Mary: A Woman Discovered … part 1 of 2

Date: 22nd December 2017

Study 1/1

Mary is more than Jesus’ mother

Read – Luke 1.1-56  

Ever since I was a kid I loved hearing about Mary, the mother of Jesus. She seemed so gentle, and perfect somehow. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not being flippant; she just seemed to exude a quiet confidence and faith that set her apart from every other woman that lived. As I began to study the biblical texts with an eye to detail I began to see that in Luke’s gospel she had much more “space” in the story. By that I mean Luke includes stories about her that Matthew never does. Luke tells about her encounter with the angel, her meeting with Elizabeth, and others like Simeon and Anna. While Mark and John’s gospels don’t have the infancy narrative of Jesus’ conception and birth at all.

When you, or I, read we are constantly remembering what’s gone before in the narrative, although this is quite often done at a subconscious level. Therefore if we are attentive readers we will be inclined to remember what’s been happening. We are helped in this process by the author who puts subtle hints into the story that help us recall what’s already been mentioned. While at the same time adding, or foreshadowing events that are about to unfold. This is crucial for our reading of Mary, because Luke is assuming that his audience is familiar with the scriptures of Israel. The whole story of Jesus is based on the promise of restoration God made to Israel, beginning with Abraham! So if we don’t pick up these subtle hints in the text we often miss the depth and significance of what Luke is telling us.

Never fear though, I will highlight the echoes and hints (allusions) Luke has placed in the story as we travel through it. I’m not going to go into too much detail about the “theory” behind my reading of the story (narrative), as Luke tells it, but if you’re interested I will suggest further reading at the end of the study that will help you dig a little deeper. So lets get started.

Luke’s prologue – 1.1-4

Luke was writing to a world where women were marginalised and silenced, so he is using Mary as an example for both men and women to follow. This is an extraordinary element in Luke’s gospel. But before we get on to Mary we need to understand a little bit about why Luke wrote his gospel, and who he was writing to.

The opening of Luke’s gospel tells us why he wrote it, and to whom. Luke addresses the gospel to Theophilus, who may have been a wealthy patron who was supporting the very expensive project of writing a two volume account of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Luke wrote the gospel and Acts together.  So he is writing his gospel to offer an “orderly account” of all that has happened so that Theophilus, and everyone else who listens to the story, can be assured that everything they have learned about Jesus is not only reliable, but is the fulfilment of the promises God made to Israel, and the Nations. All these promises were written down in the Scriptures of Israel; what we now term the Old Testament.

Luke wants to make sure that his readers (although I use “reader” the ancient audience would have heard the gospel being read, rather than reading it for themselves) understand that the God of Israel is the divine authority behind the story. This authority is presented by angelic visitations, prophetic utterances inspired by the Holy Spirit, allusions to Israel’s sacred scriptures (Old Testament or First Testament), and the voice of God. Luke is assuring his readers that God is the initiator of the events recorded in the story. It is God’s appointed time, and God is again present among the people of Israel, just like God was with Abraham and Moses. The opening of the gospel (what is termed the “prologue”) sets the stage for what is to follow, and the authority of God is all over it.

At this point it’s worth reminding ourselves that in the ancient world men held the power, while women tended to be marginalised and silenced. So for Luke to write about a woman who outwits, out-faiths, and out-does the men in the narrative is quite extraordinary. As we examine the stories Luke tells about Mary we need to remember that Luke writes at a time when conventional attitudes regarding women were anything but equal. So, as we journey through these stories we will pay particular attention to how Luke encourages the reader to identify with the extraordinary faith of Mary in these stories, rather than the men. The irony in these stories is that the men are usually characterised as being men of influence, and power. Often they are identified as Israel’s religious and spiritual leaders. Yet they fail to recognise what God is doing in their midst.

A closer look at Zechariah and Elizabeth

Luke’s infancy narrative – 1.5-25

As I have already mentioned, one of the activities of reading is looking ahead while at the same time assessing what’s already been mentioned. In other words as a reader travels through a text they not only formulate expectations and opinions, but they are also forced to re-evaluate previously formed expectations and opinions in the light of new information. This means that Luke’s readers are encouraged to interpret Zechariah and Mary’s encounter with the angel as part of a greater story. It is a story that was revealed in Israel’s Scriptures, and had its beginning right back at the start when God worked as Creator, Judge, and Redeemer. However, in Luke’s infancy story Mary is the one who embraces what God is doing, while Zechariah seems to struggle to believe. In this way Mary represents a renewed Israel, and displays the kind of response Luke is encouraging his readers to have. While Zechariah, as we will see, is representative of non-believing Israel, struggling to come to terms with what God is doing.

Zechariah and Elizabeth – a pious couple

Zechariah and Elizabeth are introduced as exemplary models of Jewish piety. They are both from priestly lines, righteous, and live blamelessly according to the commandments of God. Luke describes Zechariah like other heroes of faith, who are pious, and obedient to God. By describing Zechariah in such a positive way Luke’s readers are encouraged to view him as a man who stands in continuity with other great men whom God has chosen, and whose stories belong to Israel’s sacred and righteous tradition.

Zechariah is a priest of the order of Abijah, while Elizabeth is from the line of Aaron. Luke’s introduction establishes their reliability; they both share a heritage that sets them apart as belonging to the priesthood of Israel that stretches all the way back to Moses and Aaron. Not only are they from priestly ancestry, they also walked blamelessly before the Lord, “Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord” (Luke 1:6). It’s worth remembering that they are both described as having a righteousness that is altogether pleasing to God. The emphasis here is that they “faithfully and consistently” obeyed God and the commandments.

Although Zechariah and Elizabeth were blameless before God, they were childless (Luke 1:7). Zechariah and Elizabeth’s barrenness is not the result of judgement, or a curse, but creates the opportunity for God to do something extraordinary, and reminds Luke’s readers  of the other stories in the First Testament where barren couples are visited by God. These  stories have a familiar theme (motif); an angel appears and proclaims that God will bless them with a son who will restore, or save, Israel. For Luke’s first century readers, who were very familiar with the Hebrew Scriptures, the similarity between Abraham and Sarah and Zechariah and Elizabeth would have been apparent.

Therefore the allusions to Abraham help the reader interpret what is happening in the story; a new and great period of promise is about to unfold. There are familiar Jewish expectations of restoration, especially on the basis of God’s promise to Abraham, that Luke wants to remind his readers about.

Restoration is again promised to Israel

With the introduction to Elizabeth and Zechariah complete, the story now turns to the divine encounter with the angel. Gabriel, who declares that he stands in the presence of God, appears to Zechariah at the time of the evening sacrifice when he is offering the incense in the temple. Gabriel tells Zechariah that his prayer, offered in obedience and righteousness, has been heard. The immediate context may suggest that Zechariah’s prayer was for a son, but it is unlikely that he prayed for a son while offering prayer and sacrifices in the Holy Place. The prayers at the evening offering were supposed to be prayers for the nation of Israel. Zechariah, in his role as priest, would have offered prayer for the redemption of Israel on behalf of the nation gathered outside. In Luke 1.10, “The whole assembly of the people” represents Israel as the chosen people of God. They are the pious of Israel who are gathered at the hour of sacrifice. It is also clear that the hope of God’s salvation is the intent of the prayer and sacrifice because later in Luke 2.30-32 Simeon announces that he has seen God’s salvation in the child Jesus.

Although Zechariah answers in exactly the same way Abraham did, Luke wants to show that Zechariah’s faith is inadequate. Faith in the Lord’s words is an important aspect of Luke’s gospel, so here, at the very beginning of the gospel, Luke encourages the reader to accept, and identify with the kind of faith that Abraham, the father of faith, exhibits. Why so hard on Zechariah? Well Zechariah, in his role as Israel’s priest, was expected to remember the miracles God did in Israel, especially with Abraham. He was also expected to remember the promises of restoration God made to Israel, which were now about to be fulfilled. But Zechariah fails to see what God is really capable of. There is a hint of pathos implied in the plight of Zechariah, because his punishment, and subsequent inspiration (1:67-79), serve to highlight the concepts of obedience and total faith in the God of Israel that Luke wants to emphasise. By echoing the story of Abraham’s encounter with the Lord in Genesis 18 Luke is reaching back through Israel’s sacred past and reminding his readers that “nothing is too wonderful for the Lord” (Gen 18:14).

So lets take a breather …

Some points to ponder:

¥ What aspects of the story are new to you?

¥ What do you think are the important, or significant aspects of the story for your faith?

¥ Can you see/identify other echoes from the Old Testament that are in the Zechariah and Elizabeth story? (some clues … Daniel 8.16,17; 9.20, 21; 10.15)

¥ Why do you think it might be important to read about Zechariah and Elizabeth before going on to read about Mary?

¥ Thinking about what you have been reading; what sort of things do you find helpful or unhelpful?

Next time we will look at Mary’s encounter with Gabriel.

Bibliography

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———. Luke 9:51 – 24:53. BECNT, vol. 2. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1996.

Brenner, A. The Israelite Woman: Social Role and Literary Type in Biblical Narrative. Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1985.

Brown, R. The Birth of the Messiah: A Commentary on the Infancy Narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. New York: Doubleday, 1993.

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Acts. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992.

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Intertextually edited by Mark Goodacre. JSNTSup 282, London: T&T Clark International, 2005.

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Ó Fearghail, F. “Announcement or Call? Literary Form and Purpose in Luke 1:26-38.” PIAB 16 (1993): 20-35.

Parsons, Mikeal. Luke: Storyteller, Interpreter, Evangelist. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2007.

Reid, B. “‘Do You See This Woman?’ a Liberative Look at Luke 7.36-50 and Strategies for Reading Other Lukan Stories against the Grain.” In A Feminist Companion to Luke, edited by A. Levine and M. Blickenstaff, 106-20. London: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002.

Sanders, James. “Isaiah in Luke.” Int 36 (1992): 144-55.

Tannehill, Robert. Luke. ANTC, Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996.

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