THE TRANSFIGURATION

 

THE TRANSFIGURATION OF JESUS

2And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John and led them up a high mountain by themselves.

And he was transfigured before them, 3and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them.

4And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.

5And Peter said to Jesus,

“Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

6For he did not know what to say, for they were terrified.

7And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud,

“THIS IS MY BELOVED SON; LISTEN TO HIM.”

8And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only.

MARK 9:2-8

COMMENTARY

Six days after the foretelling of his death (Mt 16:24; Mk 8:31), and eight days, including the prophesy of the death of the Lord (Lk 9:21), Jesus took his closest apostles, Peter, James, and John to an unknown high mountain to presence his spiritual reality, of being not only the Messiah, but his divinity as Son of the God of Israel and the Universe.

Lord Jesus must have, as usual, started praying, because the Gospel of Luke tells us that the disciples were tired and sleepy (Lk 9:32); but they quickly were awaken by the apparition of whom in their spirit, by the testimony of the Holy Spirit, knew were the Lawgiver, Moses; and Elijah, the prophet.

Only Jesus, not the Lawgiver neither the Prophet, were transfigured from a human appearance to a white glow so strong as no one has ever seen, not only his colored clothes, but also his physique was transformed into a glorified state (Lk 9:29) showing clearly his higher glory to the Jewish Law and the Prophets, placing the glorious Jesus above the authority of the Torah and above the human nature of two of the most sublime members of the Jewish religion, Moses and the raptured Elijah.

By transfiguring during his earthly life, and not after his resurrection, Jesus not only demonstrated that He counted with God’s favor, but also that his Glory was not a consequence of faithful life, like all true believers will experience after the resurrection and glorification of their bodies; but Jesus demonstrated that He was a being who lived in Glory, a divine Glory that was permanent in Him, but invisible through human eyes, hidden in his human nature.

His Glory was above Moses and Elijah, even though they were in God’s presence, but was higher and better than theirs, because Jesus nature was higher than human.

To bring support to this glorious vision, Lord God YHWH enclosed the Glory of our Lord in a cloud, and from that cloud spoke to the disciples, the same way He spoke during Jesus baptism, and said:

“THIS IS MY BELOVED SON; LISTEN TO HIM.”

Confirming that the glorious vision they just had seen, was a vision granted by God; the God they knew from childhood, and therefore, it was trustworthy.

In the Transfiguration, the apostles saw not only the superior authority of Jesus the Son of God, over the whole Jewish religion, but also his divinity.

Omar Flores.