.” It behooves us now, though we are sons of God and sons of glory, to walk in humility, without asserting our right, willing in all things which concern ourselves to suffer. Alas! how little it is done -- how great the offence given again and again, by the self-assertion, the ungracious and worldly behavior of those who through the grace of God are not of the world as He is not of it. May we learn of Him in this sweet lesson. He could say, “I am meek and lowly of heart,” and His humility shines forth in His action. Like He the Son becoming a servant may we as sons be servants too. And then, think of it, He provided for all which was needed. Just the amount which was needed “for me and for thee” was at His command; it was ready and prepared. All is His and unto the riches of Himself He has taken us. “For me and thee” speaks of individuality and intimacy. Faith is to take hold of it and realize even better and more fully that all need is supplied by Himself and that from Him all comes to us. And by what a mighty miracle He provides the need. Once more His glory flashes forth. Again we learn that this Jesus who speaks here is God, God the Creator; as such He manifests Himself. It is a practical illustration of Col 1:16 and Heb 1:3. He knows the deep sea, for He made the sea. He knows the mysteries of the deep, nothing is hid from Him. He knows the piece of money in the bottom of the sea, for the silver and the gold are His. As He spoke before to the restless sea and wind and waves obeyed Him, so here, the deep obeys His voice. A creature of His is there, a fish, and He commands the fish to take up a piece of money. Then He brings the fish to Peter’s hook. Omniscience and omnipotence is here which belong to God and God is present. And this Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever. He who knew the fish and commanded that fish to take the stater and guided it to Peter’s hook, is our Lord, with power in heaven and on earth. In view of such gracious and wonderful demonstration of His power the heart cries out -- Oh why do we not trust Him fully at all times and circumstances! Why do we not even hasten to such a Lord whose grace and power is all for us, and ever trust Him for all we want?
Perhaps here is also the thought of death in type and that through death our need is provided. Out of the water the fish was taken, and out of the deep provision was made.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann1924 · Public DomainOn vv1, 3The Transfiguration of Christ.
The Transfiguration of Christ.
v. 1. And after six days, Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John, his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
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v. 2. and was transfigured before them; and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light.
Memorable, important days were those which Matthew fixes so carefully in the order of events, six days after the first specific announcement of Christ’s passion; a turning-point in the ministry of Jesus. That Luke mentions eight days, chapter 9:28, offers no difficulty. "That Luke says Jesus had taken those three apostles with Him after about eight days, but Matthew and Mark, that it happened after six days, that is not opposed to each other. For Matthew and Mark reckon the days that lie between, but Luke takes the last day as well, upon which Christ preached before these six days, as also the first day after the six days, on which the transfiguration took place, in addition. " For Matthew it was the exact recollection of a strictly historical incident. While all the disciples undoubtedly went with Christ to the foot of the mountain,—which various commentators have guessed to be either Mount Hermon, in the Anti-Lebanon range, just north of the boundary of Palestine, or Mount Panius, near Caesarea Philippi, or Mount Tabor, near Nazareth,—only the three men that were His favored disciples, Peter, James, and John, were taken along to the top of the mountain. They were probably those upon whose understanding and sympathy He could rely. They were to become the witnesses of His glory before the whole world, 2Pe 1:16-18.
A most peculiar, miraculous phenomenon: While Jesus was praying, He was transfigured, transformed, before them, His physical body being transfused and glorified with spirituality, a foretaste of His future glorification. Not only did His face shine like the sun itself, with a luster not of this earth, but His raiment became as white-glistening as snow, as the essence of light itself, beyond the power of any fuller on earth to give them such pure spotlessness. All this was visible to them as they gazed in stupefied wonder. His divine glory, which He always bore in Himself, but which was usually hidden or manifested only occasionally in word and miracle, here transfused and shone through His outward form and person: an unsurpassed revelation of His glory before their eyes. It was an incontestable proof of the fact that He was truly the Son of God; it was visible evidence of His entering through suffering and death into His glory. "Therefore this appearance of Christ intends to show in deed and truth what Peter above, chapter 16:16, has confessed: Jesus, the man born of the Virgin Mary, is Christ, the Son of the living God (Christ, however, signifies a king and priest, that is, a Lord over all things; and also a Mediator between God and men). Because He was destined to be preached through the whole world as such, for that reason He is shown to the three apostles as such, who should testify to what they had seen and heard."
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv1, 3General Information:
General Information:
This begins the account of Jesus' transfiguration.
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Peter, James, and John his brother
"Peter, James, and James's brother John"
He was transfigured before them
When they looked at him, his appearance was different from what it had been.
He was transfigured
This can be stated in active form. AT: "his appearance had changed" or "he appeared very different" (See: Active or Passive)
before them
"in front of them" or "so they could clearly him"
His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as brilliant as the light
These are similes that emphasize how bright Jesus' appearance became. (See: Simile)
Tyndale Open Study Notes2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv1–417:1 Peter . . . James and John later…
17:1 Peter . . . James and John later accompanied Jesus at Gethsemane (26:37; 2 Pet 1:16-19). • It is impossible to determine the exact location of this high mountain. The traditional site, Mount Tabor, is only about 1,900 feet (580 meters) high and is out of the way for a trip from Caesarea Philippi (Matt 16:13) to Capernaum (17:24). Mount Hermon, another possibility, is about 9,200 feet (2,800 meters) high and located in Syria, forty miles north of Capernaum. It is unlikely, however, that “teachers of religious law” (Mark 9:14) would have congregated at the foot of a mountain in Gentile territory. A strong candidate is Mount Meron, about 4,000 feet (1,220 meters) high and situated between Caesarea Philippi and Capernaum.
GEBible — Godless Engineer's Bible App
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1–2 Christ is in such sort humble in the Gospel,…
Christ is in such sort humble in the Gospel, that in the mean season he is Lord both of heaven and earth.
Luke reckoneth eight days, containing in that number the first and last, and Matthew speaketh but of them that were betwixt them.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–4 1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James,…
1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
Ver. 1. And after six days] Luke saith {Luk 9:28} about eight days after. It comes all to one. For Matthew puts exclusively those days only that went between, and were finished; but Luke puts the two utmost days also into the reckoning.
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Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John] So Mat 5:37, when he raised the damsel he took with him these three only; haply as best beloved, because bold; Boanergeses, more zealous than the rest; or the better to fit them for further trial: great feelings often precede great afflictions. However, it is no small favour of God to make us witnesses of his great works, and so let us take it. As all Israel might see Moses go toward the rock of Rephidim, none but the elders might see him strike it. That God crucifies his Son before us, that he fetcheth the true water of life out of the rock in our sight, is a high prerogative. And no less surely that we are again transported in prayer, carried out of the body in divine meditation, and lost in the endless maze of spiritual ravishments; that we return from the public ordinances, as Moses did from the Mount, with our faces shining; that we are transfigured and transformed into the same image from glory to glory, and that the angel of the covenant doth wondrously, during the time of the sacrifice, while Manoah and his wife look on, &c. These are special privileges communicated to none but the communion of saints.
And bringeth them up into an high mountain] The name of this mountain no evangelist expresseth; but by connnon consent it was Mount Tabor (which Josephus calleth Itabirion), whereof Jerome writeth copiously and elegantly in his commentary upon the fifth of Hosea. Our Saviour, when he had some special work to do, went usually up into a mountain; to teach us to soar aloft in great performances especially, and to be heavenly minded, taking a turn or two, ever and anon, with Christ in Mount Tabor, treading upon the moon, with the Church, Rev 12:1; having our feet at least where other men’s heads are, on things on earth (Pro 15:24; "The way of life is above to the wise"); delighting ourselves in high flying, as eagles; never merry till gotten into the air or on the top of trees, with the lesser birds. Zaccheus could not see Christ till he had climbed the fig tree. Nor can we see the consolation of Israel till elevated in divine contemplation, till gotten up into God’s holy hill. The people tasted not manna till they had left the leaven of Egypt.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1, 3 Both Mark and Luke have recorded this history. Mark…
Both Mark and Luke have recorded this history. Mark saith, Mar 9:3, his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. Luke saith, Luk 9:28,29; And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter, and John, and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering. All three agree the place, upon a mountain. Matthew saith it was six, Luke saith eight days after the preceding discourses. Luke mentions our Lord’s praying, which neither of the others mentions, and saith his transfiguration began while that he was praying. They all agree the company that was with our Saviour,
Peter, James, and John; which were the three our Saviour took with him when he went to pray before his passion, Mat 26:37. Peter was to be a great instrument in carrying on the works of the gospel. James was he whom Herod killed, Act 12:2. John was he who outlived all the apostles. He intended to have these three witnesses of his agony, Mat 26:37; he prepareth them for that, and for the future testimony they were to give him, by making them eye witnesses of this his glorious transfiguration. This, as to his person, lay in the change of his countenance, looking gloriously as the sun, and his raiment looking extraordinarily white.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 4 The former part of this chapter gives us an…
The former part of this chapter gives us an account of our Saviour’s glorious transfiguration, he laid as it were the garments of frail humanity and mortality aside for a little time, and assuming to himself the robes of majesty and glory, the rays of his divinity darted forth, his face shined with a pleasing brightness, and his raiment with such a glorious lustre, as did at once both dazzle and delight the eyes of the beholders.
Here observe, 1. The reasons of our Lord’s transfiguration,
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1. To demonstrate and testify the truth of his divinity; that he was Christ the Son of the living God; according to St. Peter’s confession just before. This divine glory was an evidence of his divine nature.
2. Christ was thus transfigured, to prefigure the glory of his second coming to judgment, when he shall be admired of his saints, as here he was admired by his disciples.
Observe, 2. The choice which our Saviour makes of the witnesses of his transfiguration, his three disciples, Peter, James and John. But why disciples? Why three disciples? Why these three?
1. This transfiguration was a type and shadow of the glory of heaven: Christ therefore vouchsafes the earnest and first fruits of that glory only to saints; upon whom he intended to bestow the full harvest.
2. Three disciples were witnesses sufficient to testify this miracle. Judas was unworthy of this favour, yet lest he should murmur or be discontented at his being left out, others are also left out besides him.
3. These three, rather than others; because,
1. These disciples are more eminent for grace, zeal, and love to Christ; and, consequently, are most highly dignified and honoured by him. The most eminent manifestations of glory, are made by God to those that are most eminent in grace.
2. These three were witnesses of Christ’s agony and passion, to prepare them for which, they are here made witnesses of his transfiguration. This glorious vision from Mount Tabor fitted them to abide the terrors of mount Calvary.
Learn, that those whom God singles out for the greatest trials, he will sit beforehand with the best enablements.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v1 We have here the story of Christ's transfiguration; he…
We have here the story of Christ's transfiguration; he had said that the Son of man should shortly come in his kingdom, with which promise all the three evangelists industriously connect this story; as if Christ's transfiguration were intended for a specimen and an earnest of the kingdom of Christ, and of that light and love of his, which therein appears to his select and sanctified ones. Peter speaks of this as the power and coming of our Lord Jesus (Pe2 1:16); because it was an emanation of his power, and a previous notice of his coming, which was fitly introduced by such prefaces.
When Christ was here in his humiliation, though his state, in the main, was a state of abasement and afflictions, there were some glimpses of his glory intermixed, that he himself might be the more encouraged in his sufferings, and others the less offended. His birth, his baptism, his temptation, and his death, were the most remarkable instances of his humiliation; and these were each of them attended with some signal points of glory, and the smiles of heaven. But the series of his public ministry being a continued humiliation, here, just in the midst of that, comes in this discovery of his glory. As, now that he is in heaven, he has his condescensions, so, when he was on earth, he had his advancements.
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Now concerning Christ's transfiguration, observe,
I. The circumstances of it, which are here noted, Mat 17:1.
1. The time; six days after he had the solemn conference with his disciples, Mat 16:21. St Luke saith, It was about eight days after, six whole days intervening, and this the eighth day, that day seven-night. Nothing is recorded to be said or done by our Lord Jesus for six days before his transfiguration; thus, before some great appearances, there was silence in heaven for the space of half an hour, Rev 8:1. Then when Christ seems to be doing nothing for his church, expect, ere long, something more than ordinary.
2. The place; it was on top of a high mountain apart. Christ chose a mountain, (1.) As a secret place. He went apart; for though a city upon a hill can hardly be hid, two or three persons upon a hill can hardly be found; therefore their private oratories were commonly on mountains. Christ chose a retired place to be transfigured in, because his appearing publicly in his glory was not agreeable to his present state; and thus he would show his humility, and teach us that privacy much befriends our communion with God. Those that would maintain intercourse with Heaven, must frequently withdraw from the converse and business of this world; and they will find themselves never less alone than when alone, for the Father is with them. (2.) Though a sublime place, elevated above things below. Note, Those that would have a transforming fellowship with God, must not only retire, but ascend; lift up their hearts, and seek things above. The call is, Come up hither, Rev 4:1.
3. The witnesses of it. He took with him Peter and James and John. (1.) He took three, a competent number to testify what they should see; for out of the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. Christ makes his appearances certain enough, but not too common; not to all the people, but to witnesses (Act 10:41), that they might be blessed, who have not seen, and yet have believed. (2.) He took these three because they were the chief of his disciples, the first three of the worthies of the Son of David; probably they excelled in gifts and graces; they were Christ's favourites, singled out to be the witnesses of his retirements. They were present when he raised the damsel to life, Mar 5:37. They were afterward to be the witnesses of his agony, and this was to prepare them for that. Note, A sight of Christ's glory, while we are here in this world, is a good preparative for our sufferings with him, as these are preparatives for the sight of his glory in the other world. Paul, who had abundance of trouble, had abundance of revelations.
II. The manner of it (Mat 17:2); He was transfigured before them. The substance of his body remained the same, but the accidents and appearances of it were greatly altered; he was not turned into a spirit, but his body, which had appeared in weakness and dishonour, now appeared in power and glory. He was transfigured, metamorphōthē - he was metamorphosed. The profane poets amused and abused the world with idle extravagant stories of metamorphoses, especially the metamorphoses of their gods, such as were disparaging and diminishing to them, equally false and ridiculous; to these some think Peter has an eye, when, being about to mention this transfiguration of Christ, he saith, We have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made it known unto you, Pe2 1:16. Christ was both God and man; but, in the days of his flesh, he took on him the form of a servant - morphēn doulou, Phi 2:7. He drew a veil over the glory of his godhead; but now, in his transfiguration, he put by that veil, appeared en morphē theou - in the form of God (Phi 2:6), and gave his disciples a glimpse of his glory, which could not but change his form.
The great truth which we declare, is, that God is light (Jo1 1:5), dwells in the light (Ti1 6:16), covers himself with light, Psa 104:2. And therefore when Christ would appear in the form of God, he appeared in light, the most glorious of all visible beings, the first-born of the creation, and most nearly resembling the eternal Parent. Christ is the Light; while he was in the world, he shined in darkness, and therefore the world knew him not (Joh 1:5, Joh 1:10); but, at this time, that Light shined out of the darkness.
Now his transfiguration appeared in two things:
1. His face did shine as the sun. The face is the principal part of the body, by which we are known; therefore such a brightness was put on Christ's face, that face which afterward he hid not from shame and spitting. It shone as the sun when he goes forth in his strength, so clear, so bright; for he is the Sun of righteousness, the Light of the world. The face of Moses shone but as the moon, with a borrowed reflected light, but Christ's shone as the sun, with an innate inherent light, which was the more sensibly glorious, because it suddenly broke out, as it were, from behind a black cloud.
2. His raiment was white as the light. All his body was altered, as his face was; so that beams of light, darting from every part through his clothes, made them white and glittering. The shining of the face of Moses was so weak, that it could easily be concealed by a thin veil; but such was the glory of Christ's body, that his clothes were enlightened by it.
III. The companions of it. He will come, at last, with ten thousands of his saints; and, as a specimen of that, there now appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him, Mat 17:3. Observe, 1. There were glorified saints attending him, that, when there were three to bear record on earth, Peter, James, and John, there might be some to bear record from heaven too. Thus here was a lively resemblance of Christ's kingdom, which is made up of saints in heaven and saints on earth, and to which belong the spirits of just men made perfect. We see here, that they who are fallen asleep in Christ are not perished, but exist in a separate state, and shall be forthcoming when there is occasion. 2. These two were Moses and Elias, men very eminent in their day. They had both fasted forty days and forty nights, as Christ did, and wrought other miracles, and were both remarkable at their going out of the world as well as in their living in the world. Elias was carried to heaven in a fiery chariot, and died not. The body of Moses was never found, possibly it was preserved from corruption, and reserved for this appearance. The Jews had great respect for the memory of Moses and Elias, and therefore they came to witness of him, they came to carry tidings concerning him to the upper world. In them the law and the prophets honoured Christ, and bore testimony to him. Moses and Elias appeared to the disciples; they saw them, and heard them talk, and, either by their discourse or by information from Christ, they knew them to be Moses and Elias; glorified saints shall know one another in heaven. They talked with Christ. Note, Christ has communion with the blessed, and will be no stranger to any of the members of that glorified corporation. Christ was now to be sealed in his prophetic office, and therefore these two great prophets were fittest to attend him, as transferring all their honour and interest to him; for in these last days God speaks to us by his Son, Heb 1:1.
IV. The great pleasure and satisfaction that the disciples took in the sight of Christ's glory. Peter, as usual, spoke or the rest; Lord, it is good for us to be here. Peter here expresses,
1. The delight they had in this converse; Lord, it is good to be here. Though upon a high mountain, which we may suppose rough and unpleasant, bleak and cold, yet it is good to be here. He speaks the sense of his fellow-disciples; It is good not only for me, but for us. He did not covet to monopolize this favour, but gladly takes them in. He saith this to Christ. Pious and devout affections love to pour out themselves before the Lord Jesus. The soul that loves Christ, and loves to be with him, loves to go and tell him so; Lord, it is good for us to be here. This intimates a thankful acknowledgment of his kindness in admitting them to this favour. Note, Communion with Christ is the delight of Christians. All the disciples of the Lord Jesus reckon it is good for them to be with him in the holy mount. It is good to be here where Christ is, and whither he brings us along with him by his appointment; it is good to be here, retired and alone with Christ; to be here, where we may behold the beauty of the Lord Jesus, Psa 27:4. It is pleasant to hear Christ compare notes with Moses and the prophets, to see how all the institutions of the law, and all the predictions of the prophets, pointed at Christ, and were fulfilled in him.
2. The desire they had of the continuance of it; Let us make here three tabernacles. There was in this, as in many other of Peter's sayings, a mixture of weakness and of goodwill, more zeal than discretion.
(1.) Here was a zeal for this converse with heavenly things, a laudable complacency in the sight they had of Christ's glory. Note, Those that by faith behold the beauty of the Lord in his house, cannot but desire to dwell there all the days of their life. It is good having a nail in God's holy place (Ezr 9:8), a constant abode; to be in holy ordinances as a man at home, not as a wayfaring man. Peter thought this mountain was a fine spot of ground to build upon, and he was for making tabernacles there; as Moses in the wilderness made a tabernacle for the Shechinah, or divine glory.
It argued great respect for his Master and the heavenly guests, with some commendable forgetfulness of himself and his fellow-disciples, that he would have tabernacles for Christ, and Moses, and Elias, but none for himself. He would be content to lie in the open air, on the cold ground, in such good company; if his Master have but where to lay his head, no matter whether he himself has or no.
(2.) Yet in this zeal he betrayed a great deal of weakness and ignorance. What need had Moses and Elias of tabernacles? They belonged to that blessed world, where they hunger no more, nor doth the sun light upon them. Christ had lately foretold his sufferings, and bidden his disciples expect the like; Peter forgets this, or, to prevent it, will needs be building tabernacles in the mount of glory, out of the way of trouble. Still he harps upon, Master, spare thyself, though he had been so lately checked for it. Note, There is a proneness in good men to expect the crown without the cross. Peter was for laying hold of this as the prize, though he had not yet fought his fight, nor finished his course, as those other disciples, Mat 20:21. We are out in our aim, if we look for a heaven here upon earth. It is not for strangers and pilgrims (such as we are in our best circumstances in this world), to talk of building, or to expect a continuing city.
Yet it is some excuse for the incongruity of Peter's proposal, not only that he knew not what he said (Luk 9:33), but also that he submitted the proposal to the wisdom of Christ; If thou wilt, let us make tabernacles. Note, Whatever tabernacles we propose to make to ourselves in this world, we must always remember to ask Christ's leave.
Now to this which Peter said, there was no reply made; the disappearing of the glory would soon answer it. They that promise themselves great things on earth will soon be undeceived by their own experience.
V. The glorious testimony which God the Father gave to our Lord Jesus, in which he received from him honour and glory (Pe2 1:17), when there came this voice from the excellent glory. This was like proclaiming the titles of honour or the royal style of a prince, when, at his coronation, he appears in his robes of state; and be it known, to the comfort of mankind, the royal style of Christ is taken from his mediation. Thus, in vision, he appeared with a rainbow, the seal of the covenant, about his throne (Rev 4:3); for it is his glory to be our Redeemer.
Now concerning this testimony from heaven to Christ, observe.
1. How it came, and in what manner it was introduced.
(1.) There was a cloud. We find often in the Old Testament, that a cloud was the visible token of God's presence; he came down upon mount Sinai in a cloud (Exo 19:9), and so to Moses, Exo 34:5; Num 11:25. He took possession of the tabernacle in a cloud, and afterwards of the temple; where Christ was in his glory, the temple was, and there God showed himself present. We know not the balancing of the clouds, but we know that much of the intercourse and communication between heaven and earth is maintained by them. By the clouds vapours ascend, and rains descend; therefore God is said to make the clouds his chariots; so he did here when he descended upon this mount.
(2.) It was a bright cloud. Under the law it was commonly a thick and dark cloud that God made the token of his presence; he came down upon mount Sinai in a thick cloud (Exo 19:16), and said he would dwell in thick darkness; see Kg1 8:12. But we are now come, not to the mount that was covered with thick blackness and darkness (Heb 12:18), but to the mount that is crowned with a bright cloud. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament dispensation had tokens of God's presence; but that was a dispensation of darkness, and terror, and bondage, this of light, love, and liberty.
(3.) It overshadowed them. This cloud was intended to break the force of that great light which otherwise would have overcome the disciples, and have been intolerable; it was like the veil which Moses put upon his face when it shone. God, in manifesting himself to his people, considers their frame. This cloud was to their eyes as parables to their understandings, to convey spiritual things by things sensible, as they were able to bear them.
(4.) There came a voice out of the cloud, and it was the voice of God, who now, as of old, spake in the cloudy pillar, Psa 99:7. Here was no thunder, or lightning, or voice of a trumpet, as there was when the law was given by Moses, but only a voice, a still small voice, and that not ushered in with a strong wind, or an earthquake, or fire, as when God spake to Elias, Kg1 19:11, Kg1 19:12. Moses then and Elias were witnesses, that in these last days God hath spoken to us by his Son, in another way than he spoke formerly to them. This voice came from the excellent glory (Pe2 1:17), the glory which excelleth, in comparison of which the former had no glory; though the excellent glory was clouded, yet thence came a voice, for faith comes by hearing.
2. What this testimony from heaven was; This is my beloved Son, hear ye him. Here we have,
(1.) The great gospel mystery revealed; This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. This was the very same that was spoken from heaven at his baptism (Mat 3:17); and it was the best news that ever came from heaven to earth since man sinned. It is to the same purport with that great doctrine (Co2 5:19), That God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. Moses and Elias were great men, and favourites of Heaven, yet they were but servants, and servants that God was not always well pleased in; for Moses spoke unadvisedly, and Elias was a man subject to passions; but Christ is a Son, and in him God was always well pleased. Moses and Elias were sometimes instruments of reconciliation between God and Israel; Moses was a great intercessor, and Elias a great reformer; but in Christ God is reconciling the world; his intercession is more prevalent than that of Moses, and his reformation more effectual than that of Elias.
This repetition of the same voice that came from heaven at his baptism was no vain repetition; but, like the doubling of Pharoah's dream, was to show the thing was established. What God hath thus spoken once, yea twice, no doubt he will stand to, and he expects we should take notice of it. It was spoken at his baptism, because then he was entering upon his temptation, and his public ministry; and now it was repeated, because he was entering upon his sufferings, which are to be dated from hence; for now, and not before, he began to foretel them, and immediately after his transfiguration it is said (Luk 9:51), that the time was come that he should be received up; this therefore was then repeated, to arm him against the terror, and his disciples against the offence, of the cross. When sufferings begin to abound, consolations are given in more abundantly, Co2 1:5.
(2.) The great gospel duty required, and it is the condition of our benefit by Christ; Hear ye him. God is well pleased with none in Christ but those that hear him. It is not enough to give him the hearing (what will that avail us?) but we must hear him and believe him, as the great Prophet and Teacher; hear him, and be ruled by him, as the great Prince and Lawgiver; hear him, and heed him. Whoever would know the mind of God, must hearken to Jesus Christ; for by him God has in these last days spoken to us. This voice from heaven has made all the sayings of Christ as authentic as if they had been thus spoken out of a cloud. God does here, as it were, turn us over to Christ for all the revelations of his mind; and it refers to that prediction concerning the Prophet God would raise up like unto Moses (Deu 18:18); him shall ye hear.
Christ now appeared in glory; and the more we see of Christ's glory, the more cause we shall see to hearken to him: but the disciples were gazing on that glory of his which they saw; they are therefore bid not to look at him, but to hear him. Their sight of his glory was soon intercepted by the cloud, but their business was to hear him. We walk by faith, which comes by hearing, not by sight, Co2 5:7.
Moses and Elias were now with him; the law and the prophets; hitherto it was said, Hear them, Luk 16:29. The disciples were ready to equal them with Christ, when they must have tabernacles for them as well as for him. They had been talking with Christ, and probably the disciples were very desirous to know what they said, and to hear something more from them; No, saith God, hear him, and that is enough; him, and not Moses and Elias, who were present, and whose silence gave consent to this voice; they had nothing to say to the contrary; whatever interest they had in the world as prophets, they were willing to see it all transferred to Christ, that in all things he might have the pre-eminence. Be not troubled that Moses and Elias make so short a stay with you; hear Christ, and you will not want them.
IV. The fright which the disciples were put into by this voice, and the encouragement Christ gave them.
1. The disciples fell on their faces, and were sore afraid. The greatness of the light, and the surprise of it, might have a natural influence upon them, to dispirit them. But that was not all, ever since man sinned, and heard God's voice in the garden, extraordinary appearances of God have ever been terrible to man, who, knowing he has no reason to expect any good, has been afraid to hear any thing immediately from God. Note, even then when fair weather comes out of the secret place, yet with God is terrible majesty, Job 37:22. See what dreadful work the voice of the Lord makes, Psa 29:4. It is well for us that God speaks to us by men like ourselves, whose terror shall not make us afraid.
2. Christ graciously raised them up with abundance of tenderness. Note, The glories and advancements of our Lord Jesus do not at all lessen his regard to, and concern for, his people that are compassed about with infirmity. It is comfortable to think, that now, in his exalted state, he has a compassion for, and condescends to, the meanest true believer. Observe here, (1.). What he did; he came, and touched them. His approaches banished their fears; and when they apprehended that they were apprehended of Christ, there needed no more to make them easy. Christ laid his right hand upon John is a like case, and upon Daniel, Rev 1:17; Dan 8:18; Dan 10:18. Christ's touches were often healing, and here they were strengthening and comforting. (2.) What he said; Arise, and be not afraid. Note, Though a fear of reverence in our converse with Heaven is pleasing to Christ, yet a fear of amazement is not so, but must be striven against. Christ said, Arise. Note, It is Christ by his word, and the power of his grace going along with it, that raises up good men from their dejections, and silences their fears; and none but Christ can do it; Arise, be not afraid. Note, causeless fears would soon vanish, if we would not yield to them, and lie down under them, but get up, and do what we can against them. considering what they had seen and heard, they had more reason to rejoice than to fear, and yet, it seems, they needed this caution. Note, Through the infirmity of the flesh, we often frighten ourselves with that wherewith we should encourage ourselves. Observe, After they had an express command from heaven to hear Christ, the first word they had from him was, Be not afraid, hear that. Note, Christ's errand into the world was to give comfort to good people, that, being delivered out of the hands of their enemies, they might serve God without fear, Luk 1:74, Luk 1:75.
VII. The disappearing of the vision (Mat 17:8); They lift up themselves, and then lift up their eyes, and saw no man, save Jesus only. Moses and Elias were gone, the rays of Christ's glory were laid aside, or veiled again. They hoped this had been the day of Christ's entrance into his kingdom, and his public appearance in that external splendour which they dreamed of; but see how they are disappointed. Note, It is not wisdom to raise our expectations high in this world, for the most valuable of our glories and joys here are vanishing, even those of near communion with God are so, not a continual feast, but a running banquet. If sometimes we are favoured with special manifestations of divine grace, glimpses and pledges of future glory, yet they are withdrawn presently; two heavens are too much for those to expect that never deserve one. Now they saw no man, save Jesus only. Note, Christ will tarry with us when Moses and Elias are gone. The prophets do not live for ever (Zac 1:5), and we see the period of our ministers' conversation; but Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and for ever, Heb 13:7, Heb 13:8.
VIII. The discourse between Christ and his disciples as they came down from the mountain, Mat 17:9-13.
Observe, 1. They came down from the mountain. Note, We must come down from the holy mountains, where we have communion with God, and complacency in that communion, and of which we are saying. It is good to be here; even there we have no continuing city. Blessed be God, there is a mountain of glory and joy before us, whence we shall never come down. But observe, When the disciples came down, Jesus came with them. Note, When we return to the world again after an ordinance, it must be our care to take Christ with us, and then it may be our comfort that he is with us.
2. As they came down, they talked of Christ. Note, When we are returning from holy ordinance, it is good to entertain ourselves and one another with discourse suitable to the work we have been about. That communication which is good to the use of edifying is then in a special manner seasonable; as, on the contrary, that which is corrupt, is worse then than at another time.
Here is, (1.) The charge that Christ gave the disciples to keep the vision very private for the present (Mat 17:9); Tell it to no man till the Son of man is risen. If they had proclaimed it, the credibility of it would have been shocked by his sufferings, which were now hastening on. But let the publication of it be adjourned till after his resurrection, and then that and his subsequent glory will be a great confirmation of it. Note, Christ observed a method in the manifestation of himself; he would have his works put together, mutually to explain and illustrate each other, that they might appear in their full strength and convincing evidence. Every thing is beautiful in its season. Christ's resurrection was properly the beginning of the gospel state and kingdom, to which all before was but preparatory and by way of preface; and therefore, though this was transacted before, it must not be produced as evidence till then (and then it appears to have been much insisted on by Pe2 1:16-18), when the religion it was designed for the confirmation of was brought to its full consistence and maturity. Christ's time is the best and fittest for the manifesting of himself and must be attended to by us.
(2.) An objection which the disciples made against something Christ had said (Mat 17:10); "Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? If Elias make so short a stay, and is gone so suddenly, and we must say nothing of him; why have we been taught out of the law to expect his public appearance in the world immediately before the setting up of the Messiah's kingdom? Must the coming of Elias be a secret, which every body looks for?" or thus; "If the resurrection of the Messiah, and with it the beginning of his kingdom, be at hand, what becomes of that glorious preface and introduction to it, which we expect in the coming of Elias?" The scribes, who were the public expositors of the law, said this according to the scripture (Mal 4:5); Behold I send you Elijah the prophet. The disciples spoke the common language of the Jews, who made that the saying of the scribes which was the saying of the scripture, whereas of that which ministers speak to us according to the word of God, we should say, "God speaks to us, not the ministers;" for we must not receive it as the word of men, Th1 2:13. Observe, When the disciples could not reconcile what Christ said with what they had heard out of the Old Testament, they desired him to explain it to them. Note, When we are puzzled with scripture difficulties, we must apply ourselves to Christ by prayer for his Spirit to open our understandings and to lead us into all truth.
(3.) The solving of this objection. Ask, and it shall be given, ask instruction, and it shall be given.
[1.] Christ allows the prediction (Mat 17:11); "Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things; so far you are in the right." Christ did not come to alter or invalidate any thing foretold in the Old Testament. Note, Corrupt and mistaken glosses may be sufficiently rejected and exploded, without diminishing or derogating from the authority or dignity of the sacred text. New Testament prophecies are true and good, and are to be received and improved, though some hot foolish men may have misinterpreted them and drawn wrong inferences from them. He shall come, and restore all things; not restore them to their former state (John Baptist went not about to do that), but he shall accomplish all things (so it may be read), all things that were written of him, all the predictions of the coming of Elias. John Baptist came to restore things spiritually, to revive the decays of religion, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children; which means the same with this, he shall restore all things. John preached repentance, and that restores all things.
[2.] He asserts the accomplishment. The scribes say true, that Elias is come, Mat 17:12. Note, God's promises are often fulfilled, and men perceive it not, but enquire, Where is the promise? when it is already performed. Elias is come, and they knew him not; they knew him not to be the Elias promised, the forerunner of the Messiah. The scribes busied themselves in criticizing upon the scripture, but understood not by the signs of the times the fulfilling of the scripture. Note, It is easier to explain the word of God than to apply it and make a right use of it. But it is no wonder that the morning star was not observed, when he who is the Sun itself, was in the world, and the world knew him not.
Because they knew him not, they have done to him whatsoever they listed; if they had known, they would not have crucified Christ, or beheaded John, Co1 2:8. They ridiculed John, persecuted him, and at last put him to death; which was Herod's doing, but is here charged upon the whole generation of unbelieving Jews, and particularly the scribes, who, though they could not prosecute John themselves, were pleased with what Herod did. He adds, Likewise also shall the Son of man suffer of them. Marvel not that Elias should be abused and killed by those who pretended, with a great deal of reverence, to expect him, when the Messiah himself will be in like manner treated. Note, The sufferings of Christ took off the strangeness of all other sufferings (Joh 15:18); when they had imbrued their hands in the blood of John Baptist, they were ready to do the like to Christ. Note, As men deal with Christ's servants, so they would deal with him himself; and they that are drunk with the blood of the martyrs still cry, Give, give, Act 12:1-3.
(4.) The disciples' satisfaction in Christ's reply to their objection (Mat 17:13); They understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. He did not name John, but gives them such a description of him as would put them in mind of what he had said to them formerly concerning him; This is Elias. This is a profitable way of teaching; it engages the learners' own thoughts, and makes them, if not their own teachers, yet their own remembrancers; and thus knowledge becomes easy to him that understands. When we diligently use the means of knowledge, how strangely are mists scattered and mistakes rectified!
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv2–4 And was transfigured before them,.... Peter, James, and John,…
And was transfigured before them,.... Peter, James, and John, before whom he was metamorphosed, or changed into another form; for not the substance of his body was changed, nor even the shape of it altered, only it received a more glorious form; that whereas before he appeared in the form of a servant, and looked mean and despicable, now he appeared in the form and majesty of God; or there was a divine glory; which from his deity showed itself in a visible manner through his flesh:
and his face did shine as the sun it had still the same appearance of an human face, but had such a dazzling glory upon it, as equalled the sun shining in its full strength:
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and his raiment was white as the light: he did not put off his clothes, nor were the nature and substance, and fashion of them changed; but such rays of glory darted through his flesh, and through his clothes, as made them as bright and shining, as the light of the sun at noon day. Mark says, they became "exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller on earth can white them". The Vulgate Latin reads, "as snow", here; and so do the Ethiopic version, and Munster's Hebrew Gospel. Snow has a peculiar whiteness in it, and is therefore made use of, to express the glittering brightness of Christ's raiment; and the fuller is mentioned, who by the Jews (a) is called and means one that whitens wool, or raiment, and such an one is here designed: not that any fuller makes garments of another colour white; for though this may be done, it is not the work of fullers, but dyers: but fullers, whatever colour garments are of, if sullied and spotted, can restore them to their native colour; and if white, can bring them to their former whiteness: now Christ's garments were as white, yea, whiter, than any such men could possibly make garments, that were white at first: what colour Christ's garments were of before, is not certain; now they appeared white, to the greatest degree of whiteness. Dr. Hammond (b) has a conjecture, that in the phrase "on earth", reference is had to the earth fullers make use of in cleaning, and which is called "fullers' earth"; and that the words are to be rendered, "as no fuller, by or with earth can white them"; but if this will not bear, the sense is, that there is no fuller, nor ever was, or ever will be upon earth, that can make raiment so white as Christ's was.
(a) Maimon. in Misn. Bava Kama, c. 10. sect. 10, (b) In Mark ix. 3.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1–4 A high mountain - Probably Mount Tabor. Mark ix,…
A high mountain - Probably Mount Tabor. Mark ix, 2; Luke ix, 28.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1–4 The transfiguration of Christ, 1-8.
CHAPTER XVII.
The transfiguration of Christ, 1-8.
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Christ's discourse with his disciples on the subject, 9-13.
He heals a lunatic, 14-18.
His discourse with his disciples on this subject also, 19-21.
He foretells his own sufferings and death, 22, 23.
He is required to pay tribute at Capernaum, 24-26;
and provides the money by a miracle, 27.
NOTES ON CHAP. XVII.
Verse 1. After six days] Mr 9:2, has the same number; but Luke says, Lu 9:28, after eight days. The reason of this difference seems to be the following: Matthew and Mark reckon the days from that mentioned in the preceding chapter, to that mentioned in this; Luke includes both days, as well as the six intermediate: hence, the one makes eight, the other six, without any contradiction.
Peter, James, and John] He chose those that they might be witnesses of his transfiguration: two or three witnesses being required by the Scripture to substantiate any fact. Eminent communications of the Divine favour prepare for, and entitle to, great services and great conflicts. The same three were made witnesses of his agony in the garden, Mt 26:37.
A high mountain] This was one of the mountains of Galilee; but whether Mount Tabor or not, is uncertain. Some think it was Mount Hermon. St. Luke says, Christ and his disciples went up into the mountain to pray, Lu 9:28.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 3 Mat 17:1-2. After six days — Reckoning exclusively from…
Mat 17:1-2. After six days — Reckoning exclusively from that in which the discourse recorded in the preceding chapter was delivered, to that on which the transfiguration took place, or, including those two days, about eight days after, as Luke has it: Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother — The three disciples whom he honoured with a peculiar intimacy, (see Mar 5:37; and Mat 26:37,) and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart — From the people and his other disciples. Jerome tells us, that there was a tradition in his days, handed down from the times of the apostles, that this was mount Tabor, famed in ancient history for the victory which Deborah and Barak gained over Sisera, Jdg 4:14. Dr. Macknight, however, thinks “the order of the history determines the transfiguration to some mountain not far from Cesarea Philippi, rather than to Tabor, which was situated in the south of Galilee. For after the transfiguration, it is said, Mar 9:30, that they departed and passed through Galilee, and then came to Capernaum. Now it is not very probable that the evangelist would in this manner have narrated our Lord’s journey from the mount of transfiguration to Capernaum, if that mountain had been in Galilee, the region in which Capernaum stood. Yet upon the faith of the tradition mentioned above, the Christians very early built a monastery and church on the top of Tabor, which church was dedicated to Jesus and his two attendants, Moses and Elias. And from 2Pe 1:18, they called the mountain itself, the holy mountain. And he was transfigured before them — Namely, before these three disciples. It was necessary that so remarkable an occurrence should be supported by sufficient witnesses; and hence it was that the three above mentioned were chosen, because so many were required among the Jews to establish a fact, and no more were chosen, because this number was sufficient. The word μετεμορφωθη, rendered here, transfigured, may either imply that there was a transformation made in the substance of his body, according to the import of the word in Ovid, and other writers; or that the outward appearance only of his body was altered, which seems most probable from the expression used by Luke, who says, το ειδος του προσωπου αυτου ετερον, the appearance of his countenance, or person: was changed: and this change, according to that evangelist, took place while he was praying, chap. Mat 9:29. And his face did shine as the sun — Became radiant and dazzling, and shone like the sun in its unclouded, meridian clearness; and so was incomparably more glorious than the face of Moses at the giving of the law. And his raiment was white as the light — Became, says Mark, shining exceeding white, as snow, so as no fuller on earth could white it. Was white and glistering, says Luke, or white as lightning, as λευκος εξαστραπτων properly signifies. It seems it was bright and sweetly refulgent, but in a degree inferior to the radiancy of his countenance. “The indwelling Deity,” says Mr. Wesley, “darted out its rays through the veil of his flesh: and that with such transcendent splendour, that he no longer bore the form of a servant. His face shone with divine majesty, like the sun in its strength; and all his body was so irradiated by it, that his clothes could not conceal his glory, but became white and glistering as the very light, with which he covered himself as with a garment.”
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1–4 Mat 17:1-9. See also Mar 9:2-10; Luk 9:28-36.
Mat 17:1-9. See also Mar 9:2-10; Luk 9:28-36.
And after six days - That is, six days from the conversation recorded in the last chapter.
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Luke Luk 9:28 says, about an eight days after. Matthew mentions the six days that intervened between the day of the conversation and the transfiguration. Luke includes both those days, and thus reckons eight. Besides, Luke does not pretend to fix the precise time. He says, “about an eight days after.”
Taketh Peter, and James, and John - These three disciples were with him, also, in the garden of Gethsemane, Mar 14:33. He designed to prepare them in an eminent degree for the work of the gospel ministry by the previous manifestations of his glory, and of his patience in suffering.
Into a high mountain apart - That is, apart from the other disciples. It is commonly supposed that this was Mount Tabor, a high mountain in Galilee. The name of the mountain is not, however, mentioned in the New Testament. Luke adds Luk 9:28 that he went up there to pray. Our Saviour prayed much. When he did it he chose to be alone. For this purpose he often ascended mountains or went into the deserts. There is something in the solitude and deep and awful stillness of a lofty mountain favorable to devotion.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1–3 And after six days. St. Matthew reckons neither the…
And after six days. St. Matthew reckons neither the day of the promise, nor the day of the transfiguration; St. Luke, including both, calls the interval about eight days, Greek: osei emerai okto. (St. John Chrysostom) --- He took Peter, as head of the apostolic college; James, as first to shed his blood for the faith; and John, as he was survive all the rest, and to transmit to posterity the circumstances of this glorious mystery; or, according to St. John Chrysostom on account of their more excellent love, zeal, courage, sufferings and predilection. The mountain is generally believed to be Thabor, and as such is considered by Christians as holy, and was much frequented by pilgrims, as St. Jerome testifies. Ven. Bede tells us that three churches were built upon it; and Mr. Maundrell, in his Journey from Aleppo to Jerusalem, p. 112, says there are still three grottoes, made to represent the three tabernacles proposed by St. Peter. According to Le Brun, Thabor is situated about 12 miles from the sea of Galilee, and eight from Nazareth. Others, however, do not think the transfiguration took place on Mount Thabor, which was in the middle of Lower Galilee, because St. Mark (ix. 29,) says, that Christ and his apostles, departing thence, passed through Galilee, and not out of Galilee, and suppose it might be Libanus, because it was near Cæsarea Philippi; in the borders of which Christ appears at this time to have been, at least the promise of the transfiguration was made there, and this place is distant about 60 miles from Mount Thabor. (Matthew xvi. 13.) --- Mount Lebanus is the highest in Palestine, according to St. Jerome; and of it Isaias prophesied: "the glory of Libanus is given to it, the beauty of Carmel and Saron; they shall see the glory of our God," xxxv. 2. (Tirinus) --- But, as we said above, Thabor is very generally supposed to have been the mountain.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
John Nelson Darby 1862 · Public Domain On v1 Matthew Chapter 17
Matthew Chapter 17
Jesus leads them up into a high mountain, and there is transfigured before them: “His face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.” Moses and Elias appeared also, talking with Him. I leave the subject of their discourse, which is deeply interesting, till we come to the Gospel of Luke, who adds a few other circumstances, which, in some respects, give another aspect to this scene.
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Here the Lord appears in glory, and Moses and Elias with Him: the one the legislator of the Jews; the other (almost equally distinguished) the prophet who sought to bring back the ten apostate tribes to the worship of Jehovah, and who, despairing of the people, went back to Horeb, whence the law was given, and afterwards was taken up to heaven without passing through death.
These two persons, pre-eminently illustrious in the dealings of God with Israel, as the founder and the restorer of the people in connection with the law, appear in company with Jesus. Peter (struck with this apparition, rejoicing to see his Master associated with these pillars of the Jewish system, with such eminent servants of God, ignorant of the glory of the Son of man, and forgetting the revelation of the glory of His Person as the Son of God) desires to make three tabernacles, and to place the three on the same level as oracles. But the glory of God manifests itself; that is to say, the sign known in Israel as the abode (shechinah) of that glory; [48] and the voice of the Father is heard. Grace may put Moses and Elias in the same glory as that of the Son of God, and associate them with Him; but if the folly of man, in his ignorance, would place them together as having in themselves equal authority over the heart of the believer, the Father must at once vindicate the rights of His Son. Not a moment elapses before the Father’s voice proclaims the glory of the Person of His Son, His relation to Himself, that He is the object of His entire affection, in whom is all His delight. It is He whom the disciples are to hear. Moses and Elias have disappeared. Christ is there alone, as the One to be glorified, the One to teach those who hear the Father’s voice. The Father Himself distinguishes Him, presents Him to the notice of the disciples, not as being worthy of their love, but as the object of His own delight. In Jesus He was Himself well pleased. Thus the Father’s affections are presented as ruling ours-setting before us one common object. What a position for poor creatures like us! What grace! [49]
At the same time the law, and all idea of the restoration of the law under the old covenant, were passed away; and Jesus, glorified as Son of man, and Son of the living God, remains the sole dispenser of the knowledge and the mind of God. The disciples fall on their faces, sore afraid, on hearing the voice of God. Jesus, to whom this glory and this voice were natural, encourages them, as He always did when on earth, saying, “Be not afraid.” Being with Him who was the object of the Father’s love, why should they fear? Their best Friend was the manifestation of God on the earth; the glory belonged to Him. Moses and Elias had disappeared, and the glory also, which the disciples were not yet able to bear; Jesus-who had been thus manifested to them in the glory given Him, and in the rights of His glorious Person, in His relations with the Father-Jesus remains the same to them as they had ever known Him. But this glory was not to be the subject of their testimony until He, the Son of man, was risen from the dead-the suffering Son of man. The great proof should then be given, that He was the Son of God with power. Testimony thereunto should be rendered, and He would ascend personally into that glory which had just shone forth before their eyes.
But a difficulty arises in the minds of the disciples caused by the doctrine of the scribes with regard to Elias. These had said that Elias must come before the manifestation of the Messiah; and in fact the prophecy of Malachi authorised this expectation. Why then, ask they, say the scribes that Elias must first come? (that is to say, before the manifestation of the Messiah); whereas we have now seen that Thou art He, without the coming of Elias. Jesus confirms the words of the prophecy, adding, that Elias should restore all things. “But,” continues the Lord, “I say unto you, that he is come already, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed; likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.” Then understood they that He spoke of John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elias, as the Holy Ghost had declared by Zacharias his father.
Let us say a few words on this passage. First of all, when the Lord says, “Elias truly cometh first, and shall restore all things,” He does but confirm that which the scribes had spoken, according to Malachi’s prophecy, as though He had said, “They are in the right.” He then declares the effect of the coming of Elias: “He shall restore all things.” But the Son of man was yet to come. Jesus had said to His disciples, “Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of man be come.” Nevertheless He had come, and was even now speaking with them. But this coming of the Son of man of which He spoke, is His coming in glory, when He shall be manifested as the Son of man in judgment according to Dan 7:1-28. It was thus that all which had been said to the Jews should be accomplished; and in Matthew’s Gospel He speaks to them in connection with this expectation. Nevertheless it was needful that Jesus should be presented to the nation and should suffer. It was needful that the nation should be tested by the presentation of the Messiah according to the promise. This was done, and as God had also foretold by the prophets, “He was rejected of men.” Thus also John went before Him, according to Isa 40:1-31, as the voice in the wilderness, even in the spirit and power of Elias; he was rejected as the Son of man should also be. [50]
The Lord then, by these words, declares to His disciples, in connection with the scene they had just left, and with all this part of our Gospel, that the Son of man, as now presented to the Jews, was to be rejected. This same Son of man was to be manifested in glory, as they had seen for a moment on the Mount. Elias indeed was to come, as the scribes had said; but that John the Baptist had fulfilled that office in power for this presentation of the Son of man; which (the Jews being left, as was fitting, to their own responsibility) would only end in His rejection, and in the setting aside of the nation until the days in which God would begin again to connect Himself with His people, still dear to Him, whatever their condition might be. He would then restore all things (a glorious work, which He would accomplish by bringing again His Firstborn into the world). The expression “restore all things” refers here to the Jews, and is used morally. In Act 3:1-26 it refers to the effect of the Son of man’s own presence.
The temporary presence of the Son of man was the moment in which a work was accomplished on which eternal glory depends, in which God has been fully glorified, above and beyond all dispensation and in which God and so man has been revealed, a work of which even the outward glory of the Son of man is but the fruit, so far as that depends on His work, and not on His divine Person; a work in which morally He was perfectly glorified in perfectly glorifying God. Still, with respect to the promises made to the Jews, it was but the last step in the testing to which they were subjected by grace. God well knew that they would reject His Son; but He would not hold them as definitively guilty until they had really done it. Thus in His divine wisdom (while afterwards fulfilling His unchangeable promises) He presents Jesus to them-His Son, their Messiah. He gives them every necessary proof. He sends them John the Baptist in the spirit and power of Elias, as His forerunner. The Son of David is born at Bethlehem with all the signs that should have convinced them; but they were blinded by their pride and self-righteousness, and rejected it all. Nevertheless it became Jesus in grace to adapt Himself, as to His position, to the wretched condition of His people. Thus also, the Antitype of the David rejected in his day, He shared the affliction of His people. If the Gentiles oppressed them, their King must be associated with their distress, while giving every proof of what He was and seeking them in love. He rejected, all becomes pure grace. They have no longer a right to anything according to the promises, and are reduced to receive all from that grace, even as a poor Gentile would do. God will not fail in grace. Thus God has put them on the true footing of sinners, and will nevertheless fulfil His promises. This is the subject of Rom 11:1-36.
Now the Son of man who shall return will be this same Jesus who went away. The heavens will receive Him until the times of the restitution of all things of which the prophets have spoken. But he who was to be His forerunner in this temporary presence here could not be the same Elias. Accordingly John was conformed to the then manifestation of the Son of man, saving the difference that necessarily flowed from the Person of the Son of man, who could be but one, while that could not be the case with John the Baptist and Elias. But even as Jesus manifested all the power of the Messiah, all His rights to everything that belonged to that Messiah, without assuming as yet the outward glory, His time not being come Joh 7:1-53), so John fulfilled morally and in power the mission of Elias to prepare the way of the Lord before Him (according to the we character of His coming, as then accomplished), and answered literally to Isa 40:1-31 and even to Mal 3:1-18, the only passages applied to him. This is the reason that John said hewas not Elias, and that the Lord said, “If ye can receive it, this is Elias which was for to come.” Therefore also John never applied Mal 4:5-6 to himself; but he announces himself as fulfilling Isa 40:3-5, and this in each of the Gospels, whatever may be its particular character. [51]
But let us go on with our chapter. If the Lord takes up into the glory, He comes down into this world, even now in Spirit and in sympathy, and meets the crowd and Satan’s power with which we have to do. While the Lord was on the Mount, a poor father had brought to the disciples his son who was a lunatic and possessed by a devil. Here is developed another character of man’s unbelief, that even of the believer-inability to make use of the power which is, so to say, at his disposal in the Lord. Christ, Son of God, Messiah, Son of man, had overcome the enemy, had bound the strong man and had a right to cast him out. As man, the obedient One in spite of Satan’s temptations, He had overcome him in the wilderness, and had thus a right as man to dispossess him of his dominion over a man as to this world; and this He did. In casting out devils and healing the sick, He delivered man from the power of the enemy. “God,” said Peter, “anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power, and he went about doing good and healing all those that were oppressed by the devil.” Now this power should have been used by the disciples, who ought to have known how to avail themselves by faith of that which Jesus had thus manifested on earth; but they were not able to do it. Yet what availed it to bring this power down here, if the disciples had not faith to use it? The power was there: man might profit by it for complete deliverance from all the oppression of the enemy; but he had not faith to do so-even believers had not. The presence of Christ on earth was useless, when even His own disciples knew not how to profit by it. There was more faith in the man that brought his child than in them, for felt want brought him to its remedy. All therefore come under the Lord’s sentence, “O faithless and perverse generation!” He must leave them, and that which the glory had revealed above, unbelief shall realise below.
Observe here, that it is not evil in the world which puts an end to a particular intervention of God; on the contrary, it occasions the intervention in grace. It was on account of Satan’s dominion over men that Christ came. He departs, because those who had received Him are incapable of using the power that He brought with Him, or that He bestows for their deliverance; they cannot profit by the very advantages then enjoyed. Faith was wanting. Nevertheless observe also this important and touching truth that, as long as such dispensation from God continues, Jesus does not fail to meet individual faith with blessing, even when His disciples cannot glorify Him by the exercise of faith. The same sentence that judges the unbelief of the disciples calls the distressed father to the enjoyment of the blessing. After all, to be able to avail ourselves of His power, we must be in communion with Him by the practical energy of faith.
He blesses then the poor father according to his need; and, full of patience, He resumes the course of instruction He was giving His disciples on the subject of His rejection and His resurrection as the Son of man. Loving the Lord, and unable to carry their ideas beyond the circumstances of the moment, they are troubled; and yet this was redemption, salvation, the glory of Christ.
Before however going farther, and teaching them that which became the disciples of a Master thus rejected and the position they were to occupy, He sets before them His divine glory, and their association with Him who had it, in the most touching manner, if they could but have understood it; and at the same time with perfect condescension and tenderness He places Himself with them, or rather He places them in the same place with Himself, as Son of the great King of the temple and of all the earth.
Those who collected the tribute-money for the service of the temple come and ask Peter if his Master does not pay it. Ever ready to put himself forward, forgetful of the glory he had seen, and the revelation made to him by the Father, Peter, coming down to the ordinary level of his own thoughts, anxious that his Master should be esteemed a good Jew and without consulting Him, replies that He does. The Lord anticipates Peter on his coming in, and shews him His divine knowledge of that which took place at a distance from Himself. At the same time, He speaks of Peter and Himself as both children of the King of the temple (Son of God still keeping in patient goodness His lowly place as a Jew), and both therefore free from the tribute. But they should not offend. He then commands creation, (for He can do all things, as He knows all things,) and causes a fish to bring precisely the sum required, coupling anew the name of Peter with His own. He had said, “Lest we offend them”; and now, “Give unto them for me and thee.” Marvellous and divine condescension! He who is the searcher of hearts, and who disposes at will of the whole creation, the Son of the sovereign Lord of the temple, puts His poor disciples into this same relationship with His heavenly Father, with the God who was worshipped in that temple. He submits to the demands that would have been rightly made on strangers, but He places His disciples in all His own privileges as Son. We see very plainly the connection between this touching expression of divine grace and the subject of these chapters. It demonstrates all the significance of the change that was taking place.
It is interesting to remark that the first epistle of Peter is founded on Mat 16:1-28, and the second on chapter 17, which we have just been considering. [52] In chapter 16 Peter taught of the Father, confessed the Lord to be the Son of the living God; and the Lord said that on this rock He would build His church, and that he who had the power of death should not prevail against it. Thus also Peter, in his first epistle, declares that they were born again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Now it is by this resurrection that the power of the life of the living God was manifested. Afterwards he calls Christ the living stone, in coming unto whom we, as living stones, are built up a holy temple to the Lord.
In his second epistle he recalls, in a peculiar manner, the glory of the transfiguration, as a proof of the coming and the kingdom of the Son of man. Accordingly he speaks in that epistle of the judgment of the Lord.
Footnotes for Matthew Chapter 17
48: Peter, taught of the Holy Ghost, calls it “the excellent glory.”
49: It was not in connection with the divine validity of their testimony, that Moses and Elias disappear. There could not be a stronger confirmation of it, as indeed Peter says, than this scene. But not only they were not the subjects of God’s testimony as Christ was, but their testimony did not refer nor their exhortations reach to the heavenly things which were now to be revealed in association with the Son from heaven. Even John the Baptist makes this difference (Joh 3:13; Joh 3:31-34). Hence as there set forth, the Son of man must be lifted up. So here, the Lord charges the disciples not to say He was the Messiah, for the Son of man must suffer. It was the turning-point of the Lord’s life and ministry, and the coming glory of the kingdom shewn to the disciples, but then He must suffer (see Joh 12:27). The Jewish history was closed in chapter 12, indeed in chapter 11, and the ground of the change laid John and He both rejected, perfect submission, then all things delivered unto Him of His Father, and He revealing the Father (compare Joh 13:1-38; Joh 14:1-31). But Mat 13:1-58 -apart from Judaism, He begins with what He brought, not looking for fruit in man.
50: Hence also John Baptist rejects the application of Mal 4:5-6, to himself; while Isa 40:1-31 and Mal 3:1 are applied to him in Luk 1:76; Luk 7:27.
51: See previous note.
52: Both these epistles, after stating redemption by the precious blood of Christ and being born of the incorruptible seed of the word, treat of the government of God; the first, its application to His own, preserving them, the second, to the wicked and the world, going on thus to the elements melting with fervent heat, and the new heavens and the new earth.
John Nelson Darby — Synopsis of the Books of the Bible: the New Testament (c. 1857–1862) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v1 C. The Church as a Spiritual Communion, in opposition…
C. The Church as a Spiritual Communion, in opposition to the Solitary Tabernacles of Spurious Separation from the World. Mat_17:1-9
(The Gospel for the 6th Sunday after Epiphany.—Parallels: Mar_9:2-9; Luk_9:28-36)
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1And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, [and, καί] James, and John his brother, and 2bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,1 And [he] was transfigured before them: and his face did shine [shone]2 as the sun, and his raiment [garments] was [became, ἐγένετο] white as the light. 3And, behold, there appeared3 unto them Moses and Elias 4[Elijah] talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make [I will make]4 here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias [Elijah]. 5While he yet spake [was yet speaking], behold, a bright [luminous, φωτεινή] could5 overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said [saying, λέγουσα], This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. 6And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. 7And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. 8And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. 9And as they came down from [out of]6 the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be [is] risen again7 from the dead.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Mat_17:1. Since the fourth century tradition has fixed on Mount Tabor, in Galilee, as the locality of this event. See the description of it in Schubert and others. This opinion is, however, evidently untenable. Not only was Mount Tabor inhabited to its summit at the time (see Robinson), but it seems exceedingly improbable that Jesus would have so suddenly left His retreat in the highlands of Gaulonitis, and transferred the scene of one of His most secret revelations to Galilee, where He was everywhere persecuted. Besides, Mat_17:22 implies that the change of residence to Galilee took place at a later period, while in Mar_9:30 it is distinctly stated, that after these events Jesus had secretly passed through Galilee.
The highest mountain-top in Gaulonitis was Mount Hermon. Accordingly, some fix upon Hermon itself as the scene of this event; others on Mount panius, near Cæsarea Philippi. But from the description of the mountain, and the statement in Mat_17:9, that “they came down” from its height, it seems likely to have been Hermon.
After six days.—So Matthew and Mark. Luke has it ὡσ εὶἡ μέραι ὀκ τώ. According to the common phraseology, the expression, about eight days, denoted a week—or, after six days, adding the day of Peter’s confession. During a whole week the disciples had been bearing about, and meditating upon, the revelation which Christ had made concerning His cross. At the close of it, the Lord prepared for them the first Sabbath of the New Testament,—an earnest and foretaste both of His resurrection and of the Christian Sabbath.
[Alford and others suppose that the transfiguration probably took place in the night, for the following reasons: 1) Jesus had gone up to the mountain to pray, Luk_9:28, which He usually did at night (Luk_6:12; Luk_21:37; Luk_22:39; Mat_14:23-24). 2) The Apostles were asleep, and are described as having kept awake through this occurrence, διαγρηγορήσαντες, Luk_9:32. 3) They did not descend till the next day, Luk_9:37. 4) The transfiguration itself could be seen to better advantage at night than in daylight.—P. S.]
Mat_17:2. And He was transfigured.—Matthew and Mark use the term μετεμορφώθη; Luke expresses it, ἑγένετο τὸ εἶδος τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἕτερον, κ.τ.λ. According to Luke, this transformation of His appearance took place while He was praying. According to Matthew, His face shone as the sun, and His garments became white (bright) as the light. Luke has it: “the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His raiment was white and glistering [λευκὸς ἑξαστράπτων, white-glistening, weissleuchtend]” Mark dwells upon the brightness of the raiment: “it became shining, exceeding white as snow, so [such] as no fuller on earth can white [whiten] them.” Meyer observes, that “this event is not to be regarded as a parallel to what is recorded in Exo_34:29, since the shining of Moses’ face was the consequence of the preceding appearance of God.” As if the text did not refer to a different presence of God from that recorded in Exodus 34! “We know how the human countenance is often lit up by joy, beautified by affection, or wonderfully transformed by the peace and blessedness realized in the hour of death. The revelations vouchsafed to the prophets often made them pale as death (Daniel 10), at other times resplendent with joy. The face of Moses shone when he came down from Mount Sinai, so that no one could bear to look upon his countenance. In the text, we have the highest instance of this kind which could possibly occur in human experience. The infinite fulness of the Spirit was poured out over His whole being; the heavenly glory of His nature, which was still concealed under His earthly appearance (and during His conflict with the kingdom of darkness), now broke forth.” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, 905)8 Meyer rightly remarks, that this manifestation of His δόξα was an anticipation of His future state of glory (Joh_12:16; Joh_12:23; Joh_17:5; Joh_17:22-24; 2Co_3:18; Mat_13:43).
Mat_17:3. And behold!—Indicating that this was even more marvellous than His own transformation.
There appeared unto them.—The readingώ̓φθη, B., D., does not alter the sense. The vision of Moses and Elijah was outward and actual, though implying, at the same time, a peculiar subjective state on the part of the disciples, which was caused by their communion with Jesus. Luke [a physician by profession] furnishes what might be called a psychological account of the matter, when he describes them as heavy with sleep and yet awake throughout. The proximity of these glorified spirits produced, not indeed a morbid state of somnambulism, but a peculiar moral state, like that of the ancient seers. It is an idle inquiry, how they came to know the persons who appeared on this occasion; we presume that they immediately recognized the vision in the same manner as they beheld it.
Moses and Elijah.—The appearing of these blessed spirits explains the change which passed on the Lord. For the time He exchanged His intercourse with this world for that with the world above. The fact that a person looks very differently in the midst of festive joy, and when engaged in the ordinary labor of his calling—on a journey, or surveying the scene from a mountain height, and surrounded by his daily cares—while triumphantly standing forth on behalf of some great principle, and when weighed down by temptation or trials,—affords a very faint analogy of this transformation. Commonly, Jesus was engaged in conflict either with the lust or the sorrow of this world; on this occasion, it was the festive celebration of the Messiah.
Talking with Him.—Meyer remarks that we have no information as to this conversation. But the Evangelist Luke states that “they spake of His departure which He should fulfil at Jerusalem.” This also furnishes the key to the meaning and object of this vision. It presents the two chief representatives of the Old Covenant as the forerunners of the Messiah, and as acquainted with and cognizant of His impending course of suffering. Hence this may be regarded as an evidence of the agreement of the Old and New Testaments in reference to the sufferings of the Messiah.
Mat_17:4. Lord, it is good for us to be here.—Not: It is well that we the disciples are here (Paulus, Baumgarten-Crusius, Meyer), that we may provide dwellings for a longer stay; for, although ἡμᾶς precedes ὧδε, the expression evidently includes the Lord. Hence we adopt the common explanation of the verse (proposed by Chrysostom, etc.): It is good for us to be in this place—in opposition to Jerusalem; but not as contrasted with the impending sufferings, as is often assumed. The latter would imply that Peter had again lapsed into the carnal views expressed in Mat_16:22, which were incompatible with that kingdom of Messiah which was to be established by suffering. On the contrary, we understand the words of Peter as implying that he was even willing to give up the prospect of that coming glory, satisfied if, separated from the world, he could continue, with the Lord and His companions, in spiritual communion with Moses and Elijah. At a still later period we find him ready for suffering, though in the sense of a conflict of suffering by the sword. Hence we may trace the following course of development in his spiritual history: 1. Anticipation of the glory of Messiah in connection with the ancient national polity; 2. in opposition to that polity, but as victorious over it; 3. relinquishment of the hope of the Messianic kingdom in this world, both in its sufferings and its glories; 4. willingness to suffer—but with the sword in hand; 5. after his denial of the Saviour, simple willingness to suffer—in hope; 6. anticipation of the glory of the kingdom through suffering and conflict by the sword of the Spirit. These various stages of his experience may be regarded as respectively typifying the Jewish Church—the Gentile Church under Constantine the Great—the monastic Church—the Popish Church, with its two swords—and (5 and 6) the true Church, with its sword of the Spirit.
Three tabernacles.—Arbors, forest tents, hermitages.
Mat_17:5. Behold—and behold.—A threefold progression, commencing in Mat_17:3. The first miracle was Christ transfigured and surrounded by the beatified spirits of the representatives of the Old Covenant. The second miracle was the bright cloud, which constituted the sign from heaven, refused to the Jewish authorities who had asked for it, and now granted, unsolicited, to the disciples. The third miracle was the revelation of the Father by a voice from heaven.
A luminous cloud.—The expression νεφέληφω τεινή denotes a light-like, luminous cloud, and not merely “a bright cloud or mist lit up by the sun” (Paulus), (φωτεινὸς ἥλιος). It was of the same kind as the cloud at the ascension, or the clouds of heaven at the advent of the Son of man (Mat_24:30 : καὶ τότε φανήσεται τὸ σημεῖον τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἑν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Mar_13:26 : καὶ τότε ό̓ψονται τὸν νἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐρχόμενον ἐν νεφέλαις μετὰ δυνάμεως πολλῆς καὶ δόξης. Luk_21:27 : ἐν νεφέλῃ μετὰ δυνάμεως καὶ δόξης πολλν͂ς. Comp. Dan_7:13). Hence, this was the sign from heaven, the real Shechinah (שְׁכִינָה Talmud. prœsentia Dei; from שָׁכִן to lie down, to rest, to dwell), of which that in Exo_13:21; Exo_40:34, formed the type, and which in turn was a symbol of the spiritual glory resting on the New Testament Church, separating between the holy and the unholy (Isa_4:5), and at the same time also a type of the splendor of the New Jerusalem, Rev_21:23.
Overshadowed them; αὐτούς.—According to Le Clerc, all present; according to Wolf, Bengel, etc., the disciples; according to de Wette and Meyer, Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. De Wette appeals in confirmation of his view to the account given by Luke. But to us his narrative conveys the impression that all present were overshadowed by a dazzling light, which, as it were, separated them from the earth generally; while Jesus, Moses, and Elijah entered into the cloud which hovered over them, floating along with it. There seems to have been a mutual attraction—of the cloud downward, and of the glorified figures upward. A prelude this of the ascension. Olshausen explains the expression “overshadowed,” as implying that the light was so overpowering and dazzling as to prevent their looking into the cloud. “The strongest light is = σκότος. Hence the latter is used in Scripture instead of the former. The Lord is said to dwell in φὼς ἀπρόσιτον, and again in darkness, 1Ki_8:12; Exo_20:21.” Meyer misses the point in remarking that such a cloud would overshadow or place the figures in semi-darkness, etc. The effect of the cloud was to overshadow the disciples, or for the time to separate them, on the one hand, from the immediate bodily vision of Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, and of God coming to them; and, on the other, from the profane world. The shadows of a heavenly night were closing around them. Thus Mary had been overshadowed by the δύναμις ὑψιστου. Under the Shechinah which overshadowed the Virgin, and separated her from the whole ancient world, bringing her into the most immediate divine presence, Christ was conceived, through the inspiration of heavenly faith.
A voice.—Comp. Luk_2:14; Mat_3:17; Mar_1:11; Luk_3:22; Joh_12:28. Similarly in 2Pe_1:17; Joh_1:33. The solemn attestation of the Messiah and Son of God, vouchsafed to the Jewish theocracy by the voice from heaven, heard by John the Baptist, and through him by the whole nation, had been rejected by the unbelief of the representatives of the synagogue and of the schools. Hence another direct testimony was now granted, this time to the Apostles as the representatives of the ὲκκλησί.—Hear ye Him,—αὐτοῦ ἀκούετε, in an emphatic sense. The divine attestation of Jesus which they had just witnessed, implied the duty of perfect obedience, and of complete self-surrender. At the same time, this command would also convey to the disciples that ideas such as those which Peter entertained, about the kingdom of the Messiah and about the Church, must be laid aside.
Mat_17:7. And Jesus came and touched them.—Comp. Isa_6:5-7; Dan_10:9-10; Rev_1:17.
Mat_17:8. Save Jesus only.—The moment had now arrived when the Lord required no further testimony from Moses or Elijah in the presence of His disciples. Hitherto the Old Testament had been their warrant and evidence for the New. But now the New Covenant was not only self-evidenced, but serving as confirmation of the Old. The expression also indicates that the hour of festive joy, in anticipation of the coming glory, was now past. From their fellowship with the spirits of the blessed, they were now to descend into the world and into fresh conflicts.
Mat_17:9. The vision.—Ὅραμ α; the outward and objective manifestation which they had seen in a state of prophetic inspiration. Different views are entertained about the reason of this prohibition. Meyer suggests that the Lord wished to prevent erroneous expectations of Elijah. We are inclined to take a more general view of the matter. For the object aimed at, it sufficed that the principal nucleus of the Church, or the confidential disciples of Jesus, should be strengthened by this glance of spiritual realities, while the secrecy with which it was invested would tend to preserve the deep and powerful impression. Besides, the vision could not have been related to the other disciples without including Judas among them. In all likelihood it would have incited envy, carnal hopes, or doubts in their minds. The people were, of course, not prepared to receive such a communication. Those among them who were favorably disposed would again have given way to outbursts of enthusiasm; while the adversaries would have either directed their hatred and persecutions to the three disciples who had witnessed the glory of Christ, or else sought to controvert and to shake their blessed conviction of the spiritual realities which had opened before them. Not till after the resurrection of Christ from Sheol was the world to be taught how much better and happier than, in their dread of death, they had hitherto imagined, was the state of the pious in Sheol (for example, Moses and Elijah). The fact that Christ—the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever—had all along lit up the gloom of Sheol, was only to appear when, at and by His resurrection, Sheol it self ceased to exist.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. See the Exegetical an Critical Notes.
2. The history of the Transfiguration.—Various views are entertained on this subject: 1. It has been regarded as merely a vision. Thus Tertullian (Contra Marc. iv. 22), Herder, and Gratz. 2. Meyer regards it as partly a vision, and partly an objective reality. The appearance of Moses and Elijah was, in his opinion, merely a vision; while the glorious change in the outward appearance of Jesus was an objective reality. 3. All the ancient dogmatic writers characterize it as a purely outward and visible event. To this Meyer objects, that it would imply that the resurrection of Moses was past; as if the spirits of the blessed were necessarily destitute of all corporeity or form. To the same effect Grotius remarks: Hæc corpora videri possunt a Deo in hunc usum asservata; while Thomas Aquinas suggests that Moses made use of a body not his own.9 4. A number of natural explanations of the event have been hazarded. Thus it has been represented—(a) as a vision in a dream (Gabler, Rau, Kuinoel, even Neander); (b) accompanied by a thunder-storm (Gabler); (c) as a meeting between Jesus and two secret, unknown adherents (Kuinoel, Venturini, Paulus, Hase); (d) as an atmospheric phenomenon (Paulus, Ammon). 5. Ewald regards it as a real occurrence, but with mythical embellishments. 6. Schulz, Strauss, and others represent it as a pure myth, on the ground of the injunction to keep it a secret, which they regard as a fiction.10 7. It has been viewed as an allegory, or a figurative representation of the spiritual light imparted on that occasion to the disciples respecting the character and work of Jesus (Weisse). 8. In our opinion, it belongs to a higher sphere of existence, combining the two elements of outward manifestation and spiritual vision (see Leben Jesu, ii. 2, p. 904; and on the general question, ii. 1, p. 41). Even Meyer, who represents one part of the narrative as an objective reality, and the other as merely a vision, admits that although the voice from heaven was a spiritual and inward transaction, yet it seemed an outward perception to those who were in a state of vision.
3. The transfiguration of the Lord was a manifestation of the spiritual world in the midst of earthly life. It was as if the Lord had already entered His mansions of glory. Viewing it as a stage in the history of His personal development, the transfiguration may be characterized as occupying a place intermediate between the walking on the sea, and the hearing the voice from heaven in the precincts of the temple, John 12. “In certain diseases, a luminous appearance of the body has been observed by physicians as a strange and rare symptom. This may serve at least to show the physical possibility of such an emission of light from the body, although it has never been noticed as marking the highest state of health and vigor.” Both the founder and the restorer of the kingdom of God under the Old dispensation, who had equally been removed from this world in a miraculous manner (Deu_34:6; 2Ki_2:11) and Jesus Himself (whose resurrection was at hand), were transfigured into the same glorified state. O. von Gerlach: “At His baptism Jesus had as the Son of Man entered that new kingdom of God upon earth which He Himself had founded. But at the transfiguration He had reached the period of His history, when, having fully shown His active obedience, He was to display chiefly His passive obedience. This may be described as a season of rest in His half-accomplished victory.”
4. The meeting of the Lord with Moses and Elijah conveys a threefold lesson. (a) It shows the bearing of the future upon the present world. The dead are waiting the appearance of the Lord. He lit up the gloom of hades, brought life to its inmates, and threw open its gates. The most exalted of the departed spirits here do homage to Him. (b) It discloses the bearing of the visible upon the invisible world. The event here recorded may be regarded as the earnest and commencement of Christ’s preaching to the spirits in prison. It was succeeded by the movement which took place among the dead when Christ arose (Mat_27:42), and fully realized when He descended into hades to preach the gospel there (Mat_12:40; Eph_4:9; 1Pe_3:19; 1Pe_4:6).11 (c) We gather how this world and the next meet, so to speak, and coalesce in the resurrection of Jesus. The difference of time and circumstances here gives place to a higher unity. The disciples were now taught that the sufferings and death of the Messiah did not sever the connection between Him and the Old Testament,—more especially, that between Jesus and the lawgiver who condemned blasphemers to death, and even the zealous prophet who had called down fire from heaven; while these very sufferings constituted the superiority of the Saviour over the representatives of the Old dispensation. “Again, as at Jordan, did the representatives of the two covenants meet.” Besides, the gulf of space was also bridged over by this event. In the person of Christ the barriers which separate between this and the other world began to give way. They gave place to a higher unity. This transition was completed at His resurrection. Hence also this meeting may be characterized as an anticipation of the final “reconciling” of things in heaven and in earth (Col_1:20).
5. The cloud.—(“Not a dark cloud, like that which rested on Sinai.” O. von Gerlach.)—It served not merely as a figure of the presence of God, but, like the pillar of cloud and of fire which intervened between Israel and the Egyptians, it had a twofold aspect—bringing light to the one party, and concealing it from the other. “As the brightness which overshadowed them may be regarded as a manifestation of heavenly in the midst of earthly life, so the luminous cloud as the outward garb which heavenly life prepares for itself from earthly objects, since it cannot appear in all its inherent glory. Similarly is the light of heaven tempered for our earth by the intervention of clouds,” which reflect that light for us as need requireth. To us it appears exceedingly significant, that the cloud which separated the disciples from the Lord appeared at the very moment when Peter uttered a saying which, as we have seen, was indicative of his peculiar state of mind. Hence the command, “Hear ye Him,” may be regarded as in a special manner addressed to him.
6. From Luk_9:33 we gather that Peter addressed this proposal to the Lord when he saw Moses and Elijah about to part from Him. It was then that the cloud overshadowed them, and the voice from heaven was heard. It seems as if Peter would have outwardly detained those blessed spirits to protract the glory of that hour. “He wished to institute a sort of high-church establishment,12 or to found a monastic order. The communion which he was about to inaugurate was to have Christ for its leader, Moses for its lawgiver, and Elijah for its zealot,—in short, there was to be an outward amalgamation of the Old and New Testaments. Hence the attempt to detain those who now enjoyed a spiritual existence, and to perpetuate their terrestrial appearance in this world. Thus spake Simon, not Peter—a type of that Church which still appeals to his authority. The Evangelists add, by way of apology, ‘He wist not what he said’ ” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, p. 907). He was now ready in one sense to renounce the world; but his surrender was merely outward. The proposal forcibly recalls to our minds a later scene and utterance: “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.”
7. The prostration of the disciples at the vision, reminds us of the similar experience of the prophets. At another time, John experienced the same awe (Revelation 1), showing the infinite majesty of Christ’s appearance. Such also shall be the effect of the sign from heaven on the nations of the earth in the day of judgment (Mat_24:30).
8. The object of this vision.—Before the disciples could with safety descend into the depths of temptation connected with the cross of Christ, they were, so to speak, fastened to heaven by the cords of this vision. “The Church was to have fellowship with spiritual realities, and with the world of spirits, before those weak hearts could be converted into bold and triumphant witnesses to meet the world, death, and hell” (Leben Jesu, ii. 2, 909).
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
The anticipation of Christ’s final glory.—The miraculous transfiguration of the Lord a pledge of our miraculous transfiguration by the Lord.—And after six days; or, the first week of suffering on the part of the disciples, previous to the sufferings of the Lord Himself: 1. Its beginning: the confession of Peter, and the announcement of the Lord’s sufferings. 2. Its employment: familiarizing their minds with thoughts of the cross. 3. Its close: a glorious Sabbath on the holy mount.—The three intimate disciples of the Lord an image of His close followers in the Church: 1. John, as representing the friends of Jesus who rest on His breast; 2. Peter, or the servants of Christ who prepare the extension of His kingdom; 3. James, or the courageous and persevering witnesses of His cross: Or, contemplation, preaching, and martyrdom.—We must be willing to follow the Lord to the summit of a high mountain, if we wish to see His own glorious light shed over the deep valley of His humiliation and sufferings.—The holy mountains.—Prayer the path to glory (see the Psalms which ascend from supplication to praise).—Prayer the direction of the heart toward heaven.—How by prayer the heart of the pilgrim may outstrip his footsteps to the heights of transfiguration.—The transfiguration of Jesus on the mount at once the deepest mystery and the most glorious revelation.—The transfiguration of the Lord an earnest of the transfiguration of His sufferings.—The brightness of spiritual joy, as reflected by the flame of the sacrifice of a heart which surrenders all unto God.—The shining raiment of Christ the garb of believers.—The natural body destined to become a spiritual body, 1 Corinthians 15.—The Church of Christ at its first festive season appearing as a spiritual communion: 1. A communion of the saints of the Old and New Covenant; 2. of the Church below and the Church above; 3. of the Lord and His disciples; 4. of the Father, and of all the blessed spirits who serve the Son.—The suffering Saviour in His relationship to Moses and Elijah.—The office of the law, and that of the gospel, 2Co_3:7.—The three glorified figures, and the three non-glorified figures—between them the Father—a picture of the Church universal, militant and triumphant.—Moses a witness of immortality under the New Testament.—The history of Peter’s spiritual development a type of that of the Church.—The good intention, and the error of Peter: 1. He was anxious to display the agreement between the Old and New Covenants; but by an outward amalgamation, not by their internal connection. 2. He was ready to renounce the world; but by an outward institution (such as monasticism and anchoretism), not by an inward Acts 3. He wished to perpetuate this season of spiritual fellowship; but by giving it an outward and fixed form, not by converting it into a spring of hidden life.—That form of antichristian error which appeals to the authority of Peter has given rise to the erection of three tabernacles (Moses: the Greek Church; Elijah: the Roman Church; Christ: the Evangelical Church).—While Peter was speaking, a cloud intervened, which for a while separated the disciples from their Lord.—The bright overshadowing cloud, a figure of the gospel as the great revealed mystery, 1Ti_3:16.—How the heavenly voice ever continues to resound through the Church: “This is My beloved Son!” (See 2Pe_1:17.)—How the disciples received a fresh prophetic consecration when they were overawed by the majesty of God.—The awe of the elect under the manifestations of the Lord.—How Christ restored His disciples from the awe produced by this revelation, in order that they might experience its blessedness!—When they raised their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus alone—true of religious experience generally: 1. It applied to the disciples in reference to Moses and Elijah; 2. to the Reformers and their knowledge; 3. to believers and the ground of their salvation.—During our whole earthly pilgrimage we must always again come down from the Mount of Refreshment.—In order to rise the higher, we must ever be ready to descend lower and lower.—We should jealously watch over our Christian experiences, and not lightly divulge them.—All our spiritual comforts are granted to strengthen us for the conflicts which we have to encounter, until the last decisive conflict.—The transformation on the mount, a symbol of Christ’s eternal glory, John 17.
Starke:—Nova Bibl. Tub.: How blessed to enjoy close fellowship with Jesus! for then shall we be allowed to see His glory.—The Lord bestows a peculiar measure of heavenly comfort on those whom He calls to greater than ordinary trials.—Special revelations and communications are special gifts which all are not able to bear.—Christ’s glory on the mount a foretoken of His greater glory in heaven, Rev_1:12.—How great will be the brightness of the saints in glory, when they shall be transformed into the image of the glorified body of Christ! 1Co_15:41.—Majus: All the glory of this world is not worthy to be compared with the transcendent glory of eternity.—Canstein: Satan and his kingdom is darkness; Christ and His glory (His kingdom) pure light.—Hedinger: The blessed communion of the saints in glory.—The communion of the Church militant and triumphant.—Zeisius: Thus the doctrine of immortality is established and sure.—The saints of former ages will return in greater glory.—Osiander: Those who have tasted (even in small measure) of the powers of the world to come, will forget all that is transitory, even though it have been glorious. Zeisius: If Peter so soon recognized Moses and Elias, whom he had never seen, what must be the mutual recognition of the elect, and what their communion in heaven!—See to it, that you be found in Christ and God will also be well pleased in you, Eph_1:6.—Canstein: Sinful men cannot approach unto God without a Mediator.—Cramer: Christ’s hand is strong to heal; whatever He touches becomes vigorous, strong, and sound.—Osiander: God reveals Himself unto us, not to destroy, but to save.—Such also will be Christ’s voice at the last day, “Arise, and be not afraid!” Joh_5:25.—In Christ the law and the prophets are fulfilled: hence Moses and Elias must vanish, and Christ alone remain; for there is salvation in none other, Act_4:12.—Zeisius: Truths have their destined time of revelation from God, Dan_12:4; Dan_12:8-9.—High revelations should not exalt any one, 2Co_12:7.—Cramer: In the discharge of our ministerial duties we should do nothing without a special call, or for the purpose of advancing our own reputation and glory.
Braune: The lawgiver (Moses) and the preacher of repentance (Elijah) give way at last before the glory of the Son of God.—Jesus alone.
Gerlach:13—When entering upon His sufferings, the Lord Jesus was confirmed in His dignity.—In this vision the disciples were to recognize—1. The unity and connection of the Old and New Covenants; 2. that of the kingdom of grace and of glory; 3. of out perishable earthly, and of the glorified body.—With what calmness Christ entered into a state by which His disciples, in their weakness and carnality, were overpowered.—The similarity of the glory of Christ and that of Moses, and their difference (2 Corinthians 3; Exo_34:29). 1. Moses only reflected a higher light; Christ was received into it. 2. The glory of Moses was dazzling and terrifying; that of Christ, though overpowering, was full of comfort. 3. The glory of Moses gradually vanished; while the transfiguration of Christ remained till the cloud concealed Him from view.
Lisco:—This foretaste of blessedness must have lightened the cross, strengthened the disciples for the coming conflict, and awakened within them a longing after full perfection.
Heubner:—The transfiguration of the Lord in its practical import: 1. So far as the Lord Himself was concerned, it served to strengthen Him on the path of sorrow and suffering on which He was about to enter. 2. So far as the disciples were concerned, it served as an evidence that Jesus was the Son of God; it implied a promise of support under severe trials, and a pledge of the resurrection of the body.
Sermons on the transfiguration, by Ephraim Syrus, Theremin.—J. Müller (in Fliedner’s Ein Herr, ein Glaube): the three stages in the Christian life: the transfiguration of Jesus, the emotion of the disciples, the thronging of the people.—Uhle: How we should act when hearing reports of extraordinary operations of grace: 1. We are not at once to reject the account; 2. nor to attempt exciting or forcing a revival; 3. but in the humble and faithful discharge of our work, to await a gracious manifestation from on high.—Rambach: Heaven on earth: 1. Where it may be found: (a) In secret fellowship with God; (b) in a life of spiritual love and friendship; (c) in the courts and at the altar of the Lord. 2. How it should be sought: (a) By preserving purity of heart (or by perseverance in the faith); (b) by constant increase of spirituality in our wishes and inclinations (or sanctification); (c) by ever keeping before our minds and hearts our eternal calling (or watching and prayer).—Carstädt in Zurn’s Predigt-Buch, Matt 1843: How Christ is still transfigured in those who follow Him up to the mountain.—Hagenbach: Seasons of transfiguration in the life of Christians.—Gruner: The spirits of our friends in glory hovering around us so long as we continue worthy of them. [Compare a most eloquent sermon of Dr. Fr. W. Krummacher on the Transfiguration, at the close of his Elijah the Tishbite.—P. S.]
Footnotes:
[1] Mat_17:1.—[After apart there ought to be a period, and he inserted after And in Mat_17:2.—P. S.]
[2] Mat_17:2.—[There is no necessity for did in translating έ̓λαμψε.—P. S.]
[3] Mat_17:3.—[The third person singular, ὤφθη, is preferred by Lachmann, Tischendorf, and Alford, and is better attested, especially by Codd. Vaticanus and Sinaiticus, than ὤφθησαν, but it has no effect upon the English translation. Lange translates: erschienen, not erschien.—P. S.]
[4] Mat_17:4.—Codd. B., C., etc., read: ποιήω, I will make. So Lachmann, Tischendorf, [Alford]. The lect. rec., ποιήσωμεν, let us make, corresponds with the text in Mark and Luke. [The first person singular, ποιτ́σω, is also supported by Cod. Sinait., and is more in keeping with the ardent temperament and self-confidence of Peter.—P. S.]
[5] Mat_17:5.—B., D., and most of the authorities read νεφέλη φωτεινή (bright cloud), against νεφ. φωτός (cloud of light). The sense is essentially the same.
[6] Mat_17:9.—The critical authorities and editions favor ἐκ, out of, against ἀπό from. It indicates probably that they proceeded from a mountain-cave.
[7] Mat_17:9.—B., D., etc., ἐγερθῇ
[8][This bursting forth of the inherent glory of Christ is hardly sufficient to account for the brilliancy of His garments. I see no objection to call to aid an external heavenly illumination, which undoubtedly surrounded Moses and Elijah as they descended from heaven.—P. S.]
[9][Delitzsch, Bibl. Psychologie. p. 369, supposes that Moses assumed an immaterial yet external visible (?) appearance conformable to his former body.—P. S.]
[10][Strauss views the transfiguration as a poetic imitation of the event related, Exo_24:1; Exo_34:29 sq., when Moses went up to Mount Sinai into the presence or Jehovah, and on returning “his face shone,” that the children of Israel were afraid to come nigh him. Strauss thinks the only alternative lies between his mytho-poetic and the old orthodox view. See his new Leben Jesu, 1864, p. 516 sqq. But the circumstantial agreement of the three Evangelists in their account the definite chronological date of the event, its connection with what follows, the allusion to it by one of the wit cases in 2Pe_1:16-18, and the many peculiar traits to which no parallel is found in the transfiguration of Moses, make the mythical view impossible here. Renan, in his Vie de Jesus, ignores the transfiguration.—P. S.]
[11][Compare here my note on p. 228 sqq.—P. S.]
[12][In German: Hochkirche, a term often improperly used by German writers as a noun, and as identical with the established church of England, when high church, low church, and broad church are adjectives only to designate the different parties or theological schools in the Anglican Church, or in the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States. It is surprising that the Edinb. translation literally renders High Church, which, to the best of my Knowledge, is never used as a noun in good English.—P. S.]
[13]Gerlach and Lisco adhere to the tradition that Tabor was the mount of transfiguration. But it would betray weakness and want of freedom to insist upon this point in a sermon simply on account of the catholic tradition.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1–4 § 75. — THE TRANSFIGURATION, Mat_17:1-12.
§ 75. — THE TRANSFIGURATION, Mat_17:1-12.
1. After six days — Luke says “about eight days;” that is, after the conversation mentioned in the last chapter. Luke counts and Matthew omits the first and last days. Taketh… bringeth them. He selects and leads them. Peter, James, and John — The rock and the two sons of thunder. They were the select three of several occasions. Their traits of character rendered them capable of special revelations and manifestations. (Mar_5:37; Mat_26:27; Luk_8:51.) Into a high mountain — It was formerly supposed to be Tabor, in Galilee; but as our Lord on coming down immediately joins the other disciples, and seems not to have left the region of Cesarea Philippi for Galilee until after the curing of the demoniac, (Mar_9:30,) so distant a mountain as Tabor can hardly have been the scene. Hermon, called Great Hermon, northeast of Gennesaret, is now considered by scholars as the more probable locality.
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“It is impossible to look up from the plain to the towering peaks of Hermon, almost the only mountain which deserves the name in Palestine, and not be struck with its appropriateness to the scene. That magnificent height, mingling with all the views of Northern Palestine, from Shechem upwards, though often alluded to as the northern barrier of the Holy Land, is connected with no historical event in the Old or New Testament. Yet this fact of its rising high above all the other hills of Palestine, and of its setting the last limit to the wanderings of Him who was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, concurs with the supposition which the words of the Scripture narrative inevitably force upon us. High up on its southern slopes there must be many a point where the disciples could be taken ‘apart by themselves.’ Even the transient comparison of the celestial splendour with the snow, where alone it could be seen in Palestine, should not, perhaps, be wholly overlooked.” — Stanley.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–4 Ch. Mat_17:1-13. The Transfiguration
Ch. Mat_17:1-13. The Transfiguration
Mar_9:2-13; Luk_9:28-36
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1. after six days] Within a week of Peter’s confession. St Luke has “about an eight days after,” according to the common Jewish reckoning, by which each part of a day is counted as a day.
Peter, James, and John] The three who were chosen to be with their Master on two other occasions, (1) the raising of Jairus’ daughter, (2) the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
a high mountain] A contrast suggests itself, between this mountain of the Kingdom of God, and the mountain of the kingdoms of the world, ch. Mat_4:8.
An old tradition placed the scene of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. It is known, however, that the summit of Tabor was at this period occupied by a fortress, and there is no hint given of Jesus being in that neighbourhood. Many regard one of the spurs of the snowcapped Hermon as the most likely spot. Cæsarea Philippi, the last named locality, lies under Hermon, and its glittering cone of snow may have suggested the expression in Mark “exceeding white as snow,” if, indeed, the words “as snow” are to be admitted into the text.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–4 (1) After six days.—St. Luke’s “about eight days” (Luk_9:28)…
XVII.
(1) After six days.—St. Luke’s “about eight days” (Luk_9:28) may be noted as an example of the mode of reckoning which spoke of the interval between our Lord’s death and resurrection, about six-and-thirty hours, as three days.
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Peter, James, and John.—The three retain their position, as in the raising of Jairus’s daughter, as the elect among the elect. (Comp. also Mat_26:37; Mar_13:3.) Looking to the grouping of the Apostles it might have seemed natural that Andrew also should have been there, but his character seems to have been always retiring, and, it may be, was wanting in the intensity of faith which belonged to his brother, the Rock-Apostle, and to the two Sons of Thunder.
Into an high mountain.—A tradition of uncertain date fixes on Tabor as the scene of the Transfiguration, but this was probably due to the conspicuous position of that mountain, as it rises abruptly from the plain of Esdraelon. The Gospel narratives leave the locality altogether uncertain, but as Cæsarea Philippi was the last place mentioned, and a journey through Galilee follows (Mar_9:30), it is more probable that the scene is to be found on one of the heights of Hermon. Tabor, it may be added, was crowned with a fortress, which at this time was likely to be occupied, and this is obviously inconsistent with the solitude which the narrative implies.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1–4 Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration of Jesus. (Mar_9:2-13 Luk_9:28-36)
Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration of Jesus. (Mar_9:2-13 Luk_9:28-36)
This mysterious event was intended primarily to confirm the faith of the three apostles who were to have the chief hand in founding the Church. The Lord had just announced his future sufferings and death. This prediction had been a grievous blow to Peter, and doubtless to the others also. He had stumbled at the cross, and had brought on himself a stern rebuke for his slowness and worldliness. So to comfort the chosen three under the thought of what awaited their Master, they were shown a glimpse of the glory which he has in heaven; they saw the Law and the prophets yielding subjection to him; they heard the voice of the Father announcing his Sonship. Henceforward they might take courage under all circumstances; the cross would be no infamy or disgrace would open the way to victory and glory. Here was a foretaste of the blessedness of heaven to be with Christ and his saints in his kingdom. Such was the Transfiguration to the three witnesses. To the world, when in due time it was made known, it taught lessons of the Incarnation, the resurrection of the body, the glory that shall be the portion of the righteous. For Christ himself it was the culminating point of his earthly life, "the solemn installation of our Lord to his sufferings and their result" (Alford).
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After six days. St. Luke says, "about an eight days after these sayings," either speaking indefinitely, or using the inclusive method of reckoning which we find in the recounts of our Lord"s resurrection. The days are counted from the time of Peter"s confession and Christ"s subsequent announcement. The little company were still in the neighbourhood of Caesarea Philippi, though we know not exactly in what place, and nothing is told of the events of this week. The memorable day may be specially noticed as being the same day of the week as that on which the great confession was made in the previous sunlight; or, if we regard the typical bearing of numbers in Scripture, the six days signify the world and daily labour, the seventh, "after six days," typifies heaven and rest. Peter, James, and John. These three, the chosen of the chosen, had already witnessed Christ"s power over death in the chamber of Jairus"s daughter; later they were present at the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. They who had seen his glory were strengthened to behold his sweat of blood. These men formed the inner circle of his friends; to them he gave the privilege of knowing more of his inner life and nature. They were selected for various reasons Peter, for his energy, zeal, and love, and the part he was to play in the founding of the Church; John, because he was beloved by Christ, and was to be the recipient of Divine revelation; James, because he was to be the head of the Church of Jerusalem, and soon to drink of Christ"s cup and war a good warfare. The James here named is the son of Zebedee, and brother of John, and was put to death by Herod Agrippa. (Ac 12) A high mountain. The only tradition concerning the locality of the Transfiguration (which none of the inspired narratives further identifies) affixes it to Mount Tabor, the beautiful isolated mountain, which rises some eighteen hundred feet on the northeast of the Plain of Esdraelon. This tradition, as far as we know, was first published in the fourth century A.D, by St. Cyril of Jerusalem ("Catech.," 12:16) and St. Jerome (Ep. 44. "Ad Marcell.;" Ep. 108. "Ad Eustoch."), and thence was generally adopted and upheld till the sixteenth century, both by commentators and travellers. Since then more accurate examination and historical criticism have thrown grave doubts on this identification. The summit of Tabor has from a very early age been occupied by habitations. It is spoken of in 1Ch_6:77 as including in its limits a city and its suburbs. Later it was stronglyfortified, and the whole area was surrounded with a wall, of which the ruins can still be traced. In our Lord"s time the town and the fortress covered the level portion of the hill, and there would have been no place of retirement where he could have withdrawn apart for the purpose of the vision. There is another reason that makes Tabor unlikely to have been the scene of the Transfiguration. The last geographical notice left our Lord and his disciples outside Galilee in the neighbourhood of Paneas. It was about a three days" journey thence to Esdraelon; but no mention is made of any such movement during this week, and it is after the Transfiguration that the synoptists intimate that the return to Galilee took place. (see ver. 22; Mar_9:30) We must therefore surrender the old tradition, and look in the vicinity of Caesarea for the high mountain of our narrative. There was no lack of such in that region, and it was doubtless on one of the offshoots of Hermon that the glorious vision was vouchsafed, though more precise identification is impossible. Hermon itself is called by the Arabs Jebel-esh-Sheikh, "The Chief Mountain," and the way in which the locality is introduced in the narrative, without further specification, seems to point to some eminence of the most obvious and best known hill of the district. St. Peter, when in after years he alluded to it, called it merely "the holy mount"; (2Pe_1:18) and we may conclude that we are not intended to know more about it, lest we should be tempted to make more of the material circumstances than of the great reality. St. Luke notifies that the Lord retired to this place in order to pray. It may have been that he prayed for the enlightemnent of the apostles that they might receive the teaching of the Transfiguration and the subsequent sayings.
Vers. 1-13. The Transfiguration.
I THE GLORY.
1. The attendant circumstances. Six days had elapsed since the memorable conversation in the parts of Casarea Philippi. That conversation must have filled the hearts of the apostles with strange, awful thoughts. He with whom they had lived so long in the intercourse of familiar friendship was indeed the Christ, the Son of the living God. They had marked the dignity of his Person, the authority of his words, the power of his miracles; and they had felt that there was something in their Master that was more than human, very holy and majestic. Now he had accepted the homage of Peter, and had asserted the truth of that great confession he was the Son of God. Very solemn it must have been to be with him those six days, looking into his face, hearing Ms words, and to know, as the disciples were beginning to know, who he really was. It must have been like the first moments of a true conversion, when the soul first realizes in its depth and blessedness the presence and the love of God. But other also and very different thoughts must have agitated the apostles" minds during those six days. Doubtless they all shared the feelings of Peter; their soul recoiled in unspeakable horror from the prospect which the Lord had set before them; they could not associate the thought of failure and shame and death with the Messiahship; they could scarcely believe that the Christ, the Son of the living God, could suffer such things at the hand of mortal men; they could not bear to think that the Master whom they loved so very dearly was destined to drink the bitter cup of suffering. He had told them so very plainly; but they could not take into their hearts the full meaning of his words. They only half believed them; probably they did not wholly believe till the event proved their truth. But yet those solemn words, even if only half believed, must have caused them exceeding great distress, and must have filled them with restless, torturing anxiety. The Lord, in his thoughtful love, would comfort them, would confirm their faith, would prepare them to face the tremendous shock which awaited them.
2. The retirement. The six days were over. We long to know the secrets of those days; they must have been days of deep thought, of intense prayer, of close communion with the Lord. Now they were over; and the Lord took with him Peter, James, and John, the chosen three, who alone had seen the raising of the daughter of Jairus, who alone were to witness the mysterious agony. He carried them up it is a remarkable word, the same word which is used (Luk_24:51) in describing the Ascension into a high mountain apart. The locality, the height, the snow alluded to in Mar_9:3, the simple title used by St. Luke, "the mountain," all seem to suggest Hermon, the most conspicuous mountain in Palestine, the snow-clad mountain which, with its towering heights, closed the prospect to the north of Caesarea Philippi. Thither the Lord carried up the highly favoured three; he took them apart. The holiest manifestations of God"s grace and presence are made in secret to those chosen ones who live nearest to God; they are very sweet and precious, but very, very sacred too sacred to be talked about save in Christian communion with like minded servants of the Lord. Christian men do well to retire from time to time to the high mountain apart from the world, there to hold close communion with the Lord in companionship with a few proved and humble hearted disciples.
3. The glorious change. The Lord was praying, St. Luke tells us; it was for prayer that he had sought retirement; and "as he prayed" he was transfigured. The effulgent splendour of the Godhead poured itself through the earthly tabernacle in which it dwelt, as in ancient times the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand there to minister. (1Ki_8:11) The sacred body of the Lord Jesus Christ was the truest temple; "for in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily". (Col_2:9) That splendour had hitherto been concealed; he had laid his glory by in the tender condescension of his ineffable love; but now, for the more confirmation of the faith of the apostles and, through them, of the Christian Church, he allowed it to appear for a brief space in such measure as the human eye could bear. "None can see my face and live," God had said to Moses when he prayed, "I beseech thee, show me thy glory;" but, hidden in a cleft of the rock, he saw the goodness of the Lord as his glory passed by. (Exo_33:18-23) Such a glorious vision was now vouchsafed to the three chosen witnesses. Their Master"s face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light, glistering, exceeding white as snow. He is the Light of the world, he is the Sun of Righteousness; night is not night to the Christian when that Sun shineth upon him. The darkness of that night was dispelled by the radiant glory that issued from the Person of the Saviour.
The vivid recollection of that glory never passed away; the two apostles who remained (St. James went early to his reward) mention it in their writings. (Joh_1:14 2Pe_1:18) It was "as he prayed" that this glorious change took place. The humble, faithful Christian is made by the grace of Christ like unto his Lord. "Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed "transfigured;" the Greek verb is the same as that used here into the same image from glory to glory". (2Co_3:18) And surely it is as they pray that that blessed change comes upon the servants of the Lord. Faithful prayer lifts them into his presence, to the holy mount, as it were; they behold by faith his glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father; and that glory of holiness exerts a transforming energy over those who in the power of prayer by faith behold the Lord. It is when Christian people present their bodies "a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God," that, as St. Paul (Rom_12:2) says, using again the same word, they are "transformed by the renewing of their mind." The transfiguration of the Lord was an anticipation of the glory of his ascension; it was to the apostles a foretaste of the beatific vision; it is to us a parable of the great change which must pass over the soul of every one of God"s elect. We too must shine, if by his grace we attain to any measure of real holiness, as lights in the world by his reflected glory; we too must wash our robes, and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. "Lord, thy Spirit"s power transforming Through our inmost being pour, Heart and thought and wish conforming To thine image more and more.
4. Moses and Elijah. They were the central figures of the Old Testament, the representatives of the Law and the prophets. They had both been admitted into a very close communion with God, and had both, in the ecstasy of Divine contemplation, been sustained through the miraculous fast of forty days. Now they appeared in glory. Peter recognized them by some power of spiritual intuition. Then surely we may believe that there will be some means of mutual recognition among departed saints. They came from the realms of the blessed to hold intercourse with the Son of God. The angels desire to look into the mysteries of redemption; and if the angels, how much more those glorified spirits who were once compassed with infirmities, and knew by their own experience the power of temptation, and the deep need of atonement and sanctification! They came to commune with him in whom all the ritual of the Law found its fulfilment, of whom all the prophets spake; and they talked with him (St. Luke tells us) "of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." The precious death of Christ, the death prefigured by the serpent which Moses long ago had lifted up in the wilderness, was the theme of their high discourse. What they said, what they heard from Christ, we cannot tell. The apostles seem in some way to have heard or apprehended in their spirits the sacred words. Thus much we learn, that there can be no higher, holier subject of thought; no higher, holier subject of solemn conversation among Christian men than the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Moses and Elijah longed to know the awful, blessed meaning of the cross. The Lord unfolded to them the mysteries of his love. May we be filled with the same holy desire; may the same heavenly Teacher teach us the deep things of his salvation!
5. Peter. He is eager and impulsive as usual He and his companions had been heavy with sleep. The dazzling glory of the transfigured Lord aroused them. They kept awake, St. Luke says; they saw in full waking consciousness the celestial sight. They heard, it seems, something of the wondrous conversation; they found that his decease, the mention of which had given them such extreme anguish, was a theme of deep interest and hallowed thought in the mysterious world of spirits. The marvellous interview was drawing to an end, the glorious visitors were departing, when Peter, in his intense excitement, not knowing what he said, addressed the Lord, "Lord," he said, "it is good for us to be here beautiful and elevating. It was beautiful indeed to contemplate the glorious form of Christ; it was beautiful to see how those whom the Jews most highly honoured came from their homes of bliss to commune with him. Peter would gladly have shared in that holy intercourse; he longed to hear more, to see more; they were departing too soon, he thought. "It is good for us to be here," he said: "let us make or, perhaps, according to the reading of three very ancient manuscripts, "I wilt make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias." He knew not what he said. He would have remained on the holy mount in the enjoyment of the heavenly vision; but it might not be. These glimpses of heavenly sweetness are not for long. God has work for his servants upon earth. Sometimes he "bringeth them up into a high mountain apart" for a while. It seems good for them to be there; but they must soon descend, and work for his Name"s sake among the poor, the ignorant, and the sinful
6. The voice from heaven. There was no answer given to Peter"s words. But there came a bright cloud, a cloud full of light, the Shechinah surely, the tabernacle of light which revealed the presence of God. It overshadowed the Lord and his adoring visitors; the disciples I cared as they saw them enter into the cloud. And forth from the cloud there came an awful voice, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." It was not enough that Moses and Elijah should come to do the Saviour honour. The Father himself bore witness to the dignity, the holiness, of the only begotten Son. The like words had been heard before by John the Baptist, the representative of the ancient Jewish Church. Now the same attestation is vouchsafed to the three apostles, the representatives of the Christian Church. That voice made a deep impression upon them, an impression which was never forgotten. St. Peter alludes to it in a remarkable passage in his Second Epistle, (2Pe_1:16-18) in which several words are repeated which occur in the description of the Transfiguration. It confirmed their faith; they could doubt no longer. He was indeed the Son of the living God, though he was to be rejected and to suffer and to die. All this had seemed strange and incredible to men brought up among Jewish surroundings, with Jewish hopes and expectations. But it was true. The Father was well pleased in the Son of his love, well pleased in his voluntary humiliation, in his self-sacrifice. The salvation of mankind through the cross and Passion of the Son of God was to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness; but it was the purpose of the all-wise, all-holy God. God was well pleased in the Lord Christ. He is well pleased in those who follow Christ"s example. He bids us hear him. The cross is the only way to everlasting life. The cross of the Lord Jesus is the life of the world. We can enter into life only by following him, bearing each of us his cross, denying ourselves, as the Lord bore the cross, and died upon the cross for us, and is exalted to God"s right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour.
7. The end of the vision. The voice of God is sweet to hear, but it must be very awful to sinful flesh and blood. The disciples fell on their faces and were sore afraid. But the Lord came and touched them. It was a human touch the touch of human, loving sympathy. It told the apostles that the high Son of God, whom they had just seen awful in the majesty of the Godhead, was their own tender human Friend. Still the touch of Jesus felt by faith comforts his people when the terror of the Lord fills their souls with dread. "Arise," he said, "be not afraid." So he had said before, "It is I; be not afraid." So, thank God, he speaks even now to the Christian soul, "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." His touch, his gentle words, bring peace and holy calm. It was so with the apostles. They lifted up their eyes, and saw Jesus only. The vision had gone, with all its awful splendour; only the Lord was left, looking on them, as he was wont to look, in love and tenderness, clad in the well known raiment, speaking in the well known tones. The vision was gone. Again they were on the lonely mountain side, the snowy heights of Hermon towering above them, the stars looking down on them from heaven; only Jesus was with them. The Law and the prophets pass away, but Christ abideth a King forever. Earthly hopes, earthly ambitions, fade away and die. Jesus is still with the soul that trusteth in him. Seasons of high spiritual delight, when the Sun of Righteousness beams upon the heart, fade into twilight. But Jesus is still with his chosen; with them as certainly when they go down into the work and the trials and the temptations of the commonplace routine of daily life, as he was when they were with him on the mount entranced in sacred rapture.
II THE LORD"S LESSONS.
1. They were to tell no man. To tell their fellow apostles might excite feelings of self-exaltation in themselves, of envy in the rest. Perhaps also the nine were not yet able to receive such a report. They did not yet understand the spiritual nature of the Messiah"s kingdom. We must remember, too, that Judas was among them. Still less was the outer circle of the disciples capable of receiving the wondrous story. The experiences of the Christian soul in close communion with God are very precious, but very, very sacred. They are not to be thoughtlessly divulged; not to be talked about commonly; they are too deep and holy. Free talk on such subjects tends to produce spiritual pride in some, irreverence in others. The true Christian wilt speak of these blessed tastes of God"s graciousness only to the like minded, and that with deep humility and godly fear, mingled with devout thankfulness.
2. Elias. The apostles had much to learn and much to unlearn. They could not understand "what the rising from the dead should mean", (Mar_9:10) though Christ had twice before spoken of his resurrection on the third day. They were much perplexed also about the appearing of Elijah. Could this transient manifestation which they had just seen be the coming of which they had so often heard from the rabbis? The name of Elijah was often on the lips of the Jews, as indeed it is still. When he comes (they said) he shall restore all things. He shall bring back the pot of manna and the rod of Aaron, and restore Israel to its ancient glory. It was true, the Lord said, that Elijah was to come. But he had come; and they who had so long expected him knew him not when he came, but treated him according to their own evil will. Then the apostles felt that the Lord had spoken of him who had gone "before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." The forerunner of the Christ had met the martyr"s death; Christ himself would soon be called to suffer. The Lord sought to draw the thoughts of the apostles from difficult and perplexing questions to what now lay in the near future his sufferings and death. We cannot think too much on the cross. Difficult matters of controversy may be of great interest, but they do not bear very closely upon the salvation of our souls. Let us keep the cross before our thoughts; let us try to realize its awful and blessed meaning by constant and earnest meditation.
LESSONS.
1. It is good for us to be sometimes alone with God; use such seasons of solitude for prayer and meditation.
2. We need a transfiguration, a transformation of the heart and will; pray earnestly for it.
3. Moses and Elijah talked with Christ of his decease; we should commune with him on that same blessed and awful subject.
4. Flee from spiritual pride; humble silence is better than presumptuous talk.
HOMILIES BY MARCUS DODS Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
The intention of this scene seems to have been to inaugurate the sufferings of Christ, and to set him apart as the Lamb of God who was to take away the sin of the world. Being a public event, it behoved that it should be witnessed, and the same three men are chosen as witnesses of the rehearsal of his sufferings who are afterwards witnesses of the sufferings themselves in Gethsemane the three most closely bound to him in affection. On both occasions their conduct proved how utterly helpless we are in the matter of our own salvation. One would have expected they would have been forward to aid their Master, or, if not to aid, at least to sympathize with him. But on both occasions they fell asleep. The world"s redemption had really to be transacted in spite of the world; the best men of the world were indifferent, were asleep, when the crisis of the battle was passing, when its Redeemer was agonizing on its behalf. To our Lord the strength received from the Father by prayer was more needful than the restoring sweetness of sleep. In it was to be found more real detachment from care, more vital renewal of energy. It was probably for his encouragement and that of the disciples that this earnest was given of his triumph over death, and of his glorified condition. The significance of the reappearance of Moses and Elias is not hard to discern. They came as representatives of the two great economies through which God had dealt with men, and guided them to himself, to lay down their office, and recognize Christ as the One in whom the Law and the prophets were fulfilled. Every acceptable sacrifice of the Mosaic economy was acceptable through the sacrifice of Christ. Every hope kindled by the prophets rested for its fulfilment on him. And how do they testify their homage? "They spake," says Luke, "of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." The Law was to find its highest fulfilment in the most lawless of transgressions; prophecy found its richest in that which seemed to destroy hope itself. In the persons of these two our Lord would see as at one view all who had put their trust in God from the foundation of the world; all who had put their faith in sacrifice, believing that God would find a true Propitiation; all who had hoped in his tender mercy, and through dark and troublous times had strained to see the Consolation of Israel. The whole anxiety of guilty consciences, the whole longing sigh for the promised Messiah that had breathed through the ancient Church, at once becomes audible to his ear, and confirms his resolution that their trust shall not be put to shame. Steadfastly does he set his face to go to Jerusalem, more than ever determined that the glorified state which Moses and Elias have attained shall, by his shame and death, be secured to them, and to all those of whom they are the firstfruits. To complete the act of installation it was requisite, not only that the former mediators should resign their office, but that the real Mediator should be definitely nominated; and therefore a voice is heard from the cloud saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." And so, with no witnesses but these disciples, the world"s history is transacted. It is summed up in these three, God commanding, God encouraging, God fulfilling; and these three are summed up in one God saving. "When the disciples lifted up their eyes, they saw no mall, save Jesus only.
I First, we learn that CHRIST IS NOW THE ONE MEDIATOR BETWEEN GOD AND MAN. The one command now is, Hear ye him." When Moses and Elias retired, and the disciples saw no man, save Jesus only, the whole burden of legal ceremonial fell from their shoulders. With the one temple of the Lord"s body left to view, how simple must all religion and service have seemed, consisting simply in their loving and cleaving to their Lord and Master the compassionate, considerate, righteous Lord Jesus Christ! We are often satisfied with the means of grace, the things that lead to Christ. But God calls you to come to Christ"s self. "Hear ye him." You have a life-and-death question to settle, and for the settling of it there is for you, in the world, "no man, save Jesus only.
II CHRIST IS OUR SUFFICIENT SAVIOUR. If your troubles and difficulties seem the most real things in the world to you, remember him who chose suffering for his portion, that you might be partakers of his glory. If you are despondent on account of your spiritual condition, remember this sure foundation of all preaching, this proclamation of Christ by God himself. The one utterance of God in New Testament times is this intimation, three times heard by Christ, that by laying down his life for sinners God was well pleased with him. Only by coming can you please him. Indifference to the voice would have been guilt in the apostles; it is equal guilt in you.
III THE CONDUCT OF PETER WARNS US AGAINST TOO MUCH DREAD OF SUFFERING, OR OF BEING CALLED TO ENTER A CLOUD; and against too much desire to rest in any one experience or state. The darkest cloud your Lord calls you to enter will be irradiated by his presence. And if by any experience you have obtained stronger faith or a more lively sense of Christ"s worth, be not anxious to build a tabernacle for sweet experiences, while there are countless works of charity, patience, energy, awaiting you. Believe that the whole line of earthly experiences can be lit up with God"s present favour. D.
HOMILIES BY J.A. MACDONALD Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
"And six days after." This note refers to the conversation Jesus had with his disciples, in which he said, "The Son of man shall come," etc. (quote Mat_16:27, Mat_16:28) But the apostles are all dead, and the kingdom is still future. The Transfiguration, then, must be viewed as a symbolic anticipation and pledge of the kingdom, and Peter and James and John were those referred to who should not taste death until they had seen the Son of man coming in his kingdom; and they saw this when they were "eyewitnesses of his majesty on the holy mount." We propose to show
I THAT THE SPIRITUAL GLORY OF THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST IS SET FORTH IN THE TRANSFIGURATION.
1. It exhibits the signs of a new dispensation.
(1) Here is humanity the shrine of Deity. This as a fact existed in the Incarnation. It is roundest in the Transfiguration. This is a new thing. Formerly the Holy Spirit was with men, now he is in them. (see Joh_14:17) The indwelling of the witnessing Spirit characterizes this dispensation.
(2) Moses and Elijah shine in the glory of Jesus. The Law is illustrated by the light of the gospel. Its sacrifices and ablutions now become full of glorious meaning. So are the prophets illustrated. Their personal history is seen to have been typical. Their predictions of Messiah are fulfilled.
(3) Christ is the source of gospel law. The "voice" rebuked Peter"s mistake in proposing to make equal tabernacles. "Hear ye him." No longer listen to Moses and the prophets otherwise than as they are heard in the accents of Jesus.
2. It exhibits the signs of a spiritual dispensation.
(1) Here is a remarkable concurrence. Moses fasted forty days in the wilderness of Sinai. So did Elijah. Jesus likewise fasted forty days in "the wilderness probably the same. Of no other is this recorded. Here are all those together in glory.
(2) The life of those forty days proclaimed that "man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word the precept and the promise "of God." This spiritual life may be studied in the history of that remarkable forty days of the life of Jesus after his resurrection. We are "risen with Christ.
(3) While they fasted from natural food, they feasted on spiritual. While the Israelites fasted during their forty years in the wilderness, they feasted on the bread from heaven.
(4) So the sun-clothed woman the true Church of Christ was nourished in the wilderness by the pure Word of God during these "forty and two months" in which she fled from the face of the Jezebel of Rome. The counterpart of this was the feeding of the prophets in the caves by good Obadiah, when they fled from the persecutions of the meretricious Queen of Samaria.
3. It exhibits the tokens of gospel grace.
(1) However glorified, Jesus still remembers Calvary. The matter of the conversation m the mount of.glory was the decease he should accomplish at Jerusalem. And now he is in the height of heaven he lives there to make intercession for us.
(2) Calvary is the theme of celestial rapture. It is the burden of the song of the redeemed. Holy angels take up the strain.
(3) Prejudices are dissipated in the light of eternity. "Peter answered," viz. to the conversation about the decease, "Lord, it is good for us to be here." This was the same Peter who, six days earlier, had the presumption to rebuke Jesus for referring to the same decease. (see Mat_16:22)
II THAT THE PHYSICAL GLORY OF THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST IS SET FORTH IN THE TRANSFIGURATION.
1. Jesus will yet appear in royal state.
(1) In the visions of the prophets the two advents of Messiah are blended; and it is only in the fulfilment of the circumstances of the first advent in humiliation that we get clear views of those of the second advent in glory.
(2) Of this glory there were remarkable prophetic anticipations in the glorious Divine forms or similitudes of Old Testament times.
(3) The Transfiguration is a still clearer anticipation. For here we have not only the semblance of a beatified humanity; we have the true humanity of Jesus beatified by the glory of the Godhead.
2. The bright cloud manifested the presence of angels.
(1) If we compare the passages in which the glorious advent of Christ is described, we shall see that those which mention the "clouds" omit the mention of accompanying angels; and so contrariwise, those which mention the "angels" omit the mention of clouds.
(2) Wherever Christ"s presence is promised, the presence of his retinue of angels is understood, if not expressed. They are ever present with him in the assemblies of his saints. (see Ecc_7:6 1Co_11:10)
(3) Clouds and angels are promiscuously the chariots of God. The clouds of angels were with him in his ascension. (cf. Psa_68:17, 18 Eph_4:8-10; see also Psa_18:10 Psa_104:1-4)
3. Moses represented the sainted dead.
(1) His appearance upon the mount was a kind of specimen of the resurrection. He had a grand death when, on the mountain summit, God bowed his august head out of heaven and kissed away the soul of his servant. His body was buried. Then there was a contention about this. (see Jud_1:9) Was it with respect to the appearance of Moses in this scene?
(2) It was a sample of the first resurrection. The resurrection of the just will take place in two acts. (see Rev_20:4-6) In the first resurrection the "ancients" will appear in glory with Christ (cf. Isa_24:23; Dan_12:1-3);
(3) May we hope for this distinction? (see Php_3:8-11) Let us strive.
4. Elijah represented the living who shall be changed.
(1) Paul had special revelation on this subject. (cf. 1Co_15:51-54 1Th_4:13-18)
(2) These transfigurations will occur during the course of the reign of Christ over the earth. Sinners will die off quickly. Saints will be changed translated. (see Luk_17:34-37)
(3) Of these, Elijah was a specimen. He was translated to heaven in a fiery chariot, and must have been transfigured in his transit. Flesh and blood cannot enter heaven.
(4) What a mingled scene is here! Christ with the glory of the Father. Clouds of angels. Elijah representing the quick. Moses representing the dead. The apostles representing the Church on earth. Heaven and earth will be thus blended in the kingdom of Messiah.
(5) Have we not a note of the time of the kingdom in the "six days interval? Does it not correspond with the six ages of Barnabas mentioned in his Epistle? Is this wholly without countenance from Scripture? (cf. Dan_12:12, 13 Hos_6:2 Heb_4:9 2Pe_3:8) There is a wonderful future for the Christian. J.A.M.
HOMILIES BY W.F. ADENEY Vers. 1-8. The Transfiguration.
Raphael"s famous picture at the Vatican gives us an external representation of this wonderful event. But we want to get behind the canvas and discover the meaning of it, if it is to be something more to us than a theatrical transformation scene, something better than a spectacular display.
I THE GLORY OF CHRIST. The external splendour had a meaning. If it was not a purely artificial radiance created in order to dazzle the eyes of the disciples, it must have corresponded to a wonderful illumination and glory in the soul of Jesus. Moses" face shone after he had been communing with God on Sinai. (Exo_34:29) The face of Stephen took on an angelic lustre in view of martyrdom. (Act_6:15) Jesus had been speaking of his approaching death quite recently, (Mat_16:21) and of the victory of self-sacrifice. (Mat_16:25) During the Transfiguration his death was the topic of his conversation. (Luk_9:31) Then we may justly infer that the splendour that shone out from him corresponded to his exaltation of spirit in devoting himself to death. It was the glory of sacrifice. Jesus is most glorious in freely giving himself up for the salvation of the world.
II THE HEAVENLY VISITORS. It is commonly assumed that Moses and Elijah had come to complete the picture that was displayed before the wondering eyes of the chosen three. But would they have been sent for so slight an object? It is more probable that, like the angels who ministered to him on other occasions, they were sent to cheer Jesus himself. He had looked for sympathy from his disciples when he had confided in them the dark secret of his doom, but he had failed to receive it, and instead he had heard the voice of the tempter in the impatient reply of one of his most intimate friends. (Mat_16:22, Mat_16:23) Thus he was left alone in his meditations of death. But the sympathy which failed him on earth was afforded by the founder of Judaism and the leader of the prophets both men whose end on earth was mysterious returning from the heavenly world.
III THE PERPLEXED DISCIPLES. The splendour overwhelmed the three. Two were speechless. The third had not the gift of silence; and wishing to say something when he had nothing to say, he made a foolish remark. This showed, again, how far the Master was above his disciples, how little they could enter into his life. But it also showed a measure of right feeling in St. Peter. It was good to be on the mount with Christ. We cannot retain the ravishing moments of heavenly rapture. But we can cherish them if ever we are visited with them. At least we can learn that it is good to be anywhere with Jesus, good to meditate on his Passion, good to behold his glory.
IV THE DIVINE VOICE. The voice which had been heard before at the baptism (Mat_3:17) is heard again on the mount, but with an addition to its message.
1. God owns his Son with delight. Was this voice for the cheering of Jesus as well as for the guidance of the disciples? Under the circumstances this seems probable. God was not only pleased with Jesus because he was his Son, but also because his Son pleased him. At first this was on account of the innocent character of Jesus, and his resolve to dedicate himself to his work in baptism; now it is because of the courage and devotion with which he will face death.
2. God commends his Son to men. "Hear ye him." This is the addition. Christ has disciples now; and Christ has proved his right to be heard. It is not enough to adore him in his glory; we must listen to his voice of teaching and obey his word of command. W.F.A.
HOMILIES BY R. TUCK Ver. 1. The mission of the selected ones.
On three occasions it is reported that our Lord took three of the disciples apart with him; and it was always the same three. We need not, however, assume that the reported cases were the only cases. Observing them, we note that they were representative instances. In the first case, the raising of the little maid, special witnesses were needed for the surprising miracle, the restoration of the dead. In the other two cases Transfiguration and Gethsemane we have glimpses of the private life and experience of Jesus with which the ordinary disciples had no direct concern. It need not have been told us how, or when, or where Jesus conducted his private devotions, or what happened on such occasions. Jesus had these three with him for two reasons.
1. For company.
2. That the revelation of his mystery might be kept for a while, and revealed when the life manifestation was complete, and his Divine Person and mission could be understood. The reason for the selection of these three is to be found in our Lord"s estimate of character. He illustrates the Divine election, which is always a Divine selection, in view of fitness for position. In these three men we can see a power of faith, and a power of enthusiastic personal attachment, which suffice to account for their selection.
I THEIR MISSION WAS TO KEEP THEIR SAVIOUR COMPANY. It is strange that in times of distress and excitement we both crave to be alone, and crave to have some one trustworthy with us. We have mingled feelings we want to be alone; we cannot bear to be alone. In his fellowship with us in this peculiarity we gain a full impression of our Lord"s humanity. It comes out even in a more striking way in Gethsemane.
II THEIR MISSION WAS TO RECEIVE IMPRESSIONS FROM OUR LORD"S PRIVATE LIFE. It would not have been a private scene if all the disciples had been on the mount. Our Lord had a private life quite distinct from that public life which was the common property of disciples. Our Lord had right to that private life undisturbed. And yet some of the best revelations of his "Person" and "mission" came to view in such strictly private experiences as Gethsemane and Transfiguration; so a selection from the apostolate was permitted to invade his privacy.
III THEIR MISSION WAS TO KEEP SECRET FOR A TIME THEIR IMPRESSIONS. The twelve would never have kept such a secret. The three might, especially as they really did not understand the scene. They had to keep it as a mystery which time would unfold.
IV THEIR MISSION WAS TO REVEAL THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST"S PRIVATE LIFE WHEN THAT COULD BE MADE EFFECTIVE. See St. Peter"s use of his experiences. R.T. (2Pe_1:16-18)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John A. Broadus 1886 · Public Domain On v1 Mat 17:1-13.
Mat 17:1-13.
The Transfiguration
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This is described also in Mar 9:2-13;
Luk 9:28-36. The scene of the Transfiguration is popularly supposed to have been Mount Tabor, in Lower Galilee. This opinion is expressed in the fourth century, and Origen cites from the "Gospel according to the Hebrews" a passage which probably relates to the Transfiguration, and would show that some held this view in the second century. Yet the tradition is almost certainly incorrect. The conversation (Mat 16:21-28)
which preceded the Transfiguration by six days was very closely connected (see on "Mat 16:21") with Peter’s great confession, and this occurred in the district of Cesarea Philippi. It is of course possible that in these six days Jesus should have come back to Galilee and gone south to Mount Tabor, but we know that he was at this period keeping away from Galilee for many important reasons (compare on Mat 16:5). Moreover, we find in Mark that from the place of the Transfiguration they went forth and passed through Galilee as privately as possible to Capernaum, (Mar 9:14, Mar 9:30, Mar 9:33) and thence went towards Jerusalem. All this leaves the hypothesis of a hasty journey to Tabor and back violently improbable. Besides, Robinson has shown that there was a fortified city on Mount Tabor at that time, which must have rendered its narrow and rounded summit anything else than a place of seclusion. In view of these facts nearly all recent writers agree that the Transfiguration must have occurred in the neighbourhood of Cesarea Philippi.
Mat 17:1. Into a high mountain, might be any one of the numerous spurs of the Hermon range in the vicinity of the city. We can hardly suppose one of the three highest peaks of Hermon to be meant, because to climb any one of them on foot and return is a fatiguing journey of ten or twelve hours (McGarvey, Thomson). And it would be too cold to spend a night there without shelter. Conder found it very cold in a tent. After six days. So also Mark. Luke says ’about eight days,’ i. e., about a week, which was often called eight days, counting both the first and the last (see on "Mat 12:40"), just as in the French and German languages a week is frequently called "eight days," and a fortnight "fifteen days." If Matthew and Mark say ’six days’ and Luke ’about a week,’ there is certainly no conflict. It is not well to suppose (Chrys., Jerome) that Matthew and Mark give only the intervening days, while Luke adds the first and last, for this is supposing them to reckon in a way quite unnatural for Hebrew or Greek usage, and such artificial harmonistic hypotheses are to be deprecated. The real point to be observed is that all three Evangelists declare the Transfiguration to have occurred only a few days after the prediction that Jesus must suffer and be killed. Jesus taketh with him, as in Mat 2:13, Mat 4:5, Mat 12:45. Peter, James, and John, alone were also admitted to see the raising of Jairus’ daughter, (Mar 5:37) and to be near the Master in Gethsemane. (Mat 26:37) They belonged to the first group of four among the Twelve (see on "Mat 10:2"), and were evidently received to a peculiar intimacy. The conviction wrought in their minds by what they witnessed would impart itself to all, through their tone and general influence. Apart. Such an unearthly, almost heavenly scene must have no unsympathizing spectators. Luke says (Luk 9:28. Rev. Ver.) that he ’went up into the mountain to pray’(compare above on Mat 14:23), and that the wonderful change of appearance took place as he was praying. We have several times found mention of special seasons of prayer at great crises of our Lord’s history. (Luk 3:21 Mar 1:35 Luk 6:12 Mat 14:23) As the three disciples were oppressed with sleep during the scene (Luke), and his return to the other disciples was ’on the next day’, (Luk 9:37) it seems clear that the Transfiguration occurred at night. The shining of our Lord’s face and garments, and the bright cloud, would thus be more manifest, and the whole scene more striking.
Mat 17:2. And was transfigured, literally, his form was changed, meaning however, so far as we can see, merely a change in his appearance. Before them, within their full view, so that they could bear witness. His face did shine as the sun, compare as partially similar, Exo 34:29 Act 6:15. And his raiment, or, garments, was—or, became—white as the light;[1] Mark, Rev. Ver., ’glittering, exceedingly white", Luke, ’white and dazzling,’. (compare Mat 28:3) All this was a temporary and partial anticipation of the glory that awaited him; (Joh 12:23; Joh 17:5 Php 3:21) compare his appearance to one of these three disciples in Patmos. (Rev 1:13-16)
[1] The "Western" type of text added a comparison to snow in Mar 9:3, and substituted it for ’light’ in Matt. It was doubtless derived from Mat 28:3 Dan 7:9. This addition in Mark was adopted in the "Syrian" text, and came down to our common Greek text, and Com. Ver. Being found spurious, it cannot be used, as by Stanley, in considering the question of locality.
Mat 17:3 f. There are here (Godet) three distinct points: the personal glorification of Jesus (Mat 17:2), the appearance and conversation of Moses and Elijah (Mat 17:3.), the theophany and divine voice (Mat 17:5). Moses, and Elias, (Elijah), recognized at once (Mat 17:4), and doubtless by intuition, as a part of the supernatural scene. Any question as to whether Moses appeared in a resurrection body lies beyond our knowledge and is idle. "The law and the prophets were until John; from that time the kingdom of God is preached." (Luk 16:16) Thus the Messianic reign is distinguished from the dispensation of the law and the prophets, though not intended to abrogate them. (Mat 5:17) Accordingly we find the founder of the law, and the great reforming prophet, coming to attend on the Messianic King; and as they disappear, a heavenly voice calls on men to hear him. The Rabbis frequently speak of Moses and Elijah together; and a writer of several centuries after Christ says they were to come together in the days of the Messiah. Talking with him Luke says,(Luk 9:32) "spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem,"the announcement of which, a few days before, had so startled and pained the disciples. Plumptre : "It is significant that the word for ’decease’ (exodos) re-appears in this sense once only in the New Testament, and then in close connection with a reference to the Transfiguration." (2Pe 1:15) It is not clear whether the disciples heard this conversation; at any rate it was partly designed for the Saviour’s own benefit, that he might be supported in view of the sufferings and death to which his mind was now especially turning. (Luk 12:50) Then answered Peter, not an answer to something said to him, but a response to the suggestions of the situation, an utterance called forth by the impression made on his mind. (Compare on Mat 11:25) Lord. Mark has Rabbi, and Luke epistates, ’master,’ see on Mat 8:19. It is good for us to be here. Full of strange, bewildered, but delightful feelings, Peter wanted to stay there permanently, and not have the Master go to Jerusalem for the predicted sufferings and death. Keim fancies that Peter wished to summon the other disciples and the people from every direction to witness this opening manifestation of the Messianic glory—which is pure hypothesis, but not impossible. Meyer and Weiss imagine that Peter means, "It is a good thing that we are here," so as to take the necessary steps. The Greek will bear this sense, but the tone of the narrative will not.—It was indeed good to be there, but they could not stay. Down again must Jesus and his disciples go, amid human sorrow and sin, (Mat 17:15) down to witness distressing unbelief, (Mat 17:17) and presently to set out on the journey towards Jerusalem and the cross. As Moses and Elijah were parting from Jesus (Luke), Peter proposed to detain them by making three tabernacles, or ’booths,’ shelters formed of branches of trees, such as the people were accustomed to make for the Feast of Tabernacles at Jerusalem. In these their glorious Lord and his heavenly visitors might abide in comfort; as for the disciples themselves, they could remain without shelter, being accustomed to the open air in hot weather, even at night. This was a strange proposal with reference to beings come from the other world, and Mark adds, ’for he knew not what to answer; for they were (or became) sorely afraid.’ I will make, is read by the earliest manuscripts, and was easily changed by copyists to let us make, through assimilation to Mark and Luke. It accords with Peter’s ardent and self-reliant character, (Mat 14:22) that he should propose to make them himself.
Mat 17:5. A bright cloud. Clouds are usually dark, but this was a cloud full of light (same word as in Mat 6:22), which in the night must have been a sublime spectacle. Compare in Old Testament theophanies, Exo 38:9, 1Ki 8:10. The three disciples seem to have been outside of the luminous cloud; Luke, in the correct Greek text, leaves this uncertain, as Matt. does; but a voice out of the cloud suggests that those who heard it were without. Matthew repeats behold three times in quick succession (Mat 17:3, Mat 17:5), the events being each very remarkable. On two other occasions a supernatural voice bore testimony to Jesus. (Mat 3:17 Joh 12:28) The words here spoken are the same as at the baptism (see on "Mat 3:17"), except the addition here (in all three Gospels) of hear ye him, a solemn call to listen to his teachings and submit to his authority. The phrase, ’in whom I am well pleased,’ is not here given by Mark and Luke, and instead of ’beloved’ the correct Greek text of Luke (Luk 9:35) is ’chosen.’ Of course the words cannot have been spoken in all these forms; an unquestionable proof, if it were needed, that the Evangelists do not always undertake to give the exact words. (Compare on Mat 3:17) The words ’hear ye him’ probably refer to Deu 18:15, "a prophet.... like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken." It may be that Peter recalled them when he quoted that passage in addressing the Jews.(Act 8:32)
Mat 17:6-8. This solemn voice increased the awe and terror with which the disciples were overwhelmed. They fell on their face (compare Deu 5:25 f.; Heb 12:19), and were sore afraid, that fear which the supernatural so readily excites. (Compare on Mat 14:26) This fear is mentioned by Mark as explaining Peter’s mental confusion and strange proposition; by Luke, as felt when they saw Jesus with Moses and Elijah, entering the cloud; by Matt., as felt when they heard the voice out of the cloud. We readily understand that it was felt throughout, and might be emphasized at various points with equal propriety. And Jesus came and touched them, as the angel touched Daniel. (Mat 8:18, Mat 10:18) One can almost see the kindly Saviour stooping to touch each of the prostrate forms, so as to arouse them to attention, and saying, Arise, and be not afraid. They looked up (Mark, ’suddenly’)—the luminous cloud was gone, and with it the bright forms of Moses and Elijah—they saw no man (or no one) save Jesus only. This means simply that the others were gone and Jesus was alone; the wonderful scene was ended. It is quite unwarrantable to "accommodate" the words as a text in the way sometimes adopted—trust Jesus only, obey Jesus only, take Jesus only as prophet, priest, and king—all correct in themselves, but by no means here taught.
Mat 17:9. As they came (were coming) down from the mountain, more exactly, out of the mountain. People who live near a mountain constantly say, "he is gone up in the mountain," "when he comes down out of the mountain"; he is not in the earth composing the mountain, but is in the mountain as a locality. The evidence is overwhelmingly in favour of, ’out of,’ in Matthew, and probably so in Mar 9:9; it was changed by copyists to apo, ’from,’ by way of assimilation to Luke, (Luk 9:37) just as it was changed in Mar 1:10 by assimilation to Mat 3:16 (see on "Mat 3:16"). This descent in the summer morning must have been accompanied by delightful reflections on what they had witnessed. Here was new and wondrous confirmation of their faith that Jesus was the Messiah. They would naturally wish to speak of it to the other disciples and all the people; and were doubtless surprised! and disappointed when Jesus not only said to them, but charged them, Tell the vision, or sight, (Act 7:31) the word meaning simply something seen, to no man, more exactly, to no one, until the Son of man, the Messiah (see on "Mat 8:20"), be risen from the dead. He is repeating what he had said a week before, (Mat 16:21) that he must die and rise again.
But they do not understand. Mark says, (Mar 9:10) ’They kept the saying, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean.’ They were familiar with the idea of a general resurrection, but could not see how the Messiah was to be killed and come to life again (see on "Mat 16:21"). They doubtless supposed it must mean something figurative, and never thought of understanding it literally. The other disciples would naturally feel a similar difficulty concerning the prediction as made before and repeated afterwards; (Mat 17:23, Mat 20:19) but some of them mentioned that such a prediction had been made, and when the rulers heard of it, they thought only of a pretended literal resurrection, which they endeavoured to prevent.
In considering the design of the Transfiguration, we may be aided by this fact that it was not to be made known till after the resurrection of Jesus, and by the question which the disciples proceeded to ask (Mat 17:10), showing a deep conviction that he was the Messiah. The wonderful scene was suited to fix this belief so firmly in the minds of these three leading disciples that it would not be shaken by the repeated prediction, nor utterly destroyed by the heart-rending reality, of his ignominious death. Henceforth, no disappointment of their cherished Messianic expectations, no humiliation instead of honour, and death instead of triumph, could ever make them doubt that he whom they had seen in such a form of glory, and receiving such testimony, was indeed the Messiah. Even when Peter so mournfully fell, he did not utterly lose this conviction, even as Jesus said the night before, ’I made supplication for thee, that thy faith fail not.’ (Luk 22:32, R.V.) This unconquerable conviction on the part of the three foremost disciples would keep the rest also from wavering, though they could not be told what had occurred. When their lips were unsealed, we may be sure that they delighted to tell the sublime story, even as Peter speaks of it in glowing terms in his last Epistle, (2Pe 1:16 ff.) and John perhaps alludes to it in his Gospel. (Mat 1:14) As to the effect of the Transfiguration upon Jesus himself, see on "Mat 17:3". But why could it not be told until after his resurrection? He had forbidden the disciples to tell any one that he was the Messiah. (Mat 16:20) An account of this wonderful scene, if given to the people in general, with their mistaken conceptions of Messiah, would only have excited fanaticism and precipitated the crisis. When his resurrection and ascension had put an end to the thought of a mere temporal kingdom, and the minds of believers had been lifted up to a just conception of their exalted Lord, then the story could be appreciated, and would do good and not harm.
Mat 17:10-13. His disciples, viz., the three. (Mar 9:2) Why then? There is now no doubt that he is the Messiah. Why then, say the scribes that Elias (Elijah) must first come? The thought of Elijah had been suggested by his appearance on the Mount. The Scribes were accustomed to teach that Elijah in proper person would come before the Messiah, and prepare the way for him by a new work of reformation—thus interpreting literally the prediction of Mal 4:5 (compare on Mat 16:14). Some of the Jews held that Elijah would anoint the Messiah. But here is Messiah present beyond question, and no such preparatory ministry of Elijah has occurred. They ask him therefore to explain why the Scribes say that Elijah must come before the Messiah; and this he proceeded to do. Meyer and others suppose, with far less probability, that the disciples took this appearance of Elijah on the mount to be the predicted coming, and were only perplexed that Elijah had not come first, but after the Messiah had appeared. And Jesus (he) answered and said. The words ’Jesus’ and ’to them’ are not part of the correct text; nor is ’first’ in Mat 17:11, though genuine in Mat 17:10. Elias (Elijah) truly shall come. ’Indeed,’ or ’truly,’ expresses contrast with something to follow, as in Mat 9:37. That Elijah cometh is the divine arrangement, and the prediction of Scripture. (For such uses of the present tense, see Winer, p. 265 332.) And restore all things. Malachi predicted (Mat 4:6) of Elijah, "he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children," etc., viz., as a preparation for the great day of the Lord. This ’shall turn’ is translated in the Sept. ’shall restore,’ and hence doubtless (Bengel, Fritz.) the word here and in Mark. (Mat 9:12) Elijah will effect a preparatory reformation, compare Luk 1:17, ’to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.’ Our Lord means to say that so the prediction stands. The future tense does not appear to mean, as Chrys. and others have imagined, that there was to be some other coming of Elijah still future when our Lord was speaking. Elias (Elijah) is come already, compare Mat 11:14. Whatsoever they listed, or wished, the old English listed being a modified form of lusted, i. e., desired. ’They’ is here impersonal; a very common use in Hebrew of the third person plural, like the Eng. ’they say.’ The reference is to the way John had been treated by the people in general, and by Herod in particular. John was not Elijah reappearing in his own proper person, but he was Elijah in "spirit and power", (Luk 1:17) in character and reforming influence. (Compare on Mat 3:1) Some of the rabbinical writers represent that Elijah will bring back the ark, the pot of manna, etc.; Jesus regards him as coming to affect a moral renovation or restoration. In Act 3:21, Peter points forward to a future "restoration of all things" in connection with the second coming of the Messiah. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them, viz., at the hands of the people, not necessarily the same persons who had maltreated John, but the same generation. He here recalls to the three the prediction of a week before, which Peter had found it so hard to bear.
Homiletical And Practical
Mat 17:1-8. The Transfiguration. (1) The glorious appearance. (2) The holy visitants. (3) The Father’s voice. (4) The effect upon the disciples. (5) The lessons for us; (a) as to the Saviour’s glory, (b) his authority, (c) our service of him.
Mat 17:3. Hall: "A strange opportunity! in his highest exaltation to speak of his sufferings; when his head shone with glory, to tell him how it must bleed with thorns; when his face shone like the sun, to tell him it must be spit upon; when his garments glistened with that celestial brightness, to tell him they must be stripped and divided; when he was seen between two saints, to tell him how he must be seen between two malefactors."
Mat 17:4. Henry: "We are out in our aim, if we look for a heaven here upon earth. It is not for strangers and pilgrims to talk of building. Whatever tabernacles we propose to make to ourselves in this world, we must always remember to ask Christ’s leave."
Mat 17:5. Hear him. (1) As completer of the law. (Mat 5:17) (2) As last and greatest of God’s messengers. (Heb 1:1 f.) (3) As the suffering Saviour. (Mat 16:21) (4) As destined to be the final Judge. (Mat 16:27)
Mat 17:6. Henry: "Through the infirmity of the flesh, we often frighten ourselves with that wherewith we should encourage ourselves."
Mat 17:8. Chrys.: "If we will, we also shall behold Christ, not as they then on the mount, but in far greater brightness. For then, to spare his disciples, he discovered so much only of his brightness as they were able to bear; hereafter ’he shall come in the very glory of the Father, not with Moses and Elijah only, but with the infinite host of the angels, not having a cloud over his head, but even heaven itself being folded up so that all men shall see him sitting, and he will make answers to them by himself, ’Come, ye blessed of my Father,’ ’Depart from me, ye cursed.’"
Mat 17:9. Tell the vision to no one. (1) It is a difficult and important duty sometimes to keep silence when we burn to speak. (2) Some points of religious truth are best withheld from persons not prepared to understand. (3) Delay in telling sometimes prepares us to tell more intelligently and impressively.
John A. Broadus, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew (American Baptist Publication Society, 1886) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v1 And was transfigured before them.
Mat_17:1-13
And was transfigured before them.
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The mount of vision
I. Take what is taught in the passage as to Christs humanity and its aspects. Among all the aspects in which the Saviour is presented to us, this one assuredly is plain, the Saviour as man. And the story of the Transfiguration shows Christ as the man in three ways.
1. It speaks of a human need, the need, namely, of encouragement and strength. Indeed, it seems that the Transfiguration was a turning-point in the mission He had come to accomplish, when His work as a Prophet passed into the background and His work as a Priest came to the front. Not for the disciples only, but for Himself, the establishing of His courage and the reassuring of His hope, was the vision on the mount, with the voice that accompanied it. So low does a Saviour stoop in His humility, that He touches our sinless infirmities at their lowest, and is not ashamed to be our companion and our example in all.
2. And this brings me to the next point, and to pass from considering the human need to consider the human exercise. That exercise was prayer. He went up, says St. Luke, to a mountain to pray. He was asking for the wisdom that discerned the Fathers will, for the submission that embraced it, for the perseverance that adhered to it, for the joy that illumined it. If you can dispense with prayer, Christ could not.
3. Again, we have here a human experience. Was not the Transfiguration rather a token that associated itself with the Saviours divinity, an honour that pertained to Him, not as the man, but as God? There is truth in this; but two things must be noticed at the same time. First, that even if it was the Godhead that lent the radiance, it was the manhood that was actually irradiated; and secondly, that what the Godhead effected in Christ, what is Godlike effects in His followers. Do not put the Transfiguration of Christ aside as a privilege that is purely supernatural; it is, in one sense, only the transcendent exhibition as it is the efficacious pledge of the changes which grace may work in ourselves. Such transfigurations as these are both symptomatic and prophetic. They are symptomatic of what has already begun, and prophetic of what shall yet be revealed, when the temporary gives place to the permanent, and the partial is drowned in the perfect, and a glorified soul shall create a glorified vesture, from which the last stain of sin shall be purged, and the last line of pain be smoothed out. Oh, our Kinsman-Redeemer, we have found Thee our companion in manhoods weakness, we hail Thee as the type of manhoods coming glory! As Thou has borne the image of the earthly with us, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly with Thee.
II. But again, we have here Christs death and its meaning.
1. The death of Christ is the glory of the Old Dispensation; its glory, because its fulfilment and crown. That is why Moses and Elias were there. Moses was there to bear witness that in the decease of a Saviour at Jerusalem a nobler Rock would be smitten than the rock he had struck in the wilderness, and that a richer fountain would flow forth than the water that gushed from its flinty clefts. Elijah was there to bear witness that in this same decease at Jerusalem a greater sacrifice would be offered than the sacrifice he had laid upon Carmels altar, even a Saviours precious blood, and a more wondrous confirmation be granted than the fire that gave testimony before Carmels hosts, even a Saviours glorious Resurrection.
2. The death of Christ is the glory of the New Dispensation. For as it was the glory of the Old Dispensation as its fulfilment, it is the glory of the New as its foundation. That is why the disciples were there. They were there as the sponsors of a Church to be, just as Moses and Elijah were there as the sponsors of a Church and a ritual that had vanished. If Moses and Elias were the flower of the Old Dispensation, Peter and James and John were the germs of the New.
3. The death of the cross is the glory of Jesus Himself. For those that had eyes to see, there was triumph in the very shame, and the crucifixion was itself a coro-nation-it was His glory in the very endurance, as well as in the ultimate results.
III. But again, we have here something taught us as to christs church and its fellowship. Let us now look at Christ as the living Bond of eternal union. The relation of the Church beneath to the Church above is a question that throbs with a lasting interest. That there is some relation we know; though divided, the companies are in some fashion one. But what is that relation? Certainly not a visible one any longer. There is a knowledge of our friends alter the flesh no more. It was, after all, a knowledge of the flesh that Peter was thinking of when he said, in his rashness and witlessness, Lord, let us make three tabernacles. And that is Christs answer to Peter. It is as if He had said, Not as you think, will the relation between us be perpetuated-by fellowship such as you would maintain, in tabernacles such as you would build. There is but one tabernacle prepared for us all, and behold, it is now coming down-the tabernacle and pavilion of Him who is as a wall of fire round His people, and the glory in the midst of them. Stand in the fear and the presence of God, as the disciples stood under the cloud, and that will be the sphere of communion; found your interests and your hopes on the cross of Christ, and that will be the means of communion; press near to the person of the Crucified, and that will be the centre of communion. There is intercourse in no other way.
IV. But again, we have something taught us as to Christs message and its authority. Was it not as if God meant to say, Hear the Son, not the prophets of the Old Dispensation merely? Hear the Son, not messengers from heaven, though august as the deputies you have seen. And what God said to the disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration He says this day to ourselves, reminding us once more of the whole duty of man-the reception of the message, and the submission to the purpose of His well-beloved Son. Listen to Him, and not to the world. The world passeth away, and the lust thereof. Listen to Him, and not to the flesh. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; who can know it? Listen to Him, not to ministers. They are frail, earthly vessels at the best. No man can serve two masters. Hear that. Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Hear that.
V. And once more, in this passage, we have here the presence of Christ and its all-sufficiency. He who has come before us in this incident as Mall, as Redeemer, as Uniter, and as Prophet, is brought before us in the last place as a Friend. For the time came when Transfiguration experiences ended-the disciples looked up and saw no man save Jesus only. Ah yes, there is a something in our religious life that is transitory, and there is a something that always abides. What is transitory is an experience such as that which the disciples had when they were wrapped with the glory; what is abiding is the Person and Presence of Christ, which form the centre of attraction while Transfiguration experiences last, and which remain to make up for their absence when Transfiguration experiences cease. Happy are they who, when the glamour dies from their sky and the company vanishes from their path, and life looks bare and common, like the path down Hermon for the descending disciples, have a faith that will strengthen them when feelings pass, and a guidance that will cheer them when friendships are dissolved, and who, lifting up their eyes, see Jesus-Jesus alone, it may be, but a Jesus who is all-sufficient. (William A. Gray.)
Tabor flights
First, let me remark that it was only once in Christs life on this earth, and that that once was only given to a chosen few. Some Christians seem to think that they must be always going up to mounts of extraordinary joy and revelation: this is not after Gods method. Those spiritual visits to high places, and that wonderful intercourse with the unseen world, are not in the promises; the daily life of invisible communion is. And it is enough! We shall have the exceptional revelation if it be right for us. When the Master was there, three disciples had it, and nine had it not! And why it was when it was, and why those three were selected, we can see but few reasons. They were the three who walked the closest and dwelt the nearest to the heart of Jesus. They were also the three who were about to have their faith and their feelings strained to the uttermost by witnessing, most closely, the deepest agonies of their dear Lord. Peter was to found the Church; James was to be the first martyr of the Apostolic College; John, the writer of the Revelation. For these reasons, and perhaps also because their characters specially required the encouragements that were the most adapted to the occasion, they were selected. Do not envy others their higher joys or greater privileges. These things are talents. They do not seem to have been either the wiser, or the happier, or the better-at least at the time-for the marvellous vision. If we had to select the most dreadful position in which ever men were placed, we should fix directly on Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the burning fiery furnace. And if we had to choose the most favoured-Peter, James and John. Yet Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were calm and entirely happy in the fire; Peter, James, and John were fearful and troubled on the Mount. Those on Tabor represented the three great states of Gods Universal Church-this earth, the intermediate state, and glory; Christ, in heaven; Moses, upon this earth; Elijah, in paradise. (J. Vaughan, M. A.)
The doctrine taught and shadowed forth by the Transfiguration is probably greater, fuller, richer than is taught in any other episode in our Lords life. It teaches-
(1) The perfect union of the human and the Divine in the Person of Jesus Christ;
(2) that the future life of the children of God is not a mere pietistic, sentimental dream, but a glorious reality;
(3) that the good, when they depart hence, do not go down into the darkness, but up into the light, and live unto God in a fuller, grander life;
(4) that heaven is vitally, closely connected with earth by sympathy and ministry;
(5) that the denizens are deeply and profoundly interested in the inhabitants of this sin-stricken world;
(6) that Christs death on the cross was not a surprise, not an accident, but a work which He came to accomplish;
(7) that good men cannot for ever dwell in ease and rapture on the mount, but must toil and suffer in the great world below;
(8) that mortal man cannot have unveiled audience with God;
(9) that Jesus Christ will not abandon His disciples when they are sore afraid, but will draw nigh and comfort them; (10) that the mission of the servants of God is to lead men to Christ and to leave them with Him. (E. D. Solomon.)
Creed, worship, and work
I. The Church is led to a creed. The time has now come for estimating the effects of the ministry of Jesus. Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?
II. In the transfiguration itself the Church is led on to a foretaste of glorious worship and high communion-the meeting for awhile of the Church militant with the Church triumphant.
1. As to the reality of the Transfiguration. We have the calmness of history in the narratives of the synoptics; we have dates and circumstances. The glory above is as historical as the epileptic writhing below.
2. As to the purposes of the Transfiguration. It had a purpose in relation to the human nature of Jesus. A sense of suffering came upon His soul, and He wanted rest. The instinct which draws so many of the highest human spirits to the quiet and elevation of the hills, led Him up into the higher mountain-range of Paneas or Hermon. If one might refer to a long-forgotten controversy, the Transfiguration was not a miracle. For such splendour was natural to a body like His, with the perfect soul and its union with Divinity. The repression was miraculous; the Transfiguration was the temporary cessation of that miraculous repression.
III. But further, in the transfiguration Jesus leads His Church to a work-a work which, indeed, they could not at first perform. What a contrast for Him and for them! For them: Lord, it is beautiful for us to be here. A contrast for Him also. A contrast between the spirits of just men made perfect, and the faithless and crooked generation, of whom even His patience cried, How long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? They find a sufferer below. Strange contrast, as we have said. Above: the pure heaven; the words of Divine attestation; the forms of saints floating in light; the glory and honour and majesty given to Jesus. Below: the reproach; the well-meant but baffled effort; the foam on the cut lip; the withered body; the sullen muteness broken by epileptic cries. Yet there is a fresh, unselfish joy in the energy which Jesus throws into that victorious work. Thus, on the whole, in this section of the Transfiguration, Jesus leads His Church in the person of His disciples on to a world of thought, up to a world of worship, down to a world of work.
1. The three words, creed, worship, work, surely indicate, as far as single words can, the leading purpose of the three great periods which the Church has already traversed. The primitive centuries were occupied mainly, but not exclusively, in moulding Christological dogma: the Middle Ages (over and above the scholastic philosophy) were busy in elaborating worship: before the eye of the modern Church social problems have come out with a tremendous significance.
2. Again, we have here a summary of elements which must always, more or less, co-exist in a living Church. Confession, devotions, effort, must be found in her. Without the confession, devotion becomes fanaticism; without the devotion, confession becomes a congelation of dogma; without the confession and the devotion, the effort is soon left to police magistrates and poor-law guardians.
3. It may, I think, further be observed that the Transfiguration stands in our New Testament as one recognition of the sense of beauty, of which it has been cynically said that it never furthered a single duty. Nay, more; it is a refutation of him who has told us that beauty is inconsistent with the gospel. It shows Jesus not doing something definite for us; but showing earth for a moment what He is in His beauty. I conclude by drawing two lessons for the spiritual life of each of us:
I. Our individual life must follow and summarize the section of the Transfiguration.
1. We must lay the foundation strong and deep in the confession of Peter.
2. This must be accompanied by a second condition. There must be the love of prayer, of communion with the world unseen.
II. Let us think for a few moments of our transfiguration as the result of His. Even our fallen humanity affords hints of this. (Bishop Alexander, D. D.)
The Epiphany upon the Mount
Some have questioned whether this is to be received as real history. Rationalism calls it The dream of Peter. Some talk of it as a mere scenic display, to awaken the dull and sleepy disciples, but of no further moment or significance. Even some comparatively sound theologians have satisfied themselves with assigning it a basis of historic truth, but much exaggerated by the dreamy imaginations of the witnesses. A dream! It is not likely that three men would each dream precisely the same thing, at the same time; or that they would all be so perfectly deceived as to tell it for fact m their most serious discourses and writings. Nor do I know by what authority we are to regard that as a dream, which the record says the witnesses beheld when they were wide awake. We will notice-
I. The peace. This is specifically described as up in an high mountain. There is much said in the Scriptures about mountains, and many of the most memorable events of sacred history transpired upon mountains. The Law was given upon a mountain: the last decisive conflict with the prophets of Baal, and the last of the three great conflicts of our Saviour with Satan, occurred on mountains. The offering up of Isaac, the great type, and the subsequent offering up of Christ, the antitype, were accomplished upon mountains. All this is not mere accident. Mountainous elevations are particularly fitted to the sacred and the Divine. They are Natures symbols of the Majesty of God. They have a natural harmony with His everlasting purity, power, and Godhead.
II. The witnesses. Peter, James, and John his brother. There were different circles, even within the little circle of the twelve, to which different degrees of privilege and trust were given. Not all the members of our natural bodies have the same functions, or the same honour; and so the members of Christ have not all the same office. And yet we are to covet earnestly the best gifts.
III. The transformation-He was transfigured before them.
IV. The time, particularly as related to the act in which the Saviour was occupied-prayer. Prayer is a transfiguring power. It is the opening of the earthly nature to the inflowing of the heavenly. Prayer is the drawing near of the soul to the light and majesty of heaven, and always gathers to itself the gilding of that light. It not only ascends to heaven, but it calls heaven into itself, and illumines with the grace of heaven, and makes, not only the face, but the whole man, more heavenly.
V. The accompanying apparitions-And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with Him. However alone we may seem to be in our devotions, we are never alone. Though effectually withdrawn from this world, beings of another then join us.
VI. But, finally, notice the particular meaning of all this. It had, first of all, an important relation to the fore announcements which the Saviour had just been making of His approaching sufferings and death (Mat_16:21; Mar_9:31; Luk_9:22). These sad things had greatly disturbed, perplexed, and disheartened the disciples. And it was necessary that they should be strongly certified of the Saviours Divine glory before He went down into those dreadful depths, lest their faith should utterly fail them when the facts should occur. We are also fully authorized to take the Transfiguration as a picture and earnest of His future coming and kingdom, which is to embody the consummated results of His obedience unto death. If it was a foretaste and pledge of the glory that should follow from His sufferings, it must needs be of the same kind and nature with that of which it was a section given in advance. Brethren, it doth not yet appear what we shall be. (J. A. Seiss, D. D.)
The Transfiguration
I. The place.
II. Let us direct our attention to the persons assembled on the Mount. We learn, I think, that saints, after death, know each other. Moses and Elias did so; and even the disciples, in a way not explained, were enabled to identify their celestial associates. Are we to say, then, that an earthly mountain was more than the heavenly Zion? It further appears, from what has been said, that the recompense of saints after death has some proportion to their prior discipleship. Jesus on this occasion had special honour to confer on some members of the heavenly Church, and whom did He select to be the subjects of distinction? In short, we learn here that saints may see more of the Church and of the world after death than before it. Moses desired, prayed for admission to Canaan. The request was denied, and yet here he is-all as you wished, and as he wished-within Palestine, and surveying from no foreign Pisgah, but from one of its own mountains, the inheritance of his people.
III. Let us consider the condition in which these persons appeared on the mount. It is unnecessary that I should expatiate on the aspect of the disciples. No intimation is given of any change in their state. They remained as they had been, and their bodies displayed all the frailties common to our frame. The most interesting fact in their case is that they were not changed; and we hence see the folly of looking for transformation of our natures from any juncture of circumstances. It was otherwise with Moses and Elias. We are told by St. Luke that they appeared in glory. That glory is manifest when we compare what they once were with what they have now become. Moses has no more need of Aaron and Hur to sustain his arm for the discomfiture of Amalek. Though fifteen hundred years have passed over him they have brought no frailties of age, but the inextinguishable fires of an immortal youth. Mark the disparity between them and the apostles. Both parties were on the summit of a mountain, but how different their manner of reaching it! On the one hand the approach was from beneath, by slow, tedious, arduous steps. On the other hand the approach was from above, from the holiest of all in the third heavens, and was effected by a descent which no barrier could obstruct and no distance protract. When a bright cloud came and overshadowed them, the disciples, as we learn from St. Luke, feared to enter into the cloud; its lustre dazzled or appalled them. There was no such apprehension on the part of Moses and Elias; the wide universe contained not that which could frighten them; and as to the glory of God, its light, so inaccessible to mortals, was their element of joy. The disciples fell asleep, overcome by consternation and fatigue. But while they slept Moses and Elias talked with Jesus, and freely discussed the deep things of God. But I am restricting your attention to mere men, when one and another and many are saying, We would see Jesus. His face did shine as the sun. Usually it was darkened by grief; but now gloom is gone.
IV. Let us now direct our attention to their discourse. The subject discussed by such an assembly must surely have been important: it was important to all there assembled. You require no proof that the event spoken of was important to Jesus, for He was to be the sufferer. The subject was also important to Moses and Elias. No doubt they were glorified saints, but all this blessing they had acquired in virtue of the Messiahs anticipated sufferings; and not a plant bloomed in their paradise, not a note thrilled in their songs, not a gem gleamed in their crowns, but was due to the decease which Christ should accomplish at Jerusalem. The three disciples had a like stake in the event, which was not the less precious to them that they were insensible to its consequence. But these disciples were representatives of the New Testament Church, and if so, what was important to them is important to us. Christ died, not for their sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world. (David King, LL. D.)
Lessons of the Transfiguration
I. It was designed to make the things of the future world more a reality, a distinct conception. The veil between us and the world of spiritual glory is, as it were, drawn aside, and we are permitted to view the unseen. Humanity, our humanity, is capable of a refinement of feature and expression united to a higher spiritual development in a purer state than the present.
II. We are taught that Christs kingdom is not of this world, its glories being as much above it as its principles.
III. The kingdom of God is not confined to, and does not consist in a particular place, but in an inward condition of the person; that inward condition will inevitably make itself visible, shining through the restraints of adverse and even fleshly circumstances. (W. I. Keay.)
The Transfiguration of Christ
On this stupendous and yet delightful manifestation we offer a few general remarks.
I. The transfiguration is to be considered as one of those solemn acts by which Christ was inducted into his office as the teacher and saviour of the world. This is the principal truth taught by it. All the old prophets were appointed by some special designation and call of God. But Christ being at once the greatest of all Prophets, it was to be expected that His designation should be accompanied by circumstances which should mark this distinction and superiority.
1. There was their frequency. The prophets were generally designated by one glorious appearance of Him who called them. But Christ, by a series of wonders. Then there was the manner. The prophets had a glory conferred upon them, but to the Master belonged the greater glory. Hear ye Him. The command still applies to you.
II. From the subject of the discourse held with Christ by Moses and Elias we learn that there was in his death something special and emphatic. The mode of expression, indeed, shows this. It was a departure from life which He had to fulfil, etc. His was a sacrificial death. The Old Testament saints were saved in anticipation of this. Let that be the subject of our thought and converse here, which shall be the theme of heaven itself.
III. The confirmation which this event gave to the ancient prophetic dispensation (2Pe_1:17-19). The transfiguration thus confirms the word of prophecy, in several remarkable particulars.
1. The ancient prophets speak of the Messias in terms indicating a strange union of the extremes of debasement and glory. Very strikingly was this illustrated here.
2. The ancient dispensation was marked with special care as to the quality of the sacrifices to be offered to God. Here we see the shadow giving place to the substance. The victim is distinctly marked-This is My beloved Son.
3. The doctrine of the prophets was that the Messiah should die for the sins of the people. Here the doctrine is both illustrated and confirmed.
4. The law and the prophets were continually holding forth some better thing than themselves. Now both Moses and Elias converse with Him, to show the harmony of the whole; and He being declared by the voice from heaven to be the supreme Teacher, they surrender, as it were, their commission into His hands, and then depart, leaving Him the sole object on which the eye of the world should rest for ever.
5. The ancient dispensation was founded on the doctrine of the souls immortality, and of rewards and punishments in a future life. Here it is confirmed and made clear. In these scenes life and immortality burst upon us.
6. The ancient prophets speak of an advent of Christ in glory. Behold it confirmed.
Conclusion: The prophetic word being thus confirmed, there are two important lessons to be learnt.
1. Take heed to it. It is intended to usher in Christ, and the day of salvation. All other light is delusive.
2. The whole history is most encouraging to those who truly believe in Christ. See how He shares His glory with His disciples. And if you suffer with Him, you shall also reign with Him. (Richard Watson.)
The Transfiguration
I. Took place amid the grandeurs of nature.
II. Was witnessed by three of Christs most favoured disciples.
III. Consisted in an outshining of the enshrined Divinity.
IV. Was heightened by the presence of two of the greatest men of past history.
V. Was accompanied by a voice of approval from heaven.
VI. Did not destroy the human sympathies of the Saviour. He did not rebuke the ecstatic idea of St. Peter. He calmed their fears. (Anon.)
The Transfiguration
I. The circumstances and manner of it.
II. Its chief design.
1. The inauguration of Christ as the Lords anointed.
2. A direct confirmation of former dispensations.
3. The law in the fulness of the time to be clone away … they saw no man save Jesus only.
III. A few subsidiary moral uses.
1. It assured the disciples in sensuous manner that Jesus was the Son of God.
2. The immortality of the soul.
3. An evidence of the nature of our glorified humanity, and of our mutual recognition in the world to come.
4. Christ is one with us in earthly shame and heavenly glory. (D. Moore, M. A.)
The disciples beholding their transfigured Lord
1. We must no longer expect any visible or external manifestations of Christ to be made to us.
2. All Christs true disciples have some manifestations or discoveries of Christ made to them.
3. All Christs true disciples have not the same manifestations or discoveries made to them; some not taken to the mount. Now turn to the text:-
I. Peters proposal.
1. The principal thing right in it is the delight it manifests in the Redeemers glory.
2. The wrong thing in it is a forgetfulness of the main business of life.
II. The answer given to Peters proposal.
1. Our highest enjoyments are sometimes put an end to by God. A cloud came between them and the vision.
2. When God interrupts our enjoyments, He has always some other blessing ready for us, and generally better. The voice which came out of the cloud was something better.
3. We must not judge ourselves by religious ecstasy. (C. Bradley.)
The Transfiguration
The necessity of having a few intimate friends upon whom one can rest in all the confidence of fraternal sympathy and love seems inexorable. Even our Lord sought such friends in Peter, and James, and John.
2. There was only one Transfiguration in the life of Jesus. Nor were all the disciples permitted to behold even that. This shows that the business of the Christian is hard work, and not the nursing of visions. Visions are rare, and sent only for the refreshment, not for the daily food of the soul.
3. Our nearness to the spiritual world and its supernal glories. Moses and Elias and the rest still continue to be interested in the plan of redemption, and in our personal relation to it.
4. Happy for us if, like Peter, we recognize the value of good company, and are ready to say when in it, Lord, it is good for us to be here.
5. Glory and suffering are yoked together in this life. The Transfiguration is only a preparation for Calvary.
6. Moses, Elijah, Jesus, the law, the prophets, the gospel; but the personal Christ is the centre, and the theme of all is the cross. And this will be the theme of the redeemed for ever. (T. S. Doolittle, D. D.)
The Transfiguration of Christ, its designs
I. To confirm the faith of the disciples in their Lord as the Son of God and the promised Redeemer. To His enemies He would give no sign; to the disciples He gave this.
II. To inaugurate the Lord Jesus Christ as the supreme head and lawgiver of the church.
III. To apprise the disciples of the deep and intense interest felt by heaven in the redemption about to be effected by the death of Jesus,
IV. To sustain the human nature of our Lord in the immediate prospect and the actual endurance of his unequalled sufferings.
V. To deepen the conviction of the disciples and our own of the immortality of the soul and of the blessedness of departed saints even in a disembodied state. (G. Brooks.)
Let us contemplate-
I. The Lord transfigured before us. Can we not truly say, in viewing Him, It is good for us to be here?
II. Saints holding communion round about us.
III. The world and its misery beneath us. (C. Gerok, D. D.)
Lord, it is good for us to be here
It was good for the disciples now, for the following reasons.
I. It confirmed their belief in a future state.
II. It taught them that there was a spiritual body.
III. It revealed to them Christs Divine character and mission.
IV. It prepared them for coming trials. Sorrow often follows closely upon joy. The joy prepares us for the sorrow.
1. It was good to be there; it would not have been good to remain there. There was work to be done, sorrow to be lightened, sin to be grappled with and overcome. (F. J. A.)
Peters ecstasy of the mount
I. The place. The mountain emblematical of Gods sanctuary. As distinctly separate from the world. As the place of happy intercourse with kindred minds. As a place of hallowed instruction. As a place of glorious manifestation.
II. The advantages. It is good-As it is acceptable to God, as it is elevating to the mind, as it is joyous to the heart, as it is truly profitable to the soul, as it prepares us for the services of heaven.
III. The spirit which it should produce. A spirit of diligence in rightly using the means of grace, of love and zeal for the prosperity of Zion, of ardent longing for the perfected scenes of heaven. Application: Can you experimentally employ the language of the text? Seek the end of these Christian ordinances. (J. Burns, LL. D.)
I. This is my beloved son.
1. The Father here comes forth from His concealment, and audibly addresses the disciples.
2. The momentous truth to which He bears witness is-the Sonship of Christ. This showed Divine love to man. This constituted Christs fitness for the work of redemption. This forms the basis of our confidence in the atonement.
3. He characterizes Christ as His beloved Son.
4. For such a declaration there was the most urgent call. It had a reference to Christ, as about to have His Fathers face hid, etc. It had a reference to His disciples, as about to be tried.
II. In whom I am well pleased.
1. The Father having declared His paternal love, next declares His satisfaction and complacency in Christ as the Surety of man. This regarded His Person, offices, work, people.
2. This testimony was repeated at His resurrection, exaltation, outpouring of the Spirit, every instance of a sinners being saved.
III. Hear ye him. As a Lawgiver and King, as a Prophet. The manner in which He is heard. (J. Stewart.)
Prayer is the transfiguration of the soul
1. Because in it the soul receives light from God, that she may know Him and herself and all things more clearly.
2. By it the soul seeks and obtains grace to blot out the stains and vices by which she is deformed. In it she receives consolation for desolation; out of weakness she is made strong; from slothful she becomes fervent; for perplexity she hath understanding; for sadness, gladness; and for cowardice, courage.
3. She is raised above herself, and is lifted up to God in heaven, where she learns and sees that all the things of earth are fragile and worthless, so that from her lofty height she looks down upon them as fit only for children. She perceives that the true riches, honours, and pleasures are nowhere but in heaven.
4. In prayer she unites herself to God. (Lapide.)
Spiritual suggestions of the Transfiguration
I. This incident is valuable as bringing prominently forward the objective element in Christianity.
II. As bringing prominently forward the devotional element in Christianity.
III. The propitiatory element.
IV. The divine element. The eternal Sonship of Christ.
V. The practical element. (A. L. R. Foote.)
The Transfiguration
Lord, it is good for us to be here.
I. This event had a special evidential value; it proved to St. Peter and-to the other apostles with him that their Masters claims were not exaggerated; that in giving up all to follow Him, they were not making a mistake; that the religion He had taught them, and of which He was Himself the centre, had come from heaven. These Jews see their Master in the correspondence with the great lawgiver and the prophets. Also they were assured by the voice out of the cloud. Then our Lords glorious appearance at the Transfiguration was exactly fitted to remove a prevalent objection to the second advent. That objection was due to sluggish imagination rather than to offended reason. The picture of the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven seemed to a certain order of minds too remote from all experience to be conceivable, and St. Peters answer in effect is this: We have been witnesses of an event which has prepared us for the second advent; we saw in the Transfiguration a rehearsal of the glories beyond.
II. Besides contributing an evidence of the truth, the Transfiguration marked the character of the religion of Christ. It enabled the apostles to distinguish the inner and real value of their Master and His religion from the public estimate of Him. We are all of us affected by the spirit of the men around us. When they saw their Master transfigured, they saw that the vulgar estimate was not the true one; He was not to be measured by that which ordinarily met the eye. The form of a servant was but a veil; beneath it were the lineaments of the Lord of glory. In our own day there is a like difference between the popular estimate of the religion of Christ and the true one. But if a man can retire into the solitude of prayer, he may learn to take a different view of religious truth and life. It is not that he invests it with ideal qualities that do not properly belong to it; it is that he escapes from the obscure traditions which have hidden from him the reality. The Transfiguration marked Christianity as a distinctly supernatural religion. We can conceive that Christianity might have been merely natural; in such a system the Transfiguration would have been out of character. The soul requires an object above this world. The Transfiguration is an answer to this need.
III. The Transfiguration was a scene of glory; but it was something more,-it was a preparation for a scene of suffering. His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem. Does not this show us the true use of a time of prosperity, whether in material or in spiritual things; to prepare for time of trial. Thus is it with nations: times of peace and plenty enable us to prepare for reverse. On the Mount of Transfiguration we should always hear whispers of Calvary.
IV. The religious value of occasional withdrawal from the absorbing interest of ordinary life. Not seldom does He now, as of old, take Peter and James and John into a mountain apart, and is transfigured before them. He detaches men by some unforseen providence, by some great perplexity, by some great humiliation, by some heart-searching sorrow, from their surroundings, and from their past; He takes them with Him into a high mountain of thought and feeling to which they were previously unaccustomed, and they see how little hitherto they have understood either themselves or Him. Hitherto they have known Christ after the flesh; henceforth know they Him so no more. The prayers which had been long used, but with little sense of their meaning, are lighted up with force and pathos that makes them the very language of the soul; the Scriptures, which had been read only as a more interesting department of literature, are found to be, indeed, as St. Augustine calls them, Letters from the heavenly country, describing all that is most important to know about God and about man; the sacraments, which had been scarcely thought of, or which had been noticed only as graceless forms, are now seen to be channels of the life of the Divine Redeemer; fellow-Christians who had in former days been deemed uninteresting or stupid are now reverently looked up to as characters of rare and of unselfish beauty, whom it is a privilege and a blessing to approach. (Canon Liddon.)
The Transfiguration
I have seen men transfigured by love, by duty, and, in death, by faith.
1. Love was within Christ, perfect, undefiled, intense, filled with the joy of giving and blessing. On the mountain He let His love loose, and oh, what the face of Christ must have been then, when infinite love overflowed His eyes and trembled on His mouth, no tongue can tell.
2. And the mighty stress of duty, filled full with the ideas, infinite in beauty, majestic in truth, which He was yet to accomplish-that and these arose like a tide of light into His expression.
3. And He, too, had come to endure death, cud here, on Hermons side, He realized the last sacrifice. And death seemed to Him then, in that hour of the ecstasy of love and duty, not sad as it was when its power to subdue was brought home to Him by the sin and sorrow of earth, but most beautiful and joyous, full of glory and life. It was beautiful, for it was death for the sake of ideas of eternal beauty; it was joyous, for it was filled with impassioned love; it was glorious, for it was filled with the splendour of the truths He was through death to make alive among men. Therefore as He spoke of His death His face shone like the sun.
II. We see Christ here in the uttermost realization of spiritual communion with God. Always God and He were at one; but the rapture of that union was not always present. From end to end, body, soul, spirit, brain, and heart were all vividly happy with the indwelling God. This the highest conception of prayer ever given to the world-the transfiguration of man through perfect and rapturous union of being with God. There were two special means through which that was reached, and they had been wrought by Christ always.
1. Obedience to Gods will. A man must be free to pray perfectly, and no man is free who is under the yoke of his own will to do wrong, who loves pleasure more than Gods righteousness. There must be the freedom of love; the man can pray and feel himself one with God. It is possible for him at rare moments to stand on the Mount with Christ and be transfigured.
2. The other element in Christ which secured this communion was loving as God loved. God is love. In giving He is blest and blesses. Such prayer cannot be ours; we are not able to obey and love as Christ did.
III. How Is that prayer to be lived? Not in continued solitary contemplation. In the common tasks of life; making them the Fathers business; in it finding communion, prayer. (S. A. Brooke, M. A;)
The permanent use of religious ecstasy
How short in this vale of tears are those moments-which we most rightly call the most salutary and most blissful of our lives-which beam on our mortal career, soon to be replaced by darkness; yet they are not altogether lost; they leave a dew which does not dry up; a meteor that anticipates our course; a fulness of hidden strength which never abates; a light against tempests, which shines upon us as sweetly as the rays of the moon. One takes, though unconsciously, from such moments a new scrip for the long voyage; a new pilgrims staff for the steep road, and a flask newly filled for the days of abode in the desert, wherewith the spirit is refreshed; the sails swell freely, the compass points with more force to the pole, and a season draws nigh when we delight in remembering the enraptured scenes on the Mount. (Dr. Krummacher.)
The fading of the light on Jesus face
When or how the light died away we are not told. My own fancy is that it went on shining, but paling all the night upon the lonely Mount, to vanish in the dawn of a new day. When He came down from the mountain the virtue that dwelt in Him went forth no more in light to the eyes, but in healing to the poor, torn frame of the epileptic boy. So He vanished at last from the eyes of His friends, only to draw nearer-with a more intense and healing presence-to their hearts and minds. Even so come, Lord Jesus! (George Macdonald.)
The Transfiguration a window
The story of the Transfiguration is as it were a window through which we gain a momentary glimpse of the region whence all miracles appear. We find a marvellous change, a lovely miracle, pass upon the form itself, whence the miracles flowed, as if the pent-up grace wrought mightily upon the vessel which contained it. (George Macdonald.)
The influence of prayer on the face
Gambold, in a letter written while Wesley was in Georgia, tells us that Wesley at Oxford was always cheerful, but never arrogant. By strict watchfulness he heat down the impetuosity of his nature into a childlike simplicity. His piety was nourished by continual communion with God, for he thought prayer to be his greatest duty; and often did Gambold see him come out of his closet of devotion with a serenity of countenance that was next to shining.
The watch before the battle
For the disciples, the Transfiguration was intended to illuminate with a ray of glory the dark days that were about to begin; it was designed also to strengthen Jesus for His conflict. It was His first watch before the battle. (De Pressense.)
The mountain, probably Hermon
It is impossible to look up from the plain to the towering peaks of Hermon, almost the only mountain which deserves the name in Palestine-and one of those ancient titles (the Lofty Peak) was derived from this very circumstance-and not be struck with its appropriateness to the scene … High up on its southern slopes there must be many a point where the disciples could be taken apart by themselves. Even the transient comparison of the celestial splendour with the snow, where alone it could be seen from Palestine, should not, perhaps, be wholly overlooked. (Dean Stanley.)
Cloud on Mount Hermon
A strange peculiarity has been noticed about Hermon, in the extreme rapidity of the formation of cloud on the summit. In a few minutes a thick cap forms over the top of the mountain, and as quickly disperses and entirely disappears. (C. R. Conder.)
It almost seems as if this, like the natural position of Hermon itself, was, if not to be connected with, yet, so to speak, to form the background to what was to be enacted. Suddenly a cloud passed over the clear brow of the mountain-not an ordinary, but a luminous cloud, a cloud uplift, filled with light. (Edersheim.)
The shining face
The face of Moses had shone, but as the moon, with a borrowed, reflected light; but Christs shone as the sun, with an innate, inherent light, which was the more sensibly glorious because it suddenly broke out as it were from behind a black cloud. (Matthew Henry.)
Witness of Judaism to Christ
While false Judaism rejects the Messiah, the true owns and adores him in the persons of its two most illustrious representatives. The old covenant and the new meet together on the glorious Mount, as righteousness and peace shall soon meet on that other hill which is already before the eye of Jesus. (E. De Pressense.)
The conversation
The very mention of Christs death by such men as Moses and Elias, without any marks of surprise or dissatisfaction, was of itself sufficient to cause a great change in the sentiments of the disciples respecting those sufferings. Christs assumption of this glorious appearance at the very time was a reasonable and striking proof to His disciples that those sufferings were perfectly consistent with the dignity of His character, and the highest state of glory to which He could be exalted. (Bishop Porteus.)
Peters enjoyment of the scene
But what if the contemplation of Christs glorified manhood so filled the apostle with joy that he was unwilling to be sundered from it, how shall it fare with those who attain to the contemplation of His glorious Godhead? And if it was so good a thing to dwell with two of His saints, how then to come to the heavenly Jerusalem, to the general assembly and Church of the first-born that are written in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to those, not seen through a glass and darkly, but face to face. (Anselm.)
We must come down from the holy mountains
Where we have communion with God, and complacency in that communion, and of which we are saying, It is good to be here: even there we have no continuing city. Blessed be God, there is a mountain of glory and joy before us, whence we shall never come down. But observe, when the disciples came down, Jesus came with them. When we return to the world again after an ordinance, it must be our care to take Christ with us, and then it may be our comfort that He is with us. (Matthew Henry.)
Hear the Son
I. The Fathers declaration-This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. No doubt there is an allusion here to Deu_18:18. He is My Son, My own Son (Rom_8:32).
II. The Fathers command-Hear ye Him. Hear ye Him, ye thoughtless men and women that dwell at ease (2Co_5:10). Hear ye Him, ye self-righteous souls (Act_4:12). Hear Him, ye that have gone on in the ways of ungodliness and wickedness, adding sin to sin, iniquity to iniquity (Isa_46:12). Hear Him, ye men of delay, whose watchword is, To-morrow. Hear Him, ye young sinners, whose is the bloom, the blossom, the springtime of existence, but who have not yet begun to live. Hear Him, ye aged sinners, whose is the hoary head, but that head not yet found in the way of righteousness (Pro_16:31). Hear Him, ye backsliders. Hear Him, ye His tried and tempted disciples. He speaks-It is I, be not afraid. (J. Evans, M. A.)
Attention
Hear ye Him.
I. Why should we hear him?
1. Because God Himself commands us.
2. Because He deserves to be heard.
3. Because His message concerns your present and future welfare.
4. With what zest should those of us hear Him who profess to be His disciples.
5. Sinners must hear Him in this day of grace, or in the day of judgment.
II. what are we to hear?
1. There is much to hear concerning the Person of Christ.
2. He has many varieties of utterance, but by whomsoever He speaks let us hear Him?
3. The word of the Lord is not always a voice of instruction, but of command.
4. He also gives the word of consolation.
III. How shall we hear him.
1. With devout reverence.
2. Believingly.
3. Obediently.
IV. When shall we hear him? (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Fear and its antidote
What was it the disciples feared? The voice from the opened heavens; the voice which some men think, if they only could hear, all doubts would vanish. If such men felt, under the Divine manifestation, so unnerved, what warrant have we for supposing that if a Divine voice spoke to us from heaven, we should gain any accession of faith? Let us learn to be thankful for the modes in which the Divine Presence is made known to us. Look at these disciples.
I. The loss of themselves through their great fear. And when they heard it they fell on their faces, etc. They were no longer the men they had been. This prostration sprang from the conscious nearness of God, and the voice from the cloud was the chief cause of this feeling. Are these not experiences which seem to rob us of our manhood: in great sorrow our powers seem paralyzed. We feel that it has brought us into the presence of God, and we are sore afraid.
II. The grave sense of responsibility which comes upon us in some crises of our life. Then the faculties we most want refuse to obey our bidding. The sudden out-flashing of some great truth may fill the mind with fear.
III. But there is yet another side to look at. We have been looking at the disciples, let us now turn to the Master. In the conduct of Christ towards these men there is much to cheer us. He did not leave them in their helpless condition. His love toward them is unchanged. He comforts as well as delivers from fear. (J. J. Goadby.)
Jesus only
I. what might have happened to the other disciples after they had seen the transfiguration. There were four things, either of which might have occurred.
1. They might have seen nobody with them on the holy mount; they might have found all gone but themselves. In such a case they would have been in a sorry plight, like those who, having begun to taste a banquet, suddenly find all the viands swept away; like thirsty men who have tasted the cooling crystal drops, and then seen the fountain dried up before their eyes. How many people after such experiences have nothing left of joy or comfort; the whole has been a splendid vision and nothing more. Nothing is left to bless the present hour. Christ is with us for ever by His Spirit.
2. They might have seen Moses only. Who would exchange Christ for Moses; the sun for the moon; love for law. There are many who see Moses only; they delight in outward ordinances, precepts and duties. They had bright visions once, but have relapsed into condemnation.
3. They might have seen Elijah only. Instead of the gentle Saviour they might have seen the stern-spirited Elias.
4. They might have seen Moses and Elias with Jesus, even as in the Transfiguration. Moses could preach the law and make men tremble, then Jesus could follow with His gospel of grace. Elias could flash the thunder bolt in their faces, and then Christ could have uplifted the humble spirits. Would not the assemblage of such diverse forces have contributed to the greatest success. They were all merged in Jesus only; as the morning star in the sun.
II. What really happened-They saw no man save Jesus only.
1. This was all they wanted to see for their comfort-Be not afraid. All the Saviour we want we find in Jesus only.
2. Jesus was enough for a Master-No man can serve two masters.
3. He was enough as their power for future life.
4. He is enough as our reward.
III. What he desire may happen. That the great object of our thoughts, motives, and acts may be Jesus only. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only as a doctrine
As you grow in graze you will find that many doctrines and points of church government which once appeared to you to be all-important, though you will still value them, will seem but of small consequence compared with Christ Himself. Like the traveller ascending the Alps to reach the summit of Mont Blanc; at first he observes that lord of the hills as one horn among many, and often in the twistings of his upward path he sees other peaks which appear more elevated than that monarch of mountains; but when at last he is near the summit, he sees all the rest of the hills beneath his feet, and like a mighty wedge of alabaster Mont Blanc pierces the very clouds. So, as we grow in grace, other things sink and Jesus rises. They must decrease, but Christ must increase; until He alone fills the full horizon of your soul, and rises clear and bright and glorious up into the very heaven of God. O that we may thus see Jesus only. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only as an experience
You will see your need all the better if you look at Jesus only. Many a time an appetite for a thing is created by the sight of it. Why, there are some of us who can hardly be trusted in a booksellers shop, because though we might have done very well at home without a certain volume, we no sooner see it than we are in urgent need of it. So often is it with some of you about other matters, so that it becomes most dangerous to let you see, because you want as soon as you see. A sight of Jesus, of what He is to sinners, of what He makes sinners, of what He is in Himself, will more tend to make you feel your need of Him than all your poring over your poor miserable self. You will get no further there, look to Jesus only. Ah, saith another, but I want to read my title clear, I want to know that I have an interest in Jesus. You will best read your interest in Christ by looking at Him. If I want to know whether a certain estate is mine, do I look into my own heart to see if I have a right to it? but I look into the archives of the estate, I search testaments and covenants. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus only
Our life has its resting places, exposed to startling, rude alternations; but it has also, in the midst of all, its grand solace. The first of these truths is illustrated in-
1. Our external personal circumstances.
2. Our intercourse with men.
3. Our Christian feeling. High joys seldom last long. Jesus, so to speak, loses His splendour, and comes down again from the mount, as a man, to His humiliation. The supreme solace is that Jesus comes down from the mount along with us. We learn to prize Him in proportion as we learn the deceptiveness of all beside. Out of our ecstasies, which often hide the reality, there comes a gift of God more precious than all-Jesus Himself. Whatever form He may assume, He is still the same; still the same whether He goes up the mountain with us, or comes down with us from the mountain. Our illusions vanish, but Jesus does not disappear. (C. Bailhache.)
Jesus only
Here is set forth the central theme of Christianity-Jesus only. This is the theme of thought for the scholar, of proclamation by the preacher, of discussion by the student, of delight by the saint. Not the splendours of transfiguration, but Jesus only; not the blessedness of the saints in glory, but Jesus only; not the law of the old dispensation represented by Moses, but Jesus only; not the prophets of the intermediate dispensation, represented by Elijah, but Jesus only; not the apostles of the last dispensation, as represented by Peter, James, and John, but Jesus only. (Dr. J. H. Vincent.)
Jesus only
I. Our spiritual life on earth needs that we should have special seasons of communion with Jesus. It was from the midst of the activities of His ministry that our Lord took His disciples to this mountain apart. Our animal and mental life needs stimulating.
II. Our higher spiritual experiences will not have their right effect upon us unless they leave our attention fixed on Jesus only. Some seek the evidences of their saved state, and find all their comfort in emotional experiences. It is very good to be alone with Christ, and to behold His glory, but we may forget, and lose sight of Him in the sense of personal enjoyment. This was Peters error. The three disciples were permitted to behold this transfiguration of the Saviour, that their attention might henceforth be fixed more on Him and less on themselves. Do not seek rapturous religious experiences merely for their own sake.
III. No religion will do for us to live with, or to die with, but that in which we see Jesus only. Ethical theories, philosophy, etc., will not do for us to live or die on. The simple gospel alone can give peace to the soul in life and death. (T. Hands.)
Nothing but Jesus
A Spanish artist was employed to paint a representation of The Last Supper. It was his ambition to throw all the sublimity of his art into the figure and countenance of the Master; but he put on the table in the foreground some chased cups, the workmanship of which was exceedingly beautiful; and when his friends came to see the picture on the easel, every one was constrained to exclaim, What lovely cups! Ah! said he, I have made a mistake; these cups divert the eyes of the spectator from the Master, to whom I wished to direct the attention of the observer. He then took his brush, and deliberately painted them off the canvas; for he was determined that Jesus only should be the centre of attraction and admiration.
Contrasts in life
Here in London we find, side by side, anxious, earnest, dutiful work, and thoughtless, frivolous, selfish indolence; great intellect expanded by culture and exercise, and stolid ignorance which will not learn; splendid abundance, and squalid want; health radiant in its present joy, and sickness suffering in its gaunt despair; cruelty, and kindness; generosity, and meanness; courage, and cowardice; in the same street-in the same house-some of these antitheses in the same heart! Observe
I. In the streets. Apathy and zeal, honesty and fraud, the athlete and the cripple, the millionaire and the pauper, the abstainer and the drunkard, the sister of mercy and the painted harlot, meeting and touching each other-joy and sorrow, good and evil, life and death. I passed by a great mansion glowing with light from roof to basement, with long lines of carriages hard by; and tapers glowed, and music breathed, and beauty led the ball. Not many days after I passed it again, and the stones were thickly covered with litter to deaden the sound of wheels, and I knew that sickness was in that house. And yet once again, and the rooms were darkened which had been ablaze with light, and there was silence where I heard the joyous music, broken now only by the sigh of the sorrowful; and again there was a long line of carriages, but they were filled with mourners, and at the head of all was the hearse.
II. In our homes-what contrasts! Only an outer wall may separate the house where there is peace and contentment, where hearts are of each other sure, where there is the tenderness, the respect, the loyalty of true affection, where forethought and forbearance unite husband and wife, parent and child, brother and sister, master and servant, and bring domestic happiness-that only bliss of paradise which has survived the fall. Only an outer wall may divide this bright abode from the dwelling-place of jealous suspicion, fretful disquiet, sullen resistance, waste, lewdness, and tyranny.
III. In our hearts-ah! YOU know, you only, the bitterness and the joy. Yes, you know the cold, dark shadows and the sunny gleams succeeding in such swift and strange alternation, like the uncertain glories of an April day. (S. R. Hole, M. A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain On vv1–4 1. And after six days. Compare Mark 9:2–8; Luke…
1. And after six days. Compare Mark 9:2–8; Luke 9:28–36; John 1:14, and 2 Peter 1:18. Six days after the conversation recorded in the last chapter. Luke says, “about an eight days.” About, not exactly. Luke's eight days include the fractional days at the beginning and end of the day of the conversation and the day of transfiguration. Matthew's six days are the six complete days intervening between them. Jesus taketh Peter, James and John. The three apostles who were chosen to be nearest to the Lord. Into a high mountain. Not Mt. Tabor, as tradition holds, but probably Mt. Hermom. It could not have been Mt. Tabor, for, as we learn from Josephus, who lived in that time, the top of Mt. Tabor was then occupied by a town and fortress. On the other hand, the Lord was in the vicinity of Mt. Hermon (Matt. 16:13, note); Hermon was a “high mountain,” ten thousand feet high, visible over most of Palestine.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 Mat_17:1. After six days.—Within a week of Peter’s confession.…
CRITICAL NOTES
Mat_17:1. After six days.—Within a week of Peter’s confession. St. Luke has “about an eight days after,” according to the common Jewish reckoning, by which each part of a day is counted as a day (Carr). An high mountain.—Since the fourth century tradition has fixed on Mount Tabor, in Galilee, as the locality of this event. This opinion is, however, evidently untenable. Not only was Mount Tabor inhabited to its summit at the time (see Robinson), but it seems exceedingly improbable that Jesus would have so suddenly left His retreat in the highlands of Gaulonitis, and transferred the scene of one of His most secret revelations to Galilee, where He was everywhere persecuted. The mountain seems likely to have been Hermon (Lange).
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Mat_17:2. Transfigured.—The transfiguration proper, the general statement that Jesus “was transfigured before them,” is immediately followed out into explanatory details. It was twofold: the radiance of His face, and the gleaming whiteness of His raiment, which shone “like the snow” on Hermon, smitten by the sunshine. Probably we are to think of the whole body as giving forth the same mysterious light, which made itself visible even through the white robe He wore. This would give beautiful accuracy and appropriateness to the distinction drawn in the two metaphors, that His face was “as the sun,” in which the undiluted glory was seen; and His garments as the light, which is sunshine diffused and weakened. There is no hint of any external source of the brightness. It does not seem to have been a reflection from the visible symbol of the Divine presence, as was the fading radiance on the face of Moses. That symbol does not come into view till the last stage of the incident. We are then to think of it as arising from within, not cast from without. We cannot tell whether it was voluntary or involuntary (Maclaren). Are we to think of night or of day? Perhaps the former is slightly the more probable, from the fact of the descent being made “the next day” (Luke). Our conception of the scene will be very different, as we think of that lustre from His face, and that bright cloud, as outshining the blaze of a Syrian sun, or as filling the night with glory. But we cannot settle which view is correct (ibid.).
Mat_17:3. Moses and Elias.—The appropriate representatives of the law and the prophets. And as all the distinguishing peculiarities of the law and the prophets pointed, as with outstretched finger, to the Messiah, and waited for their accomplishment in His person and in His work, it is not to be wondered at that Moses and Elijah should have had much in their hearts which they would like to say to Jesus, and that Jesus should have much in His heart which He would like to say to them. See Luk_9:31 (Morison).
Mat_17:4. Let us make.—I will make (R.V.). The transition to the singular is in keeping with Peter’s temperament (Carr). Tabernacles.—Little huts made out of boughs of trees or shrubs (ibid.).
Mat_17:9. The vision.—See Mar_9:9; Luk_9:36.
Mat_17:10. Elias must first come.—If Elijah was to come and prepare the way, why had he thus come from the unseen world for a moment only?
Mat_17:11. Elias truly shall first come.—Cometh (K.V.). Our Lord’s words are obviously enigmatic in their form, and, as such, admit of two very different interpretations. Taken literally, as they have been by very many both in earlier and later times, they seem to say that Elijah shall come in person before the yet future day of the Lord, the great second advent of the Christ. So, it has been argued, the prophecy of Mal_4:5 shall yet have a literal fulfilment, and John the Baptist when he confessed that he was not Elijah (Joh_1:21) was rightly expecting his appearance. The words that follow in the next verse are, however, more decisive (Plumptre).
Mat_17:12. Elias is come already.—So far as the prophecy of Malachi required the coming of Elijah, that prophecy had been fulfilled in the Baptist, all unconscious of it as he was, as coming in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luk_1:17) (ibid.).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Mat_17:1-13
A glimpse of glory.—This passage is connected very intimately with that immediately before it. The occurrence it describes took place about a week—about “six days” (Mat_17:1; Mar_9:2) according to one way of counting—about “eight days” (Luk_9:28) according to another way—“after” the prediction of Mat_16:28. We may look upon it, therefore, as a following up of what the Saviour had said in the concluding portion of that chapter (Mat_16:21-28) to the disciples at large, and as intended still further to prepare them all, by preparing three of the chief among them (two of whom were afterwards spoken of as “pillars,” Gal_2:9), for His (most unexpected) coming passion and death. And it certainly seems to have been well calculated to have this effect, partly by the impressive assurance which it gave to these three of the coming glory of Christ; and partly by the significant way in which it connected that glory with His previous passion and death.
I. The coming glory of Christ.—This was testified to them in various ways. First, by what they are now shown of His person. They see Him (Mat_17:2) as He is to appear when He comes in His “glory” (Mat_25:31)—“transfigured” till His very “garments” have the radiance of “light.” Next, by what they are shown of those who appear with Him in “glory” (Luk_9:31). Two chief representatives of the faith of the past, one representing the “law,” and one the “prophets,” are seen in attendance upon Him; and are heard “talking with Him” of that which had yet to be accomplished by Himself (Luk_9:31). Thirdly, by the striking effect thus produced on themselves. It fills them at once with rapture and fear. It overwhelms them, at the same moment, with both confusion and joy. What they ought to say they none of them know. What one of them does say shows what they all feel, viz., that nothing can be better, in their judgment, than for things to stay as they are (see Mat_17:4). Oh! what fervour and depth, what wonder and joy, what utter contentment there breathes in those words! And how prophetic they are also of that which is to be verified with regard to all faith at the end! (1Th_4:17). Fourthly, by that which they are now permitted to see of the glory of the Father Himself. For such we take that “bright cloud” of which we read here to have been—something akin to that mysterious “Shekinah” of which they had heard tell in old days, and which filled them with “fear,” therefore, as they “entered into it,” and felt it both above and around them, on every side. And lastly, by that which they are now permitted to hear of His voice—coming “out of the cloud,” as it did, and proclaiming aloud as well the supremacy and Sonship, as the faultless perfection of Jesus, and calling upon all those who would listen to the Father to listen to Him (end of Mat_17:8); and testifying to Him so as He who was to come hereafter in the “glory of the Father” (Mat_16:27). Almost all, in short, that is to mark the consummation itself is anticipated here, as it were. On that “high mountain apart,” these three disciples catch the radiancy of that yet unrisen Sun; and see in this vision what is at last to be seen openly by every eye in the world (Rev_1:7). The whole scene, in a word, is both a pledge and a sample of the future glory of Christ.
II. The previous passion of Christ.—This vision of His glory was connected with His passion in two remarkable ways. It was so, on the one hand, at the time of the vision itself. In the very midst of its glory, when the Saviour Himself is seen in “glory,” and when the same is true of those visitors from heaven who are heard speaking with Him, this subject of His passion is, as it were, that brought to the front. It is the subject, St. Luke tells us, of which they converse (Luk_9:31). They spake of it also under a peculiar title—viz., as a departure or “decease”—perhaps, because when looked at in the light of that glory it was not so much a death or dissolution of nature as a mere change of place, a going away. They spake of it, at the same time, as being something of great importance and necessity, something to which both they and He were then looking forward as that which had yet to be “accomplished.” They speak so much so, in fact, as even to name the place where it had to be done. And thus show, as it were, that to them His future glory was to follow His passion. First the cross and then the crown. First the shame and then the glory. First death, then fulness of life. So it is, in the very midst of that vision, that their language declares. Hardly less remarkable, next, in the same direction, is that which follows this vision. When it is all over, Jesus touches them and they gain courage thereby to “lift up their eyes” and look round. They see “no one save Jesus only” (Mat_17:8). Then, rising up together with Him, they come down from the mountain—apparently, for the present, too full of thought to say much. But their Master speaks; and that so as to show at once what is still in His thoughts. See the order of thought. In the distance that coming in glory of which the vision was an assurance. In the foreground that death of which He had previously told them, and which they had heard spoken of during the vision itself. Between the two His “rising again”—whatever that meant (Mar_9:10). Much the same is it, when, perplexed by this saying, they ask Him about Elias (Mat_17:10). For His answer is such as to fix their attention immediately on that fulfilment of the prophecy of Elias, which was to be found in the appearance of John the Baptist, and to that termination of the career of the Baptist which was a prophecy, as it were, of His death (Mat_17:11-12). That great catastrophe is what He is thinking of now the vision is over; as that was also what He had thought of and spoken of so plainly before (Mat_16:21) the vision began.
On the whole, therefore, we see how strikingly mingled is the character of this scene; and, therefore, how doubly calculated to effect the object apparently in view. By one, at least, of those mentioned here, we learn that this assurance of Christ’s future glory was never forgotten (2Pe_1:16-18). And we can well believe that it would be with the darker lines of the intimation (and with that touch of light in reference to the resurrection by which these were brightened in turn), as we know it was with that very similar twofold intimation of Joh_2:19-22. And thus would all the disciples through these three, and these three through this special deposit entrusted to them alone for the time (Mat_17:9), be prepared to overcome that coming trial which was to try them indeed. Forewarned and fore-encouraged; and so doubly forearmed!
HOMILIES ON THE VERSES
Mat_17:1-9. The transfiguration.—
I. The witnesses of the transfiguration: Peter, James, and John—why these three?
1. Because three could keep a secret, but twelve could not. The context shows that it was of extreme importance that the transfiguration should be kept hid till after the resurrection.
2. Because, probably, these three were in deeper sympathy with the Saviour.
3. Notwithstanding their sympathy, the A.V. represents them as falling asleep (Luk_9:23). Trench proposes another translation—“Having kept themselves awake throughout, they saw His glory and the two men that stood with Him.” The A.V. teaches that they slept at the commencement of the scene, but awoke before it was over. But according to the other rendering, they were eye-witnesses of the whole transaction. Either way the language implies that they felt drowsy, that they wanted to sleep. Was this drowsiness natural? Not altogether; the excessive splendour around them produced a sensation of heaviness.
II. The principle of the transfiguration.—
1. One of the Evangelists notes that as “He prayed” the marvellous change in His appearance was effected. In communion with His Father such intense rapture possessed His soul that it visibly glowed through the dark covering of the body. Are we to perceive in this notable occurrence a principle illustrated or a principle defied? Is there anything in it for the race? I believe there is; it is only a marked exemplification of a universal principle—that the outward form receives its lustre or its baseness from the spirit.
2. The word “transfigured” means literally “metamorphosed.”
3. Many critics of no mean ability maintain that the emphatic words in the verse are—“before them.” Professor Tayler Lewis, for instance, says that the tense of the verb suggests that transfiguration was not a rare exception in the Saviour’s career upon the earth. Communing night after night with His Father on solitary mountain tops, it was not unusual for Him to be transfigured; the sweet joy of His soul often pierced like sunbeams through His frail tenement of clay; the extraordinary thing on this occasion was that He permitted the Divine ecstasy to be witnessed by others. Professor Godwin in his “Notes” throws out a similar hint.
III. The celestial visitants at the transfiguration.—Moses and Elias.
1. These departed saints appeared probably as representatives of the ancient economy. Moses was the founder of Judaism, Elias its reformer. Now, the system which the one inaugurated and the other ratified, was about to undergo a change, not, indeed, of destruction but of transfiguration.
2. They further appeared, probably, as representatives of the other world. Jesus is on the eve of His passion. Consequently the attention of the other world is concentrated on this—two appear as a deputation to convey to Him the sympathy of the saints already made perfect. The grandest purpose of this scene was to gird Him for the hour of His agony and death.
3. “They appeared unto Him in glory, and spake of the decease,” literally, exodus or departure. What a strange commingling of colours! Glory and decease, heaven and death, are brought into close juxtaposition.
4. “They talked of the decease which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem.” In death others are passive, save as they struggle against the dissolution of the nature; but He was active, focussing the everlasting energies of His being upon its performance.
IV. The witness of the Father at the transfiguration.—
1. The bright light—a cloud made luminous by the Divine effulgence within.
2. The voice.
3. “Hear Him.”
V. The effect of the transfiguration.
1. The effect upon the disciples was to exhilarate them, to throw them into a rapture of wonder and joy which they could hardly restrain.
2. The effect upon the Saviour was to gird Him for the coming conflict.—J. C. Jones, D.D.
On the Holy Mount.—Some of the more general lessons which we may learn from this striking scene.
1. We are reminded that seclusion is needed for the highest sort of devotion. Luke tells us that the transfiguration of the Lord took place as He was praying, and so we are warranted in concluding that Jesus and His three disciples withdrew to the mountain-top for special communion with God.
2. We are reminded that a devotional spirit sees new glory in Christ and in His Word. When Peter and his brethren retired apart with Christ He was transfigured before them, and Moses and Elijah shared His brightness. Now, when we give ourselves to the devotional study of the Scriptures, new radiance breaks forth from its pages for us.
3. We are reminded that devotion is not the whole of life. Peter wanted to remain on that summit altogether. But he knew not what he said. There was a world to be redeemed, and how could that be accomplished if Jesus were held back there from the cross? There was, even at that very moment, a poor demoniac in the valley, waiting their descent, in order that he might be cured.
4. We are reminded that devotion furnishes support for the performance of the duties and the endurance of the trials of life. The Redeemer Himself, even in the garden and on the cross, was upheld by the remembrance of this voice from the midst of the cloud; and we know that Peter, long after, when contemplating his decease, looked back upon the whole scene as one of the strongest verifications of the gospel (2Pe_1:16-18).—W. M. Taylor, D.D.
The transfiguration.—When we set ourselves deliberately to consider what the obstructions were which then lay in the way of a true faith in Christ on the part of the Apostles, we can discern how singularly fitted, in its time, its mode, and all its attendant circumstances, this glimpse of the glorified condition of our Lord was to remove these obstructions and establish them in that faith. For:—
I. It helped them to rise to a true conception of the dignity of the Saviour’s person.
II. It was not a little perplexing, the position which Christ assumed towards the Jewish priesthood and the Mosaic ritual. But if there entered into the minds of our Lord’s Apostles a doubt as to the actual inner spiritual harmony between their Master’s teaching and that of Moses and the Prophets, the vision of the mount—the sight of Moses and Elias, the founder and the restorer, the two chief representatives of the old covenant, appearing in glory, entering into such fellowship with Jesus, owning Him as their Lord—must have cleared it away, satisfying them by an ocular demonstration that their Master came not to destroy the law and the prophets—not to destroy, but to fulfil.
III. The manner of Christ’s death was thus, and of itself, a huge stumbling-block in the way of faith—one over which, with all that had been done beforehand to prepare them, the Apostles at first stumbled and fell. It formed the one and only topic of that sublimest interview (Luk_9:31).
IV. The peculiar way in which Jesus spake of His relationship to God was another great difficulty in the way of faith. It seemed so strange, so presumptuous, so blasphemous, for a man—with nothing to mark him off as different from other men—to speak of God as His Father, not in any figurative or metaphorical sense, not as any one, every one of His creatures might do, but in such a sense as obviously to imply oneness of nature, of attributes, of authority, of possession. So from that cloudy glory which hung for a few moments above the mountaintop the Father’s own loving voice was heard, authenticating all that Jesus had said, or was to say, of the peculiar relationship to Him in which He stood, and saying, “This is My beloved Son,” etc.—W. Hanna, D.D.
Mat_17:8. Christ central and alone.—The surface lesson of the text is this, that Jesus Christ does not leave us when the extraordinary manifestations of His glory are taken away—when the joy and the splendour of the vision are gone He is still left to His faithful disciples. As Matthew Henry quaintly puts it: “After the special feast is over daily bread will yet be ours.” Let who will depart, then; He lives! He remains! “Jesus only”—it sums up the common heritage of the saints of God through the dim centuries of the past, and it will do so right on until the end.
I. Jesus Christ stands alone here, as elsewhere in Christian experience.—Moses is gone and Elias is gone; law-giver and prophet have vanished; the disciples see only the Master Himself, present in their midst. And this, too, is significant, for the gospel offers to us, not the law and not the prophets, but Christ, and Christ only; Christ linked with the law if you will, Christ fulfilling the law; Christ revealed in the prophets, Christ testified to by the prophets; but Christ standing alone in the matter of salvation to every one of us. To men with eyes turned heavenward, looking toward the unseen, longing, it may be, for visions and revelations, it offers “Jesus only”—the revelation of the Father in the face of the Son.
II. The pre-eminence, therefore, given to Jesus in these exalted moments of discipleship.—Moses and Elias appear, law-giver and prophet stand there, that they may “testify of His glory.” Then they have gone, and you may say of them their splendour has been dwindling ever since, even as the stars disappear when the sun itself has arisen. “These are they,” said Christ of all the prophets and of all the Scriptures, “that testify of Me.” And if you search the New Testament through and through it is always so of Him who is the Author and Finisher of this faith, the Prophet, Priest, and King of this new dispensation. And if men miss this they miss everything, the one point above all else of importance. For long centuries astronomy went wrong and made no progress, until it learned to place the sun in its true position as the centre of the solar system; and so it is with men and with creeds until they come to see Jesus as He is and as the Father has revealed Him.
III. All this points to the sufficiency of Jesus in the life left to these disciples coming down from the mount.—If the vision means anything it means this—whatever else it may imply—Jesus Christ is presented alone to His people, because Jesus Christ alone and in Himself is enough for His people.—W. Baxendale.
“Jesus only.”
1. It is the summing up of revelation.—All others vanish; He abides.
2. It is the summing up of the world’s history.—Thickening folds of oblivion wrap the past, and all its mighty names get forgotten; but His figure stands out, solitary against the background of the past, as some great mountain, which is seen long after the lower summits are sunk below the horizon.
3. Let us make this the summing up of our lives.—We can venture to take Him for our sole Helper, Pattern, Love, and Aim, because He, in His singleness, is enough for our hearts. There are many fragmentary precious things, but one pearl of great price.
4. Then this may be a prophecy of our deaths.—A brief darkness, a passing dread, and then His touch and His voice saying, “Arise, be not afraid.” So we shall lift up our eyes and find earth faded and its voices fallen dim, and see “no one any more, save Jesus only.”—A. Maclaren, D.D.
“Jesus only.”—Consider the words as they are connected with:—
I. Christian doctrine.—
1. The solitariness of Christ’s personal grandeur—Jesus only is the Son of God.
2. The exclusiveness of Christ’s official work—Jesus only is the Redeemer of the world.
3. The permanence of the dispensation of Christ—Moses and Elias are gone, but Jesus remains, and “Jesus only.”
II. Experience of the believer.—Christ is the only unchanging source of the believer’s comfort.
III. The only hope of the sinner.—“Jesus only” is the way to God. “There is none other name,” etc.—Edward Steane, D.D.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain On v1 Mat 17:1-13; Mar 9:2-13; Luk 9:28-36. Mark: “And after…
CHAPTER 37
TRANSFIGURATION
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Mat 17:1-13; Mar 9:2-13; Luk 9:28-36. Mark: “And after six days, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John, and carries them up into an exceedingly high mountain, privately, alone; and He was transfigured before them, and His garments became shining, exceedingly white as snow, such as no fuller on earth is able to whiten. And there appeared unto them Elijah, with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.” Luk 9:30 : “Behold, two men were talking with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who, being seen in glory, were speaking of His departure, which He was about to fulfill in Jerusalem. And Peter, and those who were along with Him, had been burdened with sleep. But keeping awake through the night, they saw His glory, and the two men who were standing with Him.” The transfiguration is the most unearthly scene mortal eyes were ever permitted to behold. Here, again, we see the signal honor conferred by our Lord on Peter, James, and John, who certainly did enjoy a deeper insight into Divine things than the other nine.
a. What was the character of that wonderful scene? It was a prelibation of heaven, come down to earth — i.e., a peep into the glory world; Jesus, for the time, putting on His glory in the presence of Peter, James, and John, that these notable apostles might be prepared to edify us all as eye- witnesses. Their descriptions are very graphic; Mark, Peter’s amanuensis, certifying that His raiment was whiter than any fuller on earth could possibly make it, His countenance and entire person shining with a brightness infinitely eclipsing the noonday sun in his meridian splendor. The scene transpired in the night, perhaps after several hours spent in prayer, in which their weary bodies became sleepy; the transcendent glory, when bursting on them, utterly expelling all drowsiness, so they had no trouble to keep wide awake all the balance of the night, so thrilled with the unearthly glory that they felt like remaining there forever; hence suggested “to build tabernacles.” Amid the scene, Moses and Elijah both appear.
How did the apostles know them? Either by their statues or Divine intuition, and more probably the latter. They appear in their glory, as both of their bodies had been long ago glorified. When Elijah mounted the fiery chariot, he lost all mortality, materiality, and every ounce of his weight, still retaining his identity, which had passed into celestial glory. If Moses was not translated from Pisgah’s pinnacle, he was raised from the dead, thus, in either case, escaping from Satan’s material prison, in consequence of which he gave the archangel Michael an awful battle (Jud 1:9), only to encounter signal defeat, while Moses, with the archangel, sweeps up the shining way, and joins the enraptured host in the city of God. We have in the glorified manifestation of Moses and Elijah a clear confirmation of the glorious destination of all God’s saints; those living on the earth at the Lord’s appearing being translated into the glorified state suddenly (1Th 4:13-18), like Elijah, when he mounted the chariot of fire; and all the buried saints resurrected, like Moses, when Michael came after him, and took him to heaven; thus Moses and Elijah, representing all the saints of all ages, and thus appearing in their glory, are an incontestable earnest of the glorification awaiting all the saints, some through transition, and others through the resurrection. Moses and Elijah, representing the two great departments of the old disperisation — i.e., the Law and the Prophets, the former being the lawgiver, and the latter, the greatest of the prophets; hence Moses and Elijah here appear in glory, not only confirming the glorification of all the saints, some by translation and others by the resurrection, but as the representatives of the Law and the Prophets, they here appear in the presence of Jesus, to whom they resign their delegated and expiring power, thus recognizing the supercession of the Law and the Prophets by the Kingdom of Heaven. They depart away before the scene is over, signifying the retreat of the old dispensation and the incoming of the new. Luk 9:33 : “And it came to pass, while they were departing from Him [i.e., Moses and Elijah], Peter said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three tabernacles, one for Thee, one for Moses, and one for Elijah; not knowing what he says.” No wonder Peter felt like staying there forever, as he had really witnessed a prelude of heavenly glory, practically spending those wonderful hours in heaven. Yet he did not understand what he was talking about, as Moses and Elijah had already finished their errand, and were moving back to heaven. Jesus must soon go, and Peter, James, and John, with the other nine, must go to the ends of the earth, preaching the gospel; hence permanently abiding there was utterly out of the question. Amid Pentecostal meetings, especially holiness camps, we frequently are permitted to tarry a little while on the Mount of Transfiguration, reluctant to come down; yet we must come down, and finish our work, fighting sin and Satan in the dark valleys of a lost world. “And He speaking these things, and there was a cloud, and it overshadowed them; and they were afraid while they were entering into the cloud. And there was a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is My Beloved Son: hear ye Him; and while the voice was sounding, Jesus was found alone, and they kept silent, and told no one, in those days, any of those things which they had seen.”
b. A world of investigation and controversy has labored through all bygone ages to locate the Mount of Transfiguration. When I was on Mount Tabor, which is a long way from Caesarea-Philippi, far out southwest, near Nazareth and the Mediterranean Sea, I saw three magnificent stone temples, somewhat in ruins, the Latin monk, in charge of the convent constantly occupied on that summit, pointing them out to me as these three tabernacles which Peter suggested to build — one for Jesus, one for Moses, and another for Elijah. The convent on that mountain perpetuates the memory of the transfiguration. Origen, who was born A. D. 185 — a great preacher and a martyr in his day; his father being a preacher and a martyr; also his grandfather; the latter, of course, having seen the apostles, and having been converted through their ministry — certified, and has left it in his writings, that Tabor was the Mount of Transfiguration. Saint Jerome, who spent thirty years in Palestine in the fourth century, and other Christian fathers, add their testimony, so that, through the ages past, Tabor has been visited by thousands of Christian pilgrims, believing, without a doubt, that while walking over its summit and worshipping in its three tabernacles, they were on the veritable spot of this wonderful heavenly scene, where our Lord brought a prelude of celestial glory down, and permitted mortal eyes to contemplate the unearthly splendors of the bright upper world. It seems almost a pity to mar the sanctity and glory of this illustrious mountain by even insinuating that the adoring myriads who have lived and died, believing without a doubt that they had actually trodden upon that hallowed spot, and lingered in the tabernacles built responsive to Peter’s suggestion, and with their mortal feet trodden the summit where Jesus, Moses, and Elijah once stood, invested with celestial glory. But facts are stubborn things, and I must say that they are unfavorable to the identity of Tabor with the Mount of Transfiguration.
c. Others have labored assiduously to identify it with the Mount of Beatitudes, on which our Lord’s celebrated sermon was delivered, lying a few miles back from Capernaum, and overshadowing it, as this mountain is quite lofty; and Capernaum is the first place mentioned after the transfiguration, and the events which transpired at the base of the mountain; presuming that the six days mentioned as transpiring before the transfiguration were, in all probability, spent traveling, giving them ample time to come from Caesarea-Philippi down to the Sea of Galilee.
d. As to the six days immediately preceding the transfiguration, in which we have not an intimation, much less a record, of anything said or done, it seems quite plausible that they have a symbolic signification, typifying the days of Jehovah.
“Let not this escape your memories, beloved, that one day with the Lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2Pe 3:8.)
The adverb “as” is hos, and means “about,” vindicating the indefiniteness of the period, simply a long time, about a thousand years, so that we must not emphasize human chronology too rigidly, as God is His own Timekeeper.
“For, not following cunningly devised fables, have we made known to you the power and coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, but being made eyewitnesses of His majesty. For receiving from God the Father the honor and glory of such a voice, having been borne to Him from the excellent glory, This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. We heard this voice, borne from heaven, being with Him in the holy mount.” (1Pe 1:16-18.)
You see from this Scripture that Peter refers to it as a preliminary coming of the Lord, and a confirmation of His sure and certain second and glorious advent, which was thus adumbrated while on this mount, which was made holy by the heavenly scene which there transpired. Now these six days preceding the transfiguration here mentioned, symbolize the six Divine days, aggregating six thousand years, preceding the glorious coming of the Lord.
e. “And having come out from thence, they traveled through Galilee.”
(Mar 9:30.) This statement certainly sweeps away the theories in favor of Tabor, Beatitudes, and all other places, except that region in which they have spent several days in addition to the six here mentioned. Hence the facts certainly favor the conclusion that it was one of the mountains in the vicinity of Caesarea-Philippi. Strenuous efforts have been made to locate the transfiguration on the highest peak of Hermon. This is hardly probable, as it is about eighty miles from there to the loftiest summit, and directly away from Galilee, due north, whereas we have not an intimation that Jesus ever traveled north of Caesarea-Philippi in His earthly ministry. If He had gone so far, we certainly would have some specification of it. Hermon is the highest peak of the great Anti-Lebanon Range, which runs from Northern Syria south to the vicinity of the Galilean Sea, Caesarea- Philippi being in the Jordan Valley, down at the foot of this great range, and many lofty summits round about, well suited to verify the description here given of this celebrated holy mountain. I climbed a lofty mountain, belonging to the Hermon Range, overshadowing Caesarea Philippi, visiting the ruins of a large temple built by Herod the Great, where tradition says Jesus preached. I see no reason why that mountain, or some other one overhanging the Jordan Valley, through which they traveled back to Capernaum, might not have been the veritable Mount of Transfiguration f. Amid the multiplicity of claimants, through ages of superstition, we must conclude that no one knows that veritable mountain. There are so many summits about Caearea-Philippi, and rising along the Anti-Lebanon Range, hanging over the Jordan Valley, any one of which would satisfy the description, that we must leave the matter undecided, simply concluding that the preponderant argument favors some one of those mountains in the vicinity of Caesarea-Philippi, which are convenient to their journey down the Jordan, bearing in mind the affirmation (Mar 9:30), “Having come out from thence, they traveled through Galilee.” Now bear in mind, Galilee runs up almost to Caesarea-Philippi, favoring the conclusion that the Mount of Transfiguration must have been in that vicinity. Some have suggested that, as it took place in the night, they would have been uncomfortably cold on the summit of Hermon, ten thousand feet high.
While I do not believe they went to that summit, as it was too far north, the question of cold is relieved with reference to that mountain, or any other, by the fact that it was midsummer. As Capernaum is the first place mentioned, where they halted in their journey through Galilee, the facts certainly corroborate the conclusion that the mountain was up there near Caesarea Philippi, as they would travel through Galilee all the way to Capernaum. As our Lord knew what floods of superstition and actual idolatry would accumulate on that memorable spot — which has actually taken place on Tabor — I do not wonder that He dropped the veil over it, withholding its name. Peter, writing about it, gives us no clew to its identity, simply calling it the “holy mountain.” Consequently its identity is all at sea, and must so remain, till Peter, James, and John in glory return.
Mat 17:9. “And they, coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell no one the vision until the Son of man may be risen from the dead. His disciples asked Him, saying, Why then do the scribes say that it behooves Elijah first to come? And Jesus, responding, said to them, Indeed, Elijah cometh first, and will restore all things.” As Elijah here means John the Baptist, how did he restore, verify, complete, all things? John was the greatest of the prophets, and actually wound up the prophetical dispensation, which focalized in Christ, by not only preaching Him, but pointing Him out, and publicly introducing Him to the world. “But I say unto you, That Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but did unto him all things which they wished; the Son of man is thus about to suffer by them. Then His disciples understood that He spoke to them concerning John the Baptist.” This transfiguration, taking place about eight months before the crucifixion, was the solemn installation of our Lord into that momentous series of events destined to culminate in His arrest, arraignment, condemnation, execution, resurrection, and ascension, thus unveiling to mortal eyes the heavenly side of His Messiahship. O that you and I may so sink away into God, and lose sight of this world, yea, climb so high up the Mount of Transfiguration, that we shall reach an experience in which we have a constant panorama of these thrilling realities, revelatory of the heavenly state, which is so nigh, and only separated by an intervening veil, liable to drop at any moment, thus revealing to us the unutterable glories of celestial worlds, of which, in the transfiguration, we have a vivid adumbration!
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 Mat 17:1-2
Mat 17:1-2
I. Not for the Apostles’ sake only was the glory of the Lord thus revealed. In them the whole Church since saw it, and to us, as to them, it is given as a support of faith, a kindling of our hope. To us, too, it is a witness of our Lord’s Divinity; nay, more, of His Divinity and humanity together; it is to us a faint gleam of that ineffable mystery, how man can be taken into God, how God can dwell in man, and fill him with the glory of the Father. Great is the comfort to us that He, our High Priest, our Intercessor, is thus glorified, is thus present with God, and is God. Yet does this mystery, in a still more definite way, open to us the greatness of our future hopes; it gives a glimpse of that which we have no thought to conceive, "the good things" which God has, in His boundless mercy, in store for those who love Him.
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II. We have been made partakers of Christ’s death, passion, resurrection, life; we also, if we be faithful, are being made partakers of His glory, for this the Apostle expressly says, that "we with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord," contemplating Him and seeking, by prayer and daily diligence, to have His image, line by line, retraced in us, are being changed into the same image from glory to glory, through the Lord the Spirit. Through that indwelling glory did the face of St. Stephen shine like the face of an angel. Even now do we sometimes see the faces of God’s saints gleam with unearthly purity and love; even now, as the parting spirit sometimes sees heaven open, and hears and almost feels the brushing by of the angels’ wings who shall carry it, or knows the room to be full of angels, or sees the Redeemer Himself, so does the body catch the light it is approaching; even now, ere. we resign the sacred remains to be sown in dishonour, the solemn peace and holy calm spread over them seem to tell us by whom they were inhabited; they seem yet, like the parted spirit, to live to Him; the evening, so closed in, seems the dawning of the resurrection.
III. Our Lord stretcheth forth His hands to bless us, but it is in the form of His cross. The transfiguration is our glory; it sets forth that glory to us, but also how it was to be won for us, by bearing the cross for us; by us, by bearing ours, after Him, in His strength and following Him.
Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times," vol. iii., p. 223.
References: Mat 17:1.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. x., p. 92. Mat 17:1, Mat 17:2.—S. A. Brooke, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xvi., p. 376. Mat 17:1-3.—R. C. Trench, Studies in the Gospels, p. 184; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. i., p. 37. Mat 17:1-8.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 476. Mat 17:1-9.—J. C. Jones, Studies in St. Matthew, p. 274. Mat 17:1-13.—A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve, p. 196; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 339; Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. iii., p. 19.
Mat 17:2
The portion of St. Matthew’s Gospel from which the text is taken may be called the Section of the Transfiguration. In it the Church is led by her Lord to a creed, to a worship, and to a work.
I. The Church is led to a creed. The time has now come for estimating the effects of the ministry of Jesus. "Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am?" The object of the Saviour’s education of His Apostles was twofold—to teach them that He is Messiah; to prepare them for the truth that Messiah is to be a sorrowing, bleeding, crucified man. The Church is led to the creed of the Divinity and Atonement as the prelude to the Transfiguration.
II. In the Transfiguration itself the Church is led on to a foretaste of glorious worship and high communion—the meeting for a while of the Church militant with the Church triumphant.
III. In the Transfiguration Jesus leads His Church to a work—a work which at first, indeed, they could not perform. On the next day, as they come down from the hill, they find a sufferer below. Strange contrast. Above, the pure heaven; the words of Divine attestation; the form of saints floating in light; the glory, and honour, and majesty given to Jesus. Below, the reproach; the well-meant but baffled effort; the foam on the cut lip; the withered body; the sullen muteness, broken by epileptic cries—the sad lines drawn by St. Mark in four pictorial words. Yet there is a fresh unselfish joy in the energy which Jesus throws into that victorious work. "And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour." It would not be difficult to point out in the Transfiguration (1) a remarkable prophetic symbol of the history of the Church, (2) a summary of the forms of her varied life.
IV. I conclude by drawing two lessons for the spiritual life of each of us: (1) Our individual life must follow and summarize the Section of the Transfiguration. (a) We must lay the foundation deep and strong in the confession of Peter. (b) There must be the love of prayer, of communion with the world unseen; there must be the sacramental feeding upon Christ, the Bread of life; there must be the upward drawing by Christ into the eternal hills. (2) Think of our transfiguration as the result of His. Even our fallen humanity affords hints of this. Each face and form aspires to an ideal which it is the work of art to find. High thoughts and pure emotions ennoble ordinary features. Dying believers catch a radiance from a hidden glory. Such as Christ is in His Transfiguration, such in their measure shall His faithful servants one day be. "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of the Father."
Bishop Alexander, The Great Question, p. 213.
References: Mat 17:2, Mat 17:3.—W. J. Keay, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxi., p. 397. Mat 17:2, Mat 17:9.—C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 207. Mat 17:4.—H. P. Liddon, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii., p. 145. Mat 17:5.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 909; see also Three Hundred Outlines on the New Testament, p. 22; H. Melvill, Penny Pulpit, No. 2,459. Mat 17:5-7.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxix., No. 1727. Mat 17:6, Mat 17:7.—J. Jackson Wray, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxiii., p. 90.
Mat 17:4
The disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration had—
I. A vision of Christ’s Divinity.
II. A vision of glorified saints.
III. A vision of the Father’s presence.
IV. A vision of Jesus only.
J. Jackson Wray, Light from the Old Lamp, p. 345.
Reference: Mat 17:5.—C. Girdlestone, Twenty Parochial Sermons, 3rd series, p. 153.
Mat 17:8
The Transfiguration, with all its heavenly loveliness, its purity, its fellowship, and its glory, had evidently not been an unmixed enjoyment to the three men who were elected to see it. They were not yet capable of such a scene. It was a comfort and relief to them when it all passed away, and they awoke and lifted up their eyes, and saw "Jesus only."
I. Thus it has been, and it is and it will be, with the pageant of life. There are thousands of things in the world which glisten brightly, and they are about us a little while, and we feel it good to be there. But they were never made to stay. At the best, they are but the poor copies of some great original, for which we were created, and to which they are pointing. And presently, just when we least expect it, it is all withdrawn. And what is left? Truth, reality, simplicity, love, light, the eternal. And what are all these? Have they an embodiment? Jesus—"Jesus only."
II. At the Transfiguration all the rest was only circumstance. It could come and go, wonderful and Divine as it was. But it was not essential; essence never goes, and the essence of everything which is good, and true, and happy, in all worlds, is Jesus. What we have continually to do is to separate circumstance from fact, the non-essential from the essential; to reduce everything to its first principles, to its germs; to see the "I Am"—"Jesus only." (1) See it in the great plan of our salvation. So long as you allot a fraction of the work to yourself, you will never have peace. It is all and only Jesus. (2) Or see it in our sanctification. The Holy Spirit does His own proper work. We fight our great battle with sin. The righteousness of Christ is accounted to us, laid on us like a robe. (3) Or look at the rich and hallowed things with which God has provided, and decked, and endowed His Church—its order, its ministry. They are all the visible expression of great, deep, invisible truths, which lie within them all like hidden mysteries.
III. Could you live upon the mountain of beatitude, and every scene be tipped with gladness, and all this dull existence be transformed into brilliancy, there would be a void. You would want something; you would not be quite happy—never, till you have "Jesus only." Jesus is the soul’s complement.
J. Vaughan, Sermons, 13th series, p. 45.
References: Mat 17:8.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 924; E. W. Shalders, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xvi., p. 187; E. D. Solomon, Ibid., vol. xx., p. 378; H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, Sunday Sermonettes for a Year, pp. 79, 138; G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 253. Mat 17:14-21.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 344; S. D. Thomas, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxix., p. 102. Mat 17:14-27.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. iii., p. 29. Mat 17:17.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xiv., No. 821.
Mat 17:19
I. There are two different ideas about the way in which the problems of the world are to be solved, the salvation of the world, whatever it is, is to be brought about. Pure irreligion looks to man to do it. Let man go on thinking, inventing, planning, governing, and the result must come. On the other hand, a certain kind of religion looks to God to do it. Let men lie still, purely submissive, without a movement or a will, and God, in His good time, will bring the happy end. The first of these two ideas has no faith, and it fails. The other idea fails also. Man standing aloof, and expecting to see God redeem the world, sees no such thing. Then, too, there is a lack of faith; man learns that simply to trust God with expectation that He will do everything is not faith. Then, in the failure of these two ideas about the world’s salvation, comes another, which is distinctly different from either. Not man alone, and not God alone, is going to purify the world. But man and God, made one by perfect sympathy, by the entire openness of life between them, they are the two together; nay, they two together are not two; they are the one which is to make the old world into the new world by the driving out of sin. The principle which makes God and man to be one power is faith.
II. In Christ there was the fulfilment of that which when men try to conceive of what the world needs most, is the complete expression of their fullest dreams—man in God, God in man, the Divine and human perfectly reconciled, perfectly united; not two forces, but one force. That was the Christ who went from haunt to haunt of the devils, and bade them flee; and they, the devils of hatred, cruelty, lust, selfishness, brutishness, superstition—they all fled at His presence. And now to fill the earth with Himself, that is His wish and purpose, that is what He is labouring for through all these slow, discouraging centuries, in which, beneath the turmoil and distress upon the surface, the watchful ear can never fail to hear below the sounds which tell us that He is still at work. What is the real meaning of His purpose? Is He not trying to make His brethren what He was, to assert in them, as it was asserted in Him, that it is an Incarnation, a God in man, that is to save the world?
Phillips Brooks, Sermons in English Churches, p. 179.
References: Mat 17:19.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 346; T. Kelly, Pulpit Trees and Homiletic Undergrowth, p. 36; S. Macnaughton, Real Religion and Real Life, p. 232.
Mat 17:19-20
Christ our Pattern.
I. There are two things very hard to our moral natures, and yet most necessary to our happiness; the one of these is that we should be very much afraid of sin, the other that we should not be afraid of death. We know quite well that we ought to be both the one and the other. But this is not enough; we require to learn how we may become so, as well as to know that we ought to become so. Now it was for this end that Christ lived and died openly amongst us, and that the particulars of His life and death were recorded. He might have borne our nature as truly, and died for our sins as truly, had His life been passed away from the sight of men, or had He, like Moses, resigned His spirit on the top of some lonely mountain into the hands of His heavenly Father. But how much of the best support of our souls should we have lost had this been so. We are not only told briefly that He took our nature upon Him, that He lived upon earth for more than thirty years; but we are made, in a manner, the witnesses of His birth, the companions of His ripened manhood. We see Him forsaken, and we see Him insulted; we see Him enduring the extremity of bodily pain; we see Him—and it is the divinest mercy of all—suffering the extremity of inward trouble, of desolateness and fear. We see Him in all these, and we see Him triumph over them all; and we hear Him, when all were over-past, giving up His spirit into the hands of God, to show that in all things we too may be more than conquerors "through Him that loved us."
II. The book in which we may read this is in our hands, and we can use it when we will. It hardly matters what particular chapter of the Gospels we open, for Christ’s life is in every part of it more or less our pattern. The readiest way to have our faith so strengthened as that it may cast out the evil of our hearts is to make ourselves fully acquainted with all the particulars of Christ’s character and life and death. Making His words, on every occasion, familiar to us; so bringing before our minds His actions, so imaging—for surely we may and should try to do so—His very voice and look, may we bring our souls into constant communion with Him.
T. Arnold, Sermons, vol. iii., p. 17.
Consider the principles which flow from this text.
I. We have an unvarying power. (1) We have a Gospel which can never grow old. (2) We have an abiding spirit. (3) We have a Lord, "the same yesterday, and today, and for ever."
II. The condition of exercising this power is faith.
III. Our faith is ever threatened by subtle unbelief.
IV. Our faith can only be maintained by constant devotion and rigid self-denial.
A. Maclaren, The Secret of Power, p. 1.
References: Mat 17:19-21.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. x., No. 549; Three Hundred Outlines on the New Testament, p. 23; S. R. Hole, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. ii., p. 154.
Mat 17:20
The ground of faith in God and immortality is not authority or demonstration, but our sense of right.
I. First, the very fact of our having a sense of right makes it probable that God exists. We do not know where that sense of right comes from. It is the one thing which the theory of development has to stop short of; it is the one thing it cannot give any credible reason for. It seems that there must be an intelligent Will outside of us who is the source of truth, a living Goodness which does not grow into being in us through ages of development, but which has been always and is.
II. Let us take this sense of right with us, and look at the world around us. How shall we explain its being? There are two theories of the world—the Atheistic and the Theistic. We are bound, as scientific men, to choose that theory as probably true which explains best the greatest number of facts, which agrees and harmonizes best with what we have observed. We find order, intelligence, progress to an end, unity among infinite diversity; and the conclusion is that it is probable, in a very high degree, that there is a thoughtful Will behind and in the universe.
III. I turn to the spiritual world. I find existing in myself, and in the greater number of mankind, a whole world of feelings which belong to this idea of God; I find, on looking back through history, that these and similar feelings existed in all civilized communities, nay, that in savage nations, even before the social ideas took shape, these existed in rude form. Did these ideas develop out of nothing? Are they going in the end to nothing? All my sense of right in matters of feeling denies that. I must suppose some One who is Himself the feeling source of all this feeling, and who is its end. Thus probability is added to probability in our minds, and by such addition faith is built up—built up not out of spiritual feeling only, but also out of the confessions of probability which the intellectual sense of truth and the moral sense of right are induced to make.
S. A. Brooke, The Fight of Faith, p. 38.
References: Mat 17:20.—D. W. Simon, Expositor, 1st series, vol. ix., p. 307; H. Goodwin, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxi., p. 296. Mat 17:21.—H. W. Beecher, Ibid., p. 2.83; G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 223. Mat 17:24, Mat 17:25.—W. F. Hook, Sermons on the Miracles, vol. ii., p. 180. Mat 17:24-27.—A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve, p. 223; T. Birkett Dover, The Ministry of Mercy, p. 182. Mat 17:25, Mat 17:26.—H. Melvill, Penny Pulpit, No. 1,780.
Mat 17:27
The story of the tribute-money is not one of the great miracles, and yet its lessons are well worth our careful study.
I. There is what, for the want of a better word, we must call the modesty of Jesus. Rather than offend the prejudices of the people, He would waive His claim. Are not we who call ourselves His disciples too ready to put forth our titles to men’s respect and to stand upon our dignity? Let us not be too exacting, but seek the spirit of Christ, "who, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross."
II. We learn something of the poverty of Jesus. If ever there was a poor man, it was the Lord of life and glory. There is something of greater moment than wealth, and that is character. Money may not elevate, good deeds do. In the conventional meaning of the words, Christ was not worth fifteen pence; yet He could heal the sick and raise the dead. It will be worth our while to weigh ourselves in the true balances, and to find out Heaven’s assessment of our belongings.
III. The story gives us a peep into Christ’s resources. Though He had not the money by Him, He knew where it was. The gold and silver are all His. It could be brought out if the Lord willed it, and yet His treasury is often empty.
IV. We learn that God does not often act without human agency. Christ could have done without Peter. It would have been easy to have willed it, and the fish would have swum to His feet as He stood by the side of the lake, and have dropped the coin within His reach. But He knew that Peter could catch the fish, and so he was sent to do what he was able. It appears to be the Divine plan to do what men cannot, but not to act for us.
V. The story teaches us that he who works for Jesus is sure to get his pay. Christ wanted fifteen pence, and Peter took out of the fish’s mouth half-a-crown. And thus in obeying Christ he paid his own taxes. In keeping His commandments there is great reward.
T. Champness, New Coins from Old Gold, p. 102.
References: Mat 17:27.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. v., p. 316; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. x., p. 118.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 The Transfiguration
The Transfiguration
1-8. The Transfiguration (Mar_9:2; Luk_9:28).
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St. Leo rightly apprehended the historical situation when he said that in the Transfiguration the principal object aimed at was that in the hearts of the disciples the scandal of the cross might be removed, and that throughout the terrible and humiliating events which were shortly to happen they might be sustained by the remembrance of the revelation which they had been vouchsafed.
The Transfiguration revealed Christ in His divine glory as Son of God. If, as is generally supposed, it took place at night (see Luk_9:37), the spectacle of the face of Christ, shining like the sun in its strength, must have been inexpressibly glorious. His form shone, not like that of Moses with borrowed light, but with a glory which came from within, and was His own. 'We were eye-witnesses of His majesty,' said one of the witnesses (if 2 Peter is authentic). 'And we beheld His glory,' said another, 'the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth': 2Pe_1:16-18; Joh_1:14.
Moses and Elijah appeared, the former as representing the Law, and the latter the prophets, and Christ was seen in the midst of them as greater than both. 'The unity of the Old and New Covenant is wonderfully attested by this apparition of the princes of the Old in solemn yet familiar intercourse with the Lord of the New; and not the unity only, but with this unity the subordination of the Old to the New, that “Christ is the end of the Law” (Rom_10:4), and the object to which all prophecy pointed. (Luk_24:44; Act_10:13; Act_28:23; Rom_3:21), that therefore the great purpose of these had now been fulfilled; all which was declared in the fact that, after their testimony thus given, Moses and Elias disappear, while Christ only remains' (Trench).
Whether the Transfiguration was a vision seen in trance, or a waking reality, has often been discussed. In favour of the former view it is urged that their eyes were 'heavy with sleep,' but St. Luke, who alone mentions this fact, is careful to add that 'they remained awake throughout,' or at least (for the expression is somewhat ambiguous) that they were thoroughly awake at the actual time of the vision. That it was a real objective occurrence, and not a mere illusion, is shown, (1) by its appearing simultaneously to the three apostles; (2) by the conversation between Christ and the visitors. The appearance of Christ with two of His saints apparently in glorified bodies is an earnest of the time of the 'redemption of the body,' when the Lord Jesus Christ 'shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of His glory.' The narrative in St. Matthew and St. Mark is derived from St. Peter. That in St. Luke is largely independent, and may be in part derived from St. John, the only other surviving witness when St. Luke wrote.
1. After six days] Lk 'after about eight days,' either an independent calculation or another way of reckoning. An high mountain] not Mt. Tabor, the top of which was occupied by a fortress, but more probably Hermon, which is near Caesarea Philippi, and is an 'exceeding high mountain '(9,000 ft.), which Tabor is not (1,800 ft.). 2. Transfigured] lit. 'metamorphosed.' The glory of the Godhead burst through the veil of flesh. St. Luke alone mentions that the change took place while Jesus was praying.
3. Moses and Elijah were recognised through the supernatural power of insight which enabled them to be seen.
4. Three tabernacles] or, 'booths.' Peter wished to prolong the stay of the heavenly visitants, and offered to build them temporary houses on the mountain for their accommodation. He felt that it was good to be there in such glorious surroundings, and by no means wished to descend to earth again, to begin the fatal journey to Jerusalem of which Moses and Elijah were speaking (St. Luke). St. Mark adds: 'He wist not what to answer, for they were sore afraid.'
5. A bright cloud] i.e. the visible glory which, according to Jewish ideas, manifested the divine presence. It is the same as the pillar of cloud and fire in the wilderness, the cloud that filled Solomon's Temple, and the visible glory which, according to the rabbis, rested upon the ark, and was called the 'Shechinah.' This is my beloved Son] Lk 'This is my Son, my chosen.' These words, in which the Father Himself testified to Christ's divine Sonship, are similar to those spoken at the Baptism; but whereas those were spoken in part at least to Christ Himself, these were spoken entirely to the disciples. They contain a striking confirmation of Peters late confession, and further teach what the Apostles found it so hard to learn, that the old dispensation was to be entirely superseded by the new. 'Hear,' said the voice of the Father, 'not Moses and Elias, but my beloved Son.'
9-13. Elijah and the Baptist (Mar_9:11).
9. The vision] lit. 'the thing seen.' The word does not imply the unreality of the occurrence. To no man] Not to the multitudes, lest they should be carried away by political enthusiasm; nor to the other disciples, because they were not yet in a fit state to receive the lesson that it taught. To be witnesses of the Transfiguration was a special reward of the Three for their greater faith and greater spiritual receptiveness. 'To him that hath shall be given.' Risen again] Another clear prophecy of the Resurrection.
10. Why then say the scribes?] Jesus, by forbidding the incident to be spoken of (Mat_17:9), seemed to attach little importance to the present appearance of Elijah. 'Why then,' ask the disciples, 'do the scribes attach so much importance to it? And why are we forbidden to reply to their leading objection to your Messiahship, by saying that Elijah has come, and that we have seen him.' Elias must first come] The Jews expected a personal return of Elijah to prepare the way for the Messiah, not another prophet like him: see on Luk_1:17. It was supposed that his peculiar activity would consist in settling ceremonial and ritual questions, doubts and difficulties, and that he would restore to Israel, (1) the golden pot of manna, (2) the vessel containing the anointing oil, (3) the vessel containing the waters of purification, (4) Aaron's rod that budded and bore fruit.
11. Elias truly, etc.] RV 'Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things.' The future 'shall restore' is best explained as a quotation of the exact words of the scribes, and not as a prophecy that Elijah will come in person to prepare the way for Christ's Second Advent, though some understood it to mean this. Restore all things] see Mal_4:6; Act_3:21. The Baptist, to whom Jesus alluded, did not in fact 'restore all things,' nor bring about the perfect moral purification anticipated by the prophet Malachi, but that was the fault of his hearers. The possibility of the Baptist's failure was distinctly contemplated by Malachi, for he adds, 'lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.' Malachi spoke of, and Christ understood by his words, a moral restoration of the nation. The scribes looked for the restoration of the pot of manna, stricter ceremonies, and similar frivolities.
12. But have done] Herod, not the scribes, actually killed John, but Herod only did what the scribes would have been glad to do: cp. Luk_7:30, Luk_7:33.
14-20. Healing of the lunatic (epileptic) (Mar_9:14; Luk_9:37). St. Mark's account is much the fullest. Christ descends from the mount to resume His works of benevolence. He who had communed with God and His prophets in the very atmosphere of heaven, now mingles in the common life of men, and concerns Himself with their troubles. He was full of grace as well as truth. Raphael brings this out in his great picture, which depicts the Transfiguration and the healing of the epileptic boy upon the same canvas.
The scribes had taken advantage of Christ's absence to undermine His influence with the multitude, and their designs had been assisted by the failure of His disciples to heal a peculiarly severe case of epilepsy (Mk). The return of Jesus discomfited the scribes. The epileptic was healed, 'and they were all astonished at the majesty of God' (LK). J. Lightfoot remarks, 'It was very usual with the Jews to attribute the more grievous diseases to evil spirits, especially those wherein either the body was distorted, or the mind disturbed or tossed with a frenzy.' The demon of epilepsy, in the case of infants, was called 'Shibta,' in the case of adults, 'Cordicus.' How far the language of Christ about demons is an accommodation to the ideas of the time is discussed at end of Matthew 4.
15. Lunatick] i.e. epileptic, because epileptics were supposed to be affected by the changes of the moon (luna).
17. O faithless] The rebuke is addressed not only to the discipies, but also to the father of the lad and the multitude.
20. Unbelief] RV 'little faith.'
Faith as a grain of mustard] i.e. the smallest amount: see on Mat_13:31. Ye shall say unto this mountain, etc.] a proverbial expression: see on Mat_21:21;
21. The RV and Westcott and Hort omit the whole v., but it is too strongly attested to be lightly rejected. The parallel in Mk (RV) omits 'and fasting': see on Mar_9:29.
22, 23. Jesus predicts His passion (Mar_9:30; Luk_9:43).
22. Abode] RV 'were gathering themselves together.' Galilee] mentioned because the last miracle had taken place beyond its borders, near Caesarea Philippi.
23. Sorry] They thought only of the Passion, not of the Resurrection, the allusion to which they did not in the least understand. St. Mark says, 'But they understood not the sayjng, and were afraid to ask him.'
24-27. The halfshekel or Temple tribute (peculiar to St. Matthew). Jesus is asked to pay the usual tax towards the maintenance of the temple services. As son of God He claims exemption, yet pays lest He should be thought to dispise the temple. A significant indication of Christ's conciousness of a special relationship to god, unlike that of other men.
24. They that received tribute money] RV 'the half-shekel' (Gk. didrachama). Every male Isralite above the age of twenty was required by the Law (Exo_30:11-16; Exo_38:25-26) to pay half a shekel annually (i.e. about eighteen-pence) towards the maintenance of the Temple worship, as 'a ransom for his soul unto the Lord.' It was usually paid between the fifteenth and twenty-fifth of Adar (March), i.e. about Passover time, so that the money was now considerably overdue.
25. Custom] i.e. taxes on merchandise. Tribute] i.e. taxes on persons and property.
26. Then are the children (RV 'the sons') free] Therefore Jesus, being the Son of the Heavenly King, is free from the Temple tax. 'Children' (sons) is not meant to include the apostles or Christians generally. The plural is only part of the simile.
27. Lest we should offend them] i.e. 'lest we give the collectors, who do not know that I am the Son of God, the false impression that I dishonour the Temple, and so hinder their conversion, go thou,' etc. Offend] RV 'cause to stumble.' A piece of money] lit. 'a stater.' A silver stater was exactly four drachmæ or denarii, i.e. a shekel, enough to pay for two. For me and thee] not 'for us.' The two cases were different. In our Lord's case the payment was a condescension, in Peter's a debt.
There are many authentic historical instances of valuables being found inside fish. Polycrates, tyrant of Samos (6th cent. b.c.), threw into the sea an emerald signet set with gold, the work of the Samian artist Theodorus. A few days later his cook found the signet inside a large fish, which a fisherman had presented to the monarch.
Although the supernatural element in this miracle is not greater than in the other physical miracles, yet its dramatic character, and the absence of the motive of benevolence which so generally characterises our Lord's miracles, suggest to some critics that we have here not strict history, but a mixture of history and tradition, the nucleus of historic fact being that our Lord sent St. Peter to catch a fish, and that this fish, when sold, realised a shekel. This explanation of the incident is quite possible.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain On v1 J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [LXX. D. The…
J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [LXX. D. The Transfiguration].
LXX. THIRD WITHDRAWAL FROM HEROD'S TERRITORY. Subdivision D. THE TRANSFIGURATION. CONCERNING ELIJAH. (A Spur of Hermon, near Cæsarea Philippi.) aMATT. XVII. 1-13; bMARK IX. 2-13; cLUKE IX. 28-36.
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c28 And it came to pass about eight days asix days cafter these sayings [Mark agrees with Matthew in saying six days. Luke qualifies his estimate by saying "about." But if we regard him as including the day of the "sayings" and also the day of the transfiguration, and the other two as excluding these days, then the three statements tally exactly. The "sayings" referred to were the words of Jesus with regard to his suffering at Jerusalem], that aJesus taketh ctook awith him Peter, and James, and John his brother [These three, as leaders among the apostles, needed the special encouragement which was about to be given. For further comment, see Mar_9:30). Moreover there is little doubt that at that time and for centuries previous there was an inhabited fortress upon Mt. Tabor ( Jos_19:12; Jos. B. J. i. 8, 7; Vit. 37). Moreover, Mt. Tabor is not a high mountain, its elevation above the sea being but 1,748 feet. Hermon, on the contrary, is the highest mountain in Palestine, its elevation, according to Reclus, being 9,400 feet. It was Jesus' custom to withdraw for prayer by night ( Mat_14:23, Mat_14:24, Luk_6:12, Luk_21:37, Luk_22:39) and the transfiguration took place at night.] 29 And as he was praying, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment i became white and dazzling. a2 and he was transfigured [i. e., transformed; the description shows to what extent] before [418] them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. bglistering, exceeding white; so as no fuller on earth can whiten them. [We may conceive of the body of Jesus becoming luminous and imparting its light to his garments. The Christian looks forward to beholding such a transfiguration and also to participating in it-- 1Jo_3:2.] a3 And, behold, there appeared unto them ctwo men, who were Moses and bwith cElijah; band they were talking with Jesus. [The three apostles could identify Moses and Elijah by the course of this conversation, though it is possible that miraculous knowledge may have accompanied miraculous sight.] c31 who [i. e., Moses and Elijah] who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. [The word for decease is "exodus," an unusual word for death. It means a departure and is, as Bengel says, a very weighty word, since it includes the passion, crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.] 32 Now Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep [it being night]; but when they were fully awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him. 33 And it came to pass, as they were departing from him, aPeter answered and said banswereth and saith aunto Jesus, bRabbi, cMaster, aLord, it is good for us to be here: band let us make three tabernacles; aif thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. cnot knowing what he said. b6 For he knew not what to answer; for they became sore afraid. [Peter's fears overcame his discretion, but did not silence his tongue. Though he trembled at the fellowship of Moses and Elijah, he also realized the blessedness of it and could not let them depart without an effort to detain them, though the best inducement that he could offer was to build three booths, or arbors, made of the branches of trees, for their and Christ's accommodation. By thus speaking, Peter placed Jesus upon the same level with Moses [419] and Elijah--all three being worthy of a booth.] c34 And while he said these things, a5 While he yet speaking, behold, bthere came aa bright cloud bovershadowing them: cand overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. [Clouds often roll against the sides of Mt. Hermon, but the brightness of this cloud and the fear which it produced suggests that it was the Shekinah, or cloud of glory, which was the symbol of God's peculiar presence-- Exo_13:21, Exo_13:22, Exo_19:9, Exo_19:18, Exo_24:16, Exo_40:34, Exo_40:35, 1Ki_8:10.] aand behold, bthere came a voice out of the cloud, asaying, This is my beloved Son, cmy chosen: ain whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. [This command contains the chief significance of the entire scene. Spoken in the presence of Moses and Elijah, it gave Jesus that pre-eminence which a son has over servants. He is to be heard. His words have pre-eminence over those of the lawgiver and the prophet ( Heb_1:1, Heb_1:2). Peter recognized Jesus as thus honored by this voice-- 2Pe_1:16-18.] 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. [As every man is who hears the voice of God.] 7 And Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid. [As mediator between man and God, Jesus removes fear.] b8 And suddenly looking round about, a8 And lifting up their eyes, bthey saw no one any more, save Jesus only with themselves. c36 And when the voice came, Jesus was found alone. [Leaders and prophets depart, but Christ abides-- Heb_3:5, Heb_3:6.] b9 And as they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them, that they should tell no man what things they had seen, save when the Son of man should have risen again from the dead. a9 And Jesus commanded them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen from the dead. [The people were not ready for the publication of such an event. To have told it now would only have been to raise doubts as to their veracity.] b10 And they kept the saying, [420] questioning among themselves what the rising from the dead should mean. [Jesus spake so often in parables and made so frequent use of metaphors that the apostles did not take his words concerning the resurrection in a literal sense. They regarded his language as figurative, and sought to interpret the figure.] cAnd they held their peace, and told no man in those days any of the things which they had seen. a10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? bHow is it that the scribes say that Elijah must first come? [They were puzzled by the disappearance of Elijah. They looked upon him as having come to fulfill the prophecy of Malachi ( Mal_4:5, Mal_4:6), but they marveled that, having come, he should so soon withdraw, and that they should be forbidden to tell that they had seen him, since the sight of him would be some sign of Jesus' Messiahship.] a11 And he answered and bsaid unto them, Elijah indeed cometh first, and restoreth ashall restore all things [this sentence leads some to think that Elijah will appear again before the second coming of our Lord, but the words are to be interpreted in connection with the rest of the passage]: band how it is written of the Son of man, that he should suffer many things, and be set at naught? [If the writings concerning Elijah perplexed the apostles, those concerning the Messiah perplexed them also. From one set of prophecies they might learn something about the other. Elijah came, but the Scriptures concerning him were so little understood that he was put to death. The Messiah also came, and the prophecies concerning him were so little understood that he, too, would be set at naught.] 13 But I say unto you, that Elijah is come, aalready, and they knew him not, but did band they have also done unto him whatsoever they would. Even as it is written of him. aEven so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. 13 Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. [Malachi used the name of Elijah figuratively to represent John the Baptist. [421] See pp. 102, 284. That there shall be a second coming of Elijah in fulfillment of this prophecy is hardly possible, for the office of Elijah is prophetically outlined as that of the restorer. But Elijah could not restore Judaism, for that dispensation had been done away with in Christ. He could hardly have chosen to restore Christianity, for even if it should need such a restoration, a Jewish prophet would be ill-suited to such an office. One of the apostles would be vastly preferable.]
[FFG 418-422]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv1–2 (See Scofield "Mat 4:21")
James
(See Scofield "Mat 4:21")
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 5. The Coming Glory;
5. The Coming Glory;
the Helpless Disciples and the Power of the King. The Tribute Money.
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CHAPTER 17
1. The Transfiguration. (Mat 17:1-13.)
2. The Helpless Disciples and the Power of the King. (Mat 17:14-21.)
3. The Second Announcement of His Death and Resurrection. (Mat 17:22-23.)
4. The Tribute Money.( Mat 17:24-27.)
The first part of this chapter gives us the record of the transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ. The portion before us is one of the richest in the entire book of Matthew; so full of precious teachings and suggestions that one almost shrinks from attempting an exposition, for it seems impossible to touch on all the phases and lessons coming from this great event.
Let us remember that the Holy Spirit has given us three accounts of the transfiguration. Besides the one here we have one in Mark and in Luke. In each, special points of the great event are made prominent in full accord with the meaning and scope of the three Gospels. We find no record of the transfiguration in the fourth Gospel. It would be out of place in that Gospel, for John is the instrument to reveal Christ as the Son of God and the eternal Life. In Luke we find that something is said which is not found in the other two accounts. We read there: “And as He prayed the fashion of His countenance became different and His raiment white and effulgent.” The Gospel of Luke presents our Lord as Son of Man and we read there often that He prayed, and thus the information given to us in Luke is in full accord with that Gospel. In Matthew we learn something which is only reported there, namely, that His face shone as the sun. The importance of this fact we shall discover in the course of the exposition. In Mark and Luke the voice out of the cloud says, “This is my beloved Son; hear Him”; but in Matthew alone we read, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight; hear Him.” These and other differences are the mark of divine inspiration; the Holy Spirit, being the narrator of the event, reports the occurrence in harmony with the purpose of each one of these Gospels.
And now as we turn to the divine record of the transfiguration in the Gospel of Matthew we desire first of all to quote the inspired words of the man who stands out so prominently in the sixteenth chapter and who is likewise one of the witnesses of the transfiguration; that is Peter. In his last Epistle we read: “For we have not made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, following cleverly imagined fables, but having been eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from the Father honor and glory, such a voice being uttered to Him by the excellent glory: This is my beloved Son, in whom I found my delight; (The “Hear Him” is here omitted.) and this voice we heard uttered from heaven, being with Him in the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic Word made surer, to which ye do well taking heed as to a lamp shining in an obscure place until the day dawn and the morning star arise in your hearts” (2Pe 1:16-20).
That Peter refers in these words once more to the scene of glory on that mountain top which his eyes beheld long ago needs no further proof. He does so “knowing that the putting off of my tabernacle is speedily to take place” (Mat 17:14).
We learn therefore that the transfiguration as interpreted not by men but by the Holy Spirit, is the pattern of the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. That wonderful scene on the holy mountain of which Peter had been eye-witness was a pattern of the return of the Lord, visibly and gloriously to the earth surrounded by His saints. The entire Old Testament prophetic word speaks of this great event, and for this reason the transfiguration of the Lord is a confirmation of these prophetic predictions, and more than that, the earnest of their final and complete fulfilment. We have the prophetic word made surer in the scene on the holy mountain, for in the transfiguration we behold that which prophet after prophet had declared.
What we have just stated is a most important key to the right understanding of the passage before. Let us call to mind again, the Holy Spirit tells us that the transfiguration is the pattern of the coming of the Lord.
Now this should silence once and for all the strange interpretations which are made of the last verse of the preceding chapter, which is, by the unfortunate division of these chapters, wrested from its true place. Some, the Lord had said, were standing with Him there who should not taste death at all until they should see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom. The favorite expositions are that the Lord meant “the destruction of Jerusalem,” and others tell us “they were to see the Lord coming in the triumphs of the Gospel,” etc.
All these opinions are the opinions of men. Some of those standing there did not taste death until they saw Him coming, for after six days Peter, James and John beheld Him in His power and Glory, a pattern of the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.
“After six days.” -- Even the number six is full of meaning as the number “eight” has a similar meaning in Luke where it says, “After these words, about eight days.” The number eight is the number of resurrection, and as the Son of Man in resurrection He appears in Luke; while “six” is man’s number, the number signifying the days of work -- after six days -- after work and man’s day is run out, the day of the Lord, the kingdom. And with Him He takes Peter, and James, and John his brother, and brings them into a high mountain apart. The mountain may have been Hermon, which is not far from Caesarea-Philippi. The men who were later with Him in the garden in that awful night scene, when they slept, while He prayed and His sweat became as great drops of blood, falling down upon the earth, are here on the mountain with Him to witness His Glory. But here, too, while He prayed they were oppressed with sleep (Luk 9:32). How this manifests what man is and how it brings out the perfection of Himself! The fact that the disciples were oppressed with sleep makes it evident that the transfiguration must have been at night. The Lord so often spent His nights in prayer and came down in the morning. Blessed type of His presence with the Father now as our intercessor and advocate and His coming again.
“And He was transfigured before them. And His face shone as the sun and His garments became white as the light” (Mat 17:2). What a transformation it must have been! How the garment of light and glory is put upon Him and rays of glory shot forth from His person, the One whom Pharisees a little while ago had blasphemed and who had said, “The foxes have holes and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has not where to lay His head.” The One who had hidden His glory beneath the form of a servant bursts forth in glory, and it was His glory. The word used here in the original for “transfigured” is used only twice besides in this passage. We find it in Rom 12:2 and 2Co 3:18. His Grace transforms us now, and by and bye in resurrection we shall be transformed according to the same image -- “conformed to the image of His Son, so that He should be the first born among many brethren.” We shall be like Him for we shall see Him as He is. Thus may we, as children of God, look upon His glory here and know it is our Glory. Beloved! look upon Him and rejoice, for “when the Christ is manifested, who is our life, then shall ye also be manifested with Him in glory.”
And His face shone like the sun. He is the Sun, the Sun of righteousness, and as we have in Matthew the dispensational side, it is once more the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to put this description here and omit it in the other Gospels. The sun is the great light which rules the day, and when the sun is absent night rules. He does not shine now as Sun of Righteousness, the moon only -- the type of the church -- gives her faint light; it is night. But day will come and the Sun of Righteousness rises with healing in His wings. Then He the Sun cometh forth “as a bridegroom of His chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and His circuit unto the ends of it, and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof” (Psa 19:5-6). Thus shall He come again, and the Sun He created will pale before Him in His wonderful Glory.
“And lo, Moses and Elias appeared to them talking with Him.” Two departed saints come into view first of all. Moses, the representative of the law, one who had passed through death, and Elias, standing for the prophets, the one who had never seen death, but had been removed in a fiery chariot, appear alongside the Lord. We may well think of Him as standing in the middle. He is the center of the Heavens and of heavenly beings. In the Gospel of Luke we read that Moses and Elias, appearing in glory, spoke of His departure which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem. Both Law and Prophets speak of His suffering and of His Glory as well. He the one in the middle is the fulfilment of the Law and the Prophets.
Looked upon from the standpoint of a pattern of His coming into His kingdom, Moses is the type of those saints who died in Christ, who were put to sleep through Jesus, and whom the Lord will bring with Him when He comes. Elias, the one who did not see death, who was caught up from the earth, is the type of those believers who shall not sleep but be changed in the twinkling of an eye -- caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So we have even here the precious revelation in 1Th 4:13-18 “made surer.” When He comes He will bring us all with Him.
And of course Moses and Elias were known. Their individuality was not swallowed up by death or removal from the earth without death. This should answer definitely the oft made inquiry, shall we know each other in resurrection glory? Of course we will. As Moses and Elias were easily recognized by the disciples, so shall every saint be recognized. What joy it will be then to see him first of all and to be with Him, whom we have never seen and whom we shall see as he is, the Man in Glory. What joy to look upon a Paul, John, Peter and all the beloved of God! Yes we shall know each other, though all human, earthly relationship ceases forever in resurrection.
The three disciples who gazed upon this glorious scene typify here the remnant of Israel, those who in the night look up and see Him coming in the clouds of heaven. Thus the kingdom scene is complete.
And Peter answering said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good we should be here. If thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; for thee one, and for Moses one, and one for Elias” (Mat 17:4).
Poor Peter! What a failure he makes of it again. Once more he acts as spokesman for his fellow disciples and intrudes himself upon the scene of glory. He had absolutely no conception of what all this meant. He had of course later by the Holy Spirit come down from heaven and opening the eyes of his heart. (How often in prayer meetings one hears requests that feelings of joy and blessing may come upon the meeting, that they might say “it is good for us to be here -- let us make here three tabernacles.” This is a much used phrase and indicates how little the vision is understood by Christian people.) But what was the harm in making the suggestion? It was simply the flesh speaking and Peter uttered still words as he did previously, which flowed from a mind which is not on the things which are of God, but that are of men. In the sixteenth chapter he rebuked His Lord and tried to keep Him back from going to the cross and was an instrument of the enemy, and here once more his words show the subtle cunning of the same enemy, whose tool Peter so readily became even on that holy mountain.
He lowers the dignity and person of his Lord by putting Him on the same level with Moses and Elias. And behind it lurked another thought, the very same attempt to keep the Lord from being obedient unto the death of the cross, which was made in the temptations in the wilderness, which was hid in Peter’s “God be favorable unto Thee,” is made here once more. Peter would have a Christ in Glory and the state of the kingdom there without the cross, and he is even willing with his two associates to work for it, for he says, “Let us make here three tabernacles.”
All this foreshadows what would be done with the Lord of glory. The corrupt forms of Christianity have put the Lord Jesus Christ alongside of holy men (holy in their estimation), or alongside of great men of the world, and thus robbed Him of His Glory. Not for a moment could this be tolerated. Peter is still babbling -- while he was still speaking something happens. It is God the Father Himself who interferes and who bears witness that this Jesus, this Son of Man, is His Son, is God. “While he was still speaking, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them, and lo a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I have found my delight, hear Him” (Mat 17:5).
Wonderful heavenly answer. “And the disciples hearing it, fell upon their faces and were greatly terrified.” The heavens opened and the Glory of the Lord in that bright cloud is manifested. These three men well knew what that cloud meant. It was the cloud which spoke of Jehovah’s presence. That cloud which had been withdrawn from Israel for centuries had all at once appeared again. Then Jehovah had returned and condescended to be with His people once more. They knew they stood in His presence as Isaiah knew it when he saw the glorious vision. Therefore, they were terrified, for they knew as sinful men they stood in the Holy of Holiest and they had no sacrifice. And now the voice out of the cloud. The Father speaks and He speaks of the Son. He bears witness to the eternal relationship of Himself with Him, who was ever with Him and ever His delight. He calls them away from occupation with Moses and Elias; neither law nor prophets can help you and make you acceptable. Here He is -- my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear Him! He has pleased the Father and in Him the Father and the Father’s heart is revealed. Men are to hear Him, and refusing Him means refusing God. In Him we are brought to God. Of course the work of the cross is here anticipated. And thus in Him the Father speaks, to Him the Father directs us, through Him we are brought to the Father, and by Him the heavens are opened. And all the precious thoughts which here crowd to the heart and the mind we must leave untouched. Oh, may we find our delight in Him in whom God finds His delight! Never can we make too much of Him. As then the cloud appeared and there was an open manifestation of the Glory and Jehovah’s presence, so in the coming day of His return all will be repeated. Then He must be heard.
“And Jesus coming to them touched them, and said, Rise up and be not terrified. And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus alone” (Mat 17:8).
He touched them as He will touch His poor frightened people, the remnant of Israel, in that day. But they saw Jesus alone. Blessed are we if we see Him and Him alone.
We have learned then from the transfiguration that we have in it a perfect picture of the kingdom to come. Christ in Glory, His face like the Sun, in the center. Resurrected saints and those who were caught up are with Him. His Glory covers Him and them. Living men are in His presence terrified. The heavens are opened and mercy and peace flow forth.
“And as they descended from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man be risen up from among the dead” (Mat 17:9).
The sounding forth of His Kingdom glory was no longer in order, for the Kingdom had been rejected; after His resurrection this vision was to be made known and fully understood, but not before. The disciples, the witnesses of the transfiguration, had indeed little knowledge of its meaning. From the Gospel of Mark we learn that they kept this saying and questioned themselves what rising from the dead was (Mar 9:10). How all this became changed after the Lord had risen, ascended on high, and the Holy Spirit had come down from heaven!
The appearance of Elijah in that glorious vision on the holy mountain leads to a question which the disciples bring to their Master. The coming of Elijah as the forerunner of King Messiah was firmly believed by every Jew, and it is still held by all orthodox Jews. Elijah is first to come, and when he is come then the Messiah is about to come and with His coming begins the _olam _habo (the world or age to come), this is a strong article of talmudical Judaism. The disciples bring their question, “Why then say the scribes that Elias must first have come? And He answering said to them, Elias indeed comes first and will restore all things. But I say unto you that Elias has already come, and they have not known him, but have done unto him whatever they would. Thus also the Son of Man is about to suffer from them. Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist” (Mat 17:10-13). The difficulty which the disciples had about Elias was about the prophecy contained in the last prophetic book of the Old Testament: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to the fathers lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Mal 4:5-6). They had seen Elias in glory. In the land and among the people all was dark; no restoration, no turning of the heart of the fathers to the children and the children to their fathers was noticeable. On the contrary, they had witnessed how He in whom they believed as the promised Messiah, the King of Israel, was being rejected and the nation knew Him not. And still they hoped for the kingdom and that age of blessing for Jerusalem. What then about Elias? Would he yet appear and restore all things? The Lord answers their difficulty, as He always does when His own turn to Him and put their difficulties before Him. He does not deny the fact that Elias comes first and will restore all things. Furthermore, He told them that he had come and they had not received him, but rejected him and his testimony. As he was rejected, so He the Son of Man was now about to suffer from them, is His third statement. All at once they understood that He meant John the Baptist. They were right. John the Baptist had come in the power and spirit of Elijah. He was the voice in the wilderness, the way preparer, the one in whom the last prophecy in Malachi might have been fulfilled, but they did not know Him. His rejection was the prelude to the rejection of the Lord as we have seen before (chapter 11). John surely was the Elias for that time.
But this does not fulfill Malachi’s prophecy. That prophecy is yet to see its fulfilment. Before the Lord returns to earth in power and glory another forerunner, an Elijah, will come and his testimony will not be rejected then; he will indeed be Elijah who restores all things and he will be followed by the coming of the King to set up His kingdom. This brings before us the questions, when will the Elijah who restores all things appear? where will he appear, and what will his work be? These questions are important in view of men who have of late arisen claiming that they are Elijah, one especially calling himself Elijah the Restorer, and boldly and boastingly declares that his mission is to establish a Zion in the earth and restore things before the Lord comes. When will Elijah appear? He will come upon the scene at the time of the end. This prophetic time of the end is specified in the entire prophetic Word; it is Jewish history resumed. As long as the church is in the earth that end time does not begin. The removal of the church will be followed by the last stage of the ending of the age. During that time, the great tribulation, Elijah appears. Any believer who holds the scriptural doctrine of the coming of the Lord for His saints before the great tribulation is in no danger to follow deceivers who claim to be something, for he knows he shall see not Elijah nor the Antichrist.
Where will Elijah appear? Certainly not in America, Australia or Europe, but in Israel ‘s land, where Elijah of old witnessed and John the Baptist, as herald of the King, stood. His ministry is confined to the land of Israel. What will his work be? It will not be a work to restore Christendom or to restore the church, or to purify the politics of this world and rid society of certain evils, but his work is exclusively among the people who are the kingdom people. His witness is to the remnant of Israel. Like John’s call to repentance, he will preach repentance and his testimony will be received; he will accomplish the mission of Mal 4:5-6.
The appearance of Elijah, therefore, does not come as long as the church is present; he appears in Israel’s land and his work is not among Gentiles, but among the remnant of Israel. This stamps every man who arises at this time with the assertion that he is Elijah as one who is deceived or a deceiver, perhaps, both, deceived and a deceiver. It is not at all strange that such men find listening ears among Christians.
And now the Lord and His disciples are down in the valley again. They had descended from the holy mountain and once more they are among the multitude, who perhaps had waited through the night for Him. At the dawn of the morning He appears.
“And when they came to the multitude, a man came to Him, falling on his knees before Him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is lunatic and suffers sorely; for often he falls into the fire and often into the water. And I brought him to the disciples and they were not able to heal him. And Jesus answering said, O, unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to me. And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon went out from him and the boy was healed from that hour. Then the disciples, coming to Jesus apart, said to Him, Why were we not able to cast him out? And He says to them, Because of your unbelief; for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say to this mountain, Be transported hence to yonder place, and it shall transport itself; and nothing shall be impossible to you. But this kind does not go out but by prayer and fasting” (Mat 17:14-21). (It is interesting to know that the twenty-first verse is not found in the two oldest manuscripts dating back to the fourth century, the Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus.)
This is another very suggestive passage. It has many dispensational and spiritual lessons. The coming down of the Lord, the one who has been transfigured, from the mountain in the morning is clearly typical of His coming again in Glory. And what does He find when He comes? He finds Satan exercising his soul and body-destroying power. The boy possessed by a demon suffering sorely is the type of Satan’s dominion when the Son of Man comes again. Multitudes wait for His return, and when He comes He finds misery, suffering and unbelief. The disciples had the power conferred upon them to cast out demons, but they were helpless; they could not do it, and unbelief was plainly at the root of their inability. We must, however, be cautious to apply this in the right way. It would be incorrect to make these disciples the church. We have seen before that they represent the Jewish remnant (chapter 10). Such a remnant of Jewish believers will be in existence after the body of Christ, the church, is complete and come into the presence of the Lord. This future Jewish remnant will preach the Gospel of the kingdom and they will go once more through the cities of Israel manifesting the powers of the kingdom. And yet they will not be able to cast out the demon which holds dominion. The coming Lord can do this and does it with His manifestation.
However, the principles underlying the incident have a deeper spiritual application. Here is a company of believers, for such were the disciples, and the Lord had put power into their hands, yet they were not able to use it. Perhaps, as over and over again they attempted to drive out the demon and failure followed, the multitude jeered at them, and the effect upon the child must have been awful. Their failure made the case worse. Thus we are as believers in the midst of an evil world, which is under the sway of its god, the devil, and his demons. Complete victory and power over the world and its god is given to us by, in and through our Lord Jesus Christ, and yet here are many of God’s people as helpless and powerless as were these disciples at the foot of the mountain. Weakness and failure is seen everywhere, and instead of exercising full control and having full power over that which is evil, the evil has full control. And why? Oh, let us put the words prominently before the eyes of our hearts, “Because of your unbelief.” Unbelief is the only reason for this failure. Unbelief gives the world and Satan all their power. Faith lays him low and the walls of Jericho (the world) must crumble to dust without even a single hand lifted up against them. Nothing is impossible for him who believes. Faith can remove and does remove mountains, which mean obstacles and difficulties in our way. How little such faith is exercised among believers. And we may go still further and ask what is the reason of lack of faith? A severed communion with the Lord and occupation with self. If the Lord is ever before our hearts and self is out of sight, faith can readily be exercised. Therefore the Lord gives the remedy, “Prayer and Fasting.” Prayer means communion with the Lord and dependence on Him. Fasting (the least meaning of it, abstinence from food), the losing sight of self; self-denial.
The healing of the lunatic is followed by a second announcement of His suffering, death and resurrection. “And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said to them, The Son of Man is about to be delivered up into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and the third day He shall be raised up. And they were greatly grieved” (Mat 17:22-23). This new declaration of His passion, following the transfiguration scene and the manifestation of His power over the devil, is a reminder that through the cross alone the glory could be accomplished. In the sixteenth chapter the announcement of the fact that He would build His church is followed by the first statement of His suffering, and there the elders, chief priests and scribes are mentioned, and His glory as the Son of Man is manifested. He speaks again of His death, and the chief priests and elders are not mentioned, but He speaks of being about to be delivered into the hands of men. This head of the body, His church, and head of the new creation as Second Man He was to become by death and resurrection. And His disciples, in hearing these words, were greatly grieved. All these sayings of the Lord were mysterious unto them. They knew not that all the hope of glory and the kingdom could only be realized by His death and triumphant resurrection, or they would not have been grieved.
The closing paragraph of the seventeenth chapter contains a most precious incident, which we shall find again full of most suggestive and blessed teachings. The scene is at Capernaum, meaning village of comfort. Let us read the text first. “And when they came to Capernaum, those who received the didrachmas came to Peter and said, Does your teacher not pay the didrachmas? He says, Yes. And when he came to the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, What dost thou think, Simon? the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive custom or tribute? from their own sons or from strangers? Peter says to Him, From strangers. Jesus said to him, Then are the sons free. But that we may not be an offence to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish which comes up, and when thou hast opened its mouth thou wilt find a stater; take that and give it to them for me and thee” (Mat 17:24-27).
One is at a loss how to give out a little of the wonderful riches of grace and glory which are manifested in this little incident there by the sea of Galilee. And even if we would bring out every point and lesson the Holy Spirit has put here for us, it would all be but imperfect stammering. The grace and glory of Himself is here most wonderfully brought forth. He manifests Himself as the omnipotent Lord; His divine majesty and power is shown forth in the miracle of the fish, and in wonderful condescension this Lord is servant, to make us sons with Himself, and as such, free. But let us point out the details.
The temple-tribute is here meant, which, according to Jewish custom, was collected at the end of the month Adar (March). That it was not the ransom money for the soul, spoken of in Exo 30:11-16, is obvious. The amount of tribute was in our money about sixty cents. The collector came to Peter, perhaps for the reason that the Lord was not present. And Peter acts once more in his hasty manner. Without thinking he answers with a ready “yes.” But, Peter, hast thou forgotten thy wonderful confession, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God?” Is the vision from the holy mountain so quickly gone that thou canst put again thy Lord down on the level with every other Jew who is obliged to pay temple-tribute? Alas! even so it was. The dignity and glory of His Lord was quite forgotten and out of sight.
We see Peter after his hasty reply in the house surprised by the Lord. He knew his heart and the question which had been asked, as well as the answer which Peter had given. Jesus anticipated him, and addressing him as Simon, He asks, “the kings of the earth, from whom do they receive tribute? from their own sons or from strangers?” What a strong proof this is once more of the Divinity of the humble Jesus. He knew the thoughts of His disciple; this Jesus is the omniscient God, God manifested in the flesh. Peter now gives the correct answer, “From strangers;” to which Jesus replies, “Then are the sons free.” In this declaration all His glory is once more revealed. He is the Son, He is Jehovah, whose glory had appeared in the temple; how could He then pay tribute to that which is His own? As Son He was free, no such obligation was upon Him. Oh, how the dignity of His Person stands before us in these simple words. He shows His place as Son, and as such He is exempt from the tribute. But while thus He shows His divine right, He does not insist upon it. “But that we may not be an offence to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when thou hast opened its mouth, thou wilt find a stater; take that and give it to them for me and thee.”
And here still greater grace and glory is revealed for our hearts to enjoy. First notice that the Lord speaks not of Himself alone, but also of Peter. He had not said that He as the Son is free, but the “sons are free.” In speaking of giving offence He says “we,” and when the money is miraculously provided it was to be “for me and thee,” for the Lord and for Peter. What precious thoughts these facts bring to us! The Lord, the Son of God, who is free, identifies Himself with His disciple, with Peter, who, as we have seen before, is the representative of the disciples. In this gracious identification of the Lord with His own, every believer is included. He is Son and we are sons with Him; He is free and He has made us free. “If therefore the Son shall set you free ye shall be really free” -- He has identified Himself with us and we are sharers of His grace, His humiliation and His glory. But what an example it is which He in His gracious action puts here before us for our consideration and “to go and do likewise.” He surrenders His personal right for the sake of “not giving offence.” Surely “He has left us an example that we should follow in His steps.” It behooves us now, though we are sons of God and sons of glory, to walk in humility, without asserting our right, willing in all things which concern ourselves to suffer. Alas! how little it is done -- how great the offence given again and again, by the self-assertion, the ungracious and worldly behavior of those who through the grace of God are not of the world as He is not of it. May we learn of Him in this sweet lesson. He could say, “I am meek and lowly of heart,” and His humility shines forth in His action. Like He the Son becoming a servant may we as sons be servants too. And then, think of it, He provided for all which was needed. Just the amount which was needed “for me and for thee” was at His command; it was ready and prepared. All is His and unto the riches of Himself He has taken us. “For me and thee” speaks of individuality and intimacy. Faith is to take hold of it and realize even better and more fully that all need is supplied by Himself and that from Him all comes to us. And by what a mighty miracle He provides the need. Once more His glory flashes forth. Again we learn that this Jesus who speaks here is God, God the Creator; as such He manifests Himself. It is a practical illustration of Col 1:16 and Heb 1:3. He knows the deep sea, for He made the sea. He knows the mysteries of the deep, nothing is hid from Him. He knows the piece of money in the bottom of the sea, for the silver and the gold are His. As He spoke before to the restless sea and wind and waves obeyed Him, so here, the deep obeys His voice. A creature of His is there, a fish, and He commands the fish to take up a piece of money. Then He brings the fish to Peter’s hook. Omniscience and omnipotence is here which belong to God and God is present. And this Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever. He who knew the fish and commanded that fish to take the stater and guided it to Peter’s hook, is our Lord, with power in heaven and on earth. In view of such gracious and wonderful demonstration of His power the heart cries out -- Oh why do we not trust Him fully at all times and circumstances! Why do we not even hasten to such a Lord whose grace and power is all for us, and ever trust Him for all we want?
Perhaps here is also the thought of death in type and that through death our need is provided. Out of the water the fish was taken, and out of the deep provision was made.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv1, 3 The Transfiguration of Christ.
The Transfiguration of Christ.
v. 1. And after six days, Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John, his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
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v. 2. and was transfigured before them; and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light.
Memorable, important days were those which Matthew fixes so carefully in the order of events, six days after the first specific announcement of Christ’s passion; a turning-point in the ministry of Jesus. That Luke mentions eight days, chapter 9:28, offers no difficulty. "That Luke says Jesus had taken those three apostles with Him after about eight days, but Matthew and Mark, that it happened after six days, that is not opposed to each other. For Matthew and Mark reckon the days that lie between, but Luke takes the last day as well, upon which Christ preached before these six days, as also the first day after the six days, on which the transfiguration took place, in addition. " For Matthew it was the exact recollection of a strictly historical incident. While all the disciples undoubtedly went with Christ to the foot of the mountain,—which various commentators have guessed to be either Mount Hermon, in the Anti-Lebanon range, just north of the boundary of Palestine, or Mount Panius, near Caesarea Philippi, or Mount Tabor, near Nazareth,—only the three men that were His favored disciples, Peter, James, and John, were taken along to the top of the mountain. They were probably those upon whose understanding and sympathy He could rely. They were to become the witnesses of His glory before the whole world, 2Pe 1:16-18.
A most peculiar, miraculous phenomenon: While Jesus was praying, He was transfigured, transformed, before them, His physical body being transfused and glorified with spirituality, a foretaste of His future glorification. Not only did His face shine like the sun itself, with a luster not of this earth, but His raiment became as white-glistening as snow, as the essence of light itself, beyond the power of any fuller on earth to give them such pure spotlessness. All this was visible to them as they gazed in stupefied wonder. His divine glory, which He always bore in Himself, but which was usually hidden or manifested only occasionally in word and miracle, here transfused and shone through His outward form and person: an unsurpassed revelation of His glory before their eyes. It was an incontestable proof of the fact that He was truly the Son of God; it was visible evidence of His entering through suffering and death into His glory. "Therefore this appearance of Christ intends to show in deed and truth what Peter above, chapter 16:16, has confessed: Jesus, the man born of the Virgin Mary, is Christ, the Son of the living God (Christ, however, signifies a king and priest, that is, a Lord over all things; and also a Mediator between God and men). Because He was destined to be preached through the whole world as such, for that reason He is shown to the three apostles as such, who should testify to what they had seen and heard."
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 3 General Information:
General Information:
This begins the account of Jesus' transfiguration.
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Peter, James, and John his brother
"Peter, James, and James's brother John"
He was transfigured before them
When they looked at him, his appearance was different from what it had been.
He was transfigured
This can be stated in active form. AT: "his appearance had changed" or "he appeared very different" (See: Active or Passive)
before them
"in front of them" or "so they could clearly him"
His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as brilliant as the light
These are similes that emphasize how bright Jesus' appearance became. (See: Simile)
his garments
"what he was wearing"
translationWords
day
Jesus
Peter
James (son of Zebedee)
John (the apostle)
like
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1–4 17:1 Peter . . . James and John later…
17:1 Peter . . . James and John later accompanied Jesus at Gethsemane (26:37; 2 Pet 1:16-19). • It is impossible to determine the exact location of this high mountain. The traditional site, Mount Tabor, is only about 1,900 feet (580 meters) high and is out of the way for a trip from Caesarea Philippi (Matt 16:13) to Capernaum (17:24). Mount Hermon, another possibility, is about 9,200 feet (2,800 meters) high and located in Syria, forty miles north of Capernaum. It is unlikely, however, that “teachers of religious law” (Mark 9:14) would have congregated at the foot of a mountain in Gentile territory. A strong candidate is Mount Meron, about 4,000 feet (1,220 meters) high and situated between Caesarea Philippi and Capernaum.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.