!"#$%"&'& & Eduardo Garcia October 25, 2011 Dr. Robbins Religion 350
The Transfiguration of Jesus
In this paper, I will explore the purpose of the transfiguration of Jesus in the different gospels by evaluating its contribution to the themes present in the gospel. Matthew and Luke explore two different reoccurring events and they use the transfiguration to support the topic that they are discussing. My thesis is that the gospel of Matthew, views the transfiguration as one of
‘the mountain’ events that occur in the gospel while Luke presents the transfiguration as an event that happens as a result of Jesus’ prayer. Both gospels suggest that during the mountain and prayer events, Jesus transcends the earthly realm and his divinity is emphasized by what happens during these events. In the gospel of Luke, when Jesus is praying he is greeted by divine beings that descend from Heaven. In two occasions, while Jesus is praying, God speaks to Him directly and to the people who are nearby offering recognition that Jesus is his Son. The gospel of
Matthew on the other hand, stages some of the events that reveal Jesus’ divinity on a mountain.
These events can be juxtaposed with some of the events that happen in Exodus highlighting the fact that the similarities presents Jesus as the New Moses in the gospel of Matthew.
In the gospel of Matthew, the transfiguration can be interpreted as one of ‘the mountain’ events because Jesus is transfigured at the top of a high mountain. After the ascension into the mountain, there are no events prior to the transfiguration; this focuses the reader’s attention on the setting and its importance for the transfiguration. When Jesus is transfigured not only is the mountain important; there is a direct parallel that is made when Matthew mentions that, “his face shone like the sun” (Matt 17:2) this incident is parallel to what happens to Moses’ face when he descends from Mount Sinai to deliver the word of God. “When Moses came down from Mount !"#$%"&(& & Sinai…he was not aware that his face was radiant” (Exod 34:29). In both gospels, Jesus’ and
Moses’ face shines with great radiance as they enter the presence of the Lord and the people near
Jesus are overcome with fear. By mentioning that Jesus’ face shone like the sun, Matthew is comparing Jesus to Moses in order to emphasize the theme of Jesus as the New Moses.
One of the most significant events in the gospel of Matthew that demonstrates the similarities between Moses and Jesus is the Sermon on the Mount. This paramount event is also considered on the mountain events that occur in the gospel of Matthew. “The setting of Jesus’ sermon merits comparison with the setting of Moses delivering the Law to the people of Israel at the base of Mount Sinai” (Scholz 89). In both gospels, Jesus and Moses go up a high mountain to teach the word of the Lord to the people. The difference that exists in these two events is that in Matthew, Jesus reinterprets the teachings that Moses had received initially. This example shows Matthew’s attempt to tell the story of Jesus as the New Moses by mirroring Moses’ actions. In addition to this, the setting of this event is crucial to the gospel because it happens on a mountain. Unlike Luke who refers to this teaching as the Sermon on the Plain, Matthew’s choice to stage the Sermon on a mountainside is vital to highlight the importance that the mountain events have on the gospel.
In addition, the opening and closing of Matthew’s gospel include two paramount events that are staged on a mountain. We can see through these two events that the mountain theme plays a crucial role in the story of Jesus. In the opening of the gospel, when Jesus is tempted by the devil for a third time, he is taken to the top of a mountain (Matt 4:8-11). After the devil leaves, an angel comes to attend Jesus. The last chapter in Matthew shows the disciples going to
“the mountain” that Jesus had instructed them to go to and there they see the resurrected Jesus
(Matt 28:16). The language that is used here is very important because there is an emphasis on !"#$%"&)& & “the mountain”. There is no mention on the name of the mountain but the fact that both the opening and the closing of the gospel are staged on a mountain is important to the theme that
Matthew is working with. Throughout the gospel, Jesus mentions that with faith you can move mountains and on a mountain he feeds 4000. The reoccurrence of this theme and its relationship to the transfiguration illustrates that ‘the mountain’ is a very important theme in the gospel of
Matthew.
In contrast, Luke utilizes prayer as one of the central themes in the gospel. The first time that Jesus prays in the gospel of Luke, the Holy Spirit descends from heaven in the form of a dove and God speaks saying “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” (Luke
3:21-22). As a result of prayer, Jesus is sent a heavenly signal for the crowds to see that He is the Son of God and reassurance from God that He is well pleased with his son. Similar to this event, the transfiguration is also a result of Jesus’ prayer. When He goes up the mountain with his disciples he begins to pray (omitted in the gospel of Matthew). When he is praying, Moses and Elijah come to speak to Jesus about his departure. When the disciples become terrified, God speaks to them and says “this is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!’ (Luke 9:35). Both events happen as a result of Jesus’ devotion to prayer and praise of his heavenly father.
A third event that is emphasized as a result of prayer is when Jesus is given comfort on the Mount of Olives as he prays before he is betrayed. Once he is alone he says, “‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.’ [Then] an angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.” (Luke 22:42-43). This event shows that Jesus’ prayer was answered by the comfort of a divine being. Jesus’ greatest lesson in the gospel of
Luke is prayer. Here we see that Jesus is teaches by example and that he lives the word that he preaches. !"#$%"&*& & Through prayer, Luke illustrates that Jesus is “a praying prophet-messiah” (Robbins
2011, 17). We see that Jesus is anointed by the Holy Spirit after his baptism; “this coming of the
Holy Spirit while Jesus is praying appears to be Jesus’ special ‘anointing by the spirit’” (Robbins
2011, 5). In the other two events explored above, Jesus is visited by an angel and by Moses and
Elijah. These events show that Jesus’ prayers were always answered and that he was given strength and comfort. This is an example of Jesus’ teaching to always pray and never give up
(Luke 18:1). It also shows that prayer is a very powerful theme in the gospel of Luke. Prayer is highlighted by emphasizing the power that emerges from these events.
In conclusion, we see that Matthew elaborates on the theme of ‘the mountain’ events when writing his gospel while Luke focuses on the theme of prayer to write his gospel. Both centers of focus fulfill different goals and they show Jesus and the events that happen in the gospel through a different lens. Even though the transfiguration of Jesus has the same overall meaning and story line, we can see that the choice to focus on two different themes changes the interpretation of this event completely. In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus is presented as the New
Moses and the transfiguration is understood to work within the network of the mountain events.
Luke, however, focuses on prayer to present the transfiguration as a cause-and-effect event. We can see that the focus is placed on the emphasis of power in prayer to explain why the transfiguration happens. Prayer and its effects are highlighted throughout the entire gospel of
Luke and it works to create the theme around which the transfiguration circulates. Although these two themes are very different, they both demonstrate Jesus’ divine power.
!"#$%"&+& & Matthew 17:1-13 Luke 9:28-36 Opening Opening O: Six days later, Jesus took with him O: 28 Now about eight days after these Peter and James and his brother John and sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John led them up a high mountain, by and James, and went up on the mountain to themselves. pray. M: 2And he was transfigured before them, M: 29And while he was praying, the and his face shone like the sun, appearance of his face changed, C:. and his clothes became dazzling C: and his clothes became dazzling white white.
Middle Middle O: 3Suddenly there appeared to them O: 30Suddenly they saw two men, Moses Moses and Elijah, talking with him 4Then and Elijah, talking to him. Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three M: 31They appeared in glory and were dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, speaking of his departure, which he was and one for Elijah.’ about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
32 M:. 5While he was still speaking, suddenly C: Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they a bright cloud overshadowed them, and had stayed awake, they saw his glory and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my the two men who stood with him. Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’
C: 6When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Get up and do not be afraid.’ 8And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. Closing Closing O: 9 As they were coming down the O: 33Just as they were leaving him, Peter mountain, Jesus ordered them, ‘Tell no one said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to about the vision until after the Son of Man be here; let us make three dwellings, one has been raised from the dead.’ for you, one for Moses, and one for M: 10And the disciples asked him, ‘Why, Elijah’—not knowing what he said. then, do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ M: 34While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they C: 11He replied, ‘Elijah is indeed coming were terrified as they entered the cloud. 12 and will restore all things; but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did !"#$%"&,& &
35 not recognize him, but they did to him C: Then from the cloud came a voice that whatever they pleased. So also the Son of said, ‘This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!’ 36When the voice had spoken, Jesus Man is about to suffer at their hands.’ was found alone. And they kept silent and 13 Then the disciples understood that he was in those days told no one any of the things speaking to them about John the Baptist. they had seen.
Reoccurrence of Themes
Mountain in Matthew 4:8; 5:1; 8:1; 14:23; 15:29; 17:1; 17:9,20; 21:21; 24:16; 28:16. Prayer in Luke 1:10,13; 2:37; 3:21; 5:16,33; 6:12,28; 9:18,28,29; 11:1,2; 18:1,10,11; 19:46; 20:47;21:36; 22:32,39,40,41,44,45,46.
!"#$%"&-& & Works Cited
BibleGateway. 25 Oct. 2010.
Robbins, Vernon. Exploring the Texture of Texts. Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 1996. Print. Robbins, Vernon. The Invention of Christian Discourse. UK: Deo Publishing, 2009. Print. Robbins, Vernon. The Socio-Rhetorical Role of Old Testament Scripture in Luke 4-19. Online posting. 81-93.
Scholz, Daniel. Jesus in the Gospels and Acts. Winona: Christian Brothers Publications, 2009. Print.