When Mountains Move and Demons Flee: The Roller Coaster of Faith in Mark 9
What’s Mark 9 about?
This chapter takes us on an emotional whiplash journey from the mountaintop glory of Jesus’ transfiguration to the valley struggle of a desperate father’s faith. It’s about power, doubt, and what happens when divine glory crashes into human frailty.
The Full Context
Mark 9 sits at a crucial turning point in Jesus’ ministry, right after Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah and Jesus’ first prediction of his death. The disciples are still trying to wrap their heads around what kind of Messiah Jesus actually is – and Mark is about to show them (and us) just how unprepared they really are for what’s coming.
This chapter masterfully weaves together three major episodes: the transfiguration (verses 2-13), the healing of a demon-possessed boy (verses 14-29), and Jesus’ continued teaching about his death and what it means to follow him (verses 30-50). Each scene builds on the themes of revelation, faith, and discipleship, creating a literary sandwich that Mark loves to use – the mountaintop experience bookended by very human struggles with understanding and believing.
What the Ancient Words Tell Us
The Greek word metamorphoo that Mark uses for Jesus being “transfigured” is where we get our word “metamorphosis.” This isn’t just a costume change – it’s a complete transformation that reveals Jesus’ true divine nature. The same word appears when Paul talks about believers being transformed by the renewing of their minds in Romans 12:2.
Grammar Geeks
When the father cries out “I believe; help my unbelief!” he uses two different Greek constructions. Pisteuo (I believe) is present tense – ongoing action. But apistia (unbelief) is a noun describing a state of being. He’s saying “I’m actively believing, but help me with this thing called doubt that’s still hanging around!”
But here’s what’s fascinating about the transfiguration scene – Moses and Elijah appear with Jesus, and the Greek text suggests they were discussing his “exodus” (exodos) that he was about to accomplish in Jerusalem. They weren’t just chatting about the weather; they were talking about the ultimate liberation that Jesus would achieve through his death and resurrection.
What Would the Original Audience Have Heard?
Any first-century Jew hearing about Moses and Elijah appearing together would have immediately thought “end times.” These two figures represented the Law and the Prophets – the entire Hebrew Scriptures. But more than that, Jewish tradition expected both Moses and Elijah to return before the Messiah’s final victory.
When the voice from heaven declares “This is my beloved Son; listen to him,” it’s echoing both Psalm 2:7 (the royal coronation psalm) and Deuteronomy 18:15 (Moses’ prophecy about the coming prophet). The Father is essentially saying, “Everything you’ve learned from Moses and Elijah has been pointing to this moment. Now listen to Jesus.”
Did You Know?
The timing of the transfiguration – “after six days” – might not be random. In Jewish thought, the seventh day was the day of God’s glory. Some scholars suggest Mark is hinting that Jesus’ transfiguration represents the dawning of the messianic age, the “seventh day” of God’s redemptive plan.
Down in the valley, while three disciples are having a mystical experience on the mountain, nine disciples are facing an epic fail with a demon-possessed boy. The crowd is arguing with them, probably mocking their inability to cast out this particular spirit. The contrast couldn’t be starker – divine glory above, human limitation below.
But Wait… Why Did They…?
Here’s something puzzling: why couldn’t the nine disciples cast out this demon when Jesus had already given them authority to do exactly that in Mark 6:7? And they’d successfully cast out demons before!
Wait, That’s Strange…
Jesus tells them this kind of demon “can come out only by prayer,” but earlier in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus never prays before casting out demons. He just commands them to leave. So what’s different here? Some manuscripts add “and fasting,” suggesting this was about spiritual preparation, not just technique.
The answer seems to lie in what Jesus says about faith. He calls this generation “faithless” – and that includes the disciples. They’d started relying on their own power and techniques rather than staying connected to God. It’s like having a phone that works perfectly until it loses signal – the phone isn’t broken, but the connection is.
Wrestling with the Text
The father’s desperate cry – “I believe; help my unbelief!” – might be the most honest prayer in all of Scripture. He’s not pretending to have perfect faith. He’s acknowledging that belief and doubt can coexist in the same heart, sometimes in the same moment.
Jesus responds to this mixed faith with complete healing for the boy. The lesson? God doesn’t wait for our faith to be perfect before he acts. He works with whatever faith we can muster, even when it’s tangled up with doubt.
“Faith isn’t the absence of doubt – it’s choosing to trust God in the presence of doubt.”
But then Mark gives us another jarring transition. Right after this powerful display of God’s power, Jesus tells his disciples again that he’s going to be killed. And they don’t understand. They’re afraid to ask questions. Instead, they argue about who’s the greatest among them.
It’s almost comical if it weren’t so tragic. They’ve just witnessed the transfiguration and a dramatic demon exorcism, and they’re worried about their rank in Jesus’ kingdom. They’re still thinking like the world thinks – that following Jesus means climbing a ladder of status and power.
How This Changes Everything
Jesus turns their worldview upside down by placing a child in the center of their circle. In that culture, children had no social status, no legal rights, no power. They were considered property, not persons of value. Yet Jesus says, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.”
The Greek word for “welcome” (dechomai) means more than just saying hello. It means to receive with hospitality, to accept fully, to embrace. Jesus is saying that the way we treat the powerless, the insignificant, the vulnerable – that’s how we’re treating him.
This completely reframes what it means to follow Jesus. It’s not about gaining power over others; it’s about using whatever power we have to serve others, especially those who can’t repay us. The kingdom of God operates on an entirely different economy – one where the last are first and the greatest are those who serve.
The chapter ends with some of Jesus’ most challenging teachings about sin and commitment. When he talks about cutting off hands and feet and plucking out eyes, he’s using hyperbolic language to make a point: whatever prevents you from fully following Jesus needs to go, no matter how precious it seems.
Key Takeaway
Mountain-top experiences are gifts, but the real test of faith happens in the valleys where demons are real, children are hurting, and our own hearts are divided between belief and doubt.
Further Reading
Internal Links:
- Mark 9:23-24 – Faith and Unbelief
- Mark 9:2-3 – The Transfiguration
- Mark 9:35 – Greatest Must Be Servant
External Scholarly Resources:
