And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him.
Read Chapter 17
George Leo Haydock
AD 1849
Moses and Elias. Jesus Christ had been taken by the people for Elias, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He therefore chose the chief of all the prophets to be present, that he might show his great superiority over them, and verify the illustrious confession of Peter. The Jews had accused Christ of blasphemy, and of breaking the sabbath; the presence of Moses and Elias refuted the calumny; for the founder of the Jewish laws would never have sanctioned him who was a transgressor of those laws; and Elias, so full of zeal for the glory of God, would never have paid homage to one who made himself equal to God, had he not really been the Son of the Most High. (St. Chrysostom, hom. lvii.)
St. Hilary thinks that Moses and Elias (who represent the law and the prophets, and who here bear witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ,) will be the precursors of his second coming, alluded to in Revelations, chap. xi, though the general opinion of the Fathers is, that the two witnesses there mentioned a...
While the scribes and Pharisees were testing him, he was unwilling to give signs from heaven to those demanding them; however, he silenced their perverse demand with a prudent response. Here, indeed, so that he might increase the faith of the apostles, he gave a sign from heaven. Thereupon Elijah descended from the place to which he had ascended. Moses rose from the lower regions. .
But wherefore does He also bring forward Moses and Elias? One might mention many reasons. And first of all this: because the multitudes said He was, some Elias, some Jeremias, some one of the old prophets, He brings the leaders of His choir, that they might see the difference even hereby between the servants and the Lord; and that Peter was rightly commended for confessing Him Son of God.
But besides that, one may mention another reason also: that because men were continually accusing Him of transgressing the law, and accounting Him to be a blasphemer, as appropriating to Himself a glory which belonged not to Him, even the Father's, and were saying, This Man is not of God, because He keeps not the Sabbath day; John 9:16 and again, For a good work we stone You not, but for blasphemy, and because that Thou, being a man, makest Yourself God: John 10:33 that both the charges might be shown to spring from envy, and He be proved not liable to either; and that neither is His conduct a tran...
He is transfigured to manifest the glory of the cross, to console Peter and the others in their dread of the Passion and to bring their minds to elevated understanding. Those who went up with him did not hold their peace but were destined to speak of the glory which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem—of his Passion and the glory of the cross. And not only did Jesus elevate their understanding, but also he brought their virtues to a higher level, so that they could meet the requirements expected of them. He had just said, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” He then set before them Moses and Elijah, who were ready to die ten thousand times for God’s decrees and for the people entrusted to them. Each of them, having lost his life, found it. For each of them both spoke boldly to tyrants, the one to the Egyptian, the other to Ahab. They spoke on behalf of heartless and disobedient people. They were brought into extreme danger by the v...
What were they talking about? "The ending," says Luke, "which He should accomplish in Jerusalem" (Lk. 9:31), namely, the Cross. Why did Moses and Elijah appear? To show that He is Lord of the law and of the prophets, and of the living and of the dead. For Elijah was a prophet and still lived, while Moses was a lawgiver and had died. They also appeared so that it might be seen that He was opposed neither to the law nor to God, for Moses would not have spoken with one opposed to his own laws, nor would Elijah the zealot have endured one who was opposed to God. And they appeared for yet another reason, to prove false the opinion of those who said that He was Elijah or one of the prophets. How did the disciples know that these two were Moses and Elijah? Not of course from icons, for at that time it was considered impious to draw pictures of men. It would seem, then, that they recognized them by the words which they were speaking. For Moses perhaps was saying, "Thou art He whose Passion I p...
