Luke 9
26 ὃς γὰρ ἂν ἐπαισχυνθῇ με καὶ τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους, τοῦτον ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπαισχυνθήσεται, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων.
26 `For whoever may be ashamed of me, and of my words, of this one shall the Son of Man be ashamed, when he may come in his glory, and the Father’s, and the holy messengers’… [YLT]
Matthew 28
19 πορευθέντες οὖν μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος…
19 having gone, then, disciple all the nations, (baptizing them — to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…[YLT]
Definite syntactical similarity.
There is certainly a syntactical parallel that maybe observed between Luke 9:26 and Matt 28:19. Both passages end in a clause which begins with a prepositional phrase (in glory, in the name) and are qualified then by three following genitives (9:26, “his, the Father, and the angels, 28:19 The first qualifying genitive in in 9:26 is a pronoun (αυτου) and in 28:19, a noun. Like 28:19, however, the remaining nouns in 9:26 are articular. However, I do not see these passages as truly parallel for the following reasons:
Syntactical dissimilarity
In 28:19, the new disciples are to be baptized into the name of all three (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) in a coordinate sense, implying equality of relationship with the three. The preposition εἰς is used (see below). In 9:26, Jesus is coming “in” or “with” (Grk., ἐν) his own glory, that of the Father, and that of the angels. In other words, his coming will be characterized or associated with these respective types of glory, whereas in 28:19 a significantly new relationship is established on the part of the disciples with respect to the name.
Semantic dissimilarity: δόξα vs. ὄνομα…
In fact, the meaning in difference between the two words should not be discounted as negligible in this context. Glory (biblically speaking) is a quality inherent to the object described. A name is something external to the object, which symbolizes/describes/represents that object. Glory in 9:26 is therefore a peculiar quality of each, and not something shared equally by all three (cf. Isa 42:8; 1 Cor 15:40-41). John 17:22-24 may not be used as an argument against this definition, since John is essentially talking about an elevation of the glory of the church, and emphasizing (along the lines of John 15:1ff), the relationship of his disciples with him.
The word “name,” on the other hand, does not share in this limitation, but the same name, due to its external quality, may be applied to or shared by different individuals. Here, it is quite significant: if the name reveals the individual named, then the name “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” uniquely reveals the nature of God in this context. The background of the term “name” should also be considered here: contextually, we would expect the divine name or its equivalent in Greek (θεός, κύριος). Instead we receive new revelation concerning the nature of the divine name.
Contextual dissimilarity…
Matt 28:19 is part of the conclusion of Matthew’s Gospel, and as such bears a special emphasis. It bears witness to the triumphant Messiah’s plan to win the world, and to the orders he gives to that end. The passage calls to mind God’s covenant promises to Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, and David. Effectively, Jesus is instituting a new order based on his authority as the resurrected Lord. Especially pertinent here is the institution of baptism as the rite of inclusion in the kingdom of God.
Baptism needs a bit of additional explanation here. Baptism is into (Grk. εἰς) the name. The preposition here indicates a change in relationship, and, in combination with the noun ὄνομα indicates coming under a new authority, one that is total and absolute, since the definition of the name is “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” The covenant rite of initiation into God’s people in the OT was circumcision, and no male could be a member of the people of God without that rite. If born an Israelite, the boy had to be circumcised on the 8th day. If one wished to become a citizen of Israel as an adult, then one received circumcision as an adult male. Women did not have a similar rite, simply because they were viewed under the covenant authority of their fathers and husbands. In the NT, no one can be a citizen of the kingdom of God without baptism, and both men and women are now baptized (even with the theological differences regarding infant baptism, all Bible believing Christians agree that adults must be baptized upon a valid profession of faith).
This is a significant change in the economy of redemption, and central to our discussion is with respect to whom baptism occurs. Incorporation into the kingdom of God means coming into a new relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus does not suggest that this new relationship is with Jehovah, but instead substitutes the triune name for the name of Jehovah, demonstrating that that the name in the OT points toward and is fulfilled by the revelation of Father, Son and Spirit in the NT.
Synoptic Parallels
The parallels in Matthew and Mark for 9:26 are significant in demonstrating something of Luke’s theology here, Matt 16:27 and Mk 8:38. Luke uses the word “glory” nearly twice as many times as Matthew (46% more) and more than three times as many times as Mark (69% more), so that Luke has a fairly significant “theology of glory” as one of his sub-themes, certainly a rewarding study in and of itself. Note here, however, the differences between the parallels:
Matt 16:27 For the Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay every man for what he has done. [RSV]
Mk 8:38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
Only Luke associates glory with the Father, the angels, and Jesus himself, and this, I think, is related to that special emphasis in Luke. In the parallels, the Son comes only with the glory of the Father (cf. Heb 1:3) and is accompanied by the angels themselves. In comparison, then, this suggests that Luke is emphasizing the overall effect of the second coming, and that He, the Father, and the angels will all be glorified with the glory that is due to them.