Jesus Transfigured with Moses, Elijah and Three Disciplesby emmanuel_higgins
17:6Matthew 17:6
And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
On the Mount of Transfiguration Peter, James and John beheld Christ's humanity veiled by divinity shining forth with face as the sun and raiment white as light. When a bright cloud overshadowed them and the Father's voice declared Jesus to be His beloved Son commanding them to hear Him, the mountain trembling amid the glory, they were overpowered and fell on their faces sore afraid, unable to endure the sound. They remained prostrate with faces hidden until Jesus came near, touched and raised them, bidding them arise and not fear, when they saw Jesus alone. The prostration belonged to a glimpse of the Saviour's future kingdom glory given as a visible sign of His divinity to strengthen their faith for His humiliation, agony and crucifixion, so sorrow would not destroy their confidence in Him as the promised Messiah and Son of God. The command to hear Him summons not the three only but every son and daughter of Adam to obey every word He utters as law and life, and those upon whom the glory rises are charged to arise and shine by going down from the mount to live, labor and set the captive free by faith and prayer.
Scene on the Mount
The verse concerns Peter, James and John, the three disciples chosen to be with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration to behold His glory. John was among those three witnesses of Christ's glory on the mount, and James's place among them made him a witness to that revelation. They were favored to see His humanity, for a time hidden and veiled by His divinity, shine forth in God-like majesty. His face shone as the sun and His raiment was white as light, clothed in heavenly glory that at first dazzled their eyes, and they were overpowered by the manifestation so that they knew not where they were and heaven seemed to come to earth.
While Peter was proposing three tabernacles for Christ and Moses and Elijah, a bright cloud overshadowed them. That cloud and glory came in answer to Christ's prayer, after a night of prayer, that His disciples be given a manifestation of the glory He had with the Father before the world was, that His kingdom be revealed to human eyes and that they be strengthened to behold it. Out of the cloud came the Father's voice in fearful majesty and commanding authority. It declared Jesus to be His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased and commanded them to hear Him.
When they heard that voice amid the glory, with the mountain trembling, they were overpowered and fell on their faces sore afraid. Their faces were hidden and they remained prostrate, for the glory and sound were too overwhelming for them to endure. They dropped face-down in great terror and could not endure the divine manifestation and voice. They stayed facedown until Jesus came near, touched and raised them, and told them to arise and not fear. After He comforted them and told them to get up and stop fearing, they saw Jesus alone.
Meaning and Prophecy
The falling on the face in sore fear belonged to a glimpse of the Saviour's future kingdom glory, with His face shining as the sun and His raiment white as light and with Moses and Elijah talking with Him. It was a visible shining forth of divinity clothed with humanity, revealing Him as the Majesty of heaven and King of glory and as a symbol of His kingdom. The scene was given to strengthen the faith of Peter, James and John for the trying experience of His humiliation, agony, betrayal and crucifixion, giving undeniable evidence that He was the promised Messiah and Son of God so that sorrow and disappointment would not destroy their confidence in Him. When they were overpowered, Jesus came and touched them and told them to rise and stop fearing, after which they saw Jesus alone.
That same glory that strengthened the disciples also strengthened Christ Himself for His coming sufferings before His betrayal and crucifixion. The experience of the three was given to strengthen them to endure test and trial of faith and to strengthen the other disciples through their testimony of what they had seen. The account in Matthew 17:1-21 is to be kept in mind as Christ opens future scenes before His disciples.
Moses and Elijah stood with Him as co-laborers who shared His longing for the salvation of souls, having lived as men and known human sorrow and suffering. They brought glory from heaven to comfort Him, speaking with Him about His coming sufferings at Jerusalem and His shameful death as part of redemption. Moses had spoken with God face to face, and God had shown him His glory in a unique way.
Their presence made the transfiguration Christ's kingdom in miniature, with Jesus clothed with heaven's glory and the Father's voice proclaiming Him the Son of God. In that miniature view of the kingdom of the redeemed, Moses represented those who will be raised from the dead at Christ's second coming and second advent. Elijah represented the living who will be changed from mortal to immortal and taken to heaven without dying.
Moses and Elijah also represented the law and the prophets, teaching that the teachings of the Old Testament are not done away by the preaching of Christ's gospel but are fully in accord with the New, the new dispensation embracing the Old. The fear of the disciples showed the commanding authority of the voice out of the bright cloud declaring Christ to be the beloved Son who must be heard. That command to hear Him belongs not to the three disciples only but to every son and daughter of Adam, with God thereby summoning the whole world to give attention to Christ as pre-eminent above every teacher and authority. Obeying every word He utters as law and as life is a matter of eternal interest.
Call to Watchful Service
Sleep had overcome the three on the mount, so though they fell on their faces in fear at the voice they heard little of what passed between Christ and the heavenly messengers. By failing to watch and pray they did not receive the light God desired to give them, the knowledge of the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow. They lost the blessing that sharing His self-sacrifice would have brought, being slow of heart to believe and little appreciative of the treasure Heaven sought to give them. Because they did not remain watching, they failed when brought over the ground of test and trial, Peter denying his Lord before His enemies and their faith failing as they beheld the Son of God dying on the cross, where rays of hope from the mountain would have lighted the darkness and sustained their faith.
The glory witnessed on the mountain where they fell facedown in great fear at the Father proclaiming Him the Son of God stands in contrast to the suffering encountered in the plain below. The mount experience of beholding Christ's glory is set against the valley, where demon-possessed souls enslaved by Satan wait for release through faith and prayer. After this display of glory Jesus descended the mountain and delivered a demon-afflicted child, showing His power to free the child from Satan.
Standing with Christ on the mount has the glory of the Lord rise upon the spirit by beholding His beauty as the chiefest among ten thousand and altogether lovely until the soul becomes radiant in the presence of His glory. Those who have received that light are charged to arise and shine, going down from the mount into the plain where souls enslaved by Satan wait for the word of faith and prayer to set them free. Their meeting with Jesus on the mountain came before their mission, showing the place of communion with Christ in preparing for service. They are to live and labor and sacrifice even unto death for the saving of humanity, for standing nearest to Christ means having drunk most deeply on earth of the spirit of His self-sacrificing love.
That remembered glory and voice were recalled in Gethsemane when glory was seen around Jesus as an angel came to strengthen Him. The sight reassured them that God had taken charge of Jesus and the angel would protect Him, so they need have no fear for Him. The earlier glory and the voice from the cloud had shown them that Jesus was under God's care.
On the Mount of Transfiguration Peter, James and John beheld Christ's humanity veiled by divinity shining forth with face as the sun and raiment white as light. When a bright cloud overshadowed them and the Father's voice declared Jesus to be His beloved Son commanding them to hear Him, the mountain trembling amid the glory, they were overpowered and fell on their faces sore afraid, unable to endure the sound. They remained prostrate with faces hidden until Jesus came near, touched and raised them, bidding them arise and not fear, when they saw Jesus alone. The prostration belonged to a glimpse of the Saviour's future kingdom glory given as a visible sign of His divinity to strengthen their faith for His humiliation, agony and crucifixion, so sorrow would not destroy their confidence in Him as the promised Messiah and Son of God. The command to hear Him summons not the three only but every son and daughter of Adam to obey every word He utters as law and life, and those upon whom the glory rises are charged to arise and shine by going down from the mount to live, labor and set the captive free by faith and prayer.
Scene on the Mount
The verse concerns Peter, James and John, the three disciples chosen to be with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration to behold His glory. John was among those three witnesses of Christ's glory on the mount, and James's place among them made him a witness to that revelation. They were favored to see His humanity, for a time hidden and veiled by His divinity, shine forth in God-like majesty. His face shone as the sun and His raiment was white as light, clothed in heavenly glory that at first dazzled their eyes, and they were overpowered by the manifestation so that they knew not where they were and heaven seemed to come to earth.
While Peter was proposing three tabernacles for Christ and Moses and Elijah, a bright cloud overshadowed them. That cloud and glory came in answer to Christ's prayer, after a night of prayer, that His disciples be given a manifestation of the glory He had with the Father before the world was, that His kingdom be revealed to human eyes and that they be strengthened to behold it. Out of the cloud came the Father's voice in fearful majesty and commanding authority. It declared Jesus to be His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased and commanded them to hear Him.
When they heard that voice amid the glory, with the mountain trembling, they were overpowered and fell on their faces sore afraid. Their faces were hidden and they remained prostrate, for the glory and sound were too overwhelming for them to endure. They dropped face-down in great terror and could not endure the divine manifestation and voice. They stayed facedown until Jesus came near, touched and raised them, and told them to arise and not fear. After He comforted them and told them to get up and stop fearing, they saw Jesus alone.
Meaning and Prophecy
The falling on the face in sore fear belonged to a glimpse of the Saviour's future kingdom glory, with His face shining as the sun and His raiment white as light and with Moses and Elijah talking with Him. It was a visible shining forth of divinity clothed with humanity, revealing Him as the Majesty of heaven and King of glory and as a symbol of His kingdom. The scene was given to strengthen the faith of Peter, James and John for the trying experience of His humiliation, agony, betrayal and crucifixion, giving undeniable evidence that He was the promised Messiah and Son of God so that sorrow and disappointment would not destroy their confidence in Him. When they were overpowered, Jesus came and touched them and told them to rise and stop fearing, after which they saw Jesus alone.
That same glory that strengthened the disciples also strengthened Christ Himself for His coming sufferings before His betrayal and crucifixion. The experience of the three was given to strengthen them to endure test and trial of faith and to strengthen the other disciples through their testimony of what they had seen. The account in Matthew 17:1-21 is to be kept in mind as Christ opens future scenes before His disciples.
Moses and Elijah stood with Him as co-laborers who shared His longing for the salvation of souls, having lived as men and known human sorrow and suffering. They brought glory from heaven to comfort Him, speaking with Him about His coming sufferings at Jerusalem and His shameful death as part of redemption. Moses had spoken with God face to face, and God had shown him His glory in a unique way.
Their presence made the transfiguration Christ's kingdom in miniature, with Jesus clothed with heaven's glory and the Father's voice proclaiming Him the Son of God. In that miniature view of the kingdom of the redeemed, Moses represented those who will be raised from the dead at Christ's second coming and second advent. Elijah represented the living who will be changed from mortal to immortal and taken to heaven without dying.
Moses and Elijah also represented the law and the prophets, teaching that the teachings of the Old Testament are not done away by the preaching of Christ's gospel but are fully in accord with the New, the new dispensation embracing the Old. The fear of the disciples showed the commanding authority of the voice out of the bright cloud declaring Christ to be the beloved Son who must be heard. That command to hear Him belongs not to the three disciples only but to every son and daughter of Adam, with God thereby summoning the whole world to give attention to Christ as pre-eminent above every teacher and authority. Obeying every word He utters as law and as life is a matter of eternal interest.
Call to Watchful Service
Sleep had overcome the three on the mount, so though they fell on their faces in fear at the voice they heard little of what passed between Christ and the heavenly messengers. By failing to watch and pray they did not receive the light God desired to give them, the knowledge of the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow. They lost the blessing that sharing His self-sacrifice would have brought, being slow of heart to believe and little appreciative of the treasure Heaven sought to give them. Because they did not remain watching, they failed when brought over the ground of test and trial, Peter denying his Lord before His enemies and their faith failing as they beheld the Son of God dying on the cross, where rays of hope from the mountain would have lighted the darkness and sustained their faith.
The glory witnessed on the mountain where they fell facedown in great fear at the Father proclaiming Him the Son of God stands in contrast to the suffering encountered in the plain below. The mount experience of beholding Christ's glory is set against the valley, where demon-possessed souls enslaved by Satan wait for release through faith and prayer. After this display of glory Jesus descended the mountain and delivered a demon-afflicted child, showing His power to free the child from Satan.
Standing with Christ on the mount has the glory of the Lord rise upon the spirit by beholding His beauty as the chiefest among ten thousand and altogether lovely until the soul becomes radiant in the presence of His glory. Those who have received that light are charged to arise and shine, going down from the mount into the plain where souls enslaved by Satan wait for the word of faith and prayer to set them free. Their meeting with Jesus on the mountain came before their mission, showing the place of communion with Christ in preparing for service. They are to live and labor and sacrifice even unto death for the saving of humanity, for standing nearest to Christ means having drunk most deeply on earth of the spirit of His self-sacrificing love.
That remembered glory and voice were recalled in Gethsemane when glory was seen around Jesus as an angel came to strengthen Him. The sight reassured them that God had taken charge of Jesus and the angel would protect Him, so they need have no fear for Him. The earlier glory and the voice from the cloud had shown them that Jesus was under God's care.