He was transfigured before them

Transfiguration icon (mosaic) - St. Catherine's Monastery, Mt. Sinai - 6th century

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. His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. 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" -- because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!" Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves.

Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant. And they asked Him, saying, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" Then He answered and told them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him."

- Mark 9:2-13

In the previous reading, Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I am?" The answers came: "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets." Then He asked them, " But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ." Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him. Then Jesus began to teach what is to happen, how He will suffer and be rejected. He will be killed, and after three days will rise again. He spoke this word openly. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men." But Jesus called the people to Himself and told them they must take up their cross, and follow Him. "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" He said that those who are ashamed of Him, He will be ashamed of when He comes into His kingdom with the Father and the Holy angels. He added, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power." See Who do men say that I am? Who do you say that I am?

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. His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. The quotation at the end of the previous reading tells us what we need to know about this experience of the Transfiguration. It is a revelation, a glimpse, of "the kingdom of God present with power." The glory of God is in the shining brightness, something beyond white, "like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them." In many icons, light that shines beyond bright white is portrayed in blue, so that one understands this is an outstanding heavenly light, not something experienced normally in our world. Just His inner circle is present: Peter and the Zebedee brothers, John and James.

And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. 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" -- because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. The fullness of the kingdom is revealed in the presence of Moses and Elijah: the Law and the Prophets. My study bible points out two very interesting things: First, that this revelation of glory happens immediately after He teaches the disciples (especially Peter) about His coming suffering. It is, therefore, a reassurance of the truth of His kingdom, that though He is to suffer, He is also the Lord of Glory. (Only His Resurrection after death will be a greater sign of His divinity.) Secondly, it notes that Peter's immediate recognition of Moses and Elijah is "a glimpse of the glory that is to be revealed (Romans 8:18), where introductions will not be needed."

And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!" Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves. This cloud appears for the benefit of the disciples. It is also linked with the history of Israel in the Scriptures, as the Pillar of Cloud led the Israelites in the wilderness. (Thus, the cloud also links Peter's suggestion of making tabernacles or tents for Elijah and Moses; the Feast of Tabernacles celebrating this time of Exodus, when Israel dwelled in tents.) The Father's voice speaks to them, giving the command "Hear Him!" in what is the present imperative form. As my study bible puts it, this means "listen always." In the Greek, the form is in second person plural: in this sense, the voice is speaking to us all. We are to continually listen and hear His commands. The voice of the Father tells us about the word of the Son. As suddenly as the revelation comes, it is gone again; it is a glimpse of what is that has been revealed to them.

Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant. Again, there is a need for secrecy, but only for so long, only until the even greater revelation is to come. But what this means, even that they don't understand. What does the rising from the dead mean?

And they asked Him, saying, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" Then He answered and told them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him." There is a very important expression in this reading about what prophesy and revelation mean, and our capacity to understand them and interpret their unfolding. The prophesy existed among popular expectation, and was foretold by Malachi. Jesus' interpretation of the prophesy is that Elijah has already come -- for Him, the spirit of Elijah has already come through John the Baptist. The prophesy has already been fulfilled. Jesus cites other prophesy concerning the Son of Man.

There are powerful and important indications in this reading about what we know, what we expect, and how we expect things to come about. Prophesy is and was well-known not only to these disciples but to the whole of the Jewish people, particularly those who (for the most part) would reject Jesus, the Pharisees and scribes. But when a prophesy is made, none of us can say what it will look like as it is fulfilled in God's time and God's way. We can't say when it will happen or how. Many popular expectations and interpretations will arise concerning it. Our own expectations can't be relied on to tell us exactly what God will reveal when God does so. The disciples, here, taught directly by Jesus what will happen to Him, and what even greater sign (Resurrection) will be shown to them, cannot fathom what He can be talking about. They cannot understand in the slightest why He commands silence, nor what rising from the dead can mean. They don't know what the kingdom will look like when it comes nor how it will come -- and these are the closest to Christ, His very inner circle. So, I think we should take with a grain of salt all expectations and predictions and what we can make of prophesy. We have to leave a wide margin for the mystery and awesome power of God to be at work in our lives and in our world in ways we could never expect. Later on, we may have that familiar feeling of an "Aha!" kind of moment, as in, "So that's what that means!" -- a kind of experience we may have had many times after receiving a description of something we just couldn't envision ourselves. It's my belief that we have to remember that God's word is something that comes from beyond us, and we must leave a wide berth for however it may play out or manifest in our lives and in our world. In the time that God has in mind, we simply don't know what is best. And we don't know what God may have in mind for us either. So, take heart in the confusion of the disciples. If they didn't understand what is happening, it can't really be expected that we will always know what is best, or have a clear idea of what is coming. The only thing we can do is trust. We rely on faith in relationship to God, even if that may be the toughest thing we can imagine at a given moment of personal challenge. I'm certain that my readers may have had just this type of moment -- if not many of them -- themselves!