The key passage regarding Peter wanting to make three tabernacles is found in Matthew 17:1-8 which says:
And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.
At first glance, Peter’s offer to construct three tabernacles or shelters may seem a bit perplexing. However, when looked at in context, Peter had just witnessed an incredible scene – Jesus was transfigured into a glorified form and appeared along with Moses and Elijah. Peter recognized the significance of this moment and did not want it to end. His offer reflects his desire to honor and commemorate the glorious meeting between Jesus, Moses, and Elijah.
While Peter’s heart was in the right place, desiring to honor Jesus and the prophets, his timing was off. As the voice from heaven declared, the disciples’ focus should have been on Jesus alone as the beloved Son. The scene of Jesus’ transfiguration gave the disciples a glimpse of His divine glory, but the time had not yet come for His glory to be fully revealed.
So in summary, while Peter’s offer came from a sincere desire to honor this incredible moment, it was premature and showed that Peter still did not fully grasp Jesus’ true identity and mission. However, this event was a pivotal moment of revelation for the disciples, prompting them to see and worship Jesus in a new way.
Here are a few key reasons why Peter’s offer to construct tabernacles was well-meaning but misguided:
- It placed Jesus on equal footing with Moses and Elijah – Whereas Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and Prophets, not merely another lawgiver or prophet.
- It failed to recognize the temporary nature of this revelatory experience – The transfiguration was not meant to be permanently commemorated but pointed toward Jesus’ future glorification.
- It distracted from the Father’s revelation of Jesus’ identity – The voice from heaven was declaring Jesus as the Beloved Son, but Peter’s offer shifted the focus.
- It betrayed Peter’s incomplete understanding of Jesus’ mission – He still did not grasp that Jesus had come to die and rise again in glory.
- It could be seen as an attempt to control or prolong the experience – When God was sovereignly ordaining this moment for His purposes.
While misguided, Peter’s offer also reflected some positive traits that should be affirmed:
- His desire to honor Jesus and the prophets Moses and Elijah.
- Recognizing the significance of this revelatory moment of Jesus’ glory.
- Taking initiative to do something in response to this spiritual encounter.
- His usage of the word “Lord” shows his respect for Jesus.
In the end, this passage reminds us that even when our desires are good, they must be subject to the wisdom and timing of God. We too must listen to the Father’s voice declaring Jesus as the Beloved Son and fixing our eyes on Him alone.
1. Peter wanted to honor Jesus, Moses and Elijah but went about it the wrong way
It is clear from the passage that Peter’s intention was to honor Jesus and the two great prophets Moses and Elijah by building tabernacles or temporary shelters for them. After witnessing Jesus transfigured in glory and the appearance of these two historic figures, Peter was overcome with awe and reverence.
His exclamation “Lord, it is good that we are here!” expresses his feeling that this was a spiritually climactic moment for the disciples. In that light, his offer reflects a sincere desire to show honor and deference to Jesus and the prophets at this exceptional point.
However, while his intentions were good, Peter’s plan to construct tabernacles was misguided:
- Peter failed to grasp the temporary nature of this vision and tried to make it last.
- He placed Jesus as an equal to Moses and Elijah, rather than supreme.
- He acted impulsively based on his own understanding rather than listening to God.
The voice from heaven soon corrected Peter’s misunderstanding, declaring “This is my beloved Son, listen to him!” Peter had gotten ahead of God’s intended purpose for the transfiguration.
This passage serves as a warning that honoring God requires listening to and obeying His will rather than acting on our own impulses. Our sincerity alone is not enough. Peter learned this lesson through his brash offer.
2. Peter was seeking to glorify the occasion but missed the significance of Jesus’ identity
Clearly Peter was awestruck by the glory of Jesus revealed in the transfiguration. His impulse was to commemorate the occasion by constructing tabernacles for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah.
This offer showed Peter’s desire to glorify and honor what he recognized as a spiritually climactic moment. However, it also betrayed his lack of understanding of Jesus’ true significance.
While desiring to glorify the occasion, Peter had missed the revelation of Jesus’ identity that came through it. A few key issues:
- Peter still viewed Jesus as on par with the prophets, not as supreme Lord.
- He failed to grasp why the Father glorified Jesus and the purpose of this revelation.
- His focus was more on the external glory rather than the spiritual meaning.
The voice from heaven corrected this by declaring “This is my beloved Son, listen to him!” The glory was meant to reveal Jesus’ identity, not just be marveled at for its own sake.
Like Peter, we too can get caught up in surface-level worship experiences rather than letting God’s glory direct us to the preeminence of Christ. Honoring God requires worshipping Him for who He is.
3. Peter’s offer revealed his lack of understanding of Jesus’ mission
While Peter’s offer came from a place of sincere honor, it also exposed his lack of understanding of Jesus’ true mission. By offering to build tabernacles for Jesus alongside Moses and Elijah, Peter was essentially putting them on equal footing.
However, the whole purpose of Jesus’ ministry was to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, not just to be counted as another lawgiver or prophet. His transfiguration revealed His glory as the very Son of God in a way Moses and Elijah never experienced.
Additionally, Peter was failing to comprehend that the road ahead for Jesus was the cross, not being permanently enthroned in glory on the mountain. His impulse to make tabernacles showed he still didn’t understand Jesus had come to suffer and die.
While enthralled by Jesus’ glory, Peter was missing the bigger picture of His mission. His offer reflects a desire to prolong the experience rather than understand its purpose. It would take Jesus’ death and resurrection for the disciples to fully grasp His messianic identity and mission.
Like Peter, we too can get so focused on the surface-level glory of spiritual experiences that we miss the deeper meaning God intends them to reveal to us. We must seek true understanding rather than merely pursuing encounters.
4. Peter acted based on limited understanding rather than listening to God
Upon witnessing Jesus’ transfiguration and appearance with Moses and Elijah, Peter was moved by religious fervor to suggest making tabernacles for them. His intentions were sincere but also premature.
Rather than waiting, praying, and seeking to understand the spiritual significance of what he saw, Peter acted based on his limited grasp of the situation. His swift response betrayed an enthusiasm not yet tempered by wisdom and discernment.
Significantly, while he was still speaking the voice from heaven interjected saying “This is my beloved Son, listen to him.” In his zeal Peter had gotten ahead of God’s purpose.
This passage serves as a warning against acting impulsively based on limited spiritual understanding. Though sincere, Peter’s suggestion would have redirected the focus away from what God was trying to reveal about Jesus.
Like Peter, we must learn to wait on the Lord, listen for His voice, and discern His will rather than jumping ahead based on our own zeal and limited perspective.
5. Peter focused on perpetuating the experience not understanding its purpose
When Peter witnessed Jesus transfigured in glory and saw Him conversing with Moses and Elijah, he was awestruck. Carried away by the spiritual experience, his immediate response was “Lord, it is good that we are here!”
Rather than seeking to plumb the depths of meaning in what he saw, Peter’s priority was to perpetuate and memorialize the experience itself. His offer to build tabernacles reflects a desire to extend the encounter rather than understand its purpose.
However, the transfiguration was not meant to be frozen in time but pointed towards the culmination of Jesus’ mission still to come. The voice from heaven redirected the focus back to understanding Jesus’ identity, not simply marveling at His glory.
Like Peter, we too can easily turn mountaintop spiritual experiences into the goal itself rather than using them as catalysts to seek deeper understanding. When God reveals His glory, we must still listen for His voice to discern what He intends to teach us.
Spiritual experiences can become misguided ends rather than means of growth when we focus only on perpetuating the feelings rather than responding according to God’s purposes.
6. Peter’s enthusiasm, while commendable, outpaced godly wisdom
Peter’s swift suggestion to build tabernacles honoring Jesus, Moses, and Elijah paints him in an enthusiastic yet spiritually immature light. Upon witnessing Jesus’ glory, Peter was so enthralled that he rushed ahead of wisdom.
His excitement and initiative to honor this occasion are commendable in one sense. After all, many other religious leaders remained stubbornly hard-hearted towards Jesus. At least Peter responded positively to the revelation.
However, his unbridled zeal also outpaced godly discernment. Before he had processed the meaning of it all, he jumped into action based on limited perspective. His enthusiasm was premature.
The voice from heaven, interjecting mid-sentence, called for patience saying “This is my beloved Son, listen to him.” Peter needed to dial back his zeal in order to truly listen and understand.
While commendable, untempered spiritual enthusiasm can be dangerous. Like Peter, we must learn to balance our zeal with wisdom that comes from patiently listening to God.
7. Peter’s offer revealed a heart inclined towards God but lacking full wisdom
When analyzing Peter’s offer to build tabernacles for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, it reflects both commendable traits and areas needing growth.
Positively, it showed Peter’s heart was inclined towards honoring God and His servants. Rather than shrinking back in fear from the supernatural, Peter responded with courageous initiative.
However, his swift, enthusiastic offer also betrayed areas where Peter still lacked understanding. In his zeal, he had not grasped the significance of Jesus’ identity nor the purpose of this revelatory experience.
The voice from heaven corrected his premature notion, commanding “This is my beloved Son, listen to him!” Peter’s desire to honor God was commendable but needed to be paired with greater wisdom.
This passage provides a balanced perspective on spiritual growth. Like Peter, we should nurture childlike hearts that are eager to respond to God’s glory. But we must also increasingly gain spiritual wisdom and discernment in order to do so well.
Our sincere desires are not enough. We must also listen to the voice of the Father directing us towards understanding His Son.
8. Peter acted hastily rather than responding in godly reverence
Upon witnessing the glorious transfiguration of Jesus and His appearance with Moses and Elijah, Peter was overcome with religious fervor. His impulse was to immediately spring into action saying “Let us make three tents here!”
Rather than responding with quiet reverence and godly fear, Peter let his enthusiasm carry him away. His hurried offer betrays a lack of self-restraint and wisdom in such a spiritually significant moment.
Peter was speaking based on his own limited grasp of the situation, rather than listening to God’s direction. The voice from heaven soon interrupted Peter’s hasty words to bring clarity, saying “This is my beloved Son, listen to him.”
This serves as a warning that we must learn to temper our religious enthusiasm with patience, reverently waiting on God even when we are feeling spiritually excited or eager to act.
Like Peter, we can too easily charge ahead based on zeal rather than allowing God to shape our response. Our sincerity is not enough, we must also pursue wisdom by listening to the Father’s voice.
9. Peter Still Lacked Clarity About Christ’s True Nature and Purpose
Peter’s offer to erect tabernacles for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah reveals that at this stage he still lacked true understanding of Jesus’ divine nature and purpose. By proposing to put Jesus on equal footing with the lawgiver Moses and the prophet Elijah, Peter was expressing his reverence for Jesus but missing the key truth being revealed.
This scene of Jesus in glory with Moses and Elijah was a glimpse of His divine identity as the Son of God, the fulfillment of the law and prophets. However, Peter failed to grasp this. His focus was on the immediate experience rather than comprehending its deeper significance.
Additionally, Peter had not yet come to terms with the fact that Jesus had come not just to be exalted on a mountain but to suffer and die at Calvary for the sins of mankind. He was still locked into a view of messiahship defined by glory rather than redemptive suffering.
Peter’s offer reflects sincere honor and zeal but not mature spiritual insight into Christ’s identity and mission. It would only be after Jesus’ resurrection that the disciples’ eyes would be fully opened to understand who He truly was.
10. Peter Desired to Extend this Mountaintop Experience Rather than Entering the Valley of Suffering
When Peter witnessed Jesus in glory at the transfiguration, he was undeniably amazed, as evidenced by his exclamation “Lord, it is good that we are here!” Caught up in this mountaintop spiritual experience, Peter’s immediate response was to try to extend it by building tabernacles.
However, in doing so Peter was acting out of a desire to stay in a place of glory rather than follow Jesus back down the mountain into the valley of suffering. He failed to comprehend Jesus still had to complete His mission by going to the cross.
Peter wanted to remain in this euphoric spiritual state rather than embrace the hardship and sacrifice still to come. His offer reflected a lack of understanding of what would be required for Jesus to accomplish the redemption of mankind.
For the disciples to have stayed on the mountain in tabernacles would have been avoiding God’s will rather than fulfilling it. They needed to follow Jesus not just to glory but through death to resurrection life on the other side.
Like Peter, we too often wish to camp out on the spiritual mountaintops of our lives rather than descending into the valleys of difficulty and pain. But that is usually where Christ calls us to go out of love for the lost.