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The
Sunday before the Nativity which is the summit of the preparation and the
herald for the feast of Christmas is placed between the 18th to the 24th
December according to when Sunday falls. This year it is on this coming
Sunday 21st December. According to the Synaxarion, which is a short
account of the lives of the saints that celebrate on any particular day
and is read everyday during Mattins, it’s says of this day that the Holy
Fathers of the Church ascribed that commemoration be made of everyone
found pleasing to God from Adam the first-created until Joseph the
Betrothed of the Mother of God according to the genealogy that St. Luke
historically mentions in his Gospel and also all the Prophets and
Prophetesses.
The birth of
Jesus Christ, which is imminently forthcoming, impelled the Church to go
back into the holy history of the Chosen people of Israel to which St.
Paul says belongs “the adoption, the glory, the commandments, the law, the
worship, the promises, the forefathers and from whom Jesus Christ came
according to the flesh. With her reference to this, the Church wants to
honour all those righteous people who lived and died believing and waiting
for the fulfilment of God’s promise for the coming of the Saviour and
Deliverer, in other words, the event which we Christians are preparing to
celebrate in just a few days.
The Gospel
reading for the day is the complete first chapter of the first Book of the
New Testament, in others words, the first chapter of St. Matthew. Here
Matthew gives us Christ’s genealogy and then describes in which way he was
born of the Virgin Mary. The Apostle reading comes from the eleventh
chapter of the Epistle of St. Paul to the Hebrews verses 9-10 and verses
32-40. The reading singles out the faith of the Patriarch Abraham and the
achievements of other men of the Old Testament, which were the fruits of
their vivid faith to the true God. The greatest part of the reading is
read again on three other occasions during the year: the first Sunday of
lent, know as Orthodox Sunday, on All-saints day and again on the first
Sunday of October, when we celebrate the All-saints of Cyprus.
So let’s hear the reading:
Hebrews 11:9-10,32-40
Brethren,
by faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange
country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him
of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations,
whose builder and maker is God. And what shall I more say? for the time
would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of
Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through
faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped
the mouths of lions. Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of
the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight,
turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead
raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance;
that they might obtain a better resurrection: And others had trial of
cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with
the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being
destitute, afflicted, tormented; (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they
wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not
the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they
without us should not be made perfect.
9) “Brethren,
by faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange
country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him
of the same promise:”
In the holy
history of Israel, the Patriarch Abraham stands out, not only as its head
and founder, but also as the greatest and most magnificent example of
faith and unconditional and boundless trust in God. That is why St. Paul,
mentioning in this chapter, which have been cut from our present reading,
various heroic examples of faith found in the Old Testament, mentions with
emphasis, the greatest events in Abraham’s life, which reveal his genuine
and steadfast faith. The first of these events which manifests Abraham’s
faith to God was his obedience to the calling from God to leave his
dwelling place and travel to a distant and unknown country: (Gen. 12:1) to
abandon his own country, his relatives, his friends and his possessions
and worst of all to go to strange and alien land. God doesn’t even tell
him the name of this land. Yet Abraham trusted God and placed himself in
his hands. He entrusted himself unconditionally to God’s providence to
lead him wherever it will. St. Paul, continuing his account of Abraham’s
faith, singles out his patience which was the fruit of his unquestionable
faith and by which he waited for the realization of God’s promise. The
reading begins with Abraham reaching the land that God promised him. He
lived in this land as a stranger and in tents (tabernacles means tents),
and as he said himself to the Hittites “I am a stranger and a sojourner
with you”. (Gen 23:4) As strangers and sojourners (in other words
temporary visitors) with Abraham were also his son Isaac and later his son
Jacob, whom Paul here calls heirs to the same promise. In spite of the
fact that others lived and owned the land and Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
lived as strangers in tents, without their own land and permanent
dwelling, they never doubted for a moment of God’s promise that he would
give them the land as an inheritance for themselves and their descendants.
10) “For he
looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”
What was it
that made Abraham preserve unwavering his trust in God’s promise? This is
what Paul explains in this verse. Abraham preserved his faith in God
steadfast and his trust unwavering in the promises he was given, because
more than the Promised Land, he waited to live in the heavenly city. As
observed by an ancient interpreter, these three holy men didn’t waver in
their faith because even though they received promises of land, they
didn’t really care for land, but sought for higher things. If their minds
were attached to the ground so to speak, their faith would have crumbled
when they hadn’t received it. The city which Paul is referring to is the
heavenly Jerusalem founded on an unshakable foundation with God as the
architect, builder and maker. The city of David the earthly Jerusalem was
only a pre-figuration of the heavenly. The heavenly Jerusalem is as St
Paul says elsewhere in his Epistle to the Hebrews “the city of the living
God” (Heb. 12:22) and the holy dwelling place where is found the temple not
made by hands. (Heb. 9:24) With their baptism, Christians are already near
to the heavenly Jerusalem for they have been made citizens of it. Thus
they have no permanent earthly city, but seek the future and heavenly. We
should ask ourselves “do we then foresee with passion like the Patriarchs,
the heavenly city which is our true home? Do we await with desire the hour
when we shall be lifted to the heavenly Jerusalem as the Lord promised us?
32) “And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and
Samuel, and of the prophets:”
Paul doesn’t
want to expand more on the lives and accomplishments of the Old Testament
righteous people. He fears that he would not have enough time. Of course
what he means is that if he was to give a detailed account of other
persons and events his letter would go on for ever. Thus he doesn’t give
any detailed accounts but neither does he ignore them altogether. To save
time he mentions some of them quickly. Among the men that he mentions are
the four Judges Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephthae, the King and Prophet
David and the Prophet Samuel. He mentions them only in name without given
details of what they did nor does he stick to the chronological order. As
we know, Gideon defeated the Midianites (Judges 6:8), Barak together with
Deborah fought Sisera and the Canaanites (Judges 4:5), Samson fought
against the Philistines (Judges 13:16) and Jephthae was victorious against
the sons of Ammon (Judges 11:12). By highlighting these men, it doesn’t
mean that Paul completely approves of everything in their lives for which
some had blameworthy weaknesses. He is referring only of the faith that
they showed. In other words Paul is not examining the worthiness of their
actions, but only their faith. King David is mentioned because he is one
of the most glorious examples of sacred history. He waited patiently for
Saul’s ingratitude and unjust persecutions and bravely faced the various
enemies of Israel, whom which trust in God he overcame. Before mentioning
the Prophets, Paul mentions the Prophet Samuel who was the last in line of
the old heroes of Israel. Samuel is one of the great prophets and the last
of the Hebrew Judges. His life from his childhood was an example of faith,
piety and virtue.
33-34) “Who through
faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped
the mouths of lions. Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of
the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight,
turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”
Who through faith subdued kingdoms refers to the men Paul mentioned
earlier and in general to the accomplishments of all these righteous men
which were done with the strength of their faith. Paul then lists some of
these accomplishments which were well known in the Old Testament. Some of
these refer to many and others only to one particular person or group. The
meaning of “Wrought righteousness” could refer to many people or it could
refer only to King David, who, as it says in the Old Testament, “reigned
over all Israel; and executed judgment and justice unto all his people.”
(2 Kings (Samuel) 8:15). But, in general all of them, whether in their
private or public life, lived with the virtue of righteousness. Moreover,
the faith which they showed to the commandments and promises of God
contributed to the realization of everything God promised them. Stopped
the mouths of lions refers to the Prophet Daniel who was thrown into the
lion’s den, but through God’s providence remained unharmed. It also refers
to David and Samson who both killed a lion. “Quenched the violence of
fire,” refers to the Three Holy Children Ananias, Azarius and Misael who
King Nebuchadnezzar cast into the furnace, but again through God’s
providence were not consumed by the raging flames. “Escaped the edge of
the sword,” refers to three figures- the Prophet Elias who escaped being
slaughtered by Jezebel, David from Saul and the Prophet Ellisaeus (Elisha)
from the king of Syria. “Out of weakness were made strong,”
King Hezekiah was cured of his illness and received his strength again.
But this could also refer to all the people who were held captive in
Babylon. On returning to Jerusalem after their captivity they resembled,
as prophesied by the prophet Ezekiel, like dry and naked bones. (Ezek.
37:11) “In wars they became strong putting to flight the enemy armies of
many.” This is a reference to the leaders of Israel who fought with God on
their side: Joshua, the Judges, David, the Maccabees and of course all
those that returned from captivity in Babylon who achieved with the
strength of their faith to overcome the neighbouring nations who opposed
them and obstructed the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the temple.
35)
Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were
tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better
resurrection:”
Faith contributed to the realization of other amazing accomplishments.
Women received their dead children raised to life again. One such woman
was the widow Saraphthia whose son the Prophet Elias raised from the dead
and another is Somanitida whose son was brought back to life again by the
prophet Elissaeus (Elisha).
Others were tortured. In the Greek the word translated as tortured is
“ἐτυμπανίσθησαν” which refers to a particular type of torture. Literally
it means they were drummed. It was a round organ like a drum used for
torture where the person was tied with arms and legs stretched to the
full. They were then beaten with bats or whips until their arms and legs
were broken and then on the chest which resulted in their death. It could
be that St. Paul has in mind the torture suffered by Eleazar mentioned in
the 2nd book of the Maccabees (II Macc. 6:19).
All those tortured remained steadfast in their faith. They didn’t think to
betray their faith so that they could escape martyrdom and achieve their
release. Choosing between death for their faith or the temporary life they
could have had by violating this faith in the one true God, the martyrs
preferred a better resurrection, a resurrection glorious and blessed in
the eternal heavenly kingdom. Or as St. John Chrysostom says on
interpreting this verse: “a resurrection not like the one the children of
the two women Paul is referring to, but a better one. And it is better
because it has the possibility of eternal life while the first kind just
brings someone back to life in this present mortal life.
36) “And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover
of bonds and imprisonment:”
Among those who suffered mocking and humiliations and beatings were the
Prophet Elissaeus (Elisha) from the children of Bethel (2Kings 2:23),
Samson by the Philistines (Judges 15: 25), the Jews in the time of the
Maccabees from Bacchides, the Captain of King Demetrius (1 Mac. 9:26) and
many more. Beatings with the whip was suffered by the Prophet Micaiah (1
Kings 22:24), Eleazar (2 Mac. 6:30), the seven Maccabee brothers (2 Mac.
7:1) and later the Apostles Peter and John. In bonds and imprisonment were
cast the Prophets Jeremiah (Jer. 40:1, 44:15), Micaiah (1 Kings 22:27),
Hanani (2 Chron. 16:7-10), Jonathan the Maccabee (1 Mac. 13:12) and later
John the Baptist and many of the Apostles.
37) “They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain
with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being
destitute, afflicted, tormented;”
Nabuthai was stoned to death so that Jezebel could take his vineyard.
According to tradition, the Prophet Jeremiah was also stoned to death and
in the New Testament we have the stoning of the First martyr Stephen (Acts
7:58). Others were sawn asunder, in other words by the use of a saw. These
were wooden saws which prolonged the suffering. The Prophet Isaiah was put
to death in this way by king Manassee. “Were tempted” is a general
reference and implies that they all suffered temptations. In a previous
verse we heard that through faith many “escaped the edge of the sword”,
but now Paul tells us that they “were slain with the sword”. St. John
Chrysostom observes that both actions are worthy of praise. Faith
accomplishes great things and also suffers great things. Those who were
saved from the sword were saved because they believed they would be saved
and those who died by the sword believed that they would achieve something
far greater. By the sword died Urijah the son of Shemaiah who, as the
Prophet Jeremiah tells us, prophesied in the name of the Lord (Jer. 33:
20-23), the prophet Micaiah, the priest Zacharias son of Barachias ,whom
Matthew speaking to the Jews says: “ye slew between the temple and the
altar (Matt. 23:35), and John the Baptist and the Apostle James the
brother of John. (Acts 12:2).
Others who escaped being slain lived a life of continuous wandering in
poverty and hardship. For the love of God for which they had unshakable
faith, the saints not only denied comforts and luxury, but willingly
accepted hardships, being in want and every kind of tribulation.
38) “Of whom the world was not worthy: they wandered in deserts, and in
mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.”
After referring to all the accomplishments of the Old Testament saints
Paul then compares them to the world which he says was not worthy of them,
but what does he actually mean. In scripture the world can mean the
created world or the multitude of the people. Here it probably means both.
St John Chrysostom says that if we were to put on a balance scale all the
people of the world on one side and the saints on the other, the weight
would fall on the side of the saints because they have far greater worth.
The other interpretation is that the created world is not worthy to
contain such praiseworthy men: only heaven can contain and appreciate
their holiness. Holiness and virtue surpass in value any other reality of
this world. What remains and has immeasurable worth in the eyes of God is
the faith and patience of the saints, the blood of the martyrs, the tears
of the ascetics and the sweat of the righteous. Having then compared the
saints to the world, Paul returns again to their heroic accomplishments
and mentions the wandering life many lived, either through persecution or
through asceticism in the deserts and mountains.
39-40) “And these all, having obtained a good report through faith,
received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us,
that they without us should not be made perfect.
Through faith the righteous of the Old Testament were found pleasing
before God, but they didn’t receive the pleasures of the heavenly things
which God had promised them. They lived with the expectation of the
fulfilment of the divine promise of the Messiah’s salvation, but they were
not found worthy to see the fulfilment of this promise. Why? Because God
foresaw something better for us. So that they should not appear more
advantaged than us, the Lord appointed a one and common time for the
crowning of everyone; for the righteous of the Old Testament and the
saints of the New Testament. Salvation is of course for everyone, but we
are in fact in a more advantaged position than the Old Testament saints
because we live in an age where Christ the Messiah has already come and
salvation is for us a reality and also because the time of waiting until
the Last Judgement and our entrance into the Kingdom of God is for us much
shorter. Now someone might ask “is it fair for them who engaged in the
struggles of faith and virtue long before us to wait for us to be crowned
together?” St. John Chrysostom answers. God didn’t do them an injustice,
but rather has honoured us because they also are waiting for their
brothers. If we are all one body, it will bring about a much greater
pleasure to this body when all its members are crowned and glorified
together rather than crowning each one separately. God’s dispensation for
the salvation of the world is a mystery which surpasses logical
interpretation: it is a mystery of faith and expectation which has not yet
come to a conclusion. Both the Old Testament righteous and the New
Testament saints live with the hope of the new and glorious coming of the
Lord and the desire for entry into the great fatherland on high.
Having then heard the interpretation of the Apostle reading it is obvious
why the fathers of the Church chose it to be read on the Sunday before
Christmas, because it represents all the Old Testament saints who in faith
lived with the expectation of the coming of the Messiah; the fulfilment of
which we will celebrate on Christmas day. The Gospel reading as mentioned
in the beginning is the first chapter of St. Matthew and this again begins
with the Old Testament figures beginning from Abraham up to the birth of
Jesus Christ. Thus Matthew gives us the genealogy of Jesus as far back as
Abraham. We have spoken of this genealogy before and compared it also with
the genealogy given by St. Luke in the first talk we had on the history of
mankind and the Church. The talk is on the website so I think to save time
we will skip the genealogy and go directly to the rest of the reading. We
will pick up the reading from verse 17.
St
Matthew 1:16
The book
of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his
brethren; And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat
Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat
Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and
Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; And Jesse begat David the
king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of
Urias; And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;
And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;
And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;
And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;
And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were
carried away to Babylon: And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias
begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; And Zorobabel begat Abiud;
and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; And Azor begat Sadoc; and
Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; And Eliud begat Eleazar; and
Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; And Jacob begat Joseph the
husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
17-25
17) “So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations;
and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen
generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are
fourteen generations. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When
as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she
was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a
just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put
her away privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel
of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of
David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is
conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from
their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with
child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel,
which being interpreted is, God with us. Then Joseph being raised from
sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his
wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and
he called his name JESUS”.
“So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations;
and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen
generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are
fourteen generations.”
Here Matthew has divided the genealogy into three sets of fourteen
generations. I don’t think they are supposed to represent some magical
figure. There has been interpretations saying that 7 is the divine number
and 14 is a result of multiplying this number by two or that it is the
numeric worth of David’s name in Hebrew. What Matthew is probably
referring to is the Kingdom of Israel. From Abraham to David is fourteen
generations and Israel saw its first king. From David to the carrying away
into Babylon are another fourteen generations where Israel saw the
abolition of the royal throne and from the carrying away into Babylon unto
Christ are fourteen generations where Israel once again received the one
true King of Israel.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise:”
This is actually a
continuance of the previous line. The genealogy prepared the way for what
is to now follow. Many hearing the list of names in the genealogy would
say that it is just a summary of the Jewish history, but to the Jews to
whom Matthew was writing, it was not just a list of names, but a short
account of the events of divine providence. The true heir to the promises
made to Abraham and David is Jesus Christ of whom Matthew is about to
mention.
“When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came
together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.”
Matthew mentions Mary as espoused, in other words as a fiancé, and a
little further down as wife. According to the ancient Jewish Law, the
betrothal was the preparation period before the wedding similar to as it
is today. The wedding took place when the man received the woman into his
house. But the betrothal was a binding relationship with obligations
between the betrothed. If for example the man died before the wedding, the
woman was considered a widow. After the betrothal and before the wedding,
the man was the legal husband and the bond could only be loosed if the man
gave the woman a written release and monetary compensation.
The verse we
just heard and also the last verse in the reading have been grossly
misunderstood and even mistranslated by western minds. They are read by
Christians without taking into account the Jewish traditions and ways of
expressions that cannot be conveyed in another language without loosing
the true meaning. Thus here it says “before they came together”: naturally
one would assume that it means that they came together afterwards. This is
a total misunderstanding of what is said in the Greek. In the Greek it is
“πρίν ἤ συνελθεῖν αὐτούς”. It is not in the past tense as translated in
English, but rather in the infinitive case and should therefore read
“before they were to come together”. But even this does not refer to the
coming together of the flesh, but to the fact that Mary had not yet moved
into Joseph’s house. So in fact it is saying “before Mary went to live
together with Joseph”. It cannot mean the marital relationship because the
wedding had not yet taken place and Joseph had not received his fiancé
into his own home. The verse continues with “she was found with child”.
Who found her with child? This can only mean that it came to Joseph’s
knowledge that Mary was pregnant. The verse also tells us that Mary was
not pregnant before she was betrothed to Joseph and then cunningly took
Joseph as her betrothed to cover up some dishonourable action. She
conceived by some miraculous way that surpasses our understanding by the
Holy Ghost.
There are only two Gospels that tell us of the birth of Jesus
Christ: Matthew’s and Luke’s. We know that the details for Luke’s account
were given to him directly from the Mother of God. There is mention of
details that only Mary could have known. Matthew’s account of the Nativity
is said to have been written with details given him by Joseph and reading
between the lines we can see Joseph’s fears, his distress and his human
approach to resolve the problem and how he eventually submitted to the
divine revelation.
“Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a
publick example, was minded to put her away privily.”
Here it confirms that even though Joseph was betrothed to Mary; in the
sight of the law he was already considered her husband. Joseph was a just
and righteous man who observed the Law of Moses. How could he continue to
have Mary as his wife who had clearly violated the marital trust? How
could he not comply with the law which clearly states to dismiss a woman
found with child by another man. How could he make a public example of her?
He had two choices according to the law: the first was to bring her up
before the council who if they found her guilty would officially have her
dismissed from the bonds of the betrothal or act according to the law
found in Leviticus which says that those found guilty of adultery should
be put to death by stoning. Joseph being a just man doesn’t only refer to
his faith in the law, but also to his kind, compassionate, merciful and
meek character. Seeing that his conscience didn’t allow him to shame Mary
publicly or to put her to death he decided that the best way to resolve
the problem was to secretly send her away. This would have been a
completely private arrangement between the two of them and Joseph would
have given her a written release from the betrothal without mentioning the
reason for the separation.
“But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD
appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not
to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of
the Holy Ghost.”
While he thought on these things shows how charitable Joseph was. Not only
did he not condemn Mary, but kept silent not saying a word to anyone, not
even to Mary to accuse her of his suspected infidelity. He pondered on
what had happened to himself. But his dilemma was not prolonged for too
long. The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him of how
Mary came to be in this predicament. Dreams are mentioned in Acts and in
many places in the Old Testament. But in the Gospels only Matthew makes
mention of them. We have in Matthew, the dreams to the Magi, to Pilate’s
wife, and more dreams to Joseph to instruct him what to do for the welfare
of baby Jesus. The Angel calls Joseph by name as though they were already
known to each other and then adds “thou Son of David”. According to the
promise God gave, the Messiah would be a descendant of David. By law
Joseph would have been the rightful father, but the promise was not given
according to the law, but according to the bloodline. If you remember our
talk on the genealogy and ancestors of Christ you will remember we showed
how Joseph was Mary’s uncle, he was brother to Mary’s mother Anna. Thus
Joseph’s genealogy was the same as Mary’s from her mother’s side and both
were descendants of the house of David. The angel tells Joseph
“fear not
to take unto thee Mary thy wife:” here “fear” means don’t doubt or
hesitate or don’t come up against God by thinking that Mary is an
adulteress. “Take her unto thee” which again does not mean to take her in
the marital sense, but to take her into his home with the sole purpose of
protecting her. “For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.”
Conceived denotes that Christ has a human body, human flesh which he took
from his Mother Mary, not as some blasphemously say that he was an alien
from another planet.
“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for
he shall save his people from their sins.”
The angel tells Joseph that Mary shall bring forth a son. He doesn’t say
that she shall bring forth a son for you, because Joseph is not the
father, but by taking Mary into his home, he has according to the law the
rights of a father. Therefore the angel, acknowledging this right, tells
him to call his name Jesus. According to Jewish Tradition the father is
the only one who chooses the name of the newborn child. By giving Joseph
the lawful rights of a father, the angel is also telling him not to think
that just because the child is not his that he has not the duty to comply
with the divine economy and raise the child as if it were his own. The
name Jesus means saviour and shows how just and correct it was to call the
Messiah by this name. Jesus is the Greek version of the Hebrew Joshua
which means Jehovah is salvation. And he shall save his people from their
sins. “His people” could mean only the people of Israel to whom Jesus
belonged and to whom was given the promise of the Messiah or the more
broader meaning of all those who believed in him and accepted him as their
King and God. And here is shown something strange or contrary to the
common belief of the Jews at that time: the Messiah and King that the Jews
waited for, was a deliverer who would come and save them by fighting their
battles and freeing them from the bonds of their enemies, but the angel
doesn’t refer to any battles: he says he will save his people from their
sins. The Psalms say something very similar “And he shall redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.” (Psalm 129). Thus the Jews were told to prepare
for a spiritual deliverer and wrongly anticipated a political and worldly
saviour.
“Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the
Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and
shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which
being interpreted is, God with us.”
Matthew wrote his Gospel for the Christians of Jewish descent. Thus he
often resorts to the Prophets to show them that in the person of Jesus
Christ the Prophesies concerning the Messiah are being fulfilled. The
prophesy mentioned here is from the Prophet Isaiah and is possible the
clearest of all the prophesies concerning the Nativity. But, if before we
were told that the child would be named Jesus, why are we now told that
they shall call his name Emmanuel? The name given to the child by God and
his parents is indeed Jesus. The “they” in “they shall call his name” does
not refer to his parents, but to us the people who will recognize him as
Emmanuel, which as St. Matthew tells us means “God with us”. Thus in a
language that we understand today Isaiah’s prophecy would read: “Behold, a
virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and the people shall recognized him
as God among us.” Or simply “The child that is to be born will be
recognized as God in the flesh.”
“Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had
bidden him, and took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had
brought forth her firstborn son:”
On waking Joseph did as the angel had told him and took Mary into his
house. The next line is the second of the two lines I mentioned earlier
which has been cause for grave misunderstanding among Christians. I must
admit that it was something that troubled me also before I came to know
the Church. “And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn
son: and he called his name JESUS.”
The troublesome words are “until” and “firstborn son” At first glance one
would say that it says that after the birth of Jesus, Joseph knew Mary
intimately and even had other children. But what is it actually saying?
“And knew her not” means that even though Joseph took her into his house
and was legally recognized as his wife, they continued to live as
betrothed and had no sexual contact. The word “until” doesn’t necessarily
mean that after the birth they came together. Matthew’s attention is
completely devoted to the birth of Jesus and not on whether Mary remained
a virgin or not. He is giving us details up to the birth and not after.
Probably he was only given information up to the birth and thus he leaves
the after for each individual to come to his own conclusion. But in
scripture we come across the word “until” many times and in many cases it
does not mean a change in the circumstances after its insertion. For
example we have the account in Genesis where Noah sent out from the ark a
raven. “And he sent forth a raven, and it went forth and returned not
“until” the water was dried from the earth.” (Septuagint, Gen. 8:7) The
passage seems to be saying that the raven returned when the earth dried
up. And indeed the water eventually dried up from the earth, but the raven
didn’t return. Another example of the use of “until” is the passage from
the Psalms and from the Gospels “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on
my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?” Are we
supposed to interpret this as meaning that Christ is to sit on the right
hand of the Father only “until” the submission of his enemies? Will not
Christ sit on the right hand even after this and forever and ever? So, as
with these examples, the use of the word “until” in the passage
“And knew her not till she had brought forth her
firstborn son:” does not necessarily denote a change, but as Joseph
did not know Mary in the marital sense before the birth, he did not know
her even afterwards. Matthew was concerned with the miraculous birth and
not whether after this great event in the history of mankind, the Virgin
had other children.
The
word firstborn again does not denote that he was the first among other
brothers and sisters, but that he is the first and only. In Isaiah its say
of God “I the Lord the first” does this mean that there are other Lords
besides the One God? No, it means I the one and only God. When the Lord
struck down the firstborn of the Egyptians, it says that it also struck
Pharaoh’s firstborn. This didn’t mean that Pharaoh had other children, he
had only that one child.
“And he called his name JESUS”
This
again tells us that Joseph believed everything the angel told him and
accepted to be the father of the child according to the law and all the
responsibility of raising the child as his own. Naming the child was the
father’s duty because it was like recognising in public that the birth was
legal and that the child was his and therefore a member of his family.
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