Thursday, October 13, 2022

Simon S. Lee: The Transfiguration was not an Enthronement Event for Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew

  

After Jesus’ announcement of the necessity of his suffering and death in the Caesarea-Philippi context, Jesus predicts that some of the disciples “who are standing here” (16:28) will witness the Son of Man’s coming in the Kingdom. In the immediately following story of the Transfiguration, Matthew presents Jesus’ glorious appearance as a proleptic revelation of the Son of Man’s glory.

 

I do not think, however, that Matthew intends the Transfiguration to be an enthronement event for Jesus, since Matthew relates the glory to the Son of Man rather than the Davidic Messiah. In Matthew’s mind, Jesus is the Son of Man from the beginning of his earthly ministry (8:20; 9:6) and this Son of Man will come to judge humanity as the eschatological king in his glory (25:31-34; 16:27-28). Like Mark, Matthew in 22:41-45 problematizes Jesus’ identification with the son of David since David called the Son of God “my Lord” rather than his son. Although Matthew wants to ground Jesus in the history of Israel, through the passion narrative he contrasts Jesus’ kingship with worldly forms of royal power. Matthew asserts that Jesus’ kingdom is different from the Davidic kingdom, which the people of Israel have longed for as an expression of their national restoration (cf. 26:52). Instead, Jesus’ kingship supports the Matthean community’s hope for a final vindication at the last judgment and their own judgment of “the twelve tribes of Israel” (19:27-28). (Simon S. Lee, Jesus’ Transfiguration and the Believers’ Transformation [Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen Zum Neuen Testament 2.Reihe 265; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2009], 98, emphasis added)