Luke 9:28-36

Butler's Comments

SECTION 4

Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36)

28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29And as he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white. 30And behold, two men talked with him, Moses and Elijah, 31who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, and when they wakened they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijahnot knowing what he said. 34As he said this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my Son, my Chosen, listen to him! 36And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silence and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

Luke 9:28-32 Exodus: A week after the critical confrontation with the Twelve concerning His identity and Peter's carnal-minded rejection of His destiny of death, Jesus took the Twelve up on a high mountain to pray. This must have been Mount Hermon, a huge mountain, reaching 9232 feet above sea level at its peak. Caesarea Philippi was at the foot of this mountain. The mountain so dominated the entire land of Palestine it could be seen on a clear day from as far south as the Dead Sea. The Arabs named it, Jebel esh Sheikh, the great mountain. It is doubtful that Jesus took the Twelve to the peak. They probably ascended to a secluded spot somewhere up the side of the mountain where they could find privacy. Both Matthew and Mark indicate the Lord took them apart for the purpose of privacy (Matthew 17:1; Mark 9:2). While He was praying, the appearance of His face became different (Gr. heteron), and His clothing became gleaming white. Matthew and Mark say He was transfigured (Gr. metemorphothe; the word from which we get the English word metamorphosis). In Philippians 2:6-7 Paul writes that Christ having had the morphe (form) of theou (God) willingly assumed the morphen (form) of doulou (a slave). Here on Mount Hermon the man metamorphosed (changed form) back into God the Son of glory. W. E. Vine says, Luke avoids the term metemorphote, which might have suggested to Gentile readers the metamorphoses of heathen gods, and uses the term, became different. This was no phenomenon which could be explained by nature. It was not something externally happening to Jesus; it was emanating from within His very nature. Hobbs says, It was His deity from within flashing forth in resplendent glory. The deity, which had been like a wick turned down low, suddenly was turned up to its brilliant brightness. Here was physical, scientific evidence that Jesus was the Incarnate God. The disciples had been in the presence of God and hardly realized it. Peter later testified of this event (2 Peter 1:16-21) to prove that what he preached about the deity of Jesus Christ was no myth. Peter was an eyewitness to Christ's majesty.

Suddenly, another spectacular phenomenon took place. Appearing with the metamorphosed Jesus were Moses and Elijah. The sleep-dazed disciples came wide awake! Moses and Elijah had been dead for some thousand years. But those who have departed this world still live in the constant presence of Almighty God and He has the power to make them appear at any time and place suitable to His purpose (cf. 1 Samuel 28:1 ff.). Moses and Elijah, symbolizing all the Law and the Prophets, talked with Jesus about His departure (Gr. exodon; English, exodus). They were discussing Jesus-' impending crucifixion and resurrection. Why did God choose this particular point in time for this great meeting between Heaven and earth? Because Jesus had reached the watershed of His earthly ministry. From this point onward popularity will be replaced by rejection and opposition. His ministry, viewed from human perspectives, will appear to be a tragic failure. It is at this point God will affirm unequivocally that is not so.

a.

It would encourage Jesus, Himself. It was predicted (Isaiah 49:4 ff.) that the Messiah would be discouraged but would be able to overcome it. Jesus was Man, very man, tempted in all points as we are tempted. It was only by the glory that was set before Him that He was able to endure the cross (cf. Hebrews 2:10 ff; Hebrews 5:7-9; Hebrews 12:1-2; Luke 22:42). Even His own disciples had become stumbling blocks to Him in their rejection of His mission. Fowler (Matthew, Vol. III, College Press, pg. 588) points out that the Father's affirmation of His pleasure in His Son would warm Jesus-' heart and encourage Him in His lonely mission among unsympathetic men. Fowler compares it to the encouragement felt by an expert pilot flying through a storm-tossed night with no visible landmarks, when suddenly a voice comes over the radio, saying, -We-'ve picked you up on radar, friend, and you-'re right on course!-'

b.

It would arrest the creeping carnality of the disciples. There must be a direct and drastic correction to their obstinately cherished worldly view of the Messiah and His kingdom. The appearance of Moses and Elijah discussing with Jesus His exodus would confirm that the Messiah's death was in complete harmony with all the Old Testament revelation (cf. Luke 24:44-46). Jesus-' exodus was symbolized by the Exodus from Egypt and the Exodus from Captivity. All the redemptive symbols of the O.T., the sacrificial lamb, the Passover, the victories over their enemies, find their fulfillment in Jesus-' exodus!

c.

It was also to demonstrate that the death of the Messiah was no accident. It was in the plan of God all along. It would show that God was forever in controlmen cannot wrest control of the universe and the goal of history from God's hands. God can intervene in history at any moment with supernatural power. He knows the beginning from the end and predicts it for man's salvation. It proved to Peter, and all who trust him as an eyewitness, that no prophecy about Jesus ever originated from man. The Transfiguration made the prophetic word more surely from God. All men will do well to pay attention to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place (2 Peter 1:19 ff.).

Luke 9:33-36 Exclamation: Peter, impetuous Peter, so quick to speak and so often missing the mark, suggested they make three booths (Gr. skenas, tabernacle, tentsame word used in Hebrews 9:2, etc.), one for Jesus, one for Moses and one for Elijah. The two great representatives of Israel's destiny of the glorious past, Moses and Elijah, were departing. It had been predicted that at the outset of the messianic age a prophet like unto Moses would be raised up (Deuteronomy 18:18 ff.) and Elijah would come (Malachi 4:5). Both Luke and Mark comment that Peter did not know what he was talking about. Apparently he had seriously misinterpreted the significance of this sublime moment when Heaven came so close to earth.

a.

When Peter said, It is good for us to be here.. he may have been suggesting that Jesus should take-' this Transfiguration as a sign from Heaven cancelling out His prediction of imminent death. Perhaps Peter supposes, Heaven is on Your side, Master, You are not going to die; surely our religious leaders will not go against Moses and Elijah if they know about this, so let us build three shelters and keep them here with us until this is made known down in Jerusalem.

b.

Peter said, ... let us make three booths. He was completely enthralled by the supernatural event he had just witnessed. Still thinking of the kingdom of God in terms of the popular materialistic concept, Peter envisioned this as the fulfillment of Zechariah 14:16-19. Rabbinical and apocryphal interpretation of Zechariah's prophecy concerning the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths) literalized the return of Elijah, conquest of the nations by the Jews, reinstitution of the Jewish theocracy, and the remnant of the Gentiles coming to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. Peter was ready to be one of the first to celebrate Tabernacles in the new age of Israel.

c.

When Peter said, ... one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah. it was evident he still did not understand that Jesus was different than other great human leaders. He did not fully comprehend that Jesus was God in the flesh or that Jesus had authority to abrogate and fulfill all Moses and Elijah had revealed. Hebrew Christians had a very difficult time accepting the superiority of Jesus over the Old Testament and that is why the book of Hebrews was necessary.

No wonder, then, that Luke editorializes, Peter did not know what he was saying. Peter was wrong on all three suggestions. The Heavenly Father quickly corrected that by engulfing them in a supernatural cloud and speaking audibly, in their language, This is my Son, my Chosen (Gr. eklelegmenos, perfect tense verb, meaning, one having been elected or chosen out from among others in the past and continuing to be chosen); listen to him! The phrase, listen to him! is in the Greek imperative mood and means it was a command! The disciples were to hear and accept the fact that the Messiah was destined to die at Jerusalem; that what the Messiah had been saying about His kingdom being a spiritual kingdom was correct; that the Messiah had come to fulfill and take out of the way the Law of Moses and the Prophets. The Law and the Prophets would not be destroyed (cf. Matthew 5:17 f.) but wherever they stood in the way of man's complete reconciliation to God, Jesus would bring about their completion.

When God finished speaking, Matthew notes the disciples fell on their faces with awe and fear, but Jesus came and touched them, saying, Rise, and have no fear. Then, when they looked up Moses and Elijah were gone, so was the enveloping cloud and Jesus was there alone. Matthew and Mark note that as they were descending from the mountain side Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of man was raised from the dead. And, amazingly, they did not! Would men have believed them if they had? It is doubtful. Today men who do not accept the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ as an historical fact discredit the transfiguration of Jesus as either a myth or some subjective, emotional religious experience of the disciples themselves. But Peter was an eyewitness. And he emphatically declares it was no myth (2 Peter 1:16-21). The credibility and authenticity of Peter's testimony is unimpeachable. This event really happened just as the three Synoptics say it did.

Applebury's Comments

The Transfiguration
Scripture

Luke 9:28-36 And it came to pass about eight days after these sayings, that he took with him Peter and John and James, and went up into the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became white and dazzling. 30 And behold, there talked with him two men, who were Moses and Elijah; 31 who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: 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 parting from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah: not knowing what he said. 34 And while he said these things, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my Son, my chosen: hear ye him. 36 And when the voice came, Jesus was found alone. And they held their peace, and told no man in those days any of the things which they had seen.

Comments

about eight days after.Matthew and Mark say, And after six days-' (Matthew 17:1; Mark 9:2). Luke says about eight days. If we count the day on which Jesus had been speaking plus an interval of six days and add the day on which the Transfiguration took place, it would make the eight days, that is, about a week as they counted time.

he took with him Peter and John and James.Peter gives his own version of the transfiguration in 2 Peter 2:16-18. This was not a cleverly fabricated tale, but the testimony of an eyewitness of the majesty of Jesus Christ. He heard the Voice that brought honor and glory to Jesus when the Father said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; Hear ye Him. This is more reliable than the cunningly devised fables of the men who sought to deny the Master who bought them (2 Peter 2:1).

and went into the mountain to pray.Since Matthew says that they were in the vicinity of Caesarea Philippi, it is reasonable to assume that the mountain, although not named by any of the writers, was Mount Hermon which has an elevation of some 9100 feet. Luke alone says that He went into the mountain to pray and that He was praying when the transfiguration took place. This was an important example for the apostles, for they would need to keep in constant contact with the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ in their mission of spreading the gospel in all the world.

the fashion of his countenance was altered.The change of His face and the gleaming white garments are a fitting symbol of the honor and approval which He received from the Father (2 Peter 1:17).

there talked with him two men.How the disciples were able to recognize Moses and Elijah is not stated. They were in glory but had not lost their identity. They were talking about Jesus-' decease which He was to accomplish at Jerusalem. He was soon to leave this earthly experience and return to the glory which He had with the Father before the world was (John 17:5). It is fitting that these two representatives of the Old Testament should be speaking to Christ about His death and the glories that were to follow since that is the message of the Law of Moses and the Prophets (1 Peter 1:10-12; Luke 24:44-47).

Now Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep.On another occasion these same men were found sleeping while the Master was undergoing the agony of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-44; Luke 22:45-46). Before condemning them too harshly, we might do well to examine our own lack of alertness at prayer meeting. But because they were asleep, they were not prepared for what they saw when they were fully awake. As Moses and Elijah were departing, Peter proposed that they make three booths or tents, one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Apparently he didn-'t realize that Moses and Elijah were not remaining with them permanently or that Jesus was soon to be taken from them, although He had told them several times that He would be. The suggestion that Peter was placing Jesus on the level with Moses and Elijah in importance and honor does not seem to agree with the context. He really didn-'t know what he was proposing, but out of fear felt that he had to say something (Mark 9:6).

And a voice came out of the cloud.This was the voice from the Majestic Glory, the voice of God who said, This is my Son, my chosen: hear ye him. God's approval of His Son and the assurance to the apostles who heard Him speak form the two-fold purpose of the Transfiguration. When the Voice came, Jesus was found alone. In this dramatic way, God showed the men that they were to hear His Son.

and told no man.They obeyed the instruction Jesus gave them, but they did discuss the coming of Elijah (Matthew 17:9-13). This led Jesus to tell them how John fulfilled the prophecy about the coming of Elijah (Malachi 4:5).