A Century of Sermons, Sermon 1
THE FIRST SERMON UPON The Transfiguration.
LUKE ix. 28, 29.
And it came to paſs about an eight dayes after theſe ſayings, he took Peter, and John, and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.
And as he prayed, the faſhion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white, and gliſtering.
BECAUSE St. Luke doth more completely narrate all the circumſtances of our Saviours Transfiguration than the other Evangeliſts; therefore I have choſen to entreat out of his words upon that glorious miracle. I confeſs he that reacheth this myſterie, muſt aſcend with Peter, and James, and John, he muſt climb up to an exceeding high mountain of ſpeculation, which toucheth the very heavens. But why ſhould that confuſe you, (Dearly beloved) when there is ſo much pure glittering, and illumination upon the mountain? our Saviour's face ſhined with glory, for his Goſpel is perſpicuous: Moſes ane Elias, the Law and Prophets were clear and lightſom, and the cloud which overſhadowed the place, I mean the virtue of the Holy Ghoſt will embrighten all obſcurity. There is hope then out of the explication of this ſtory, that you ſhall all be tranſfigured from darkneſs into light, and from ignorance perhaps in ſome part into the knowledge of the truth.
And whereas I have purpoſely deſtined this work apart for this time of the year, I think I have begun it in the ripeſt opportunity. I find among antient Liturgies, Granaten. in dominc. 2. Quadrag.that the miracle of the Transfiguration was the Goſpel appointed for the ſecond Sunday in Lent: the reaſons were two, partly to exhort all Chriſtians in ſtricteſt times of penitence to be transformed into new men, partly becauſe it is certain this ſtrange accident fell out in the beginning of the Spring, not long before our Saviour's Paſſion: for Moſes and Elias came to tell him a ſhort while before his death what he ſhould ſuffer at Jeruſalem. Yet again I find in the old Latin Calender, that ſome Churches kept a Feaſt in memory of the Transfiguration upon the ſixt day of Auguſt. But this was done upon a fancy, they call it a Tradition,Ludolphus lib. 2. c. 3. that when Chriſt bad his Diſciples not to tell as yet of thoſe things they ſaw upon the mountain, till a more convenient time, they obeyed, and revealed it not in five months following till the ſixt of Auguſt; and upon the publication of theſe things at that ſeaſon, they did conſent to honour the memorial of the day with the celebration of a Feaſt. Without prejudice to thoſe ancient cuſtoms be it ſpoken, I have a ſurer ground to ſtand upon, that this is the proper time to preach upon it, ſoon after the great Feaſt of our Saviour's Reſurrection is accompliſhed. My authority is Matth. 17.9. As the three diſciples came down from the mountain, Chriſt charged them, ſaying, Tell the viſion to no man until the Son of man be riſen from the dead. And beſide it ſhall appear in due order, that the principal ſcope of the Transfiguration was to learn us, what the excellency and glorification of a body ſhall be that is raiſed from the dead.
But becauſe it is fit to work in the Lord's Vineyard at any hour of the day, and to dreſs this Tree of Life, the holy Scripture, in every bough and branch at any inſtant and occaſion of time; therefore cutting off that Preface, I will mark out thoſe things which are fit to be handled ſeverally in the words now read unto you, and they be four, quando; quibuſcum; quâ humilitate; quâ gloriâ: at what time Chriſt was transfigured; what aſſociates he took with him; with what humility he prepared himſelf; with what glory he was dignified. The Time is noted by three circumſtances, dicta, dies, iter. 1. After ſome ſayings he had uttered. 2. About an eight dayes after thoſe ſayings. 3. When he had gon up to a mountain. In the ſecond branch, his aſſociates are Peter, John, and James: foreign, he took them to ſee his glory, it was his aſſociation. St. Mark adds by way of emphaſis, foreign, he took three only, and foreign, privatim, he ſequeſtred them apart from this world, that they might ſee his glory. Thirdly, he prepar'd himſelf for this illuſtrious accident in great humility, inter precandum, he had proſtrated himſelf before his Father in prayer. And then fourthly, this majeſtical glory came upon him two waies; quoad vultum, quoad veſtitum, in his perſon, in his apparel, in his fleſh an aſtoniſhing radiancy, the faſhion of his countenance was altered; in his cloaths an admirable purity, his raiment was white and gliſtering. I cannot be copious upon ſo many particulars; of ſome more largely, of the moſt ſuccinctly.
In the firſt circumſtance of all, the Spirit of God hath noted out the Time, and therefore I muſt not balk it, no not in any of the three reſpects, poſt dicta, poſt dies, poſt it…r. Firſt, after thoſe ſayings, ſays my Text: inquiry ſhall be made what words thoſe be, and with whom he had that communication, which went before the demonſtrance of his glory in two preceding verſes in this chapter. Chriſt exhorted his Diſciples and many others to the aſſurance of his Croſs, and that they might know he was able to recompence their ſorrows, who endured affliction for his name ſake; yea, and would recompence it, he ſpeaks thus, The Son of man ſhall come in his own glory, and in his Fathers, and of the holy Angels; and I tell you of a truth, there he ſome ſtanding here which ſhall not taſte of death till they ſee the Kingdom of God. He refers the multitude to look for the laſt day of judgment, when he would come in infinite Majeſty to call the World before him; but he refers certain nameleſs perſons to expect after a while a preguſtation of ſome heavenly apparition, wherein they ſhould ſee how he would be cloathed with power and excellencie, when he came to ſit upon his Throne, and to call the Nations before him, they ſhould not taſte of death, till they ſaw a ſpectacle of the Kingdom of God in his transfiguration: This was the occaſion which made him exhibit his body with that glorious luſtre in the Mount: and yet ſome have ignorantly diſtorted thoſe words to another purpoſe: There be ſome ſtanding here which ſhall not taſte of death till they ſee the Kingdom of God: Jo. 21.23.what doth it mean ſay they, but that John the Diſciple, whom Jeſus loved, ſhould live till the laſt day of judgment, as the report went among the Brethren, how that diſciple ſhould not die. Thus Theophylact, and the counterfeit Hypolitus: that error which hath run through ſo many Pens grew from hence, that when Peter being told with what death he ſhould glorifie God; asked, What ſhould become of his fellow Diſciple John? Chriſt gave him no clear ſatisfaction (becauſe his queſtion deſerved it not) but only thus,Tolet. in cap. 21. Johan. Annot. 10. If I will that he ſtay till I come, what is that to thee, follow th… me. Let it be but probably diſcovered what coming Chriſt ſpeaks of, and there is no great perplexity in the ſaying. Attend therefore; this coming is nothing leſs than that great coming in perſonal Majeſty at the laſt day, but his coming in wrath and judgment againſt the Nation of the Jews to puniſh them, and quite to extirpate their ſeed from Jeruſalem. Touching this coming by the fury of the Romans to execute his vengeance, St. James ſpeaketh to the faithful converted from Judaiſm, and then ſore afflicted by the Synagogue; Be ye patient, and ſtabliſh your hearts, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh, Jam. v. 8. Whereas therefore antient ſtories have delivered unto us, that all the other Apoſtles were ſwept away by Martyrdom before the final deſtruction of Jeruſalem, onelyonly John outlived that time, even till the reign of Trajan. This then is a plain meaning of our Saviour's anſwer, if I will that he live till that diſmal day, when I come to deſtroy this people which hath crucified me, what is that to thee Peter, thou ſhalt never ſee that day; but prepare thy ſelf before for a ſpeedier Martyrdom. And to what uſe ſhould the Apoſtle live a mortal life upon earth unto the end of the world, and yet never appear to any man? he lived to ſee the coming of Gods judgments againſt the holy City, and he, together with Peter and James, lived to ſee a mirror of celeſtial glory in the Transfiguration, that's the meaning of our Saviour's promiſe going before my Text; There be ſome ſtanding here, who ſhall not taſte of death, until they ſee the Kingdom of God.
It follows to be noted in the obſervation of the Time, that after theſe ſayings he fulfilled his word, neither at the inſtant, nor after a long diſtance, but about an eight days after theſe ſayings: It was neither ſo quickly diſpatcht, before they had meditated upon it, nor ſo long put off, that they could forget it: be it about an eight days, or about eight thouſand ages, it is but a little while to God, who meaſures all things by Eternity. Now in theſe words, which are the very front of the ſtory, there are two days odds in the relations of the Evangeliſts: St. Luke, you hear, ſayes about an eight days after; St. Matthew and St. Mark, after ſix days. Doth not this account differ? no, not a whit: ſix days complete did go between his ſayings and his mighty work; St. Matthew and the other ſpeak of that time only: but in a part of one day, he had ſaid, there be ſome ſtanding here who ſhall not taſte of death until they ſee the Kingdom of God: in part of another day He took thoſe three up into the mountain, and ſo St. Luke computes exactly, 'twas about an eight dayes after thoſe ſayings. So hath the Divine wiſdom diſpoſed, that the ſame thing ſhould be repeated in ſeveral Goſpels with ſome alteration of phraſe, but with no difference or contradiction, and that for two cauſes. When outwardly there ſeems to be ſome diſagreement between the Text of one Evangeliſt and another, theſe difficulties do whet our induſtry to ſtudy the book of God: there muſt be knots and myſteries hard to be underſtood, ut homo ſemper diſcat, Deus ſemper doceat, that man may alwayes learn, and God may always teach unto the end of the world. 2. Says another, ſi per omnia conſentirent, nemo putarent eos ſeorſim ſcripſiſſe, if they had all jumpt in the ſame words quite throughout, (as ſome ſay of the 72 Interpreters in the Old Teſtament) it might have been imagined that the Goſpels were not writ at diſtinct times, and in diſtinct places; now the diſſonancy of their phraſe doth warrant us to ſay, that the Evangeliſts did not caſt their heads together, when they committed the Scriptures to writing, but wrote apart; and yet the ſame ſpirit which was in them all brought out an harmony of the ſame truth from ſeveral Authors; apprehend it if you will by this vulgar ſimilitude: A Gardiner curious in devices, had taught four ſeveral learners to draw the ſame artificial knot upon the ground, and every of the four laid out his knot as he was inſtructed upon ſeveral beds, but each ſet it with ſeveral kinds of herbs; you will not ſay I hope but the knot is the ſame, albeit the herbs planted upon it are different. So all the four Evangeliſts were taught by one Holy Ghoſt to draw out the ſame model of our Saviour's life, his Transfiguration, his Paſſion, his Reſurrection: the herbs indeed with which every Goſpel is planted are divers, the narrations differ in words; but that's the excellency of the truth of our Goſpel, that in ſeveral phraſes every one of thoſe holy Scribes ſets down the ſame Lord Jeſus Chriſt. This I have added to the illuſtration of this ſeeming difference, after ſix days Chriſt was transfigured, 'tis true; and as true, it was about an eight days after theſe ſayings.
The laſt reſpect unto the time is joyned with the place, this Transfiguration fell out after he was gone up into a mountain to pray. A valley is as capable of Gods glory as a mountain, for God is God of the valleys as well as of the hills, whatſoever Benhadad the King of Syria ſaid to the contrary: but Chriſt choſe this high hill as well for the exerciſe of Prayer, as for the myſtery of his Transformation: there may ſeem to be two intentions that he deſired ſuch a place for prayer, quia coeli conſpectus liberior, Maldonat. in ca. 17. Mat.quia ſolitudo major: Firſt upon the higher ground there is the more free contemplation of Heaven, the place to which we lift up our eyes and our hearts in prayer; for though our Lord is every where, both in heaven and earth, and under the earth, yet thither we advance our devotions as to the chief Throne of his Majeſty. Next our Saviour left a concourſe of people beneath, and went to the mountain to pour out his devotions there as in a ſolitary ſequeſtration, where he ſhould not be troubled. Into ſuch unfrequented hills he did often retire alone, as if he would teach us to bid all the world adieu, and all earthy thoughts, when we utter our ſupplications before our heavenly Father: neither doth it ſeem expedient to act the miracle of the Transfiguration upon a meaner Theater than an exceeding high mountain, to ſhew what aſcenſions muſt be in their ſoul who have a deſire to be exalted to Gods glory. Our heart, according to its own evil inclination, cleavs unto the duſt like a ſerpent,Bernard. in Aſcenſ. Dom. S…rm. 4. our thoughts are of low ſtature like Zachaeus, if they will climb up, let it be for no other end, or errand, but, as he did, to ſee Chriſt. There are two mountains, ſays Bernard, which we muſt aſcend, but not both at once. Firſt, there is the mountain where the Son of God did preach, Mat. v. and after that go up to the mountain where he was transfigured, Mat. 17. Non ſolum meditemur in praemiis, ſed etiam in mandatis Domini: I beſeech you firſt meditate upon the Sayings and Commandments of God, and afterward upon his Transfiguration, upon the reward of glory: and not, as it is the vain cuſtom of the world, run on preſumptuouſly upon aſſurance of glorification, and to forget the true order, firſt to aſcend upon the mountain of obedience.
If you think it material to my expoſitions, to know what mountain this was on which the dignity of this great work did befall, you ſhall be informed in that alſo; I know none but Ephrem the Syrian, that ſays it was Mount Sinah: He had his fetch, oportebat in eo ſuggeftu conſignari novum teſtamantum, in quo conſcriptum fuit vetus: it behoved, he ſpeaks as if he would appoint God, it behoved the New Teſtament to be chiefly honoured in that place where the old Law was delivered: But God is not bound to man's witty divinations; for this Mountain, as it appears in our Saviour's journeys,Ad Euſtoch. jam. was in Galilee, and Sinai is in Arabia, Galat. iv. 25. St. Hierom did long dwel and ſtudy in the Region of Judaea, and he ſays in his Epitaph or Funeral farewel to Paula, that it was Mount Tabor: And Euthymius interſerts as much, Pſa. lxxxix. 13. upon thoſe words, Tabor and Hermon ſhall rejoyce in thy name. This was ſo conſtantly believed, that Helen the Mother of Conſtantine built a Church upon that ground, to celebrate the place where Chriſt had been wonderfully dignified: and if relations deceive us not, there are the ruins of two little Chappels more upon Mount Tabor at this day, erected by ſome ſuperſtitious conceipt, becauſe St. Peter ſaid, Maſter, let us build here three Tabernacles. All that I read beſide is in Joſephus, that it was the moſt craggy and ſteepy high place in all Galilee, in ſome parts inacceſſible, the fitter to reſemble the Kingdom of Heaven, to which we cannot aſcend but in one rugged path, repentance and faith: And the Hiſtorian, who was a famous Captain, alſo adds, that he built a wall about it in 40 days, that the Jews might defend themſelves there, as in a ſtrong Caſtle, from the incurſion of the Romans. 2 Ep. 1. c. v 18.It is more than all theſe have ſaid, that S. Peter calls it the Holy Mount: This voice we heard when we were with him in the holy mount: Holy becauſe the Sacred Trinity did open it ſelf in that place, as I will ſhew hereafter: holy, becauſe Jeſus the Holy of Holies did ſhine there in the bright luſtre of beatitude: not as if there were any holineſs in the ſoil, and all other earth prophane: God did not mean ſo, when he ſaid to Moſes, Put off thy ſhoos from thy feet, for the place on which thou ſtandeſt is holy ground; but becauſe it puts an holy reverence into a man that approacheth either in body or mind, and thinketh ſeriouſly what wonders were done upon that holy Mountain. So I have done with the firſt part of my Text, the circumſtance of time and place, which is the entrance into this Miracle: It cannot be unpleaſant to examine the ſmalleſt parcels of ſuch divine works to them that love the Hiſtory of Chriſt.
In the next general part we read, as there was choice of time and place, ſo there was choice of perſons, He took Peter, and John, and James. What a-do ſhould we have had with ſome men if none but Peter had followed his Maſter into the Mountain upon this glorious occaſion?Leo Ep. 61. as it is Leo caught hold of it to ſpeak ſtrange words, and ſuch as may amuſe the Reader. The Lord did take Peter into the fellowſhip of the indiviſible Trinity. When the Wolf in the Fable peept into the Shepheards houſe, and ſaw him and his ſervants dreſs a Lamb to be eaten; ſays the Wolf, what a ſtir would have been made if I had done as much? So I dare be bold to ſay, what quarrels and exclamations there would have been if Luther or Calvin had ſaid as much: But Leo had tenter'd St. Peters praiſe to the height, becauſe he claimed himſelf to have a Prerogative by his ſucceſſion. Yet it is well to take off all claim of ſupremacy by this inſtance, that John and James were in the company. Non infra Charites, ſaid the Latin Proverb, a good meeting was ſpoil'd if there were leſs than the number of three, the number of the Graces: but Chriſt did not chooſe ſo many, becauſe it was the fitteſt number, but we muſt believe it was the fitteſt number, becauſe He choſe ſo many; neither was his force united by their company to do any thing the better, as it uſeth to be among men, foreign; but being deſtinated to be witneſſes of this ſame Miracle, the Law had ſaid it was a complete teſtimony to confirm any thing by the mouth of three; and Chriſt was punctual, that the Jews might not cavil, as if He were defective in any circumſtance of the Law. St. Ambroſe is very elegant in a myſtical acuteneſs, he ſays thus; the glory of the Reſurrection is that we hope for, the way to that glory is to believe in the holy Trinity, and to ground them in the belief of that Trinity, Chriſt did not exceed that myſtical number, but aſſumed three Diſciples to be preſent with him in Mount Tabor, when Chriſt in viſible ſplendour, the Father in the voice, the Holy Ghoſt in the bright cloud, did manifeſt themſelves upon the Mountain.
And when our Lord had choſen twelve Diſciples out of all the people in Judaea, it ſeems theſe three were the choice of that choice, and the flower of that company, ſelected for great matters: If it be an honourable thing, as St. Chryſoſtom rightly holds it, to be in the Liſt of thoſe friends whom Paul ſaluted, Rom. xvi. then it cannot but be more renowned, to be thoſe egregii aſſumpti e grege, thoſe egregious ſervants whom Chriſt employed above all the reſt, all the Apoſtles, Judas excepted were Davids Worthies, but they attained not unto the firſt three. Somewhat was in it, that whereas it was uſual for our Saviour to be followed with three attendants at leaſt, whereſoever He went to work a Miracle, that we never find him vary, but conſtantly to accept theſe ſame three, and no other: as when He raiſed up the Maiden to life, Mark v. 37. and when He prayed, and fell into his agony in the Garden before his Paſſion, Matth. xxvi. 37. and at this Miracle in my Text, when He made his glory to appear. That excellency paramount which ſome have obſerved in theſe three above their fellows is this: In ſignis primus corruſcavit Petrus, ſanguinem primus fudit Jacobus, doctrinâ illuſtris fuit Johannes. Peter is more noted in the book of the Acts than any of the Twelve for working Miracles: James was the firſt among the Twelve that ſuffered Martyrdom: and John was the Eagle that fored higheſt of them all in his Doctrin and Divinity. What aptneſs there was in theſe three more than others I know not, I leave it to God to give the grace of diſpenſation to one more than another, who alone knoweth the heart, and ſees what is fitteſt for his own glory. We ſee no outward ſign to diſcover that they were better prepared to ſee this Viſion than the reſt of their fellows: they ſlept when they ſhould have watcht, and they ſpake moſt ignorantly when they awoke, as if they bad been ſtill aſleep: therefore modeſty will give no conjecture why they were prefer'd before their Brethren, but the bare will of Chriſt, who will exalt thoſe more conſpicuouſly than others whom He is pleaſed to honour. As God ſaid, that He gave the Law to the Iſraelites, not that they were better than their Neighbours, but becauſe the Lord had a pleaſure in them, and in their forefathers. It is not obſcurely taught in the verb aſſumpſit, He aſſumed and took to him Peter, and John, and James, what indiſpoſition they had of themſelves to receive ſuch heavenly things: and in all ſupernatural works we rather draw back, than help on: we had need to pray for Gods aſſumpſit, to take us up unto it: this corruptible body, and corrupt affections preſs down the ſoul. Nemo venit ad me niſi Pater traherit eum, ſaith Chriſt, no man cometh unto me unleſs the Father draw him. There is a preparatory, grace wherewith God invites us to ſalvation; but his mercy ſtaies not there, for there is a ſpecial grace over and above that wherewith He draws us. Draw me and I will run after thee, ſays the Spouſe. Hale us un to thee, O Lord, and pluck us on with the cords of love; our heart is heavy unto death, and cannot follow unleſs the Father draw us unto him. Coge nos intrare cum Coecis & claudis: We are thoſe blind and lame in the Goſpel, I beſeech thee, O Father, compel us to come unto thy Feaſt. Theſe three famous Apoſtles were not forward of themſelves to aſcend up to the holy Mountain, but aſſumpſit, their Lord and Saviour took them with him.
It were impertinent to obſerve ſome mens needleſs labour in their queſtions, why Andrew was none of this Coram, none of the three prime, being the firſt of them all that followed Chriſt, Joh. i. 40. and the inſtrument that brought Simon Peter his brother to ſee the Meſſias? Why ſhould it trouble us that he was omitted? For we never read in the Goſpel that it troubled him; his eye was not evil becauſe his Maſters was good, ſince the Holy Ghoſt fell down upon them all at the Feaſt of Whitſuntide, it bred neither repining, nor emulation, that theſe three were partakers of ſome private myſteries.Homil. in Matth. v…. St. Chryſoſtom commends the ingenuity of St. Matthew above all, foreign. He did not conceal the honor and priviledge of thoſe Apoſtles that were prefer'd before him. A brave Athenian offering himſelf in competition with divers, to be one of their grand Council of 50, then newly to be choſen to govern that State, and being left out of the number, uſed this ſaying, He was glad there were fifty more ſufficient than himſelf to govern the Commonwealth. So Matthew repin'd not that himſelf was not in the company, but was glad that Chriſt had three more eximious than himſelf to be witneſſes of the Transfiguration.
Yet there is a good crop to be reapt out of this queſtion, and no offence ſhall be committed through curioſitie, why the whole Company of the Apoſtles went not up into the Mountain with our Saviour: they had all ſeen him work many miracles; they had all ſeen him walk on the ſea, to let them know when he pleaſed his body was not groſs and heavy: they did all ſee him paſs through the middeſt of the Jews untoucht, when they ſought to ſtone him, to let them know his body had greater agility than ours, when He pleaſed, and could paſs away undiſcern'd. But all might not behold in Mount Tabor, what manner of ſplendour a glorified body ſhould have. What was the reaſon of the impediment? Damaſcen thinks the greater part did ſtay behind, that Judas might not ſee the beauty of the Kingdom of Heaven, who was reſerv'd for chains of endleſs darkneſs. This anſwer is perſonal; the next is very plain and literal: Ʋt myſterium ſecretius ageretur, many witneſſes are not fit to keep a ſecret, and Chriſt call'd out a paucity to ſtand by at this Solemnization, becauſe he would have it conceal'd till he was riſen from the dead, He bad them tell no man in thoſe days what they had ſeen, for what reaſons it ſeemed fit unto him to have it carried ſo privily for a while, I promiſe to unfold when I come to treat of the 36. verſe of this chapter. The third reaſon is very pat,Druthmarus in Matth. 17. though it be figurative: though there were very good men left below the Mountain, yet this partition of three in one conſort, that did ſee his glory, nine in another knot who were left out, doth betoken, multi vocati, pauci electi, that many are called, and few be choſen. Moſes took up no more than Aaron and Hur when he went up to Mount Horeb to talk with God; Chriſt took no more than the fourth part of the Apoſtles when He went up to Mount Tabor that God the Father might talk to him,F…rus ibid. Major pars remanet terrae adhaerens; the more numerous part of men cleave to the earth below: Elias ſits alone upon Mount Carmel like a Sparrow ſitting alone upon the houſe-top. The valleys are too full of them that mind earthly things. Two men went up into the Temple to pray, vel duo, vel nemo, when there is a throng abroad without the Temple. O curvae in terris animae! ſo much heaven to receive us, (for it is of an incomprehenſible capacity) ſo little earth to poſſeſs (for it is but a drop of water, and a crumb of duſt) in reſpect of the world above: yet we ſtrive to enlarge our poſſeſſions upon earth, which will not hold many rich inheritors at once, and neglect Heaven, which would contain us all, and afford every one a Kingdom to reign with God. So far I have collected what I knew fit to be obſerv'd upon the three Diſciples who did aſſociate our Saviour.
It followeth in the third part of the Text, Chriſt prepar'd himſelf for his Glorification with great humility; facta eſt inter precandum ſpecies ejus vultus altera, &c. as he prayed the faſhion of his countenance was altered. Chriſt need not pray to his Father, as if He that was God and Man in one perſon could not bring all things to paſs without a prayer. That was Martha's error the Siſter of Lazarus, Joh. 11. I know now whatſoever thou askeſt of God He will give it thee; but Chriſt doth intimate in the ſame chapter, that without asking, the Father did always hear him; yet, through the whole courſe of his being abaſed upon earth, He did make requeſts unto God upon all occaſions, that the Head might fulfil all that righteouſneſs which his Members ſhould perform. The matter of his prayer who is able to recite it what it was, ſince either He prayed in ſpirit, and did not lift up his voice; or elſe prayed a part, that the Diſciples did not hear? Or if they did hear, yet they have not imparted the relation of it in the Goſpel. This I may ſafely ſay, there is a Prayer which would make a very convenient Collect at ſuch a time, Joh. xvii. 24. Father, I will that they alſo whom thou haſt given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which thou haſt given me. Surely it ſounds well to reaſon, that he prayed for that which He obtained before He ſtir'd from that place, namely that his Divinity might caſt a ſplendour through his body in a moſt amiable and viſible form, and that a type of the glory of the life to come might be revealed to theſe three Apoſtles: even ſo the ſame thing muſt be continually in our ſupplications, that the glory of Chriſt may be ſpread far and wide from Nation to Nation, which is the large of that Petition which himſelf taught us, Thy Kingdom come.
And as he prayed the faſhion of his countenance was altered. O the wiſe God, that would have the glory of transfiguration fall upon himſelf at no other time but in the fervor of prayer. Miſerable men are thoſe that deſire not to be transfigured, and to caſt off the old man; but more miſerable that think to be transfigured without continual prayer. An Hypocrite would ſeem to be a transform'd man; Satan would appear to have transform'd himſelf into an Angel of light; Hypocrites and Devils all love to make a ſhew of transfiguration, but they did never pray to God to change their inſide, which is nothing but filthineſs, and to be renewed in the ſpirit of their mind: or if Hypocrites do pray, it is with ſuch a faint deſire, as if they had rather be denied than ſpeed: they are not inſtant with God, they are not conſtant, or if you will have a good thing impreſſed in a rough word, they are not pertinacious: tamdiu orandum, quamdiu transformemur in viros alios; hold on, and ceaſe not to pray, till you be changed into new men. As a Diſtiller keeps his extractions at the Furnace, till he ſee them flower and colour as he could wiſh; ſo, as long as we feel the reliques of the old Adam remaining, eſpecially while we feel them reign, and get the dominion over us, we muſt ply our Saviour day and night with a reſtleſs devotion, and a flagrant importunity, and I am ſure while we pray, not the faſhion of our countenance, but the faſhion of our heart ſhall be altered. What a moleſting Suitor would Gorgonia the Siſter of Nazianzen have been to any Prince upon earth? She was not troubleſome to God: yet ſays Nazienzen ſhe ſhould proteſt foreign, ſhe would make him aſham'd to deny her, and never riſe up from her knees, till the light of his countenance ſhin'd upon her.Hieron. Ep. 9. S. Hierom loved his Nebridius, of whoſe perſeverance in Prayer he teſtifies, certè ſic ſemper erat orans Deum, ut illi quod optimum eſſet eveniret; he was an unceſſant Petitioner to God, ſo that nothing befel him, but that which was fitteſt for him. I opened my mouth and drew in my breath, for my delight was in thy Commandments, ſays David, Pſal. cxix. 131. in which verſe is to be underſtood, that Prayer is the very breath of the ſpirit,Bernard. de Natur. Divin. cap. 2. without which the ſpiritual man can no more live, than the natural man can live without the breath of air: The lungs muſt be always cooled with the Element of air, and faith muſt always be enflamed with the breath of ſupplication. Will you hear the ample commendation of a true Prayer comprized in two words? In quâ tanta ſit fides ut ſperet omnia, tanta devotio ut Deum videatur cogere; let it be ſtrong in faith to hope all things, ſtrong in patience to perſiſt at all times, and I know not what it is not able to effect; to caſt mountains into the ſea, ſays Chriſt, to be transfigured, ſays my Text, into the glory of God; to bring Peter out of Priſon when Herod had locked him up within a brazen Gate, yet then at the dead hour of the night did the Angel bring him forth, and at the ſame time of midnight Peter found the Church at prayer for his deliverance, Acts xii. 5.
Well, I pray you remember, that when our Saviour went up into the Mountain, as well to be transfigured as to pray, yet the Text names this only, that he went up into the mountain to pray; that name ſtands in chief, and drowns the mention of the other buſineſs, as if Prayer were a greater work than that reſplendent Tranſfiguration. And what needed he to pray, but to bring us upon our knees humbly and frequently before his Father, and our Father. As Solomons Temple had three eſpecial Ornaments, the Golden Candleſtick, the Table of Shewbread, and the Altar of Incenſe; ſo three things of principal uſe do correſpond to theſe in the Church of Chriſt; the Word Preached, which doth enlighten our darkneſs, is the Golden Candleſtick, which is dearer, ſays David than much fine gold. Inſtead of the Table of Shewbread we have the Communion of Chriſts Body and Blood, the Table of the Lord. Ep. 201.And inſtead of the Altar of Incenſe we have that which is much ſweeter in Gods noſtrils, the Incenſe of Prayer. Now abide theſe three to direct us in a good way, ſays Bernard; Verbum, Exemplum, Oratio, the Word Preached, the Edifying Examples of Holy men, and Zealous Prayer; but the greateſt of theſe is Prayer; Ea namque operi & voci gratiam & efficaciam promeretur: for whether they be the actions of a pious life, or the words of an eloquent tongue, it is Prayer which accompaſſeth from Gods mercy that all ſhould be effectual. I have amplified this the more, becauſe ſome Ignaroes out of a prepoſterous zeal ſhuffle off this Chriſtian duty with a moſt wicked and a regardleſs negligence, if any man be transfigured from ſuch a corrupt opinion by that which I have deliver'd, it is that which I aimed at, and which I deſire of God; yea it is that which our Saviour intended, when he would be occupied in Prayer at that time, and in nothing elſe, when he was transfigured in glory.
Now in the fourth and laſt general Obſervation upon the Text, as our Lord prepared himſelf with much humility in Prayer, ſo in the conſequent he was exalted in much honor, the faſhion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and gliſtering. Beloved, we are all like the Children of Iſrael ſtanding below the Hill, and dare not go up to pry in to the myſtery of the inſcrutable glory: Let it ſuffice us to enquire into three things that follow, which we may ſafely do, ſince all Scripture is written for our inſtruction. They are theſe: 1. The Final Cauſe, why Chriſt was transfigured: 2. The Efficient Cauſe, from whence this ſplendour was derived: And 3. The Effect it ſelf, alteration in his countenance, whiteneſs and gliſtering in his raiment. In theſe three I will be brief without offenſive curioſity, to make us not only ſearch, but find out the cauſe why He would be transfigured I have regard to this rule of Damaſcens foreign,O…at. de Transſig. every thing that Chriſt did in his converſation upon earth it is to be referr'd to the good of man.
Firſt then I render this reaſon; that the Redeemer of Souls lived in great humility upon earth, nay, like an abject worm, to attract the love of the Church; now he chang'd himſelf into this admired excellency to encreaſe their faith, St. Peter pronounced a Confeſſion of faith for all the Apoſtles, Matth. xvi. which their Maſter did exceedingly commend, Thou art Chriſt the Son of the living God. Yet they who did ſee the Majeſty of God to be in him, and did adore it, were as yet ignorant of what glorification his body was capable, which was the Veil of the Godhead. He had ſuſpended all outward appearance of Divine luſtre, that it ſhould not ſhew it ſelf in him. To this meaning you cannot well chooſe but refer that of the Prophet Iſaias, chap liii. 2. He hath no form nor comlineſs, and when we ſhall ſee him, there is no beauty that we ſhould deſire him: that is, he was pleaſed for a ſeaſon, not to look like one whoſe body had an illuſtrious influence from the ſoul, and from the union with the Godhead, he did ſuppreſs it, till he was pleaſed to make it known, Pſal. xciii. The Lord is King, he hath put on glorious apparel, and in another place, Thou art cloathed with Majeſty and honour. Indeed to have a brightneſs in his body as great, or greater than the light of the Sun, was as natural to that humane nature, which is united to the Godhead, as it is for the Sun to ſhine in the Firmament. The Diſciples marvailed that his face ſhould gliſter this one time, ſo that no Fuller on earth could make a thing ſo white, whereas the greater marvel is, that it was not ſo at all times.Grana…en. loc. praed. Majus miraculum fuit hujus gloriae influxum reprimere, quàm eam perpetuò retinere; It was a greater miracle to reſtrain the apparition of this glory at any time, than to have it alwayes dwel upon his face: for bleſſed ſouls, which enjoy God always, have a virtue of claritude in them, which redounds of it own accord into the body. Therefore well might the Pſalmiſt ſay of Chriſt, whoſe ſoul was always bleſſed, Thou art fairer than the children of men. And though at other times his brightneſs was diſcoloured by humility; yet now he removed the cloud, and let his Witneſſes ſee the fair beams of his Divine honor for a little time, which is the firſt motive of his Transfiguration.
Secondly, by this Apparition the three Diſciples ſaw in what form he would come to judgment. It is no dreadful thing to a good man, either to ſee, or to meditate with himſelf in what manner Chriſt will come in the Clouds at the laſt day to call the Quick and the Dead before him. The Wicked that know they have crucified him again, and trampled the blood of the Covenant under their feet, will run into the duſt for fear of his glorious preſence, and call for the Hills to cover them, and the Mountains to fall upon them: as for the Righteous that then ſhall be found upon earth, in whoſe hearts he hath ſealed the promiſe of his Holy Spirit, they ſhall tremble with an awful reverence; but when they have gain'd their memory to recall that he cometh with his reward in his hand, they will praiſe that pomp of Judgment, and ſay, now our labour is at an end, we ſhall reign for evermore.Ratbetius in 17. Matth. And becauſe Chriſt did appear in Mount Tabor no otherwiſe than as he means to come to Judgment, therefore he did qualify the light of his face to be no greater than the light of the Sun: his body, which is ſtrange to conſider, ſhall have more reſplendency than that mighty Lamp of Heaven; but it is not for the Wicked to behold them: they ſhall ſee him ſhine upon his Throne, but with as little comfort as ſore eyes gaze upon the Sun, or with as little joy as we ſee flaſhes of lightning in a terrible thunder, non dat lucem videntibus, ſed pavorem, which is not ſent to illuminate us in darkneſs, but to agaſt us with the apparition. Of this more at large hereafter. But this is the ſecond motive of this Miracle, he transformed himſelf into that Majeſty wherein He will judge the World. Thirdly, He did repreſent himſelf as the Argument and Idaea of that beautiful Reward which the bodies of the Juſt ſhall have in the General Reſurrection. The Phariſees required a Sign, and Chriſt told them, they ſhould have no ſign, but the ſign of the Prophet Jonas, that a body being ſwallowed up in death ſhould come to life again; but theſe few Diſciples over and above the Sign of the Prophet Jonas, had the Sign of Transfiguration, which is the dainty and delicate part of the Reſurrection. Say no more but that God will be the Redeemer of his Elect, yet it would amuſe a man to think what ſhould become of this vile body, every member whereof hath been a thouſand times an inſtrument of iniquity: well, even this very naughty fleſh ſhall have a beam of Divine mercy ſhine upon it; it is impoſſible to make it ought in this life, but a ſink of corruption; no Fuller upon earth can make it ſo white as God can. In theſe days the Soul is full of bad concupiſcence, and the Body is made miſerable: Hereafter the Soul will be full of grace, and the Body ſhall be made delectable. And mark it, that the Diſciples had their item not to talk of theſe things till Chriſt were riſen from the dead, becauſe the Tranſfiguration was intended to make up the complement of our joy touching the reſurrection of the Body. And to ſink it deeper in our hearts, that this brightſom alteration did not concern the Spirit, but the Body; his raiment was white and gliſtering, which is no more than the ſhrowd of the Body. In a word, God did never reveal that He could take away the eſſential properties of a true Body, and yet keep it a true Body: they that believe ſo much believe beſide the Book; but in this Miracle appeared that God can add a celeſtial and beauteous form unto a Body, ſo that the Sun in all his brightneſs ſhall not come near it. This is the ſeed of that faith which St. Paul preacheth, It is ſown in diſhonour, it is raiſed in honour. Praiſe the Lord therefore in Body and Soul, ſince both ſhall be inveſted with a Royal Dignity to make them both fit for the ſociety of Angels. But herein we exceed the happineſs of Angels, they are glorious Spirits, we ſhall be glorified both in body and ſpirit. So the Prophet, Iſa. lxi. 7. They ſhall poſſeſs the double in their land, everlaſting joy ſhall be with them; Duplicia poſſidebunt: their Soul filled with the viſion of God, their Body transfigured in glory.
Fourthly, this wants not a granes weight of a principal cauſe, the Son of God in the dayes of his exinanition lookt like a perſon for this once of divine authority, ut crucis ſcandalum tolleret, that their minds might not be caſt down with deſpair to ſee the miſery of his Croſs, who had ſeen his glory upon Mount Tabor. Now he lookt more Angelical than a Cherubin, then he lookt more ruthful than the pooreſt Lazarus; now the greateſt in heaven did ſpeak graciouſly unto him, then the ſcum of the earth reviled him; he than was glorified at one time could not be compelled to ſhame and ignominy, but from his own patience and yielding would be crucified at another. Sicut luctatores corpus inclinant, ſayes a Father; Chriſt wreſtled with Satan, and though that old ſupplanter the Serpent did bruiſe his heel, yet he could not get the Maſtery: Chriſt ſtooped low like a Lion couching for his prey, and when he might ſeem to be caſt down this was his feat to overturn his adverſary.
Fifthly, The fifth and laſt Reaſon hath a Moral Uſe. There is an old man with his corruptions to be metamorphoſed in us all, ſicut Pelias recoctus, as the Fable goes, that Medaea bathed the body of Pelias with certain magical drugs, and from a decrepit old man tranſmuted him into a vigorous youth. This is a figment; for no man ſpent his young years ſo well, to deſerve at Gods hands in this world to be young again: but there is foreign, a renovation in the ſpirit of our mind. God will not know us in our own form and filthineſs, unleſs we put on the Image of Chriſt: As Jacob obtained his Fathers bleſſing, not in his own ſhape, but in the Garments of Eſau; ſo we muſt ſue our bleſſing, having put on the righteouſneſs of Chriſt; then the Lord will receive his ſervant,Gen. xxxiii. 10. and ſay unto thee as Jacob did unto Eſau, I have ſeen thy face, as though I had ſeen the face of God.
You have heard the final cauſe more wayes than one, why this Miracle was wrought, I may ſpeak ſomewhat of the efficient cauſe, how this ſplendor was derived, and further than ſo I muſt not proceed now, becauſe of the time. Many obſcure points will come to light by asking this queſtion: Whether this lightſom beauty like the Sun did appear in our Saviour's face from the beatification of his humane Soul, or from the union of his Divine nature? Firſt you muſt underſtand, that the great School-man Aquinas took the beſt end of the cauſe into his hand, when he anſwered to neither of thoſe two members, but rather to the purpoſe of the queſtion in this wiſe,3. P. Qu. 45. ar. 2. fuit haec qualitas gloriae, ſed non corporis glorioſi, quia nondum erat immortalis: this Transfiguration was a quality of glory, but not of a glorified body, becauſe He was not yet paſſed death, and raiſed up to be immortal, and impaſſible. In this diſtinction is covertly included, that it was not ſuch a brightneſs as the Soul ſhall communicate to the Body, when it is reunited in a joyful reſurrection, but was created at this time by the Divine power, to foretel and ſhadow what would come to paſs with much increaſe in the Kingdom of God. Praelibatio regui Dei fuit haec transfiguration, ſays Cajetan: this was but the Landskip or Pattern of the true happineſs which ſhall be in the Kingdom of Heaven. It was a far more excellent ſplendour than that of Moſes or Stephen upon earth, but not ſo perfect, or proper, as is derived from a Soul that is perfectly beatified. Moſes his face did ſhine like a God when he came down from the Mount, yet it was ab externo colloquio, becauſe he had been a Companion with God. Chriſts face did ſhine ab innatâ gratiâ & potentiâ, not becauſe he was the Companion of God, but becauſe he was very God, and was the fountain of all grace and beauty to communicate it to others. Neither was St. Stephens irradiation any more than a preparative of the Reſurrection, and a declaration of his innocency: to make the Council afraid of wrong judgment; all that lookt upon him ſaw his face as it had been the face of an Angel. But that which hapned to our Saviour was not from an external gift; as Stephen ſaw Chriſt ſtanding at the right hand of God, but from an internal influence and emanation of the Deity.
Moſes and Stephen were but Paſſengers, and not to be compared in any ſort of excellency with their Lord, who was God and Man. Yet by the diſpenſation of the Divine Power, it was not ſuch a total illumination in Chriſt as reſults from the Soul unto the Fleſh, when both ſhall come to appear before the living God. The reaſons are very full and home for the proof. 1. The Soul in the ſtate of eternal happineſs ſhall derive amiable ſplendour to all the outward parts of the Body, but no further. In this preſent caſe the very garments were changed into ſuch an outward gloſs, as the like was never ſeen: Therefore this muſt be ſome brightneſs created for this inſtant by the Deity. 2. Splendour is but one of the Ornaments of a glorified Body, when the Soul doth transfuſe the benefits of beatification into it, it ſhall be a Spiritual Body, it ſhall be nimble to paſs from place to place like an Angel, or like a thought; likewiſe it ſhall not be obnoxious to death, or dolour, where were theſe? Becauſe therefore this was but a partial, not a total glorification, it flowed not from the Soul. 3. It was not ſo large, not ſo complete a claritude and beauty as will adorn the Lamb of God hereafter, but a pittance and meaſure attemper'd for their weak reception that ſhould ſee it. His face did ſhine like the Sun: What but like the Sun? ſo much is promiſed to the faithful, that they ſhall ſhine like the Sun in the Kingdom of his Father. And think you that the Lord is not greater than the Servant, and ſhall much excel that proportion of glory which we expect? Therefore Lyra ſayes, this was an Ornament of the ſame true glory which we ſhall have hereafter, quantum ad eſſentiam, ſed non quantum ad modum; it had the very eſſence and truth of ſuch illuminated brightneſs as the righteous ſhall have in Paradiſe, but it had not ſuch an ample meaſure and proportion. 4. To make it ſure and uncontradicted, that this was not like to that glory which ſhall be derived from the Soul in eternal joy, that is dos connaturalis, this is paſſio tranſitoria. Then it ſhall be a natural endowment never to be ſeparated away. Now it was but a tranſient paſſion, ſoon on, and as ſoon off again, even as ſoon as ever the voice from Heaven had ſpoken. Permanency, unchangeableneſs, never altering Eternity are ſo proper to future bleſſedneſs, that without them it is not to be imagined. St. Paul was elevated by the Divine grace to ſee and hear things unutterable in this rapture: that is, as I believe, he ſaw the very Divine Eſſence in a ſhort proſpect and away; yet Paul by this exceeding favour was none of the Beati till after his diſſolution, none of the Claſſis in St. Matthew, Bleſſed are the pure in heart for they ſhall ſee God, quia beatitudo denotat permanentiam; Beatitude is not the participation of the beſt thing in the World for a little time, but for ever and ever.