2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.
5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)
7 Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”
8 Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.
11 And they asked him, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”
12 Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? 13 But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.”
It would be good to remember when approaching this passage that when Simon Peter responded to Jesus concerning who he believes him to be, Peter says, "You are the Messiah." He noticeably leaves out the second half of the designation that Mark tells his reader in the prologue. Jesus (and Mark) want disciples to understand that Jesus is not only Christ, but also son of God.
So with his halfway right definition, six days later (the specificity of this is a bit odd--six is a number that the Greeks believed symbolized imperfection--so perhaps Mark mentions it to remind the reader of Peter's incomplete faith) Peter and James and John are taken by Jesus up a high mountain. This immediately prepares us for either teaching or epiphany or both. In the Jewish tradition, it is on the tops of mountains that God reveals God's self to people.
There all alone with the inner circle of disciples, Jesus is changed. His clothes take on a heavenly pallor. It is clearly a divine event, as Mark tells us that no human could have bleached the garments as white as they became. This clearly prefigures the resurrection. Occurring where it does, near the middle of the gospel, this moment serves as an important marker and transition in the book. The new focus will be on Jesus death and resurrection rather than on wonders and teaching.
Suddenly Jesus is not alone as he is joined by Moses and Elijah in conversation. So there are two threesomes. One filled with people who understand what God is doing (Jesus, Moses and Elijah) and three who have no clue (Peter, James and John.). We have of course already come across Elijah's name before as both the disciples and Herod suggest that some believe Jesus is really a reanimated Elijah. Moses has been mentioned twice as well, in both instances with regard to the Law (once in reference to the decalogue and the other time for telling how to confirm a cleansing). It seems likely that these two figures are included to show that both the prophetic and the legal traditions point to and are in conversation with this new work of God in Jesus.
Peter continues to know exactly the half the right thing to say, as he correctly says that is good that they are able to be present but then suggests the building of shrines in which these great figures of the faith can reside. Mark further points to his lack of understanding by telling us that Peter did not know what to say. This however did not stop him from talking!
The cloud appears and from it comes the second part of the confession of Jesus' identity that Peter has not been able to say. "This is my son whom I love." The second part of the statement seems redundant and unnecessary. If Jesus is God's son, won't the disciples listen to him without any additional instruction? The short answer is no, but the longer answer is that they may listen, but like those Jesus has spoken of before they listen but do not understand.
As they descend the mountain, Jesus tells the disciples not to tell anyone about what they have seen until he rises from the dead. This is the second time (the first being after Peter's confession) Jesus has indicated to the disciples that he will be resurrected. They talk among themselves about what it means, whether Jesus has refused to explain himself or they are afraid to ask about it, we don't know.
But they do question Jesus about the primacy of the return of Elijah prior to the arrival of the Christ. Their question about why Elijah is to proceed the Messiah, once again shows the disciples more concerned with the questions of what it means that Jesus is the Christ rather than what the sonship means. Jesus (perhaps with a shrug?) patiently explains that Elijah has already returned and that the way is clear for Christ. He is clearly not referring to the most recent moment, but says that Elijah has returned and been mistreated. The disciples know that Elijah prophesied to and suffered under the leadership of a weak king (Ahab) and his evil wife (Jezebel). The identification then points implicitly to John who has prophesied to and been beheaded by a weak king (Herod) due to the machinations of his evil wife (Herodias).
There all alone with the inner circle of disciples, Jesus is changed. His clothes take on a heavenly pallor. It is clearly a divine event, as Mark tells us that no human could have bleached the garments as white as they became. This clearly prefigures the resurrection. Occurring where it does, near the middle of the gospel, this moment serves as an important marker and transition in the book. The new focus will be on Jesus death and resurrection rather than on wonders and teaching.
Suddenly Jesus is not alone as he is joined by Moses and Elijah in conversation. So there are two threesomes. One filled with people who understand what God is doing (Jesus, Moses and Elijah) and three who have no clue (Peter, James and John.). We have of course already come across Elijah's name before as both the disciples and Herod suggest that some believe Jesus is really a reanimated Elijah. Moses has been mentioned twice as well, in both instances with regard to the Law (once in reference to the decalogue and the other time for telling how to confirm a cleansing). It seems likely that these two figures are included to show that both the prophetic and the legal traditions point to and are in conversation with this new work of God in Jesus.Peter continues to know exactly the half the right thing to say, as he correctly says that is good that they are able to be present but then suggests the building of shrines in which these great figures of the faith can reside. Mark further points to his lack of understanding by telling us that Peter did not know what to say. This however did not stop him from talking!
The cloud appears and from it comes the second part of the confession of Jesus' identity that Peter has not been able to say. "This is my son whom I love." The second part of the statement seems redundant and unnecessary. If Jesus is God's son, won't the disciples listen to him without any additional instruction? The short answer is no, but the longer answer is that they may listen, but like those Jesus has spoken of before they listen but do not understand.
As they descend the mountain, Jesus tells the disciples not to tell anyone about what they have seen until he rises from the dead. This is the second time (the first being after Peter's confession) Jesus has indicated to the disciples that he will be resurrected. They talk among themselves about what it means, whether Jesus has refused to explain himself or they are afraid to ask about it, we don't know.
But they do question Jesus about the primacy of the return of Elijah prior to the arrival of the Christ. Their question about why Elijah is to proceed the Messiah, once again shows the disciples more concerned with the questions of what it means that Jesus is the Christ rather than what the sonship means. Jesus (perhaps with a shrug?) patiently explains that Elijah has already returned and that the way is clear for Christ. He is clearly not referring to the most recent moment, but says that Elijah has returned and been mistreated. The disciples know that Elijah prophesied to and suffered under the leadership of a weak king (Ahab) and his evil wife (Jezebel). The identification then points implicitly to John who has prophesied to and been beheaded by a weak king (Herod) due to the machinations of his evil wife (Herodias).
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