Jesus proceeded to reveal the kingdom to His inner circle of disciples to strengthen their faith and to prepare them for the trials of their faith that lay ahead of them.
Jesus revealed next that some of the disciples whom He addressed would not die until they saw Him coming in His kingdom. This prediction may at first appear to be very similar to the one in 10:23. However, that verse refers to something else, namely Jesus' reunion with His disciples following their preaching tour in Galilee.
This verse (v. 28) cannot mean that Jesus returned to set up the messianic kingdom during the lifetime of these disciples since that did not happen. It does not mean that Jesus had already set up the kingdom when He spoke these words.659What Jesus predicted would happen in the future rules this out. Some interpreters have taken Jesus' words as a reference to His resurrection and ascension. However, Jesus spoke of those events elsewhere as His departure, not His coming (John 16:7). Moreover such a view interprets the kingdom in a heavenly sense rather than in the earthly sense in which the Old Testament writers consistently spoke of it.660Other interpreters believe that Jesus was speaking about the day of Pentecost.661However the Son of Man did not come then. The Holy Spirit did. Furthermore the kingdom did not begin then. The church did. Still others hold that the destruction of Jerusalem is in view.662The only link with that event is judgment.
Jesus appears to have been predicting the preview of His coming to establish His kingdom that He gave Peter, James, and John in the Transfiguration (17:1-8).663The Transfiguration follows this prediction immediately in all three of the Gospels that record it (cf. Mark 9:1-8; Luke 9:27-36). Moreover Matthew, Mark, and Luke all linked Jesus' prediction and the Transfiguration with connectives. Matthew and Mark used "and"(Gr. de) while Luke used "and . . . it came about"(Gr. egeneto de). Peter, one of the witnesses of the Transfiguration, interpreted it as a preview of the kingdom (2 Pet. 1:16-18). Finally Jesus' "truly I say to you"or "I tell you the truth"(v. 28) separates His prediction of the establishment of the kingdom (v. 27) from His prediction of the vision of the kingdom (v. 28). Jesus' reference to some not tasting death until they saw the kingdom may seem strange at first, but in the context Jesus had been speaking of dying (vv. 24-26).
The Transfiguration confirmed three important facts. First, it confirmed to the disciples that the kingdom was indeed future. Second, it confirmed to them that Jesus was indeed the divine Messiah. Third, it confirmed to them that Messiah had to suffer.
17:1 The Synoptic evangelists rarely mentioned exact periods of time. Consequently there was probably a good reason Matthew did so here. Probably he did so to show that what happened on the mountain fulfilled what Jesus predicted would happen in 16:28. The reference provides a sturdy link between the two events, prediction and fulfillment.
Peter, James, and John constituted Jesus' hand-picked inner circle of disciples (cf. 26:37; Mark 5:37). Interestingly when Moses ascended Mt. Sinai he took with him Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu (Exod. 24:1).
The mountain where the Transfiguration happened is traditionally Mt. Tabor, a 1,900 foot hill that rises conspicuously at the east end of the Jezreel Valley. However, Josephus wrote that there was a walled fortress on its summit then.664This fact throws doubt on the traditional identification. Other scholars have suggested Mt. Hermon as the site. It was close to Caesarea Philippi, and it was 9,232 feet high. This was probably the location. Another suggestion is Mt. Miron, the highest mountain in Israel between Caesarea Philippi and Capernaum at 3,926 feet (cf. vv. 22, 24).665A fourth possibility is Mt. Arbel on the west side of the Sea of Galilee. It is a high mountain from which the whole of the Sea of Galilee is visible.
Fortunately we do not have to identify the mountain to understand the text. It is significant that the Transfiguration happened on a mountain, however. Moses and Elijah both had intimate encounters with God on mountains, probably Mt. Sinai in both instances (Exod. 19; 24; 1 Kings 19). A close encounter with God is what Jesus' three disciples had, too. These were very special revelatory events in all three instances. The location of these "mountain top experiences"also insured privacy.
17:2 Jesus experienced a metamorphosis. The Greek word that Matthew used is metamophoomeaning "to transform or change in form."It was not just His appearance that changed, but His essential form became different.666Probably Jesus assumed His post-resurrection body that was similar to, but somewhat different from, His pre-resurrection body (cf. 2 Pet. 1:16-18; Rev. 1:16).
Matthew's statement that Jesus was transfigured before the disciples indicates that the transformation was for their benefit. Jesus' face shone, as Moses' face had, and His garments became as white as light because they radiated God's glory (cf. Exod. 34:29-30).
". . . wherever leukos[white] is used here or elsewhere in the New Testament in connection with clothing it always has reference either to that of angels (beings surrounded with glory), or else to the garments of the saints who enter into a glorified state in heaven."667
This vision of Jesus would have strengthened the disciples' faith that He was the Messiah. It would also have helped them understand that the sufferings He said He would experience would not be final (16:21). They would see Him glorified "coming in His kingdom"(16:28).
17:3 "Behold"again introduced something amazing (cf. 1:20; 2:13; et al.). Matthew probably mentioned Moses first because to the Jews he was the more important figure. Moses was the model for the eschatological Prophet whom God would raise up, namely Messiah (Deut. 18:18). Elijah was the prophesied forerunner of Messiah (Mal. 4:5-6; cf. Matt. 3:1-3; 11:7-10; 17:9-13). Both prophets had unusual ends. Perhaps Moses represented those who will be in the kingdom who had died and Elijah those whom God had translated.668The disciples may represent those there who had not died.669
Both Moses and Elijah played key roles in God's plan for Israel. Moses established the covenant under which Israel proceeded to live, and Elijah led the people back to God after their worst apostasy. Both experienced a vision of God's glory on a mountain. Both experienced rejection by Israel (Acts 7:35, 37; 1 Kings 19:1-9; cf. Matt. 17:12). Moses was the greatest figure associated with the law, and Elijah was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. The disciples would later learn that Jesus was greater than either of these great men (vv. 5, 8). However now the disciples saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus.
"The abiding validity of the Law and the Prophets as fulfilled' by Christ (Mt. v. 17) is symbolized by the harmonious converse which He holds with their representatives, Moses and Elijah."670
17:4 In addressing Jesus Peter called Him "Lord,"a title of general respect (cf. 7:21; et al.). That title would later take on the idea of unqualified supremacy when applied to Jesus, but Peter's appreciation of Jesus was not mature enough to recognize that yet. The proof of this is Peter's rebuke of Jesus (16:22) and his putting Jesus on a par with Moses and Elijah here.
Peter did not speak because someone had spoken to him.671He evidently spoke because he perceived the greatness of the occasion, and he wanted to offer a suggestion. The tabernacles (Gr. skenas) Peter suggested erecting were temporary structures that the Jews pitched for the feast of Tabernacles every year. This was a seven-day feast that looked forward to the time when Israel would dwell in permanent peace and rest in the Promised Land (Lev. 23:42-43). It anticipated kingdom conditions. Probably Peter meant that since the messianic age was apparently going to begin soon he would make booths for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, subject to Jesus' approval.
17:5 The cloud was bright, Matthew said. This was undoubtedly the shekinah glory of God. God had hidden Himself in a cloud through which He spoke to the Israelites on Mt. Sinai (Exod. 19:16). He led the Israelites with it after the Exodus (Exod. 13:21-22), and it manifested His glory to His people in the wilderness (Exod. 16:10; 24:15-18; 40:34-38). The prophets predicted that Messiah would come to set up His kingdom with clouds and that clouds would overshadow the kingdom (Ps. 97:2; Isa. 4:5; Dan. 7:13). If the three disciples remembered these passages, they would have seen another reason to believe that Jesus was the Messiah. The presence of the bright cloud should have reminded them of the closeness of God's presence and linked Jesus with God in their thinking.
The cloud may have "overshadowed"(NASB) or "enveloped"(NIV) them. The Greek word epeskiasenpermits either translation (cf. Exod. 40:35). However, Luke wrote that they entered into the cloud (Luke 9:34). The voice from the cloud essentially repeated what the voice from heaven had said at Jesus' baptism (3:17). It confirmed Jesus' identity as both God's Son and His Suffering Servant (cf. Ps. 2:7; Isa. 42:1). Thus the voice from the cloud, God's voice, identified Jesus as superior to Moses and Elijah.
The words "Hear Him"or "Listen to Him"with Moses present indicated that Jesus was the prophet greater than Moses whom Moses predicted would come (Deut. 18:15-18; cf. Acts 3:22-23; 7:37). God had said through Moses of that prophet, "You shall listen to Him"(Deut. 18:15). Jesus was the climax of biblical revelation, and now people should listen to what He said (cf. Heb. 1:1-2).
"The voice is that of God, and for the second time [cf. 3:17] God bursts into the world of Matthew's story as actor' and expresses his evaluative point of view concerning Jesus' identity."672
"The injunction to hear Jesus is an exhortation . . . that the disciples are to attend carefully to Jesus' words regarding the necessity both of his own going the way of suffering (16:21) and of their emulating him (16:24)."673
17:6-8 This revelation had the same effect on Peter, James, and John that the revelation God gave Daniel had on him (cf. Dan. 5:25-26). When people see the glory of God revealed and realize that they are in His presence, the result is terror. The Transfiguration was mainly for the disciples' benefit. Jesus brought the three disciples to the mountain top, the Transfiguration happened before them, and the voice spoke to them. The disciples did not understand the significance of all they saw immediately. However, it was a revelation that God continued to help them understand especially after the Resurrection (cf. 2 Pet. 1:16-19). Immediately it did give them a deeper conviction that Jesus was the Messiah.674
"The purpose of the transfiguration was primarily confirmation. It confirmed several vital facts. One of these was the reality of a future kingdom. The very fact that the transfiguration took place attests this. The presence of Old Testament saints on earth with Christ in a glorified state is the greatest possible verification of the kingdom promises in the Old Testament. The reality of this kingdom is also evident from the connection of the transfiguration with the promise of Matthew 16:27-28. The Son of Man was going to come one day to judge the world and establish His kingdom (Matthew 16:27). As an earnest of the coming of the kingdom three disciples were permitted to see the Son of Man in His kingdom (Matthew 16:28). This is exactly the manner in which Peter uses the transfiguration (2 Peter 1:16-21)."675
17:9 This is the last of five times Matthew recorded Jesus telling His disciples to keep silent (cf. 8:4; 9:30; 12:16; 16:20). This time He told them that they could tell others after His resurrection since this is the first time He told them to keep quiet after He had revealed that He would rise again. The proclamation of the King and the kingdom would begin again after the Resurrection. Temporary silence was important because of popular political views of Messiah and because the signal proof of Jesus' messiahship would be His resurrection, the sign of Jonah.
17:10 The disciples in view seem to be Peter, James, and John (cf. v. 14). It seems unlikely that the disciples viewed Elijah's appearance in the Transfiguration as the fulfillment of Malachi 4:5-6. If they did, their question would have been, why did Messiah appear before Elijah when the scribes taught the reverse order of appearings? Moreover Elijah's appearance in the Transfiguration did not turn the hearts of the people back to God.
Peter, James, and John's question evidently arose over an apparent inconsistency involving Jesus' announcement of His death. Elijah's appearance on the mountain probably triggered it. Elijah was to come and turn the hearts of the people back to God before Messiah appeared (Mal. 4:5-6). If that restoration happened, how could Jesus die at the hands of Israel's leaders (16:21)? The disciples were struggling to understand how Messiah's death could fit into what they believed about the forerunner's ministry.
Notice that from the Transfiguration on these disciples had no further doubts about Jesus' messiahship.
17:11-12 Jesus confirmed the scribes' teaching about Elijah coming, but He said another factor needed consideration. John the Baptist's ministry had been a success as far as it had gone (cf. 3:5-6; 14:5), but he had "restored all things"to only a limited degree. The scribes perceived the ministry of Messiah's forerunner correctly, but they did not realize that John the Baptist had been that forerunner (11:10). Elijah had already come in John the Baptist. However, Israel's leaders had rejected him, and he had died without accomplishing the complete restoration of Israel. John had not fulfilled his mission but died doing so. Likewise Jesus would die at His enemies' hands without fulfilling His mission of establishing the kingdom. John had restored all things as much as he could and yet died. Jesus, too, would fulfill His mission as much as He could and yet die. This was the answer to the disciples' question.
"A suffering Forerunner is to be followed by a suffering Messiah."676
"In other words, just as the messianic forerunner's coming had two phases: John the Baptizer (one to suffer and die), and Elijah the Prophet (one of restoration and glory), so also would the Messiah's coming. The response to the forerunner foreshadowed the response to the Messiah and necessitated the postponement of the fulfillment specifically promised to national Israel."677
God predicted through Malachi that a Jewish revival would precede Messiah's kingdom, and the revival did not come. Consequently that revival and the kingdom must still be future.
17:13 The disciples now understood that John the Baptist fulfilled the prophecy about Elijah returning. However, their continuing problems with Jesus' death seem to indicate that they did not really understand that He had to die. This incident reveals another step of understanding that the disciples took, but it was only a small step.
