^9:28Now⁹⁵ about eight days⁹⁶ after these sayings, Jesus⁹⁷ took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up the mountain to pray. ^9:29As⁹⁸ he was praying,⁹⁹ the appearance of his face was transformed,¹⁰⁰ and his clothes became very bright, a brilliant white.¹⁰¹^9:30Then¹⁰² two men, Moses and Elijah,¹⁰³ began talking with him.¹⁰⁴^9:31They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke about his departure¹⁰⁵ that he was about to carry out¹⁰⁶ at Jerusalem.¹⁰⁷^9:32Now Peter and those with him were quite sleepy,¹⁰⁸ but as they became fully awake,¹⁰⁹ they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. ^9:33Then¹¹⁰ as the men¹¹¹ were starting to leave,¹¹² Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three shelters,¹¹³ one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he was saying. ^9:34As¹¹⁴ he was saying this, a cloud¹¹⁵ came¹¹⁶ and overshadowed¹¹⁷ them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ^9:35Then¹¹⁸ a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One.¹¹⁹ Listen to him!”¹²⁰^9:36After¹²¹ the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. So¹²² they kept silent and told no one¹²³ at that time¹²⁴ anything of what they had seen.

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Footnotes

95 Grk “Now it happened that about.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
96 Matt 17:1 and Mark 9:2 specify the interval more exactly, saying it was the sixth day. Luke uses ὡσεί (hōsei, “about”) to give an approximate reference.
97 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
98 Grk “And as.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
99 Here the preposition ἐν (en) plus the dative articular aorist infinitive has been translated as a temporal clause ( ).
100 Or “the appearance of his face became different.” In 1st century Judaism and in the NT, there was the belief that the righteous get new, glorified bodies in order to enter heaven (1 Cor 15:42–49; 2 Cor 5:1–10). This transformation means the righteous will share the glory of God. One recalls the way Moses shared the Lord’s glory after his visit to the mountain in Exod 34. So the disciples saw the appearance of his face transformed, and they were getting a sneak preview of the great glory that Jesus would have (only his glory is more inherent to him as one who shares in the rule of the kingdom).
101 Or “became bright as a flash of lightning” (cf. ἐξαστράπτω); or “became brilliant as light” (cf. λευκός 1).
102 Grk “And behold.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis ( 1).
103 Commentators and scholars discuss why Moses and Elijah are present. The most likely explanation is that Moses represents the prophetic office (Acts 3:18–22) and Elijah pictures the presence of the last days (Mal 4:5–6), the prophet of the eschaton (the end times).
104 Grk “two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elijah.” The relative clause has been simplified to an appositive and transposed in keeping with contemporary English style.
105 Grk “his exodus,” which refers to Jesus’ death in Jerusalem and journey back to glory. Here is the first lesson that the disciples must learn. The wondrous rule comes only after suffering.
106 Or “accomplish,” “bring to completion.”
107 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
108 Grk “weighed down with sleep” (an idiom).
109 Or “after they became fully awake,” “but they became fully awake and saw.”
110 Grk “And it happened that as.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
111 Grk “as they”; the referent (“the men,” referring to Moses and Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
112 Grk “to leave from him.”
113 Or “booths,” “dwellings” (referring to the temporary booths constructed in the celebration of the feast of Tabernacles). By making three shelters Peter apparently wanted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles or Booths that looked forward to the end and to treat Moses, Elijah, and Jesus as equals. It was actually a way of expressing honor to Jesus, but the remark at the end of the verse makes it clear that it was not enough honor.
114 Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
115 This cloud is the cloud of God’s presence and the voice is his as well.
116 Or “appeared.”
117 Or “surrounded.”
118 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
119 Most , especially the later ones, have ἀγαπητός (agapētos, “the one I love”; A C* W f13 33 𝔐 it), or ἀγαπητὸς ἐν ῷ (ἠ) υδόκησα (agapētos en hō (ē)udokēsa, “the one I love, in whom I am well pleased”; C3 D Ψ ) here, instead of ἐκλελεγμένος (eklelegmenos, “the Chosen One”), but these variants are probably assimilations to Matt 17:5 and Mark 9:7. The text behind the translation also enjoys excellent support from 𝔓45, 75 א B L Ξ (579) 892 1241 co. The participle ὁ ἐκλελεγμένος (ho eklelegmenos), which could be translated “the One who has been chosen,” is best understood as a title rather than a descriptive phrase, probably deriving from Isa 42:1 () which uses the similar ὁ ἐκλεκτός (ho eklektos) which also appears in Luke 23:35. This divine endorsement is like Luke 3:22 at Jesus’ baptism. One difference here is the mention of the Chosen One, a reference to the unique and beloved role of the regal, messianic Son.
120 The expression listen to him comes from Deut 18:15 and makes two points: 1) Jesus is a prophet like Moses, a leader-prophet, and 2) they have much yet to learn from him.
121 Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
122 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the concluding summary of the account.
123 Although the disciples told no one at the time, later they did recount this. The commentary on this scene is 2 Pet 1:17–18.
124 Grk “in those days.”