2 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. 4 And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. 5 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”— 6 because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. 7 And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!” 8 Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves. (Mark 9:2-8 ~NKJV)
Important Summary
- Jesus took three disciples, Peter, John and James.
- At the mountain, Jesus was transfigured; His clothes shone brighter than any earthly cleansing—symbolic of His attributes of divine purity and holiness.
- Moses and Elijah came and talked with Him, not to Him.
- The voice of God the Father spoke out of the cloud.
Peter, James and John
In theological studies, these three disciples are termed the “Inner Circle” for they apparently play a more central role in Jesus’ ministry than the rest of the twelve. It is these three that the Lord took with Him to the final place where His passion would begin with an agonizing session of prayers just before His arrest at the Garden of Gethsemane.
Much can be said about the role these three disciples played in laying the groundwork for the New Testament church. Certainly, there was a good reason why the Lord constantly took them to His most important moments leaving the other nine disciples out. I don’t mean to create any dogmatic notion about these disciples. Tracing their individual stories for the rest of their lives, you’ll realize that the special moments they spent with the Master had a predetermined purpose that came to play after the Lord’s ascension.
Moses and Elijah
Moses represents “the Law” while Elijah represents “the Prophets”. How much so? In the simplest form, the Law came by Moses (Joh 1:17). However, what is referred to as “the Law” in Holy Scriptures comprises the Ten Commandments and the entire code of laws given to Israel in the wilderness. These laws, numbering more than six hundred, touched on every aspect of Israeli community. They were laws on religious practice, interpersonal relations, disputes, hygiene, behavioral boundaries, and many other aspects of everyday life. The Pentateuch, i.e. the first five books of Moses; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy are also called the law. Torah is the Hebrew word for the Greek Pentateuch.
The prophets are God’s words spoken by prophets. These include Major prophets (so called for their voluminous nature—like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, etc.) Minor prophets are words of prophets whose volume is relatively small, like Jonah, Nahum, Obadiah etc. Books like Kings and Chronicles are categorized as prophets for obvious reasons. The important thing to note is that while the Bible does not have a book named after him, Elijah represents the prophets. Elijah’s accounts are recorded in the Kings and in the Chronicles. But why Elijah and not Isaiah or Jeremiah, or another prophet?
Elijah is famous for calling fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice as proof that Yahweh was the One true God Whom Israel ought to have worshipped. King Ahab had misled the people into following after foreign gods such as Baal and Ashtoreth. Elijah symbolizes God’s call for His people to return to His ordained statutes. In a sense, we can say the prophets called people back to the law of God. The law came first and was quickly forgotten and abandoned, necessitating the rise of prophets to reclaim and reinstate God’s ways to His people. Thus, the oft repeated phrase, “the law and the prophets” is a summary of God’s known will for His people in the entire Old Testament period.
The law and the prophets point to a better covenant (Heb 8:6). Moses prophesied that God would raise another prophet like him (Acts 3:22) who’d write the laws of God, not on stone tables, but in hearts of men. Israel recited that promise throughout their generations. The prophet Moses foretold is Jesus Christ. See what Christ’s first disciples said to each other; “Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” (John 1:45)
Mount of Transfiguration
Having said all that, let’s now return to our reference passage. Moses and Elijah came to Jesus at the mountain rather than Abraham and David, or Adam and Enoch. Why those two? As we’ve explained, it wasn’t about the two individuals, but what they represented. The law and the prophets were the basis of Israel’s relationships with God. There was no relationship with God outside of His written code. But all that changed with the coming of Jesus.
When the two ancients showed up at the mount, Peter got into talking. That he didn’t know what he was saying didn’t stop him from blurting out proposals. How Peter found a mouth to offer suggestions in the presence of three of God’s highest representatives is simply mind boggling. But that’s where many Christians are today. Folks are more eager to say something than to learn something. We live in times when Christians would rather impose their own ideas than learn God’s ways. They’ve not heard how on the day Aaron was consecrated Israel’s first High Priest two of his sons offered “strange fire” and died at the altar. (Lev 10:1). They’ve not heard how over fifty thousand snoopy Jews died at Beth-Shemesh for peeping into the Ark of Covenant (1 Sam 6:19). They don’t know God as a consuming fire.
Voice at the Mountain
It is to Jesus that Peter made his wild suggestion, thank God. Oh that we’d all solicit Jesus’ advice before implementing our ideas! Peter sought to build three tabernacles at the mount, one for Jesus and one for each of His heavenly guests. Well, he didn’t know what he was saying, did he? He was putting Jesus at the same pedestal with Moses and Elijah! He was equating the Old Covenant to the New! He was mixing up two dispensations that cannot run concurrently! Peter’s views were out of whack. He needed tuition urgently. Instantly, Jesus, Moses and Elijah were enveloped in a cloud. From that cloud, the Father spoke directly to the three disciples. “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!” With that, the cloud dissipated and there stood the Son of God alone; no Moses, no Elijah. Not the law, not the prophets—only Jesus, the Word of God in human flesh; Mediator of the New Covenant. Hear ye Him!
Moses and Elijah are never to be equated to the Son of God, just as servants are never equal to a master’s son. Jesus ushered a New Covenant—the Covenant of Grace. Righteousness is no longer a product of heeding the Law. It’s a gift of Grace. It comes by believing in the Son of God. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. (Joh 1:17) Did the Father say, “these are My beloved servants, hear ye them?” No, He singled out His beloved Son—Jesus Christ, the author of Salvation. His voice is all over the New Testament. Have you heard Him lately?