Why were Moses and Elijah with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration?

•⁠ ⁠Of course, the answer we all learned when we were young is that Moses represents the law and Elijah represents celibacy… (Let’s be patient with that). In reality, there are many similarities between Moses and Elijah, including the following: •⁠ ⁠Moses met with God on Mount Sinai, and Elijah also met with God on Mount Horeb. •⁠ ⁠Moses gathered all the people on Mount Sinai to establish the covenant with God, and Elijah gathered all the people on Mount Carmel in an attempt to renew the covenant after the worship of Baal spread under King Ahab and his wicked wife Jezebel. •⁠ ⁠Moses ordered the killing of those who worshiped the golden calf, and Elijah ordered the slaughter of the prophets of Baal and Asherah. •⁠ ⁠Moses spent 40 days on the mountain without eating or drinking, and Elijah walked for 40 days on the strength of one meal. •⁠ ⁠God revealed Himself to Moses while he was in the cleft of the rock and passed by him, and God also revealed Himself to Elijah while he was in the cave on the mountain and passed by him. •⁠ ⁠Moses parted the sea with his staff, and Elijah parted the Jordan River with his cloak. •⁠ ⁠Moses led the first exodus, and Elijah was supposed to lead a second exodus (which did not happen due to the people’s estrangement from God). •⁠ ⁠Therefore, Moses and Elijah appeared with Christ at the Transfiguration to speak about “His departure, which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31)… a new exodus with a new leader, Christ, not with the blood of a lamb but with the blood of His cross. •⁠ ⁠Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets, which foretold of Jesus the Savior. •⁠ ⁠Moses was transfigured when his face shone, and he had to put on a veil, and Elijah ascended in a chariot of fire (a form of transfiguration)… But on the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus appears transfigured as the central figure, with Moses and Elijah beside Him… and after that, the disciples saw only Jesus alone. This shows that the transfiguration of Jesus is greater than any relative transfigurations that happened to the righteous men of God. •⁠ ⁠Moses, buried in the earth, and Elijah, taken up to heaven… both stand in submission before Christ. Thus, “every knee shall bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth” (Philippians 2:10).