Matt 17:1-20

 Mat 17:1-8

1 And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart: 2 and he was transfigured before them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light. 3 And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him. 4 And Peter answered, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. 5 While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. 7 And Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid. 8 And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only.

1. Vs1 After six days? Which day is it? Seven

2. Vs1 Why Peter, James and John?

1. Mat 16:27-28 

27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. 28 Verily I say unto you, There are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

So on day 7, Jesus comes in the glory of His father with His angels…in the Glory of His Father. Did He come in the glory of His Father the first time?

So some of them that stand there will see this? Peter, James and John. But in John 17, it happens on day 7. So who will see Jesus coming? His closest disciples on day 7

3. Vs1 He takes them up to a high mountain. What mountain? Prob metaphoric for Rev 14:1-4

1. Rev 14:1-2 

1 And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on the mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty and four thousand, having his name, and the name of his Father, written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and the voice which I heard was as the voice of harpers harping with their harps:

Voice of many waters? Jesus

Voice of Thunder? God?

4. Vs2 "he was transfigured before them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light"

1. Joh 1:4-5 

4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness apprehended it not.

2. Joh 1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.

3. Gen 1:1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

4. Gen 1:3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

5. Vs3 Moses and Elijah? Why?

6. Vs4 Why does Peter want to build a tabernacle for Jesus, Elijah, and Moses?

1. Unsure. Did they normally build Tabernacles at night when they were going through the desert or wilderness?

2. Maybe this Tabernacle represents the church's tendency to build a monument on something they consider a holy event such as Azusa Street?

7. Vs5 Notice a bright cloud overshadowed them. What cloud?

1. Act 1:9 

And when he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

2. Act 1:11 who also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into heaven? this Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.

8. Vs5 "voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him."

1. The is the 7th day voice of God thundering out of the cloud giving Jesus the credit.

9. Vs6 Who hears this voice and is terrified? Those on day 7 that He brings to the top of the mountain. His closest disciples.

1. Think of any other instances that Jesus appears differently and the disciples are freaked?

 

1. When the disciples see Jesus walking on the water as a ghost.

Altho that seemed to be all the disciples. Not just the inner circle.

What we see here in Mat 17 is different. Only the inner circle gets to witness this.

10.  Vs7 Jesus comes over and gently tells them not to be afraid. He is just revealed himself in a completely different way to his inner circle and only his inner circle. 

1. This is important..his 7th day appearance to his inner circle where they witness Jesus coming in a much greater glory than they have ever witnessed.

2. We will soon see why.

11. Vs8 Looking up, the disciples realize everything has vanished. Just them and Jesus on the high mountain.

Mat 17:9-13

9 And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen from the dead. 10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? 11 And he answered and said, Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things: 12 but I say unto you, that Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they would. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. 13 Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

1. Vs9 Why might Jesus not want them to tell anybody? Not sure. 

1. Maybe He didn't want word to get out that he truly was God? 

2. Maybe he didn't want a short circuit His plan to go to the cross?

2. Vs9 What did Jesus call the event in verse 9?  A vision

3. Vs10-11 As they were coming down the mountain, the disciple start asking Jesus questions about Elijah. It's not entirely clear why but maybe something happened with Elijah on the mountain and peaked their interest?

1. The scribes must have insisted that Elijah must come first? First before what? I'm guessing before the Messiah?

2. I wonder if the scribes thought that Elijah himself would come down from heaven because he never died. He was taken up in a chariot. Did this prevent people from recognizing John the Baptist?

4. Vs11 Notice that Jesus says Elijah indeed cometh…as if there is still a future coming of Elijah

5. Vs12 Jesus states in verse 12 that Elijah already came and they didn't recognize him. 

1. So can we assume that the religious people had been looking for a second appearance of Elijah?

 

2. Having no idea that the person would come with the spirit of Elijah and not physically be Elijah?

6. Vs12 because the people didn't recognize John the Baptist who had the SPIRIT of Elijah, they kill him. And Jesus prophesies that the people will kill him also.

1. We can assume that Jesus did not want Peter James and John to run down the mountain and tell everybody that Jesus was God and that he comes with the authority of God…

7. Vs13 Seems at this point, the disciples finally really the coming of Elijah was in John the Baptist…

Mat 17:14-20

14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a man, kneeling to him, and saying, 15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is epileptic, and suffereth grievously; for oft-times he falleth into the fire, and oft-times into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me. 18 And Jesus rebuked him; and the demon went out of him: and the boy was cured from that hour. 19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out? 20 And he saith unto them, Because of your little faith: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

1. Vs14 We can assume that this is a 7th day event. Nothing has been stated to suggest otherwise, at least here in Mat 17.

2. Vs14-15 So a man comes to Jesus and kneels down and says "Have mercy on my son. He is epileptic or a lunatic and suffers terrible. Often he falls into the fire and into the water.

3. Vs16 "I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him."

4. Vs17 Jesus answers and says "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me."

1. Who is Jesus talking to? The disciples? The crowd? The father? Everyone?

2. Seems harsh…

5. Vs18 Jesus rebuked him (who?) And the demon comes out of the boy and he was cured from that hour.

6. Vs19 The disciples ask Jesus, "why couldn't we cast it out?"

7. Vs20 What was Jesus response? Because of your little faith: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

1. So Jesus describes their faith as little. Can we assume that Jesus outburst in vs17 wasn't directed at His disciples??

2. Jesus says w the faith of a mustard seed???

1. You shall move this mountain…

2. So for some reason, this boy's situation was a "mountain" in the eyes of God…Wonder why?

What does this really mean?

Here is my take. Im seeing it thru the lens of prophecy:

Everything hinges on the actions of the boy with the demon:

Mat 17:15 

Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is EPILEPTIC for oft-times he falleth into the FIRE, and oft-times into the WATER.

Per Strong's concordance:

1. Epileptic - (to be moon struck, that is, crazy, lunatic)

2. fire - (fire, literally or figuratively)

3. water - (as if rainy, literally or figuratively).

Water is metaphoric for the "days of Noah" and the ensuing judgement of the flood. Fire is metaphoric for "day of Lot" and the ensuing judgement of fire and brimstone against Sodom. 

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Days of Noah

Mat 24:37-39 

37 And as were the days of Noah, so shall be the coming of the Son of man. 38 For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, 39 and they knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall be the coming of the Son of man.

Sins found in Noah's day

Gen 6:4-8

4 The NEPHILIM were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them: the same were the mighty men that were of old, the men of renown. 5 And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented Jehovah that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And Jehovah said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the ground; both man, and beast, and creeping things, and birds of the heavens; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah.

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Days of Lot

Luk 17:28-30 

28 Likewise even as it came to pass in the days of Lot; they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; 29 but in the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all: 30 after the same manner shall it be in the day that the Son of man is revealed.

Sin of Sodom

Jud 1:7 

Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them, having in like manner with these given themselves over to fornication and gone after STRANGE FLESH, are set forth as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire.

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In these verses, Jesus equates His second coming with the days of Noah AND the days of Lot. Therefore the state of the lunatic son is metaphoric for the state of either the world or the church or both upon Christ's second coming. 

Possessed by a spirit that throws him into fire (homosexuality like in Sodom, LGBTQ…). Also possessed by a spirit that throws him into water (deep wickedness of world (Gen 6:5-7), Giants/Rephaim from Gen 6).

Disciples in Jesus day AND the disciples at Jesus 2nd coming are unable to cast out these spirits since they are esp strong or fierce. (Example: And we see this today in the fierceness of the Trans movement). In both OT examples, God had to destroy them, completely wiping them out. In the same way today, these issues will only be dealt with by Jesus and his second coming. Only Jesus has the strength and authority and understanding to do this.

Therefore the harsh words of Jesus in Mat 15:17 are directed toward the later end of the church age. That is why Jesus says:

"how LONG shall I be with you, and LONG shall I bear with you?"

He is speaking prophetically thru time, the words and the situation that He will go thru 2000+ years later towards our day when he arrives and takes on the strong demonic spirits that Noah and Lot saw in their day. 

So altho Jesus' words in Mat 17:17 seem out of context if you just read the story, I think they fit perfectly if you realize they are spoken to 7th day unbelieving wicked faithless generation at His 2nd coming.