Mark 9:2-9 (NRSV)
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Verse 2Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, Verse 3and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. Verse 4And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Verse 5Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." Verse 6He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Verse 7Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!" Verse 8Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.
Verse 9As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
Devotion
The highest moment of revelation for Jewish people is perhaps the moment when God met Moses on the mountain after six days (Ex. 24:16). Now, in the "six days later," that moment is remembered as Jesus goes up not merely a mountain, but a "high" mountain, and is "transfigured" before them with glowing clothes. But in this case, the substance of the revelation is not what he received, but rather his own person: "This is my Son, the Beloved."
There seems to be fulfillment here. What Moses was, Jesus now is in fuller measure. If God made his will known to Moses, he now makes his own Self known in Jesus. If there was the assurance of encountering the will of the living God on Mount Sinai, how much more is the assurance of meeting him face to face on the Mount of Transfiguration. In the end, it is not "Jesus, Moses, and Elijah," but "only Jesus."
Prayer
Gather the hopes and fears of all. Unite them with the prayers we offer. Grace our table with your presence, Lord Jesus Christ. In your name, Amen.