|
by
Doug Ward |
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, angels announced the Messiah's
birth to local shepherds (Luke 2:8-14). The shepherds then went to Bethlehem to
see the baby for themselves, telling Mary and Joseph what the angels had said.
For
Mary, the news from the shepherds confirmed what she had been told previously
about the identity of her son (1:30-33). Luke reports that Mary "treasured
up all these things, pondering them in her heart" (2:19).
What
did it mean for Mary to "treasure” and "ponder"? In his
book The Real Mary, biblical scholar Scot McKnight explains, "These
are standard words in Judaism for thinking about events in one's life so one
could make sense of and narrate what God was doing in history." Mary
wanted to understand what was happening so that she could communicate the good
news to others clearly. She was one of the first to announce the Gospel,
starting even before Jesus was born (1:46-55).
There
was much more for Mary to ponder as the boy grew up. At age twelve Jesus showed
himself to be right at home in the Temple courts in Jerusalem during the
Passover season, holding his own in discussions of the Scriptures with the
sages of Israel (2:40-51). Luke notes that afterward Mary "treasured up
all these things in her heart," continuing to consider the destiny of her
son.
Luke's
portrayal of Jesus and Mary in Luke 2 brings together two biblical motifs. One
involves precocious children whose conceptions were miraculous. The second is
about servants of God who treasure and ponder divine revelation.
Both
motifs are also present in the Genesis account of Joseph, the son of Jacob and
Rachel, whose birth was an answer to prayer (Genesis 30:22-24). When he was
seventeen, Joseph had unusual dreams that implied he would one day lead the
family. Jacob was troubled by the dreams, but he "kept the saying in
mind" (Genesis 37:9-11). Like Mary, he pondered what the future might
bring for his talented son.
Luke
2 makes an implicit comparison between Mary and Jesus on the one hand, and
Jacob and Joseph on the other. Luke also compares Jesus and Mary to the prophet
Samuel and his mother Hannah. Mary's expression of rejoicing in Luke 1:46-55 is
similar to Hannah's prayer of thanksgiving after the birth of Samuel (1 Samuel
2:1-10).
Like
Mary and her husband Joseph, Hannah and her husband Elkanah made regular
pilgrimages to worship God (1 Samuel 1:3; Luke 2:41), and Samuel's boyhood
service under Eli the priest (1 Samuel 2:11) looks ahead to Jesus' experience
at the Temple. Luke emphasizes the connection between Samuel and Jesus when he
writes in Luke 2:52 that "Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in
favor with God and man," a reference to 1 Samuel 2:26.
In treasuring
and pondering the revelation she received concerning her special son, Mary
followed in the footsteps of Jacob and Hannah. We, too, would be wise to
consider the meaning of God's Word and God's work in our lives.
File
translated from TEX by TTH,
version 3.66.
On 02 Dec 2024, 11:35.
