On several occasions in the Gospels Jesus instructs his apostles not to tell anyone of what He had done or what they had seen. Sometimes there is not more to the sentence than, ‘…tell no one…’ and other times it’s as it was in the story of the Transfiguration, when Jesus tells them not to tell anyone of the vision “…until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
I know this is probably very elementary, but I cannot remember the reason or theology behind this at the time.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Incidents of this sort all - IIRC - share one feature: the things not to be told all reveal Who Jesus is. His healings do so, because they are Messianic acts; the Transfiguration does so, as does the recognition of His Identity by Simon in Matthew 16. If He had thrown Himself from the pinnacle of the Temple, as He was tempted to do, that would have been an announcement of His Messianic dignity.
As to His motive for secrecy - it seems to be connected to the danger that if He had been known as Messiah, & King, it would have been as a purely political Messiah, a purely earthly King: which goes some way to explain His preference in the first three, “synoptic”, gospels for the title “Son of Man” - it can be taken in a way which does not imply what it means in Daniel 7 or 1 Enoch, books in which the Son of Man is a heavenly figure: especially in 1 Enoch; because it can be understood as meaning what it means in Ezekiel, where “son of man” = “human being”. Which does not imply anything exalted.
In Israel & Judah under the kings, the king personified the whole nation; its sin, was his sin. This may be relevant to the identity of Jesus as the suffering Servant of JHWH - it would mean that His suffering for His people is a royal act: that for Jesus the notion of Davidic Kingship was “cross-fertilised” by that of the Servant of JHWH, & that of the heavenly Son of Man, & that of the Hidden Messiah: until the Passion, His Messianic Identity is a secret, the Father’s royal secret - until then, the Kingship of the Father is preached by Jesus (it is the good news Jesus preaches: Mark 1.15). He is also “sent” by the Father - this hints at His being the Prophet.
When He suffers on the Cross, that is when His Messianic status is revealed - which does not imply it is recognised. For the Fourth Gospel, His “lifting up” on the Cross is His exaltation; the Jesus of John is a Jesus Who is always in command of circumstances: even when arrested. And the Cross was as much of a scandal then as now; probably more so, for it was much easier to be crucified then than now. But the Cross is essential to His Identity & His Kingship & His Work. Peter found it a scandal in Matthew 16.
ISTM that the Messianic Secret in the four gospels is what unifies everything else about Christ. That was a very profound question you raised
- not a shallow one at all
