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"
(Lk 2, 19.51)
Lucan text. What can be concluded from this cluster? First, we can con-
sider the connection of angel and light.
In the LXX doxa had been made to render kabod in all its senses.6
Hence, it acquired a meaning which it did not have in profane Greek:
"radiance" or "light" ; that is, the "glory" which shone through the cloud
over the tent of meeting and made known the presence of the Lord. In
Ezekiel, "the glory of the Lord" rests upon the Cherubim (Ez 9,3 ; 10,
4.18), and in the literature of late Judaism the angelic powers that sur-
round the Lord become "angels of glory" or "of light."7 The combination
of doxa and aggelos is not found merely in apocalyptic, and in the present
instance does not establish of itself that we have to do with "the apocalyptic
thematic." Doubtless, the best parallel provided by St. Luke to the ap-
pearance of the angel to the shepherds is found in Acts 12,7. Peter had
been jailed by Herod Agrippa I, but before Herod had a chance to have
him executed, "Behold, the Angel of the Lord stood by, and a light shone
in the room" (kai idou aggelos Kyriou epest kai phs elampsen en t
oikmati). As in Lk 2,9, we have here the apparition at night, the aggelos
Kyriou, the verb epest, and the light. The motifs are common to apoc-
alyptic. But is this text apocalyptic in anything more than a wide, loose,
very generic sense? The same question should be asked regarding Acts
7,30.
Eudokia in the expression anthrpoi eudokias denotes divine favor.
No doubt, the phrase can be used to specify election to receive an apocalyp-
tic vision, and anr epithymin (Dn [Theod] 9,23; 10,11.19), in view of
the correspondence of epithymia and eudokia? is a very possible parallel.
In the Qumrn literature, however, God's "favor" is not restricted to this
special sense and does not clearly derive from it. 1QH 11:9f. ("And your
mercy is upon all the sons of your favor, for you have made them know
the mystery of your truth and divine your inscrutable wonders") possibly
gives the revelation itself as the explanation of the choice of the formula.
On the other hand, the ki clause, strictly speaking, explains not why "the
sons of your favor" are so called, but why the writer says God's mercy is
upon them. In any case, 1QH 4:30-33 seems to use the formula in a more
general sense, as in 1QS 8:6. In the latter text there is certainly no hint
supposing that anthrpoi eudokias translates 'anse rsn, we may note that rdsn
is found in the sense of God's favor in Ex 28,38; Dt 33,23; Is 49,8; 60,10; 61,2.
Syntrein to remata: cf. Gn 37,11, dieter sen to rma.
Cf. G. von Rad, "doxa," TWNT 2, 245f.
7
Cf. von Rad, art. cit., who exemplifies the development from LXX Ex 15,11;
Test. Levi 18:5; Philo, Spec. Leg. I, 45; Test. lud. 25:2.
8 Cf. footnote 4.
34 T H E CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY [Vol. 26
that "the chosen of [God's] favor", behir ras on, is anything more than a
parallel with "the sons of the eternal assembly" (2:25), "the men of the
covenant" (6:19), etc., especially in view of the tie between bhtr and
covenant in Is 43,20f.; Pss 89,4; 105,6; 106,23. The closest parallel to
the Qumrn expression is Is 42,1 where Yahweh says of the Servant
behtrt raft naps. But here the Servant is one "chosen" simply to ac-
complish a mission :
He shall not flicker or bend
Till he establish justice in the earth,
And the coast-lands wait for his teaching.9
In the Infancy Gospel (Lk 2,14), moreover, the phrase does not refer
merely to the shepherds. All to whom God sends the new-born savior
are men of his favoran interpretation that accords perfectly with the
phrase in v. 11 "for all the people."
Even on the supposition that syntrein ta remata in 2,19 derives from
the text in Dn 7,28, it does not immediately follow that Mary is portrayed
here as the keeper of an apocalyptic vision sworn to secrecy. In 1,18 the
words of Zachary, "How am I to know this? For I am an old man and
my wife is advanced in years," derive from certain passages on Abraham
and Sara in Genesis (15,8; 18,11; 17,17). Obviously, it does not follow
that Zachary is portrayed here as a "father of many nations." The idea
of Mary as the keeper of an apocalyptic vision seems somewhat removed
from the horizons of the Infancy Gospel, especially inasmuch as the so-
called apocalyptic vision is not actually seen by her but by others.
The fact remains, however, that F. Neirynck has pointed out numerous
contacts between the Lucan Infancy Gospel and apocalyptic literature.
The attempt to press these contacts to the point of establishing an identi-
fiable apocalyptic structural pattern does offer, moreover, a positive ex-
planation of the repetition of 2,19 in 2,51 and of the placement of the
latter verse outside the last scene precisely at the end of the Infancy Gospel.
Neirynck argues that just as 2,19 presents Mary as the destinatary of
an apocalyptic secret, so 2,51 corresponds to the renewed imposition of
secrecy found at the end of an apocalyptic book (as in Dn 12,4.9 ; Ap 22,
10).
The question of genre, however, is vastly complicated in the Lucan
9 Is 42,4. Likewise, in the baptism-scene (Mk 1,11 par.) where the text of Is
42,lff. is alluded to, Jesus is not "chosen" because he is to receive a revelation; he
receives the revelation because he is chosen. The revelation designates him as one
chosen for (at least the prophetic aspect of) the role of the Servant: "He shall
bring forth justice to the nations. . . ."
1964] "BUT MARY KEPT ALL THESE THINGS . . ." 35
10 For the question of sources and the prehistory of the text, cf. the annotated
36 T H E CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY [Vol. 26
as the first to learn of the child's birth. Others who heard the story heard
it later, after the shepherds had left the scene "glorifying God and praising
him" (2,20). But the reason why the notice on "all who heard it" is
inserted by anticipation in its present place is obvious from structural
analysis. There are five other exits in the Infancy narratives (1,23.38.56;
2.39.51), each of them marking the end of and neatly sealing a scene.
In line with the structural function of these exits, the exit of the shepherds
(2,20) seals this entire pericope, and the notice "And all who heard it"
is accordingly preplaced. This is the more easily done as it serves another
purpose : the juxtaposition of vv. 18 and 19 deliberately sets Mary apart
from all others in her wonder at the mystery of her child.
There are numerous reactions described elsewhere in the Infancy
narratives (e.g., l,21f.63.65; 2,33.47f.). But can we find real structural
parallels to illuminate 2,19.51? To answer this question we must look at
the structure of the Infancy Gospel as a whole.
The Structure of the Lucan Infancy Gospel
Among the many parallels in these narratives, two have clear structural
significance for the Infancy Gospel as a whole: the annunciation of the
angel Gabriel to Zachary and to Mary (1,5-25. 26-38), and the notice
"And the child grew. . . ." which closes the account of the birth and
circumcision of John and the canticle of Zachary (1,80), and which in
parallel fashion closes the account of Jesus' birth, circumcision, presenta-
tion, and the canticle of Simeon (2,40). Similarly, the Infancy Gospel is
closed in 2,52 with the notice "And Jesus grew. . . ." In each instance
this notice stands outside the individual scenes (cf. 1,80; 2,40.52), and,
as is clear from parallel placement following a series of parallel accounts,
is intended to bind a series of scenes together. The result is the paralleling
of two unequal blocks, for within the unit of scenes centering on Jesus,
some are without counterpart among the scenes centering on John.
This gives us a structure in which three parts may be distinguished, as
designated here by Roman numerals :
I Annunciation to Zachary Annunciation to Mary (1,26-38)
(1,5-25)
Visitation (1,39-56)
II Birth of John (1,57-58) Birth of Jesus (2,1-7)
Shepherds (2,8-20)
Circumcision and naming Circumcision and naming of
of John (1,59-66) Jesus (2,21)
Presentation in the Temple
(2,22-24)
38 T H E CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY [Vol. 26
17
Cf. footnote 13. The dispute over what name was to be given him is an in-
stance of attention independently focused on John. The hypothesis of literary
dependence of the stories of John on those of Jesus has not been successfully
established. For a detailed attempt to work out such a dependence, cf. M. D. Goulder
and M. L. Sanderson, "St. Luke's Genesis," JTS 8 (1957) 12-30.
1964] "BUT MARY KEPT ALL THESE THINGS . . ." 39
20
Cf. the parallel expressions meta spouds (1,39) describing Mary's journey
to Judaea, and speusantes (2,16) describing the shepherds' journey to Bethlehem.
This is not taken into consideration by B. Hospodar, "Meta Spouds in Lk 1,39,"
CBQ 18 (1956) 14-18.
1964] "BUT MARY KEPT ALL THESE THINGS . . ." 41
Anthological Composition
Besides the over-all structure into which the narrative of the shepherds
has been carefully integrated, there is another important characteristic
which it has in common with the rest of the Infancy Gospel; that is, a
stylistic procedure aptly designated "anthological composition"22 by which
the narrative is given a density and rich allusiveness to OT texts and
themes.
In the annunciation to the shepherds we can see this stylistic procedure
at work in such details as "the Angel of the Lord" (v.9) whose appearance
in OT narrative testifies to the covenantal bonds between Yahweh and
his people23 (Gn 16,7; 21,17; 22,11; Ex 14,19; Nm 22,22; Jgs 2,1; 6,11;
13,3; 2 Sm 14,16; 4 Kgs 1,3; 19,35). The "glory" that shines around the
shepherds (v.9) has a rich background in the OT, where it signifies the
presence of God (Ex 16,10; 24,17; 29,43; 40,34; Lv 9,23f.; Nm 14,10;
16,19; 20,6; etc.). Ephobthsan phobon megan (v.9) is the usual reaction
to the appearance of God or his ministers in the OT tradition (Gn 18,15 ;
28,17; Dt 5,5; Jos 4,14; Jgs 6,23; etc.). So, too, the angel's opening
words "Fear not" are an OT stereotype (Gn 15,1; 21,17; 26,24; 46,3;
etc.). Chara megal (v.lO) echoes the chaire of Gabriel in the annunciation
to Mary, which itself is textured with the joyous "Daughter of Zion"
prophecies (So 3,14-17; Jl 2,21-27; Za 2,9f.). Smeron ( v . l l ) draws
on and modifies a rich OT theme: the hayym of Deuteronomy24 speci-
21
The notice in 1,65 follows "the blessing" referred to in 1,64, namely the Bene-
dicts which has been post-placed (1,68-79).
22 Cf. A. Robert, "Les genres littraires," DBS 5, 41 Iff.
23 Cf. G. von Rad, "aggelos" TWNT I, 75f.
24
Although hayym is significant elsewhere (Gn 50,20; Ex 14,13; etc.), it is
42 T H E CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY [Vol. 26
fying fulfillment of the promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Dt 9,1 ;
20,3; 26,3). Here, as in the scene of Jesus in the synagogue at Nazareth
(Lk 4,21), semer on solemnly proclaims the fulfillment of messianic
prophecy. What prophecy? The "shepherds" (v.8), "the town of David"
( v . l l ) , the birth of the Messiah ( v . l l ) , and the motif of peace (v.14) point
to the prophecy of Micah :
And you, O tower of the flock
Height of the daughter of Zion,
To you shall come the former dominion,
The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem. (Mi 4,8)
Micah refers to "the tower of the flock" at Bethlehem (Gn 35,21), which,
as the Targum of Pseudo-Jonathan confirms, was specially related to mes-
sianic expectation: "And Jacob proceeded and spread his tent beyond
the tower of flocks, the place from whence it is to be that the king Meshiha
will be revealed at the end of the days." 25 David had tended sheep here
at Bethlehem (ISm 16,4.11.18f.), the town from which, in the words of
Micah, the Davidic Messiah would come :
And you, O Bethlehem Ephratha . . .
From you shall one come forth for me
Who shall be ruler over Israel . . .
Therefore he will give them up
Until the time when she who is with child shall have borne. . . .
But he shall stand fast and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord
In the majesty [kbod, doxa'] of the name of the Lord. . . .
And this shall be the peace [slm, eirn], . . . (Mi 5,Iff.)
The smeron of the angel also proclaims fulfillment of the Isaian prophecy
( [ M T ] 9 , l - 6 ) , which, like the annunciation to the shepherds, combines
the motifs of light (Is 9,1; Lk 2,9; cp. Lk 1,79), joy (Is 9,2; Lk 2,10),
the birth of a child (Is 9,5; Lk 2,11) who is the Davidic Messiah (Is 9,6;
Lk 2,11; cp. Lk l,32b.33), and of the era of peace (Is 9,5b.6; Lk 2,14).
The sign given to the shepherds, that is, the child wrapped in swaddling
bands and lying en phatn (2,12) connotes the rejection of the Messiah
(cf. Lk 2,7b), phatn being a Stichwort calculated to recall the text of
Is 1,3-4:
The ox knows its owner
And the ass its master's crib [phatn] ;
clearly enough a Deuteronomic theme. Smeron of 3Kgs 1,48; 3,6; 8,15 focuses on
the moment of fulfillment of prophecy. This we find in Lk (2,11; 4,21) together
with a wider but equally significant eschatological sense in 19,5.9; 23,43.
25 Cf. J. W. Etheridge, Targums on the Pentateuch (London, 1862) 281.
1964] " B U T MARY KEPT A L L THESE THINGS . . ." 43
phrase of the story of Joseph (Gn 40) and his interpretation of dreams.28
The baker, having seen that Joseph gave a favorable interpretation to the
dream of the cup-bearer, asks for an interpretation of his own dream. But
Joseph, "grasping, on reflection, the import of the dream" [symbaln t
logism to onar] unhappily predicted the baker's execution. It does not
seem possible to give symballein a more specific meaning than "to inter-
pret," "to grasp the import." In Lk 2,19 syntactical considerations (the
present participle as opposed to the aorist participle in Josephus, the
imperfect tense of the main verb) as well as the parallels in 1,65; 2,33;
and 2,50 establish the conative sense of symballousa. Hence, the old trans-
lation "pondering" is perfectly accurate.
For the sake of completeness: kardia here has the same extension as
the Hebrew lb, the seat of thought, memory, affectivity. Remata, here
rendered "things," has the ambiguity of dbr; that is, it could as well
be translated "words."
But the interpretation of these notices really turns on what it is that
Mary keeps in her heart and ponders. This brings us to a discussion of
one line of development in the Marian theology of these chapters.
The Object of Mary's Reflection
At the angel Gabriel's words Chaire kecharitmen (1,28) Mary "was
startled at what he said, and wondered [dielogizeto : weighed, considered]
what kind of greeting this might be" (1,29). From the moment that Mary
is introduced in the Infancy Gospel she is portrayed as seeking to fathom
the mysteries in which she now lives and moves. But the development
of this theme, "Virgin most reflective," is reserved for the sequence from
2,19 to 2,51.
In the story of the shepherds there is much that might be pondered;
for example, the very fact of an angelic proclamation of the birth, or the
fact that news of the birth is brought not to the wise and mighty but to
the unpretentious poor. This, however, is not what Mary keeps in her
heart. Like the others who heard the shepherds' tale, she wonders not
at the shepherds, but "at what the shepherds told them" (peri ton
lalthentn cypo ton poimenon 2,18). The text, moreover, defines what
this is : "They made known what had been said to them about this child"
(egnrisan peri tou rmatos tou lalthentos autois peri ton paidiou toutou
2,17). When we restudy the annunciation to the shepherds, we find that
"what had been said to them about this child" is given in 2,11 : "for today,
gart, 1931) ad loc; M.-J. Lagrange, vangile selon saint Luc (Paris, 1921) ad loc;
F. Neirynck, art. cit., 465, etc.
28
Antiquities, II, 72.
46 T H E CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY [Vol. 26
in the town of David, a savior has been born to you who is the Messiah-
Lord!" Probably, by reason of its apparently pregnant sense, we should
also include the sign given in the next verse under "what had been said
to them about this child" : "you will find the child wrapped in swaddling
bands and lying in a manger." While the fulfillment of prophecy (Micah
and Isaiah) and the doxology of the heavenly throng cannot be excluded
with certainty, the text itself (2,17) appears to specify that what Mary
ponders in her heart is the titles given to her son, so ter and christos Kyrios,
and the sign of the manger.
No doubt, the title str would have special resonances for hearers of
the Gospel in the Hellenistic world. But the primary effect of the title is
to place the child in the OT tradition of heroes chosen to deliver Israel
from the yoke of oppressors. As the canticle of Zachary shows, this tradi-
tion in its messianic application is radicalized, for those who hold Israel
in bondage are no mere political enemies, and stria for the people can
consist in nothing less than "the taking away of their sins" (cf. 1,69.71.74.
77). The earliest Christian preaching exactly confirms this interpretation
of str (cf. Acts 13,23; cp. Jgs 3,9.15; 4 Kgs 13,5) while further in-
dicating that the full scope of the title distinctively supposes the glorifica-
tion of Jesus (cf. Acts 5,31).
But christos Kyrios, as the form of the angel's proclamation makes
plain, is a still more significant title than str: "a savior has been born
to you," but this savior "is the Messiah-Lord !" Christos Kyrios is a delib-
erate variation on the stereotype christos Kyriou, "the Messiah of the
Lord." The cryptic modification charges the title with a content rich in
potentiality which early Christian hearers of the Gospel grasped im-
mediately: christos Kyrios evokes the messianic Lord enthroned in glory
at the right hand of his Father, and is one of the earliest formulations of
faith in Jesus as sharing the very status of God. From 2,19 (as from the
whole Gospel record) it appears that Mary's grasp of these titles is virtual
and questing.
The sign as given to the shepherds (2,12) is paradoxical in form: the
child is wrapped in swaddling bands (that is, has been cared for) and
lies in a manger (that is, abandoned). Is not this, at least, how the sign
would strike the shepherds? They hurry to Bethlehem. The long-awaited
messianic king is born! And they findwhat? ". . . Mary and Joseph, and
the child lying in the manger" (2,16). The significant aspect is the manger
(cf. Is 1,3-4), which frames the simple pastoral scene in darkness: the
nation rejects the Messiah. This reading of the text highlights an observa-
tion often made on v. 10, namely, that both for the evangelist and his
audience the phrase "for all the people" goes beyond its surface-sense
1964] "BUT MARY KEPT ALL THESE THINGS . . ." 47
Alma College
Los Gatos, Calif.
^ s
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