Mark 9
Chuck Smith on Mark 9
Verse by verse, the C2000 series. Permission granted by The Word For Today.
Verse 1
And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power ( Mark 9:1 ).
Now what did He mean by that? Because those disciples have all died, and we have not yet seen the kingdom of God come with power. Was Jesus mistaken? Well, first of all, no. Jesus was not mistaken. If my interpretation of a scripture would make it appear that Jesus was mistaken, then my interpretation is wrong. If my interpretation of what Jesus said would make what Jesus said ridiculous or foolish, my interpretation is wrong. And many times people misinterpret the words of Jesus.
And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller [launderer] on earth can white them. And there appeared unto them Elijah with Moses: and they were talking with Jesus ( Mark 9:2-4 ).
Verses 2-4
Now, Peter, James and John were taken up into this high mountain, Mount Hermon, which is just there at Caesarea Philippi. Caesarea Philippi is just right at the base. So Jesus, six days later, took them on up into this mountain, and there He was transfigured before them. His raiment did shine. And while He was there in this transfigured state, Moses and Elijah appeared, and they were talking with Him. Jesus said, "There are some standing here that are not going to die until they see the kingdom with power." And there, God took them, I believe, into a time chamber. And they saw Christ in the glory that He will have and the power when He comes again to the earth, talking with Moses and Elijah. So they were taken out of this time zone, into the eternal, and they actually saw the kingdom of God coming with power and glory. Or they saw the kingdom of God coming with power, as He declares.
And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah ( Mark 9:5 ).
Verses 5-6
And there was the beginning of the desire to create shrines in the Holy Land to commemorate the sites where the exciting things happened. Poor Peter. If he only knew the mess that he made of the Holy Land. And why did he say this?
Now, if you don't know what to say, it's probably better to say nothing. There's some people that say, "Well, you know, you better say something." And so, what you say is foolish because you just don't know what to say. It's really better to keep your mouth shut. Better keep your mouth shut and let people think you're a fool, than open it and dispel all their doubts. They were afraid, he didn't know what to say, so he makes this stupid suggestion.
And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him ( Mark 9:7 ).
