TRANSFIGURATION OF JESUS - 2nd Sunday of Lent (Cycle A)

Homily for the 2^nd Sunday of Advent (Cycle A)

Based on Mt 17:1-9 (Gospel), Gn 12:1-4 (First Reading) and 2 Tm 1:8-10 (Second Reading)

From the Series: “Reflections and Teachings of the Desert”

TRANSFIGURATION OF JESUS

“There in their presence he was transfigured” (Mt 17:2).

The Gospel reading for this 2^nd Sunday of Lent (Cycle A) is from Mt 17:1-9 with a title “The Transfiguration.”

Parallel texts for the title are:

1.       Mk 9:2-10 - Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John and led them up a high mountain where they could be alone by themselves. There is their presence he was transfigured: (v. 2) his clothes became dazzlingly white, whiter than any earthly bleacher could make them (v. 3) Elijah appeared to them with Moses; and they were talking with Jesus (v. 4) Then Peter spoke to Jesus, ‘Rabbi,’ he said, ‘it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah’ (v. 5). He did not know what to say; they were so frightened (v. 6) And a cloud came, covering them in shadow; and there came a voice from the cloud, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him (v. 7).’Then suddenly, when they looked round, they saw no one with them anymore but only Jesus (v. 8). As they came down from the mountain he warned them to tell no one what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead (v. 9) They observed the warning faithfully, though among themselves they discussed what ‘rising from the dead’ could mean (v. 10).

2.       Lk 9:28-36 - The Transfiguration^e.  Now about eight days after this had been said, he took with him Peter and John and James and went up the mountain to pray (v. 28). As he prayed, the aspect of his face changed and his clothing became brilliant as lightning (v. 29). Suddenly there were two men there talking to him; they were Moses and Elijah (v. 30), appearing in glory, and they were speaking of his passing which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem (v. 31). Peter and his companions were heavy with sleep, but they kept awake,^f and saw his glory^g and the two men standing with him (v. 32). As these were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah’. - He did not know what he was saying (v. 33). As he spoke, a cloud came and covered them with shadow; and when they went into the cloud the disciples were afraid (v. 34). And a voice came from the cloud saying, ‘This is my Son, the Chosen One.^h Listen to him (v. 35).’ And after the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. They disciples kept silence and, at that time, told no one what they had seen (v. 36). Footnote ^e  says “One of the narratives in which Lk most widely differs from Mk, It is clear that Lk. had his own source of information (John?).”; Footnote ^f  says  “Preferable to ‘they woke up’.”; Footnote ^g  says “The glory of his future coming, 9:26.”; and Footnote^h says “Var. ‘the Beloved’, cf. Mt and Mk. The titles ‘Chosen One’, cf. 23:35; Is 42:1, and ‘Son of Man’ alternate in the Parables of Enoch.”

3.       2 P 1:16-18 - It was not any cleverly invented myths that we are repeating^k when we brought you the knowledge of the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; we have seen his majesty for ourselves(v. 16)^l He was honored and glorified by God the Father, when the Sublime Glory itself spoke to him and said,^m ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favor’ (v. 17). We heard this ourselves, spoken from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain.ⁿ Footnote ^k says “Lit. ‘not following myths that have been cleverly devised’; this is another warning against Gnostics who had a doctrine of the parousia based not on logical proofs, but on an elaborate mythological system, cf. 3:4f.”;  Footnote ^l  says “At the transfiguration.”; Footnote ^m  says “Lit. For receiving from God (the) Father honor and glory such as a voice being borne to him by the magnificent glory’; var. (Vulg.) ‘out of the magnificent glory’.”; and Footnote ⁿ  says “‘holy mountain’ should perhaps be taken as a suggestion that the mountain of transfiguration was the antitype of Sinai.”

Verses 1, 2, 3 and 4 say: Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain^a where they could be alone. There in their presence he was transfigured; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light^b . Suddenly Moses and Elijah^c appeared to them, they were talking with him. Then Peter spoke to Jesus, ‘Lord,’ he said ‘it is wonderful for us to be here;^d if you wish, I will make^e three tents here, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.  Footnote ^a  says “Tabor, according to the traditional opinion. Some favor Great Hermon.”; Footnote ^b says “Var ‘as snow’.”; Footnote ^c  says “Respectively representing Law and prophets, they do homage to the founder of the ‘new alliance’, cf. 5:17; Lk 22:20. As once they were privileged at Sinai with God’s revelation, Ex 33:20+; cf 1 K 19:9-13, so now they are made witnesses of the anticipated revelation of the Son of Man, cf 24:30.”; Footnote ^d  says “An alternative translation ‘It is good thing for us to be here’.”; and Footnote ^e  says “Vulg. ‘let us make’.”

Parallel text for verse 2 is Mt 28:3 that says: His face was like lightning, his robe white as snow.

Verse 5, 6, 7 and 8 say: He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said, “This is my Son, the beloved, he enjoys my favor. Listen to him’. When they heard this, the disciples fell on their faces, overcome with fear. But Jesus came and touched them, ‘Stand up’ he said, ‘do not be afraid’.  And when they raised their eyes, they saw no one else but only Jesus.

Parallel texts for verse 5 are:

1.       Mt 24:30 - And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven;^o then too all the peoples of the earth will beat their breasts; and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.^p Footnote ^o  says “For the Fathers this ‘sign’ was Christ’s cross but possibly it is Christ himself proving by the triumph of his kingdom on earth that he has truly risen and is in glory.”; and Footnote ^p says “In these words Daniel foretold the establishment of the messianic kingdom by a Son of Man coming on the clouds. The cloud is the usual accompaniment of both OT and NT theophanies: Ex. 13:22+; 19:16+; 34:5+; Lv 16:2; 1 K 8:10-11; Ps 18:11; 97:2; 104:3; Is 19:1; Jr. 4:13Ezk 1:4; 10:3f; 2 M 2:8. For NT, cf. Mt 17:5; Ac 1:9,11; 1 Th 4:17; Rv 1:7; 14:14.”

2.       Ex 13:12 - You are to make over to Yahweh all the first issues from the womb, and every first-born cast by your animals: these males belong to Yahweh.

3.       Ex 19:16 - Now as daybreak on the third day there were peals of thunder on the mountain and lightning flashes, a dense cloud, and a loud trumpet blast, and inside the camp all the people trembled.

4.       2 P 1:17 - He was honored and glorified by God the Father, when the Sublime Glory itself spoke to him and said,^m ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favor. Footnote ^m  says “Lit. For receiving from God (the) Father honor and glory such as a voice being borne to him by the magnificent glory’; var. (Vulg.) ‘out of the magnificent glory’.”

5.       Mt 3:17 - And a voice spoke from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; my favor rests on him’ⁿ Footnote ⁿ  says “The immediate purpose of this sentence is to declare that Jesus is in truth the servant foretold by Isaiah, but the substitution of ‘Son’ for ‘servant’ (made possible by the double sense of the Greek word pais) underlines the relationship of Jesus with the Father, which is that of anointed Son, cf.4:3+.”

Verse 9 says: As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus gave them this order, “Tell no one about the vision until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.’

Parallel texts are:

1.      Mk 1:34 - And he cured many who were suffering from diseases of one kind or another; he also cast out many devils, but he would not allow them to speak, because they knew who he was.ⁱ Footnote ⁱ says “Jesus forbids the news that he is the Messiah to be spread by the devils, 1:25,34; 3:12, by those he cured, 1:44; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26, even by the apostles, 8:30; 9:9. The silence is not to be broken till after his death, Mt. 10:27+. Since the prevailing idea of the Messiah was nationalistic and warlike, in sharp contrast with his own ideal, Jesus had to be very careful, at least on Israelite soil, cf. 5:19, to avoid giving a false and dangerous impression of his mission, cf. Jn. 6:15; Mt. 13:13+. This policy of silence (‘the messianic secret’) is not an invention of Mk’s, as some have claimed, but is in fact Christ’s own, though Mark has given it a special emphasis. With the exception of Mt. 9:30, Mt. and Lk. record the injunction to silence only in passages which are parallel with Mk, frequently omitting it even in these cases.”

2.       Mt 8:20+ - Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man^h has nowhere to lay his head’. Footnote ^h says “With the exception of Ac 7:56, Rv 1:13; 14:14; this title appears only in the  gospels. There is no doubt that Jesus used it of himself, and indeed preferred it to others. At times he uses it to express his lowly state, 8:20; 11:19; 20:28, especially the humiliation of the Passion, 17:22, etc. At others times it is used to proclaim the definitive triumph of his resurrection, 17:9, of his return in glory, 24:30; of his coming in judgment, 25:31. That this title, Aramaic in flavor, could bring together these seemingly  opposed qualities is clear from the following considerations. The phrase originally meant ‘man’, Ezk. 2:1+, and by reason of its unusual and indirect form it underlined the lowliness of man’s state. But the title suggested glory, too. It was used in Dn 7:13+, and later in the Jewish apocalyptic Book of Enoch, to indicate the transcendent figure, heavenly in origin, who was to receive from God’s hand the eschatological kingdom (the kingdom ‘at the end of times’). In this way therefore the title both veiled and hinted at (cf. Mk. 1:34+; Mt. 13:13+) the sort of Messiah Jesus was. Moreover, the explicit avowal in the presence of the Sanhedrin, 26:64+, should have removed all ambiguity.”

The First Reading is from Gn 12:1-4. The title is “The call of Abraham^a”. Footnote ^a says “Ch. 12-13 are a Yahwistic narrative with some ‘Priestly’ or editorial EDITIONS. As a result of God’s call and promise of posterity Abraham cuts off all earthly ties and with his childless wife, 11:30, sets out for an unknown land. It is Abraham’s first act of faith; it will be renewed when the promise is repeated, 15:5-6+, and put to the test when God asks for the surrender of Isaac who was the fruit of that promise, ch. 22+. To Abraham’s unquestioning act of faith the chosen people owes its existence and destiny, Heb 11:8-19. Not only Abraham’s physical descendants but all who, in virtue of this same faith, become his sons will have their share in that destiny as Paul shows, Rm 4; Ga 3:7.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       Ws 10:5 - Again, when, concurring in wickedness, the nations had been thrown into confusion, it was she who singled out^g the virtuous man, preserved him blameless before God and fortified him against pity for his child.  Footnote  ^g  says “Lit. ‘knew’, in the biblical sense, i.e. thought highly of, loved, reference to the choosing of Abraham.”

2.       Ac 7:2-3 - He replied,^a ‘My brothers, my fathers, listen to what I have to say. The God of glory appeared to our ancestor Abraham, while he was in Mesopotamia before settling in Haran, (v. 2) and said to him,^b “Leave your country and your family and go to the land I will show you”. Footnote ^a  says “The discourse opens with a summary of the stories of Abraham and Joseph, vv. 2_16; it goes on to expound the history of Moses, vv. 17-43 (cf. the charge made against Stephen, 6:11). With Moses’ divine mission of salvation Stephen contrasts the attitude of Israel: rejection, disobedience, faithlessness – traditional themes (cf. Dt.) but here elaborated with the Christian Event in mind. When Stephen speaks of Moses he is thinking of Christ whom Moses prefigured: the Jews react now as the Israelites did then. From the subsequent history of Israel Stephen selects only the building of the Temple: his purpose is to point out that God does not dwell in man-made temples, vv. 44-50 (cf. the allegation in 6:13). The speech ends with a fierce diatribe, vv. 51-53, which uses one of the themes of the earliest Christian preaching, cf. 2:23+.”; and Footnote ^b  says “According to Gn 11:31 the apparition took place at Haran. Stephen follows a non-biblical tradition.”

3.       Heb 11:8f  - It was by faith that Abraham obeyed the call to set out for a country that was the inheritance given to him and his descendants,  and that he set out without knowing where he was going.

Verse 1 says: Yahweh said to Abram: “Leave your country, your family and your father’s house for the land I will show you.

Parallel texts are:

1.       Gn 15:1 - It happened sometime later that the word of Yahweh was spoken to Abram in a vision, ‘Have no fear, Abram, I am your shield; your reward will be very great’.

2.       Gn 26:2 - Yahweh appeared to him and said, ‘Do not go down into Egypt; stay in the land I shall tell you of.

3.       Ps 45:10 - Listen, daughter, pay careful attention: forget your nation and your ancestral home.^g Footnote ^g  says “In the messianic interpretation: Israel, like the ancestral figure Abraham must sever all links with the surrounding pagan world, thus leaving the ‘ancestral home’ in order to receive ‘sons’, v. 16.”

Verse 2 says: I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name so famous that it will be used as^b a blessing.  Footnote ^b  says “‘that it will be used as’ corr.; ‘and may you be’ Hebr.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       Ex 32:10 - Leave me, now, my wrath shall blaze out against them and devour them; of you, however, I will make a great nation.

2.       Gn 24:1 - By now Abraham was an old man well on his years, and Yahweh had blessed him in every way.

3.       Nb. 10:29 - Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite, his father in law, ‘We are setting out for the land of which Yahweh has said: I will give it to you. Come with us, and we will treat you well, for Yahweh has promised happiness to Israel’.

4.       Nb 14:12 - I will strike them with pestilence and disown them. And of you I shall make a new nation, greater and mightier than they are.

5.       Ps. 21:6 - Yes, you confer on him everlasting blessings, you gladden him with the joy of the presence.

Verse 3 says: ‘I will bless those who bless you; I will curse those who slight you. All the tribes of the earth shall bless themselves by you’ ^c  Footnote ^c  says “The formula is repeated in 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14. Its precise meaning is: ‘the nations shall say to each other: May you be blessed as Abraham was’ (cf. v. 2 and 48:20; Jr 29:22); but Si 44:21, the LXX translation and the NT take it to mean ‘In you all the nations shall be blessed.’”

Parallel texts are:

1.       Gn 22:18 - All the nations of the earth shall themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.

2.       Nb 24:9 - He has crouched, he has lain down, like a lion, like a lioness; who dares rouse him? Blessed be those who bless you, and accursed be those who curse you!’

3.       Ps 72:17 - Blessed be his name for ever, enduring as long as the  sun!^l May every race in the world be blessed in him, and all the nations call him blessed! Footnote ^l  says “‘blessed’ and ‘every race in the world’; Greek; absent from Hebr. ‘enduring’ one MS and versions; ‘branching forth is his name’ Hebr., alluding to the messianic title ‘Branch’, Is 4:2; Jr 23:5; 33:15; Zc 3:8.”

4.       Si 44:21 - He confirmed the covenant in his own flesh, and proved himself faithful under ordeal (v. 21).^p Footnote  ^p says “On the faith of Abraham, cf. Gn 12:1+; 15:6+; 22:1; Ga 3:6-14; Rm 4:1-25.”

5.       Jr 4:2 - If you swear, “As Yahweh lives!” truthfully, justly and honestly, the nations will bless themselves by you, and glory in you^b.  Footnote ^b  says “‘you’ corr.; ‘him’ Hebr. The promise to Abraham is renewed.”

6.       Zc 8:13 - Just as once you were a curse among the nations, You House of Judah (and House of Israel), so I mean to save you for you to become a blessing. Do not be afraid; let your hands be strong.

7.       Lk 1:5 - In the days of King Herod of Judaea there lived a priest called Zechariah who belonged to the Abijah section of the priesthood, and he had a wife, Elizabeth by name, who was a descendant of Aaron.

8.       Ac 3:25 - You are the heirs of the prophets, the heirs of the covenant God made with our ancestors when he told Abraham: in your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.

9.       Ga 3:8 - Scripture foresaw that God was going to use faith to justify the pagans, and proclaimed the Good News long ago when Abraham was told: In you all the pagans will be blessed.

Verse 4 says: So Abram went as Yahweh told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.

Parallel texts are:

1.       Gn 33:18-20 - Jacob arrived safely at the town of Sechem in Canaanite territory, on his return from Paddan-aram. He encamped opposite the town (v. 18) and for one hundred pieces of silver he bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, the piece of land on which he had pitched his tent (v. 19). Here he erected an altar which he called, ‘El, God of Israel’ (v. 20).

2.       Gn 35:4 - They gave Jacob all the foreign gods in their possession, and the earrings that they were wearing. Jacob buried them under the oak tree near Sechem.

3.       Jos 24:26 - Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a great stone and set it up there, under the oak in the sanctuary of Yahweh,

The Second Reading is 2 Tm 1:8-10.

Verse 8 says: So you are never to be ashamed of witnessing to the Lord, or ashamed of me for being his prisoner but with me bear the hardships for the sake of the Good News, relying on the power of God.

Parallel texts are:

1.       2 Tm 1:16 - I hope the Lord will be kind to all the family of Onesiphorus because he often been a comfort to me and has never been ashamed of my chains.

2.       Lk 9:26 - For if anyone is ashamed of me and of my words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his own glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

3.       Rm 1:16 - For I am not ashamed of the Good News; it is the power of God saving all who have faith^j- Jew first,^k but Greek as well. Footnote ^j says “Faith, which is the response of a human being to God as truth and goodness and so the one source of salvation, relies on the truth of God’s promises and on God’s faithfulness to them (Rm 3:3f; 1 Th 5:24; 2 Tm 2;13; Heb 10:23; 11:11) and on his power to implement them (Rm 4:17-21; Heb  11:19). After the  long O.T. period of preparation (Heb 11) God has spoken through his Son (Heb 1:1). We must believe the Son (cf. Mt 8:10+; Jn 3:11+) and the kerygma or proclamation (Rm 10:8-17; 1 Co 1:21; 15:11, 14; cf. Ac 2:22+) of the Good News (Rm 1:16; 1 Co 15:1-2; Phl: 27; Ep 1:13) made by the apostles (Rm 1:5; 1 Co 3:5; cf. Jn 17:20). The kerygma proclaims that God raised Jesus from the dead, made him Kyrios (Rm 4:24f; 10:9; Ac 17:31; 1 P 1:21; cf. 1 Co 15:14, 17), and thorough him offers life to all who believe in him (Rm 6:8-11; 2 Co 4:13f; Ep 1:19f; Col 2;12; 1 Th 4:14). Faith in the name, or person, of Jesus (Rm 3:26; 10:13; cf. Jn 1:12; Ac 3:16; 1 Jn 3;23) who is the Messiah (Ga 2:16; cf. Ac 24;24; 1 jn 5:1), the Lord (Rm 10:9; 1 Co 12:3; Ph 2:11; cf. Ac 16;31) and Son of God (Ga 2:20; cf. jn 20:31; 1 jn 5:5; Ac 8;37; 9:20) is thus the necessary condition of salvation (Rm 10:9-13; 1 Co 1:21; Ga 3:22; cf. Is 7:9+; Ac 4:12; 16:31; Heb 11:6; Jn 3:15-18). Faith is not only intellectual assent, it is to trust and obey (Rm 1:5; 6:17; 10:16; 16:26; cf. Ac 6:7) the life giving truth (2 Th 2:12f). Faith which thus unites a person with Christ (2 Co 13:5; Ga 2:16, 20; Ep 3:17) also confers the Spirit on him (Ga 3:2,5,14;cf. Jn 7:38f; Ac 11:17), the Spirit of the sons of God (Ga 3:26; cf. Jn 1:12). Faith is reliance on God and not on self (Rm 3:27; Ep 2:9) and thus contrasts with the old order of the Law (Rm 7:7+) with its vain search (Rm 10;3; Ph 3:9) for  holiness by works (Rm 3;20,28; 9:31f; Ga 2:16; 3:11f): only faith can effect rue holiness, the saving holiness of God himself (Rm 1:17+; 3:21-26), received as a free gift from him (Rm 3:24; 4:16; 5:17; Ep 2:8;cf. Ac 15:11). Faith relates to the promise made to Abraham (Rm 4; Ga 3:6-18) and so makes salvation accessible to everyone, pagans included (Rm 1:5,16; 3:29f; 9:30; 10:11f; 16:26; Ga 3:8). It is coupled with baptism (Rm 6:4+), calls for public profession (Rm 10:10; 1 Tm 6:12), and expresses itself in charity (Ga 5:6;cf. Jm 2:14+). Faith is obscure (2 Co 5:7; Heb 11:1; cf. Jn 20:29), and involves hope as its concomitant (Rm 5:2+). It must  be allowed to grow (2 Co 10:15; 1Th 3:10; 2 Th 1:3) amid struggles and sufferings (Ph 1:29; Ep 6:16; 1 Th 3:2-8; 2 Th 1:4; Heb 12:2; 1 P 5:9), demanding fortitude (1 Co 16:13; Col 1:23;) and tenacity 2 Tm 4:7;cf. 1:14; 1 Tm 6:20) right up to the vision and possession of God (1 Co 13:12;cf. 1Jn 3:2).”; and Footnote ^k says “In the actual development of salvation history, the Jews come first; ‘salvation comes from the Jews’ (Jn. 4:22). Cf. Rm. 2:9-10, Mt. 10:5f, 15:24, Mk. 7:27, Ac. 13:5+. But abuse of this privilege could condemn them.”

4.       Rm 5:3f  - But that is not all we can boast about; we can boast about our suffering. These sufferings bring patience, as we know…

5.       Ep 3:13 - So I beg you, never lose confidence just because of the trials that I go through on your account; they are your glory.

Verse 9 says: Who has saved us and called us to be holy^b - not because of anything we ourselves have done but for his own purpose and by his own grace. This grace had already been granted to us, in Christ Jesus, before the beginning of time.  Footnote ^b  says “Lit. ‘and called us with a holy call’; this may be taken in two ways here: the calling of Christians to salvation, cf. Rm 1:6-7; 8:28; 1 Co 1:2,24; Col 3:15; Ep 1:18; 4:4; Ph 3:14; etc, or (by metonomy) the state (‘vocation’) to which Christians have been called.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       Tt 3:5 - It was not because he was concerned with any righteous actions we might have done ourselves; it was for no reason except his own compassion that he saved us, by means of the cleansing water of rebirth and by renewing us with the Holy Spirit.

2.       Rm 8:28 - We know that by turning everything to their good God cooperates with all those who love him, with all those that he has called according to his purpose.^p Footnote ^p says “Var (Vulg) We know that for those who love God everything conspires for good, for all those that he has called…’”

Verse 10 says: but it has only been revealed by the Appearing^c of our savior Christ Jesus. He abolished death, and he has proclaimed life and immortality to light through the Good News;

Footnote ^c  says “The ‘Appearing’ (‘epiphany’), cf. 1 Tm 6:14+, here refers to the incarnation and redemption.”

Parallel texts are:

1.       Rm 16:25 - Doxology^j. Glory to him who is able to give you the strength^k to live according to the Good News I preach, and in which I proclaim Jesus Christ, the revelation of a mystery^l kept secret for endless ages… Footnote ^j  says “Most authorities place this doxology here, but in some it appears at the end of ch. 15 or 14; others omit. A solemn presentation, cf. Ef 3:20; Jude 24-25, of the main points of the letter.: Footnote ^k says “Firmly grounded in doctrine and strong in Christian practice. Cf. 1:11; 1 Th 3:2,13; 2 Th 2:17; 3:3; 1 Co 1:8; 2 Co 1:21; Col 2:7.”; Footnote ^l  says “The idea of a ‘mystery’ of wisdom, v. 27; 1 Co 2:7; Ep 3:10; Col 2:2-3, long hidden in God and now revealed, v. 25; 1 Co 2:7,10; Ep 3:5,9f; Col 1:26, is borrowed by Paul from Jewish apocalypse, Dn 2:18-19+, but he enriches the content of the term by applying it to the climax of the history of salvation: the saving cross of Christ, 1 Co 2:8; the call of the pagans, v. 26; Rm 11:25; Col 1:26-27; Ep 3:6, to this salvation preached by Paul, v. 25; Col 1:23; 4:3; Ep 3:3-12; 6:19, and finally the restoration of all things in Christ as their one head, Ep 1:9-10. See also 1 Co 4:1; 13:2; 14:2; 15:51; Ep 5:32; 2 Th 2:7; 1 Tm 3:9,16; 2 Tm 1:9-10; Mt 13:11p+; Rv 1:20; 10:7; 17:5,7.”

2.       Tt 2:11 - You see, God’s grace has been revealed, and it has made salvation possible for the whole human race…

3.       Tt 3:4 - But when the kindness and love of God our savior for mankind were revealed, it was not because he was concerned with any righteous actions we might have done ourselves…