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Transfiguration (of Jesus), The
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trans-fig-o-ra'-shun ((metamorphoomai), to be transformed)
RELATED: Elijah, James, Jesus, John, Moses, Mount Hermon, Mount of Olives, Mount Tabor, Peter |
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Easton's Bible Dictionary
of our Lord on a "high mountain apart," is described
by each of the three evangelists ( Matthew
17:1 - 8
; Mark
9:2 - 8
; Luke
9:28 - 36
). The fullest account is given by Luke, who, no doubt, was informed by Peter,
who was present on the occasion. What these evangelists record was an absolute
historical reality, and not a mere vision. The concurrence between them in all
the circumstances of the incident is exact. John seems to allude to it also (
John
1:14 ). Forty years after the event Peter distinctly makes mention of it (
2
Peter 1:16 - 18
). In describing the sanctification of believers, Paul also seems to allude to
this majestic and glorious appearance of our Lord on the "holy mount" ( Romans
12:2 ; 2
Corinthians 3:18 ).
The place of the transfiguration was probably Mount Hermon (q.v.), and not Mount Tabor, as is commonly supposed.
Hitchcock's Dictionary of Bible Names
(no entry)
Smith's Bible Dictionary
(The event in the earthly life of Christ which marks the culminating point in his public ministry, and stands midway between the temptation in the wilderness and the agony in Gethsemane, ( Matthew
17:1 - 13
; Mark
9:2 - 13
; Luke
9:28 - 36
)
Place. --
Though tradition locates the transfiguration on Mount Tabor there is little to confirm this view and modern critics favor Mount Hermon, the highest mountain-top in Gaulanitis, or one of the spurs of the Anti-Lebanus.
Time. --
The transfiguration probably took place at night, because it could then be seen
to better advantage than in daylight, and Jesus usually went to mountains to spend
there the night in prayer. ( Matthew
14:23 , 14:24
; Luke
6:12 ; 21:37
) The apostles were asleep, and are described its having kept themselves awake
through the act of transfiguration. ( Luke
9:32 )
The actors and witnesses. --
Christ was the central figure, the subject of transfiguration. Moses and Elijah
appeared from the heavenly world, as the representatives of the Old Testament,
the one of the law the other of prophecy, to do homage to him who was the fulfillment
of both. Mr. Ellicott says, "The close of the ministry of each was not after the
common death of all men. No man knew of the sepulchre of Moses, ( Deuteronomy
34:6 ) and Elijah had passed away in the chariot and horses of fire. ( 2
Kings 2:11 ) Both were associated in mens minds with the glory of the kingdom
of the Christ. The Jerusalem Targum on ( Exodus
12:1 ) ... connects the coming of Moses with that of the Messiah. Another
Jewish tradition predicts his appearance with that of Elijah." Moses the law giver
and Elijah the chief of the prophets both appear talking with Christ the source
of the gospel, to show that they are all one and agree in one. St. Luke, ( Luke
9:31 ) adds the subject of their communing: "They spake of his decease which
he should accomplish at Jerusalem." Among the apostles the three favorite disciples,
Peter, James and John were the sole witnesses of the scene-- "the sons of thunder
and the man of rock."
The event itself. --
The transfiguration or transformation, or, as the Germans call it, the glorification,
consisted in a visible manifestation of the inner glory of Christs person, accompanied
by an audible voice from heaven. It was the revelation and anticipation of his
future state of glory, which was concealed under the veil of his humanity in the
state of humiliation. The cloud which overshadowed the witnesses was bright or
light-like, luminous, of the same kind as the cloud at the ascension.
Significance of the miracle . --
(1) It served as a solemn inauguration of the history of
the passion and final consummation of Christs work on earth.
(2) It confirmed the faith of the three favorite disciples, and prepared them
for the great trial which was approaching, by showing them the real glory and
power of Jesus.
(3) It was a witness that the spirits of the lawgiver and the prophet accepted
the sufferings and the death which had shaken the faith of the disciples as the
necessary conditions of the messianic kingdom. --Ellicott. As envoys from the
eternal Majesty, audibly affirmed that it was the will the Father that with his
own precious blood he should make atonement for sin. They impressed a new seal
upon the ancient, eternal truth that the partition wall which sin had raised could
he broken down by no other means than by the power of his sufferings; that he
as the good Shepherd could only ransom his sheep with the price of his own life.-Krummacher.
(4) It furnishes also to us all a striking proof of the unity of the Old and New
Testaments, for personal immortality, and the mysterious intercommunion of the
visible and invisible worlds. Both meet in Jesus Christ; he is the connecting
link between the Old and New Testaments, between heaven and earth, between the
kingdom of grace and the kingdom of glory. It is very significant that at the
end of the scene the disciples saw no man save Jesus alive. Moses and Elijah,
the law and the promise, types and shadows, pass away; the gospel, the fulfillment,
the substance Christ remains--the only one who can relieve the misery of earth
and glorify our nature, Christ all in all. |
(chiefly from Smiths larger Bible Dictionary--ED.)
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
trans-fig-o-ra'-shun (metamorphoomai, "to be transformed"):
Used only with reference to the transfiguration of Christ (Matthew
17:2 ; Mark
9:2) and the change wrought in the Christian personality through fellowship
with Christ (Romans
12:2 ; 2
Corinthians 3:18).
(1) About midway of His active ministry Jesus, accompanied by Peter, James and
John, withdrew to a high mountain apart (probably Mt. Hermon; see next article)
for prayer. While praying Jesus was "transfigured," "his face did shine as the
sun," "and his garments became glistering, exceeding white, so as no fuller on
earth can whiten them." It was night and it was cold. The disciples were drowsy
and at first but dimly conscious of the wonder in progress before their eyes.
From the brightness came the sound of voices. Jesus was talking with Moses and
Elijah, the subject of the discourse, as the disciples probably learned later,
being of the decease (exodus) which Jesus was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
As the disciples came to themselves, the figures of Moses and Elijah seemed to
withdraw, whereupon Peter impetuously demanded tents to be set up for Jesus and
His heavenly visitants that the stay might be prolonged and, if possible, made
permanent. Just then a cloud swept over them, and out of the cloud a voice came,
saying, "This is my beloved Son: hear ye him." In awe the disciples prostrated
themselves and in silence waited. Suddenly, lifting up their eyes they saw no
one, save Jesus only (Matthew
17:1 - 13
; Mark
9:2 - 13
; Luke
9:28 - 36).
Such is the simple record. What is its significance? The Scripture narrative offers
no explanation, and indeed the event is afterward referred to only in the most
general way by Peter (2
Peter 1:16 - 18)
and, perhaps, by John (John
1:14). That it marked a crisis in the career of Jesus there can be no doubt.
From this time He walked consciously under the shadow of the cross. A strict silence
on the subject was enjoined upon the three witnesses of His transfiguration until
after "the Son of man should have risen again from the dead." This means that,
as not before, Jesus was made to realize the sacrificial character of His mission;
was made to know for a certainty that death, soon and cruel, was to be His portion;
was made to know also that His mission as the fulfillment of Law (Moses) and prophecy
(Elijah) was not to be frustrated by death. In His heart now would sound forever
the Father's approval, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." The
scene, therefore, wrought out in Jesus a new fervor, a new boldness, a new confidence
of ultimate victory which, as a source of holy joy, enabled Him to endure the
cross and to despise the shame (Hebrews
12:2). In the disciples the scene must have wrought a new faith in the heavensent
leadership of Jesus. In the dark days which were soon to come upon them the memory
of the brightness of that unforgettable night would be a stay and strength. There
might be opposition, but there could be no permanent defeat of one whose work
was ratified by Moses, by Elijah, by God Himself. Indeed, was not the presence
of Moses and Elijah a pledge of immortality for all? How in the face of such evidence,
real to them, however it might be to others, could they ever again doubt the triumph
of life and of Him who was the Lord of life? The abiding lesson of the Transfiguration
is that of the reality of the unseen world, of its nearness to us, and of the
comforting and inspiring fact that "spirit with spirit may meet."
The transfigured appearance of Jesus may have owed something to the moonlight
on the snow and to the drowsiness of the disciples; but no one who has ever seen
the face of a saint fresh from communion with God, as in the case of Moses (Exodus
34:29 - 35)
and of Stephen (Acts
6:15), will have any difficulty in believing that the figure of Jesus was
irradiated with a "light that never was on sea or land." See Comms. and Lives
of Christ; also a suggestive treatment in Westcott's Introduction to the Study
of the Gospels.
(2) The transfiguration of Christians is accomplished by the renewing of the mind
whereby, in utter abandonment to the will of God, the disciple displays the mind
of Christ (Romans
12:2); and by that intimate fellowship with God, through which, as with unveiled
face he beholds the glory of the Lord, he is "transformed into the same image
from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit" (2
Corinthians 3:18).
Charles M. Stuart
Tags:
bible study, bible history, christ, elijah, james, jesus, john, moses, mount hermon, mount of olives, mount tabor, peter, transfiguration
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