Mt 17:1 “And after six days Jesus took Peter and James and John, his brother, with him and led them up a high mountain by themselves.” — Instead of “after six days,” Luke has “about eight days.” This difference in numbering is explained by the different methods of reckoning: Luke counts the day of the discourse and the day of the Transfiguration as well, whereas the other two Evangelists count only the intervening days. Or one may also say that Luke, by saying “about,” did not intend an exact chronological statement.
Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John because these were his most intimate disciples, and precisely these were also to be witnesses of his agony on the Mount of Olives (cf. 26:37 f.).
Instead of “a high mountain,” Luke writes simply “the mountain,” that is, the well-known mountain. According to the tradition in Origen and Jerome and others, it was Mount Tabor (that is, “mountain peak”), which lies about two hours southeast of Nazareth, called by the LXX Θαβώρ (Josh 19:22), now called Jebel Tôr. Others object, however, because the summit plateau of this mountain had fortifications from the time of Antiochus the Great (since 218 BC) down to Josephus, and therefore they think of a height near Caesarea Philippi (16:13), perhaps Panium or Hermon, as more likely.
Mt 17:2 “And he was transfigured before them; and his face shone like the sun, but his garments became white as the light (Vulgate: as snow).” According to Luke 9:29 this happened “while Jesus was praying.” Thus, while his human soul, immersed in the Godhead, offered itself to the heavenly Father, the transformation and glorification of his holy body took place, and the radiance that streamed from his body communicated itself also to his garments.
What was completed at Christ’s Resurrection and Ascension appeared here momentarily in anticipation: the splendor of his divine nature shone through the veil in which it was otherwise hidden from human eyes and transfigured it; he appeared to the three as he now sits enthroned in his glorified humanity at the right hand of his Father, and as he will one day return in judgment.
Mt 17:3 “And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah speaking with him.” The singular “appeared” stands because the two subjects are thought of individually. Thus Moses and Elijah — the two representatives of the Old Covenant, Moses as its founder, Elijah as its restorer; Moses as representative of the Law, Elijah as representative of the Prophets — appeared to render homage to him to whom Law and Prophets had borne witness and in whom the entire Old Covenant found its fulfillment.
And they spoke, as Luke 9:31 reports, “about his departure,” that is, about the death which Jesus, according to divine foreordination and prophecy, was to undergo in Jerusalem. Thus, to the moment of glorification is joined the reference to the deepest humiliation through which Christ as man was to merit the abiding glorification also of his body (cf. Luke 24:26).
Mt 17:4 “But Peter answered and said to Jesus: Lord, it is good that we are here! If you will, I will make here three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” Mark adds (9:6): “For he did not know what he was saying.” It was a kind of ecstatic state, a spiritual intoxication in which Peter now found himself; he felt such blessed joy in the presence of his transfigured Lord that he wished to remain there forever. When he saw that Moses and Elijah were about to depart (Luke 9:33), he proposed building three booths so as to prevent their leaving and to secure a lasting stay in that place. To build booths for himself and his companions does not even occur to Peter in the fullness of his happiness.
The expression καλόν ἐστιν ἡμᾶς ὧδε εἶναι means simply: “It is delightful for us to be here,” or “pleasant is the place in which we dwell.” The explanation that emphasizes the usefulness — “it is good that we are here so that we can build shelters for you” — seems weak.
Mt 17:5-6 While Peter was still speaking, the whole scene suddenly changed: “Behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and behold, a voice from the cloud said: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear him! And when the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.” The double “behold” serves to introduce vividly the significant moments.
“He overshadowed them” refers not to all present, nor merely to the three disciples, but to Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Thus a luminous cloud descended, and into it Jesus entered with Moses and Elijah, so that they were enclosed in it as in a dim sanctuary.
The cloud was the Shekinah of the Old Covenant, the symbol of the divine presence into which Moses entered on Sinai and which descended upon the tabernacle and the temple. The disciples stood outside the cloud and were greatly afraid, partly because they felt alone, separated from their Lord, partly because the new manifestation of the light-cloud shook them. From their ecstatic contemplation they now returned to ordinary perception.
From the cloud came the voice of the heavenly Father, whereby Jesus was again declared, as at the baptism, to be the Son of God, and with the words “hear him” he was installed as the lawgiver of the New Covenant. The words αὐτοῦ ἀκούετε point back to the messianic passage Deut 18:15.
In these final words the chief purpose of the whole event is indicated, which, as noted at the beginning, has a thoroughly symbolic character. As Moses ascends the mountain to receive the Law, so Christ ascends a mountain to be installed as lawgiver. Moses and Elijah, representatives of the Old Covenant, appear before him to show that the entire Old Covenant — the Law and the Prophets — finds its fulfillment in him. Peter wishes to build a σκηνή (tent), placing all three on the same level; but the divine voice declares Jesus to be the sole lawgiver to whom obedience is henceforth due, and the other two disappear (v. 8; Luke 9:36).
Mt 17:7-9 “And Jesus came and touched them,” to show them that he was again with them in humble servant form (cf. John 20:17), and to strengthen them by his divine power (cf. Dan 10:9 f.; Rev 1:17). “And he said: Rise and do not be afraid. And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus alone.”
Then, as they were descending the mountain, he commanded them to tell no one about the vision (τὸ ὅραμα = the spectacle; cf. Acts 7:31) until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. He did this for the same reason that he had earlier (16:20) commanded them not yet to speak publicly of his Messiahship. Moreover, this was such an extraordinary event that before his Resurrection it could not have been grasped or understood by most. According to Luke 9:36, the disciples obeyed this command.
CONTINUE
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