None of the Gospels suggests that Jesus took his three disciples up the mountain to be transfigured. The passage from Matthew's Gospel seems to indicate that Jesus' primary intention was to be alone with them.

Luke 9:28 states that Jesus took his disciples up the mountain to pray, and it was as he prayed that he was transfigured. Since Jesus asks his disciples to say nothing about the event until he has risen from the dead, an ancient church theological reflection links the Transfiguration with the glory of the Resurrection.

The passage from Matthew which we read today occurs not too long after Mt 13:15 which is, Peter's confession of faith that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God" and the first Prophecy of the passion as well as the passage on the conditions of following Jesus.

This passage links several events together; each event is deepening our understanding of the other, as God, the Father's voice acknowledges Jesus as his Son, the beloved, to whom we are to listen. Moses and the Prophets represent the voice of God in the Old Testament, but now God the Father tells us to listen to Jesus (Mt17:3).

There is a great deal of theology in all the passages dealing with the Transfiguration and surrounding passages. So it is by listening to Jesus that we deepen our knowledge of Him and the Father.