NOTES for Mar 9:2-13
Of all the Lord's testimonies, the apostle Peter singles out the Transfiguration: “We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with Him on the holy mountain” (2 Pet 1:18). On that day a “cloud” appeared to the apostles—a sign of God's presence. A similar “cloud” stood over Sinai and over the tabernacle in Moses' day; it filled the temple in Solomon's day; and the disciples saw this same “cloud” at the Ascension of Jesus Christ. The apostle Peter would call this cloud “majestic glory” (2 Pet 1:17). Peter speaks of “booths” (tents), as though wishing to prolong the miracle; perhaps he supposes that the Kingdom of God has already come and will last forever. God Himself answers him: the Heavenly Father calls Jesus His beloved Son, greater than the prophets Moses and Elijah, and commands the disciples to obey Him. The disciples were allowed to see Christ's glory, but for Jesus the path to glory led through Golgotha, and they too would have to follow this same way of the Cross. The Father's final word on the day of the Transfiguration concerns obedience. The apostles did not immediately understand what Jesus, Moses, and Elijah had been speaking about, but they were speaking of His crucifixion (see Lk 9:31). The disciples would be able to understand the meaning of the Transfiguration fully only after becoming witnesses to the Resurrection; therefore the Lord commands them to say nothing of what they had seen until then.
Why could the disciples not understand His prophecy about the Resurrection? At that time many Jews believed in the resurrection of the dead (the Pharisees, for example—see Acts 23:6–8). But to rise again, one must first die. Could the disciples imagine that the Messiah would die? They recall the prophet's words that Elijah must appear before the coming of the Kingdom (see Mal 4:4–6). Without entering into an interpretation of the prophecy, Jesus replies, “Elijah has already come, and they did to him whatever they pleased” (pointing to John the Baptist, who had been beheaded—compare Mt 17:12). Once again He speaks of the sufferings that await Him.
The way into the Kingdom of God is the way of obedience and the way of the Cross. We often expect special revelations, miracles, and signs from the Lord, but are we prepared to bear our own cross in obedience? May the Lord reveal His glory to us so that we may walk in His way!