Gospel Notes by Michael Whelan SM
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead” (Matthew 17:1-9 – NRSV).
Introductory notes
General
This text of Matthew has its counterparts in Mark and Luke as well as Peter’s Second Letter: Mark 9:2-13, Luke 9:28-36 and 2 Peter 1:16-18
The fact that this incident is recorded in such detail by all three synoptics – plus the reference in the Second Letter of Peter – suggests it has good foundation in fact. Indeed, the slight variations in the telling supports the probability that Peter, James and John did in fact experience an extraordinary event with Jesus, an event memorable enough to place it at the heart of the Gospels.
Just precisely what did happen, we will never know. What we have here is a highly stylized account, more a telling of the meaning of what happened rather than a reporting of historical details.
Recall the earlier declaration of Jesus reported by Matthew: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.” (5:17-18) Matthew’s account of the Transfiguration thus contains many references to the Hebrew Scriptures, “portray(ing) Jesus as the Servant/Son of Man who will now be revealed to be the Son of God, superseding Moses and Elijah.” (Adrian Leske, “Matthew” in The International Bible Commentary, edited by William R Farmer, The Liturgical Press, 1998, 1305.).
T S Eliot’s words from “Dry Salvages”might help us to read this text with a good disposition:
“The distraction fit, lost in a shaft of sunlight,
The wild thyme unseen, or the winter lightning
Or the waterfall, or music heard so deeply
That it is not heard at all, but you are the music
While the music lasts. These are only hints and guesses,
Hints followed by guesses; and the rest
Is prayer, observance, discipline, thought and action.
The hint half guessed, the gift half understood, is
Incarnation.”
Specific
Six days later: An allusion to Moses who was on Sinai for six days before God called to him out of the cloud (Exodus 24:16);
his face shone like the sun: The brilliance in the face and clothing of Jesus recalls Isaiah 60:1-3 & 19-20: “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. …. The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.”
Moses too had reflected the brilliance of God at Mt Sinai (Exodus 34:29-35): “Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; but whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him.”
Moses and Elijah had both come into the presence of God on Mount Sinai and they were together regarded as the great religious leaders of Israel (see Malachi 4:4-6).
“I will make three dwellings here:” The listeners are reminded of the feast of Booths, symbols of celebration and rejoicing before God (see Deuteronomy 16:13-15). In post-exilic times the feast of Booths became more focused on the restoration of the kingdom (see Isaiah 62:8-12 and Zechariah 14:16-21).
a bright cloud overshadowed them: This suggests the presence of God guiding the people through the wilderness (Exodus 13:21-22): “The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” Again in Exodus 24:15-17: “Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.”
The cloud and the light are together signs of the promised kingdom (Isaiah 4:5-6): “Then the Lord will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over its places of assembly a cloud by day and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night. Indeed over all the glory there will be a canopy. It will serve as a pavilion, a shade by day from the heat, and a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.”
Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead: A reminder that what will happen on Calvary can only be understood through the lens of Tabor and what has happened on Tabor can be understood only through the lens of Calvary. Both realities must shape the lives of the disciples.
Knowing Jesus
In today’s Gospel – Matthew 17:1-9 – we have an account of the transfiguration. This event is pivotal for Matthew in the ongoing revelation of the identity of Jesus. It is helpful to approach it in the light of two earlier events that are part of that ongoing revelation. The first event is Jesus’ baptism. At Jesus’ baptism, Matthew tells us that “a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased’” (3:17). Here, at Jesus’ transfiguration, those same words are repeated but with an additional phrase: “‘Listen to him!’” The second event is when Jesus asks the question: “‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’” (16:13). After some awkward discussion, Peter responds: “‘You are the Messiah, the Son of God’” (16:16). The transfiguration is one more significant step for Peter and the others along the way to knowing who Jesus is.
One of the most important facts of life is discovered in the realization that the more I know the more I know I do not know. To deny this fact is to deny ourselves one of the great joys of living. This is particularly true when it comes to knowing human beings – ourselves and others. We can never say that we have learned all there is to know about any human being. This very incompleteness can keep the relationship alive and growing. It can also be a useful antidote to prejudice and hatred.
Matthew reminds us that knowing Jesus is an ever-deepening and never-ending process for the disciples as it is for us. To be a disciple is to be on a journey, to be always learning. The focus of that journey and that learning, is Jesus himself. But Matthew also reminds us that the journey and the learning proceed by way of truths both learned and unlearned. At the transfiguration, the disciples learned that Jesus embodies the glory of God: “He was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.” The fact that they were “afraid,” suggests that they were experiencing something they did not comprehend. What they think they already know about Jesus, is simply dismantled before their eyes. There is much more here than they imagined and there is still more to discover.
The experience of the three disciples who witness the transfiguration, is spectacular. But is it not reasonable that they went on digesting that experience for the rest of their lives? In other words, it did not finish there. In the days ahead, they went on learning that the glory of God is always there, present among us, everywhere, all the time, even if not obvious. The last words of Matthew’s Gospel suggest this: “‘Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age’” (28:20). Thus, Jesus’ life, death and resurrection are the fulfilment of the great promise: “I am with you as who I AM!” (3:1-15).