The English Standard Version Bible, Essay Example

Literary Criticism

Matthew’s description of Jesus’ Transfiguration found in 17:1-13.  The context of these parts of Matthew involves not only the travels and teachings of Jesus as he established his mission and his identity as the Messiah.  Many of these passages involve instances in which Jesus does amazing things, and then instructs his followers to not spread any news concerning what he had done.  The Gospel of Matthew is one of the four main parts of the New Testament.  Along with the Gospels of Mark and Luke, this part of the Bible discusses similar viewpoints concerning the life of Jesus.  For this reason, it is believed that these texts were developed in relation to one another.

In fact, both Matthew and Luke are believed by many scholars to have used the Gospel of Mark as their source of information, in addition to another hypothetical text that they simply call “Q”.  These sources, along with those that the author of Matthew had access to at the time, are believed to be the basis for the creation of this biblical passage.

Matthew 17:1-13 is a description of Jesus’ transfiguration atop a high mountain.  Here he is described as having his appearance changed by a divine light that radiates from him.  He is speaking with Moses and Elijah.  While his disciples, Peter, James, and John look on in awe, they offer to build the three prophets shelters.  When they are spoken to by a voice from a cloud in the sky they cower in fear, and Jesus then appears to them in his normal form and tells them they should not be afraid.

This passage appears after Matthew 15, where Jesus’ relationship with the Pharisees is discussed.  The verse is followed by more accounts of Jesus’ deeds, including healing a possessed child, predicting his death a second time, and discussing the temple taxes that have been imposed by the Pharisees.  While all of these passages do share in common various descriptions of the life and deeds of Jesus, those passages that precede and follow Matthew 17:1-13 further informed the Christians of the time concerning the actions and words of Jesus.  Although the description of the transfiguration itself is somewhat self-contained and is discussed in other nearby passages, the character of Jesus is discussed, which helps to clarify him as an individual.
Form criticism

This passage is essentially in the form of an epiphany.  It represents the fact that Jesus has revealed himself to his followers.  Within this passage, as well as other parts of the Bible, Moses and Elijah both play prominent roles in the representation of these epiphanies.  “While Peter is still speaking, the revelation reaches its climax as a radiant cloud, the revealing yet veiling symbol of God’s presence, descends upon and envelops the scene.  God is perceived not directly by sight but only through his word” (Meier, 190-191).  These characters were both important in the history of the Hebrew prophets.  Furthermore, both were spoken to by God, who revealed to them their roles towards the redemption of their people.  Jesus’s conversation with these two represents his connection to him, and the continuation of the line of prophets that they represent.

This account seems to be historic in its context; however, many of the descriptions within the passage utilize poetic and other figurative literary forms in order to help clarify the events.  This passage is an attempt to describe something that actually happened in history.  “The story as we have it is unquestionably a literary creation, not a fragment of tradition shaped by the processes of oral transmission.  There is not the slightest hope of recovering any element of historical fact that might conceivably lie behind it” (Beare, 361).  While modern scholars might tend to question the authenticity of the events as they are described, within the context of the Bible they are given as actual events that actually happened.  This is true with much of the Bible.  Although it is now questioned whether many of these events actually took place, even among religious scholars, at the time that the scriptures were written, they would have been considered to be an account of events as they actually occurred.

The use of simile in order to represent the way that Jesus was perceived by his followers created a poetic context for the passage.  “His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.” (Matthew 17:3)  This is an example of the descriptions that are attributed to Jesus throughout this passage, and in fact much of the New Testament itself.  The expression of his being in this way serves to represent his divinity and establish his identity as being of both heaven and earth.

Through the use of simile, these divine attributes are given to Jesus in order to help describe what he looked like during this encounter.  Although this sense of imagery is somewhat poetic, it expresses the purpose of the author’s views towards Jesus.  By attributing descriptions of him to heavenly bodies and natural phenomenon, he is established as being not only of the cosmos, but actually above and beyond it.

Within this passage, and in many other parts of the New Testament, Jesus uses the term “Son of Man” in reference to himself.  He asks his disciples not to give an account of what they saw until the “Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” (Matthew 17:9)   This term is not only meant to ground the narrative in a sense of historical accuracy and authority, but also to represent these individuals metaphorically in order to help understand what their roles in the world, and in history, are meant to be.
Structure

At the beginning of the passage the three followers are astonished to see that, somewhere on a high mountain, Moses and Elijah appear to talk to Jesus.  This passage shares parallels with many other parts of the bible in its descriptions of Jesus from the point of view of his followers.  “Matthew is primarily interested in how these disciples, who stand as prototypes for all later disciples, experience the Transfiguration.  Their falling to the ground and being “raised” by Jesus, as well as the introduction of the light symbolism, makes Matthew’s account more suggestive than Mark’s of what will happen at the resurrection” (Schweizer, 350).  While the descriptions of Jesus as he is talking to the two men focus on how he looks so much different than usual, he is depicted as being very kind and caring when he tells the men to stand.

This presents the structure of the passage as poetic, rather than based in absolute fact.  It is based in his need to represent the passages to an audience that he is attempting to impress these ideas upon.  In the descriptions of the voice they hear, there are parallels to other parts of the Bible in which men tremble in fear at hearing the voice of God.  The way in which his followers are made to tremble when they realize that they are hearing the voice of God from the cloud.  This pattern is representative of the reverence that the writer of the text had for their religion and the icons that make it up.  The trembling seems to be a representation of their humility in the face of their creator.

In the previous passage, Jesus begins to refer to himself as the Son of Man and instructs his followers to keep quiet about what they saw on the mountain until after he is crucified.  In this way, Jesus alludes to the fact that he will die.  The reference to his death and resurrection as “Son of Man” is a recurring theme, as well as his instructions to his disciples to not speak of his words, and the things they have seen, until this resurrection.  The associations that Jesus has as the Son of Man are also a recurring theme that seems to occur within the Bible, although it is not discussed directly in this passage.  This is a reference to the idea of Jesus as the representation of men in the eyes of God.

Redaction criticism

The gospel of Mathew is itself, a reexamination of the gospel of Mark.  Due to the need to reach a new audience, it was written by its author in order to provoke a certain and specific reaction.  The growth of the Christian church was, therefore, a deciding factor in the re-imagining and editing of this text.

Those who wrote the Gospels did not wish to reinvent the words or the deeds of Jesus.  Instead, they were concerned with invoking the inspiration that he provides in newer audiences.  The work of Mark, which was written many years after the death of Jesus, was intended for those who were among the generations that followed the witnessing of his coming.  Those of Mathew were a part of an even later generation, one that had only heard second or third hand accounts of the event.

Key words

The key phrase of this passage is its title, The “Transfiguration.”  This term refers to the events within the passage in which Jesus becomes enveloped in light while he is talking with Elijah and Moses.  The word essentially means to change or to be changed into something new.  This change represents the way in which Jesus became entirely different during this conversation.

Whether the change was something new or not, him returning to his original state is unknown.  However, after the three followers raise their heads after the prophets have departed, Jesus has returned once more to normal.  Whether it is new or not to Jesus himself, this term seems to be a foreshadowing of his coming change.  He will inevitably become, or return to, the radiance that they saw within him.  Furthermore, his death after being crucified will result in his resurrection, the ultimate culmination of this transformation.
The phrase “Son of Man” is also important.  While this phrase is used throughout the New Testament, in reference to Jesus himself, it is debated as to what its specific meaning is.  That is, there is a question as to why this term is specifically used to refer to him.  It is, in fact, how Jesus refers to himself.   “Son of Man,” in the Old Testament, referred to how God would speak to people.   There are various instances throughout the Bible where God speaks directly to the Hebrews, and they are referred to by god, individually, as “Son of Man.”

Scholars debate how this term has been translated within the old and New Testament, and whether or not these translations are, in fact, meant to have similar meanings.  Although the phrase appears often throughout the Bible, it is not easily understood what, exactly this term refers to.  While it is difficult to discern the intent behind the phrase, it is definitely being used differently in the New Testament than in the Old.  By adding this phrase, Matthew seems to be establishing the identity of Jesus as this prophesized figure.

Theological Analysis

What does this passage say about the relationship with God?
This passage expresses man’s relationship with God as through the divinity of Jesus as the son of God.  By expressing his divinity, Matthew is able to present him as having a connection with the historical figures of both Moses and Elijah.  By representing him as the son of God, he is able to go further than both the representations of Moses and Elijah, who, while prophets, were still merely human.  Jesus, on the other hand, is presented as being an expression of God on Earth, rather than simply a vessel that will ensure the implementation of his will.  The imagery seems to indicate that man will know the righteousness of God through Jesus.  “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”” (Mathew 17:5)  While the men were able to conceive of the divine light that was expressed through Jesus, the voice of the clouds caused them to tremble in fear.

Furthermore, the fact that Jesus himself has been selected by God is confirmed in this passage.  His followers see him bathed in light, as Moses’s followers had seen him after he had spoken with God.  They also see their ancestors standing before him.  This vision is further expressed by the voice of God that commands them to listen to his son, Jesus Christ.  In this sense, Jesus is established as the representative of man for God, and it is established that his words are, like Moses’s before him, essentially the voice of God on Earth.  God states that he is pleased with the teachings of Jesus. “But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant.” (Exodus: 34-35)  In this way, the teachings of Jesus are further strengthened with the legitimacy of the word of God.

What questions might this passage have addressed in the community for which it was originally written?

This passage brings to question issues regarding the community for which it was written.  The way that particular ideas and characters are approached will inevitably be presented in the context of how the author understood them.  “Is John introduced as the brother of James because he was less well known to the Matthaean community?” (Schweizer, 348).  This represents the idea that Matthew introduced characters in a way that the people that the passage was written for would understand them.

Works Cited

The English Standard Version Bible. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Print.

Beare, Francis Wright. The Gospel of Matthew. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1981.

Meier, John P. Matthew. Wilmington, Delaware: Michael Glazer, 1981.

Schweizer, Edward. The Good News According to Matthew. Tr. David E. Green.

Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975.