ris3n's Apologetics Codex

Passage

Matthew 17.1-8

Book: Matthew · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

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ASV (ASV)

"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."

"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?" (Matthew 17:1-10, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. 2. He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. 3. Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him. 4. Peter answered, and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you want, let’s make three tents here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5. While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. Behold, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.” 6. When the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces, and were very afraid. 7. Jesus came and touched them and said, “Get up, and don’t be afraid.” 8. Lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, except Jesus alone."

"9. As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Don’t tell anyone what you saw, until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.” 10. His disciples asked him, saying, “Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”" (Matthew 17:1-10, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2. And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. 3. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. 4. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 5. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, 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 when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only."

"9. And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead. 10. And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come?" (Matthew 17:1-10, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, and James, and John his brother, and doth bring them up to a high mount by themselves, 2. and he was transfigured before them, and his face shone as the sun, and his garments did become white as the light, 3. and lo, appear to them did Moses and Elijah, talking together with him. 4. And Peter answering said to Jesus, 'Sir, it is good to us to be here; if thou wilt, we may make here three booths, for thee one, and for Moses one, and one for Elijah.' 5. While he is yet speaking, lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and lo, a voice out of the cloud, saying, 'This is My Son,, the Beloved, in whom I did delight; hear him.' 6. And the disciples having heard, did fall upon their face, and were exceedingly afraid, 7. and Jesus having come near, touched them, and said, 'Rise, be not afraid,' 8. and having lifted up their eyes, they saw no one, except Jesus only."

"9. And as they are coming down from the mount, Jesus charged them, saying, 'Say to no one the vision, till the Son of Man out of the dead may rise.' 10. And his disciples questioned him, saying, 'Why then do the scribes say that Elijah it behoveth to come first?'" (Matthew 17:1-10, YLT)

Setting

  • Speaker: Matthew (traditionally) the tax-collector-apostle / narrator + Jesus's direct teaching
  • Audience: Jewish-Christian audience (heavy OT-fulfillment emphasis)
  • Location: first-century Palestine (events); possibly Antioch (composition)
  • Time period: events c. 4 BC, AD 30/33; composed c. AD 60-80

Theological reading

Key words

Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

  • ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
  • WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
  • KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
  • YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.