START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Matthew 17:1-9
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OBSERVE:
The Transfiguration of Jesus occurs at a strategic moment in the life and ministry of Jesus. In the Gospel of Matthew, this account is placed almost squarely between the beginning and the end — at the half-way mark.
In the previous passages, Jesus has initiated his ministry — he has been baptized, he has endured temptation in the wilderness, he has laid out some of his teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 3-7). He has engaged in a ministry of healing and exorcism, calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee, chosen the 12 as his disciples and sent them out in ministry, continued to teach, and fed the five thousand. And he has incurred the hostility of the priests and the Pharisees (Matthew 8-16). He has been busy.
In the passage immediately preceding the account of the Transfiguration, Jesus has asked a significant question of his disciples:
Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? (Matthew 16:13)
Peter is the one who has the spiritual breakthrough:
You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:15).
Six days after this moment of epiphany, Jesus leads his three closest disciples to the top of the mountain.
What occurs next exceeds anything that Peter, James and John had experienced with Jesus prior to this event — and they had already experienced some remarkable things.
He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.
The word transfigured is interesting. The Greek word is metamorphein — it is used to describe the change that takes place in the believer who is being transformed into the same mind and image as Christ (Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 3:18).
But in this situation, the transformation is unique. Jesus’ countenance and clothing shine like the sun. This is truly another Theophany, not unlike that which occurs with Moses in Exodus 24:12-28. The difference here, however, is that Jesus himself is revealed as the focus of the transformation. This will become clear as events unfold.
Moses and Elijah appear and are talking with him. These two men represent the apex of revelation to Israel. Moses represents deliverance from slavery, and the law; Elijah represents the ethical imperative of social and religious justice, and the prophets.
Peter is caught up in the moment. He wishes to erect three tents, for each of these special men. This no doubt alludes to the Tent of Meeting that Moses was instructed by God to create after he had led his people to Sinai (Exodus 26). The tent was to be the place where Yahweh would meet with his people, and where sacrifices were to be made. The Tent of Meeting was the predecessor of the Temple as a place of worship.
We are also reminded of the Feast of Tabernacles, which was one of the major festivals of the Israelites (Leviticus 23:42-43). The Feast of the Tabernacles was a living reminder of their liberation from Egypt, and how their ancestors had lived in tents while they were nomads in the wilderness of Sinai.
But Peter’s enthusiasm is soon overwhelmed by subsequent events:
While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them.
We have seen the bright cloud in Exodus 24:15-18. We are reminded that the pillar of cloud and fire was a sign of the presence of God’s glory. Here, this glory is fulfilled in Jesus. The Father declares the nature of Jesus:
Behold, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.”
Jesus is not a mere lawgiver or prophet — he is the beloved Son. These are the same words the Father had uttered when Jesus was baptized (Matthew 3:17). He is affirming a unique relationship, that John’s Gospel will explore even more deeply:
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 (John 1:14).
The disciples are overwhelmed by this experience:
When the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces, and were very afraid.
But Jesus, who has been revealed as the very Son of God, reaches in a very touching, human moment:
Jesus came and touched them and said, “Get up, and don’t be afraid.”
The moment of epiphany has passed — Moses, Elijah, the cloud, the Voice — all are gone:
Lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, except Jesus alone.
However, this experience that Jesus has shared with these three friends isn’t for public disclosure — at least not yet:
As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Don’t tell anyone what you saw, until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.”
This is for them to ponder in their own hearts — and likely to fortify Jesus for the coming tribulation in his life.
APPLY:
It is nearly impossible for us to fully understand all that was happening in this account; nor to understand the various perspectives of Jesus and his disciples.
Jesus, as both Son of God and Son of Man, has a unique perspective. On the one hand, as a human being, we may suspect that he knows something of fear. He is aware that a cross awaits him in Jerusalem. Perhaps the Transfiguration experience is given in order to provide assurance from his Father that he is not alone.
On the other hand, as Son of God, we catch a brief glimpse of his divine nature — the metamorphosis that the disciples see reveals him as God in the flesh — for a moment. And then he is seen alone.
This too is significant. It is Jesus alone who reveals to us who God truly is. As he tells Philip in the Gospel of John:
He who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9).
However, because we are mere mortals, we may be able to identify a little more completely with the experience of Peter, James and John. Although even this numinous experience far exceeds anything we can imagine.
Perhaps we can identify most closely with Peter, whose impulsive nature leads him to want to do something, anything, to honor this moment:
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.
We so want to do, to build, to act!
But the Father tells us the most important thing we can do in just such a moment with his beloved Son:
Listen to him.
RESPOND:
The Transfiguration is not the key event of the Gospels. In fact, Jesus himself told the disciples to tell no one what they had seen and heard until after his death and resurrection. Jesus knew that is what he was moving toward. That would be the climax of his life and ministry.
However, the Transfiguration tells me that the nature of Jesus concealed will be revealed.
Coming at the end of the season of Epiphany, and at the beginning of the season of Lent, this is a comfort. Lent, with its fasts and repentance and remorse for sin, would be difficult without a reminder of the glory of Christ — and a forecast of the resurrection that is to come.
Lord, open my eyes that I may see your true nature, and that I may listen to you, and talk less. Amen.
PHOTO:
“Transfiguration” by scottgunn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic license.
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