INTRODUCTION

Matthew’s account of Jesus’ transfiguration in Matthew 17 is the inspired disciple’s masterful way of connecting that the message of the law and the prophets was always about the anticipation and glory of Jesus, the King, the Son of God, and his Kingdom and would be realized at his resurrection from the dead. Everything Jesus does and teaches in Matthew’s account to be seen through this lens and to see the Messiah through another lens is in opposition to God’s purpose and plan. The purpose of this series is to demonstrate this and apply the intended lens Matthew expects of his readers to wear. This series is transcribed from an exegesis paper I wrote during my graduate studies and will be broken up into three parts. Part One will cover and deal with the Contextual Analysis Leading to Matthew 17:1-9. In this, we will discuss several key aspects surrounding our main text that will help us better understand the power in those short, nine verses in Matthew 17. In Part Two, we will give a thorough exegesis, a.k.a, A Detailed Analysis of Matthew 17:1-9. In Part Three, we will conclude with the Theology and Application of Matthew 17:1-9, and show how this section fits in the rest of the gospel account of Matthew and the New Testament, as well as how it applies to its initial readers and for us today.

CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS LEADING TO MATTHEW 17:1-9

The book of Matthew is believed to have been written by Matthew (also called Levi) the son of Alpheus, and one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, sometime before the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70. The book consists of 28 chapters telling the story of Jesus Christ but with Old Testament references, typology/ illusions, genealogy, and subject matter that appears to target a primarily Jewish initial audience. It is widely accepted that Matthew’s goal is to convince his Jewish readers that Jesus is in fact the Messiah and that he is the continuation and fulfillment of God’s work with Israel in the Old Testament. Matthew is written much like an ancient biography. It is not an exhaustive moment by moment of Jesus’ life but is designed to connect the Tanakh (The Old Testament) and the story of Jesus and his Kingdom as one. At the time of his writing, the world around Matthew and his readers was growing increasingly hostile not only to the Jewish people, but also Christianity. Matthew wants to show all Jewish people that hope rests not in civil uprising or restoring Israel as a physical kingdom like that of the era of David and Solomon, but it is in The Messiah’s Kingdom, the Church, where the true people of God, no matter their background or ethnicity, dwell.

How Matthew Shows Jesus to Be the Messiah

But if Jesus is in fact the Messiah, the son of God, what proof does Matthew use? The book is structured to show that Jesus is the Messiah, the giver of a New Law/Covenant, and that he is God amongst his people. He does this by first showing a genealogy that connects Jesus as both son of David and son of Abraham (Matthew 1). The fact that his account starts with this Jewish genealogy of 41 generations reveals Matthew’s intended audience. Jesus shares the Jewish reader’s heritage, but he is also the purpose and culmination of their heritage. For Jesus to be the Messiah, his lineage matters. By connecting Jesus to David, Matthew shows that Jesus is the prophetic fulfillment of the promise made to David back in 2 Samuel 7:11-16 and is rightfully heir to the throne. By calling Jesus the son of Abraham, he also bridges the promised Messiah to David with the promised seed to Abraham, through whom “all nations will be blessed” (Genesis 12:1-3). However, the genealogy has another powerful message that would stand out to Jewish readers. There is the appearance of four women in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew’s account: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. For a male-oriented society, this was unconventional to be used in a genealogy, and especially since each of these women are associated with several taboos in Jewish society: sexual scandal and gentile roots. God has been using all people to move his plan forward to bring all people back to him through the Messiah.

Then as the narrative begins, Matthew utilizes a promise-fulfillment theme to develop further his case for Jesus. Several times throughout the narrative of Matthew, the writer uses the phrases, “This was to fulfill” “It is written by the prophet” or “This took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet”. We see this in the Messiah’s virgin birth (Matthew 1:22-23; c.f. Isaiah 7:14) Bethlehem being the birthplace of the Messiah (Matthew 2:5-6; c.f. Isaiah 7:14) The Messiah’s exodus to Egypt and then his return to his people ( Matthew 2:15; c.f. Hosea 11:1) the slaughter of infants in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16-18; cf. Jeremiah 31:5) John preparing the way for the Messiah (Matthew 3:1-3; cf. Isaiah 40:3) The Messiah’s ministry being based out of Galilee (Matthew 4:13-16; cf. Isaiah 9:1-2) The Messiah being the hope of all nations as a servant (Matthew 12:17-21; Isaiah 42:1-4) and The Messiah teaching parables (Matthew 13:34-35; Psalm 78:2). This is more than just evidence, Matthew wants his readers to see that it was always God’s will that Jesus is the climax of not just Jewish history, but all human history. The other device that Matthew uses to help the reader better see the Jesus/Messiah connection is through typology, an ancient Jewish method showing the correspondence between heavenly pattern and its earthly counterpart.[1] By using typology, Matthew presents Jesus in his gospel account as a new and better Moses. As Moses brought Israel God’s law/covenant to Israel from Mount Sinai establishing them as God’s people, Jesus from a “mount” gives a sermon showcasing the nature of his Kingdom and its inhabitants under the new covenant (Matthew 5-7). Jesus ushers in a new era that is the fulfillment of Moses’ ministry and the Old Testament (Matthew 5:17). Jesus is also seen in Matthew as a new, better Israel, retelling the story of the nation, but through Jesus. From the very beginning his origins are like that of Israel; He is a son of both Abraham and David (Matthew 1.1-2); he too went down into Egypt and would be called out of Egypt (Matt 2.15; Hos 11.1). Israel was transformed from slave to free upon their crossing of the red sea (a sort of ‘baptism’; see Paul’s comment in 1 Cor 10.1-2) to move forward in their purpose as God’s son. Jesus was baptized in Matthew 3 as a major moment of transition in his life to his ministry as God’s beloved Son (Matt 3.17). Following Israel’s “baptism” (i.e., crossing the Red Sea) they are tested for 40 years in the wilderness, of which they fail time and time again. After Jesus’ baptism, he is tested in the wilderness for 40 days, and unlike Israel, this Son remains faithful and obedient to His Father (Matt 4.1-11). The first Israel’s story ends in faithlessness and God’s glory leaving the people. The second “Israel”, Jesus, demonstrated faithfulness to his Father, radiating God’s glory perfectly, as will be further addressed in this article.

A Brief Study on the Glory of God

To better understand the scene in Matthew 17, it helps to understand a recurring theme that runs from the Old Testament through the New Testament, The glory of God. The glory of God is his majesty, his splendor and his beauty as demonstrated to humanity (Neh 9.5; Eph 1.17; Ps 19.1; 24). It is also his holiness, his attributes, his ethics, etc. (to sin is to “fall short of the glory of God”; Rom 3.23). The presence of his glory throughout the narrative and history of Israel is important to also discuss considering the book of Matthew. In the Old Testament, the glory of God is frequently shown in the form of theophany, “the visible manifestation of deity”.[2] Images of light, cloud, smoke, and fire are heavily associated with God’s glory. For example, we see this as Moses approaches the burning bush (Ex 3.2) and the presence of God in the pillar of cloud and fire that guided Israel in the wilderness (Ex 13.21-22). When Israel encamps at the base of Mount Sinai, God’s glory consumes the top of the mountain “like a devouring fire” and a cloud (Ex 24.15-18). Moses also receives a brief glimpse of the glory of God, and when he comes down from the mountain his own face is radiant with light (i.e., glory) that he must be veiled because of the people’s fear (Ex 33.18-23; 34.29-35). Upon the building of the tabernacle, God’s glory filled it (Ex 40:34-38) demonstrating that he was with them and that he lead them (Num 10.11-12). We also see in the scriptures that Israel could lose God’s glory from their midst due to their unfaithfulness. Further in their history and on the tail of the brutal period of the Judges, in 1 Samuel 4, the ark of the covenant is lost in battle against the Philistines. A child is named Ichabod during this period, because “the glory has departed from Israel (1 Sam 4.21-22). The glory of God makes no appearance as a cloud before Israel until the ark is recovered. Years later, then the cloud of Glory fills the temple built by Solomon and fire devours the offerings (2 Chronicles 5.13-6.1; 7.1-3). The psalmists celebrate Jerusalem and the temple as the place where his glory dwells (Ps 26.8; 63.2; 85.9) rejoicing that God was in their midst. But then, the further in Israel’s history, after the split of the kingdom, Israel’s relationship with God is fractured because of sin. Ezekiel 8 spends a great deal of time showcasing the atrocities of Israel. When we get to Ezekiel 10 and 11, we see a people that didn’t worship God alone anymore and were guilty of celebrating their idolatry. The people of that generation were so far from God that Ezekiel 10:18 records, “The glory of the LORD departed from the threshold of the temple…”. From that moment forward, for nearly 600 years, there’s no cloud or fire of glory, no tabernacle, no temple. God’s glory left Israel. But once we get to Matthew, we see God’s glory return as a child named Immanuel was born (Matt 1.22-23). We see God’s kingdom coming in glory and power as its message, nature, and foundation is realized in the work of the Messiah, Jesus. The event of Matthew 17, the transfiguration of Jesus, is another powerful reminder of this.

The Immediate Context Before Matthew 17:1-9

So, where does Matthew 17 pick up in this sweeping epic of the Messiah? Before attention is given to Matthew 17:1-9, highlighting what Matthew has been showcasing up to this point is imperative. With the book of Matthew, one can’t drop in the middle of the context and hope to understand the theological flow. As discussed earlier, In Matthew 1 through 10, Matthew spends time showing the obvious reasons why Jesus is the Messiah through genealogy, prophecy, typology, etc. In Matthew 11-13 we see the various responses to Jesus as the Messiah. Some would embrace him as Messiah, some like John the Baptizer (11.1-3) and Jesus’ family would question and struggle with an understanding of him being the Messiah (11.46-49), and others, like the religious leaders would absolutely reject him as Messiah, going as far as saying that he is a worker of the Devil (12.24). Jesus, perfectly understanding the hearts of men, explains the responses to his message in the parable of the Soils in Matthew 13. In Chapters 14 through 16, we see Jesus feed 5,000 people, healing the sick, walking on water, and performing many other miracles. For some of Israel as well as gentiles (the Canaanite woman in 15.21-28), the oppressed and afflicted, they respond in praise (15.29-31). The religious leaders, however, continue to increase in their opposition to Jesus, accusing of him of disobedience to Jewish law and traditions (15.1) demanding signs (16.1-12) and bore a misconception of the Messiah as a physical ruler who would overthrow their pagan oppressors, of which Jesus did not meet. Jesus withdraws with his disciples into the district of Caesarea Philippi and begins to question them on the misconceptions of who the Messiah (i.e., the Son of Man) really is. The events of Matthew 17 follow immediately after Peter’s declaration of who Jesus really is (Matt 16.13-20). Peter says that he is the Christ (Messiah), a term, which by the 1st century was a title associated with the deliverer whom God would use to deliver his people. Peter also declares him to be the Son of the Living God, a title heavily associated with the coming Messiah (2 Sam 7.14; Ps 2.7). It also follows where Jesus gives the first prediction in Matthew of his death and resurrection (16.21-23) and that suffering was imminent for him and his followers, though being completely worth it. Everyone had a different perspective on who the Messiah really was and what his purpose would be. Peter, though declares Jesus to be the Messiah, will show in this section and the primary text of study that even he struggled with what the Messiah was to accomplish. Jesus, declared to be the Messiah, “…must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised…’ (16.21). His death is necessary because his resurrection is necessary. Without such, he is not the Messiah. This completely goes against the popular sentiment that Peter and many in his day held of the Messiah being a victorious physical warrior in the like manner of David, not willingly die at the hand of his enemies. Jesus rebukes him showing him that his misconception is rooted in mankind and that Jesus’ suffering and resurrection are the “things of God…” (16.23) The conclusion of the chapter in verses 27 and 28 is crucial as we come to the Transfiguration in chapter 17. Jesus says, “For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” Through that suffering, pain, humiliation, the Glory of the Son of man is made possible. The disciples also get a timestamp of when the glory of God would be fully displayed in the Messiah as he comes into his Kingdom. The phrase, Son of Man, is a messianic title and is a clear echo back to Daniel 7:14, in which the prophet writes, “…and to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom…”. Son of Man is frequently employed by Jesus himself as opposed to just Messiah, though they both are synonymous in their true meaning. It not only denoted his humanity, but that he was appointed by God to be the one who would truly live what God always intended for man to be from the time in the Garden of Eden, be the redeemer, and thus bring in a new humanity (i.e. creation), the church. As the gospel account of Matthew ends and following Jesus’ death, burial, and glorious resurrection, he declares his dominion and authority as king as something that has been given to his possession (Matthew 28.18). In Matthew 17, with the scene of transfiguration, we see three of the disciples get a temporary glimpse of the glory that would permanently be Jesus’ upon his resurrection, thus linking Jesus’ declaration in 16.28 and the resurrection with what takes place in Matthew 17. R.T. France in his commentary, The Gospel of Matthew, wrote, “Matthew…saw in this vision at least a proleptic [anticipating, foreshadowing] fulfillment of Jesus’ solemn words in [16.28] even though the truth of Jesus kingship was to be more concretely embodied in later events following his resurrection…”[3]

In Part Two we will begin breaking down the text itself in light of the context we just discussed and the intended meaning of the author, Matthew, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

CITATIONS

[1] Treier, Daniel J., and Walter A. Elwell. Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Baker Academic, a Division of Baker Publishing Group, 2017.

[2] “Theophany Definition & Meaning.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/theophany.

[3] France, R. T. The Gospel According to Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary. Inter-Varsity Press, 2008.