Sacred Scripture and the Virgin Mary
A biblical-theological study
Mary of Nazareth appears from the first pages of Genesis to
the last book of Revelation. Sacred Scripture, read with the
living Tradition of the Church and under the guidance of the Magisterium, discovers in
her the new Eve, the Daughter of Zion, the Mother of the Messiah, and the Mother of
the Church. What the Old Testament prefigures in shadows and
prophecies, the New manifests in fullness; what the Gospel narrates
with sobriety, Tradition meditates with filial love.
This survey follows the Bible of the Spanish Episcopal Conference
(CEE) as its base text, supported by the great Catholic commentaries
(the Holy Bible of the University of Navarre, the Mercedarian Biblical
Commentary, the Jerusalem Bible) and by the Fathers and Doctors of the
Church.
1. The Old Testament: Marian figures and prophecies
Genesis 3:15 — The Protoevangelium
«I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and
hers; she will crush your head while you strike at her heel.»
(Gen 3:15)
The first good news (proto-gospel) after the fall. The Vulgate
read «ipsa conteret caput tuum» («she will crush»), a reading that
the liturgy and Catholic iconography have made classic by applying it to
Mary, inseparably associated with the victory of her Son.
St. Justin (2nd c.), St. Irenaeus of Lyons (Adversus Haereses
III, 22, 4), and Tertullian formulated the Eve-Mary antithesis: «The knot
of Eve’s disobedience was untied by the obedience of Mary.» The
Magisterium takes it up in Ineffabilis Deus (Pius IX, 1854) and in
Lumen Gentium 55.
Isaiah 7:14 — The Virgin and the Emmanuel
«The Lord himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin is
with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.» (Is
7:14)
The Hebrew term ‘almah was translated by the Seventy as
parthénos (virgin), and St. Matthew takes up that reading as a
messianic fulfillment (Mt 1:22-23). The Fathers (St. Justin,
Dialogue with Trypho 43, 66-67; St. Irenaeus; St. Cyril of
Alexandria) see here the explicit prophecy of the virginal
conception.
Mica 5:1-2 — Betleemul Efrata
«But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, least among the clans of Judah, from you
shall come forth one who is to be ruler in Israel. His origins are from of old, from
ancient times. Therefore he will give them up until the time when she who is to give
birth has given birth.» (Mic 5:1-2)
St. Cyprian and St. Jerome identify the woman giving birth with Mary.
Mt 2:5-6 expressly cites this passage before Herod.
The Song of Songs — Marian application
«How beautiful you are, my beloved! […] You are all beautiful, there is no flaw
in you.» (Song 4:1,7) «You are an enclosed garden, my sister, my bride, an enclosed
garden, a sealed fountain.» (Song 4:12)
The Marian reading goes back to Origen and is developed in St.
Ambrose (De institutione virginis), St. Bernard (Sermons
on the Song), St. Bonaventure. Three classic Marian expressions:
- Tota pulchra («all beautiful, without flaw»): the
Immaculist title par excellence. - Hortus conclusus («enclosed garden»): perpetual
virginity. - Fons signatus («sealed fountain»): pure intact, a wellspring
of grace.
Sirach 24 — Wisdom applied to Mary
«I came forth from the mouth of the Most High, and like a mist I covered the earth.
[…] In Jacob pitch your tent, and in Israel take possession of your inheritance.» (Sir
24:3,7-8)
The sapiential praise is applied in the Marian liturgy to Mary, in
whom Wisdom pitched its tent by becoming flesh. St. Bernard and St.
Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort make this chapter a key one of Marian
spirituality.
Judith, Esther, Deborah — Marian typologies
«Blessed are you, daughter, above all the women on the earth.»
(Jdt 13:18)
Uzziah’s blessing of Judith anticipates Elizabeth’s greeting: «Blessed
are you among women» (Lk 1:42). Judith beheads Holofernes; a figure of
Mary who crushes the head of the serpent.
Esther, the queen who intercedes before Ahasuerus and saves her
people, a figure of Mary the mediatrix. St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
develops this parallel at length in The Glories of
Mary.
Deborah, the prophetess who sings of victory (Judg 5),
prefigures Mary, the prophetess of the Magnificat.
The Ark of the Covenant (Ex 25; 2 Sam 6; 1 Kings 8)
«You shall make an ark of acacia wood […] you shall overlay it with pure
gold inside and out.» (Ex 25:10-11) «David was filled that day with fear
of the Lord and exclaimed: How can the ark of the Lord come to me?» (2
Sam 6:9)
St. Luke suggests the parallel between Mary and the Ark in the Visitation:
Mary goes to the «hill country» of Judah (cf. 2 Sam 6:2), remains three
months in the house of Elizabeth (cf. 2 Sam 6:11), and John the Baptist «leaps»
in the womb just as David danced before the Ark (2 Sam 6:14-16; Lk 1:41-44).
The Fathers (St. Ambrose, St. Athanasius, St. Germanus of Constantinople,
St. John Damascene) call Mary the Ark of the New
Covenant, because she carried in her womb not the tablets of the Law, but
the incarnate Word. The Litany of Loreto takes it up: «Ark of the
Covenant.»
2. The New Testament: all the passages about Mary
Matthew 1:18-25 — Virginal conception and the announcement to Joseph
«This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: Mary, his mother,
was betrothed to Joseph and, before they lived together, she was found to be
with child by the work of the Holy Spirit. […] When Joseph
awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his
wife into his home. And without having known her, she gave birth to a son, and he
named him Jesus.» (Mt 1:18-25)
Four cardinal truths: virginal conception by the work of the Holy
Spirit, fulfillment of Is 7:14, the legal fatherhood of Joseph (who inserted
Jesus into the Davidic line), perpetual virginity (cf. CCC
499-501).
Matthew 2:11 — The adoration of the Magi
«On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and, falling
to their knees, they worshiped him; then, opening their coffers, they offered
him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.» (Mt 2:11)
Mary appears beside the Child as a living throne. St. Leo the Great: the
Magi recognize the King, God and Man, offering gold (kingship),
frankincense (divinity), myrrh (suffering humanity).
Matei 2:13-15 — Fuga în Egipt
„Scoală-te, ia Pruncul și pe mama Lui și fugi în Egipt.” (Matei 2:13)
From the cradle of her Son, Mary lives the sword of Simeon. Egypt evokes
the exodus: Jesus is the new Moses and Mary, the new Miriam.
Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21 — «The mother and the brothers»
«Who is my mother and who are my brothers? […] Whoever does the
will of my Father in heaven is my brother, my sister, and my
mother.» (Mt 12:46-50)
Far from belittling Mary, Jesus raises her greatness to the
supreme criterion: doing the will of the Father. She is the first and most
perfect in doing it (Lk 1:38). St. Augustine: «Beatior Maria
percipiendo fidem Christi quam concipiendo carnem Christi» — «More
blessed was Mary in receiving the faith of Christ than in conceiving his flesh»
(De sancta virginitate, 3).
Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3 — «Is he not the carpenter’s son?»
The term adelphós in biblical Greek (a calque of the Hebrew
‘ah) also designates cousins and close relatives (cf. Gen 13:8;
14:14). The constant faith of the Church, from St. Jerome (Adversus
Helvidium), defends perpetual virginity: aeiparthenos
(Lateran Council, 649).
Luca 1:26-38 — Bunavestire
Textul integral în blocul «07_misterios_meditados.md».
The greeting kecharitôménê («full of grace,» a perfect
passive participle) describes a permanent condition: Mary has been and
remains filled with grace. The biblical foundation of the Immaculate
Conception. The «shadow of the Most High» evokes the cloud of the Shekinah over
the tabernacle (Ex 40:35): Mary is Temple and Ark.
Luke 1:39-56 — The Visitation and the Magnificat
Mary brings the sanctifying presence of Christ to the house of Elizabeth.
The first «apostolic» act of the Church: Mary, the first
evangelizer. The stay of three months recalls the Ark in the house of
Obed-Edom (2 Sam 6:11).
Luke 2:1-20 — The Nativity in Bethlehem
«Firstborn» (prōtótokos) is a juridical-liturgical title (Ex
13:2) and does not imply later children. Mary «keeps and ponders»
(symbállousa): she is the contemplative, the model of lectio
divina.
Luke 2:21-39 — The Presentation and the prophecy of Simeon
«Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel; he will
be a sign that is contradicted […]. And a sword
will pierce your own soul too.» (Lk 2:34-35)
The first explicit announcement of the compassio Mariae: Mary
associated with the redeeming Passion. Eastern iconography represents the
Stabat Mater with seven swords (the Seven Sorrows).
John 2:1-12 — The wedding at Cana
John calls Mary «Woman» (not «mother»), a title that will reappear at the
cross (Jn 19:26) and that evokes the Woman of Gen 3:15 and of Rev 12. Her
last recorded words in the Gospel —»Do whatever he tells
you»— are a spiritual testament and a summary of the Christian life.
John 19:25-27 — Mary at the foot of the Cross
«Woman, behold your son. […] Behold your mother.» (Jn
19:26-27)
The entrusting of universal motherhood. Origen (Commentary on
John I, 6): «No one can understand the Gospel unless he has
rested, like John, on the breast of Jesus and has received Mary as
mother.» Lumen Gentium 58: «This union of the Mother with the Son
in the work of salvation is manifested from the moment of the virginal
conception of Christ until his death.»
Acts 1:14 — Mary in the Upper Room
«All of these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with some
women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.» (Acts 1:14)
Mary is at the heart of the nascent Church. Lumen
Gentium 59 teaches this expressly.
Galateni 4:4 — „Născut din femeie”
«When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman,
born under the law.» (Gal 4:4-5)
One of the oldest texts of the New Testament about Mary.
The Council of Ephesus (431) proclaims her Theotokos, Mother of
God.
Revelation 12:1-17 — The Woman clothed with the sun
«A great sign appeared in the sky: a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars;
she was with child and cried out in the pains of labor.» (Rev 12:1-2)
The ecclesiological reading (the Woman = the Church) and the Marian one (the Woman =
Mary, Mother of the Messiah) are not mutually exclusive: Mary is the icon and firstfruits of the
Church. Pius X, Ad diem illum (1904); Pius XII,
Munificentissimus Deus (1950).
3. The Magnificat — detailed commentary
The canticle of Mary (Lk 1:46-55) is the most perfect Marian
prayer.
1. Parallel with the canticle of Hannah (1 Sam 2:1-10).
Luke composes the Magnificat with the technique of the cento: a weaving
of OT quotations (Hannah, Psalms 34, 103, 111, 113, 126, 138; Habakkuk 3:18;
Zephaniah 3; Isaiah 41, 49, 61). Mary reveals herself as the
bat-Zion, the Daughter of Zion who recapitulates the faith of Israel.
2. A two-part structure.
- Verses 46-50: personal thanksgiving. The word
tapeínōsis does not mean a moral virtue («humility»), but a real
condition of lowliness: the anawim, the poor of
Yahweh. - Verses 51-55: the canticle becomes universal. Seven verbs
in the aorist (he has done, he has scattered, he has
cast down…): the action of God is already an accomplished fact in Mary,
the firstfruits of the new creation.
3. The theology of reversal. The Magnificat is the
gospel of the Kingdom before the Gospel: the proud cast down, the lowly
exalted. Mary proclaims a theological revolution in which
mercy (vv. 50, 54) is the engine of history.
St. Ambrose (Expositio in Lucam II, 22): «Let the soul of Mary be in
each one to magnify the Lord; let the spirit of Mary be in each one to rejoice in God.»
4. The fulfillment of the promises to Abraham. The
canticle binds the new creation to the foundational promise (Gen 12; 15;
17). The Liturgy of the Hours prays the Magnificat every evening at
Vespers.
4. The spiritual motherhood of Mary
The scene of Jn 19:26-27 is the juridical-sacramental moment of
spiritual motherhood.
Patristic reading. Origen (Commentary on
John, prologue): «This is Jesus whom you brought forth. Whoever is
perfect no longer lives himself, but Christ lives in him (Gal 2:20); and as
Christ lives in him, it is said of Mary: Behold your son Christ.» St.
Ambrose (De institutione virginis 7) sees in John the type of the
beloved disciple, and in Mary the Mother of the Church. St. Augustine: «Mary
is Mother of the members of the Savior… because she cooperated by her charity
so that the faithful, members of the Head, might be born in the Church» (De
sancta virginitate 6).
Magisterium. Lumen Gentium 53: «The Virgin
Mary […] is hailed as a preeminent and altogether singular member of the
Church, and as the Church’s type and outstanding model in faith and
charity.» LG 61: «In conceiving Christ, in giving birth to him,
in feeding him, in presenting him to the Father in the temple, in suffering with her
Son as he died on the cross, she cooperated in an entirely singular way in the
work of the Savior.» LG 62: «This motherhood of Mary in the
economy of grace continues uninterruptedly […] until the perpetual
consummation of all the elect.»
Paul VI, at the close of the third session of Vatican II (November 21,
1964), solemnly proclaimed Mary Mater Ecclesiae, Mother of
the Church. St. John Paul II dedicated the encyclical Redemptoris
Mater (1987) to this mystery.
5. Maria, prima ucenică
«Behold the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.» (Lk
1:38)
«A woman raised her voice: ‘Blessed is the womb that carried you and
the breasts that nursed you.’ But he said: ‘Rather, blessed are
those who hear the word of God and keep it.’» (Lk 11:27-28)
Jesus’ apparent «correction» does not lower Mary: it crowns her. Her
greatness consists primarily not in having conceived him according to the flesh,
but in having conceived him first in faith. St. Augustine: «Prius
concepit mente quam ventre» — «She conceived him in mind before
in womb» (Sermo 215, 4).
St. Luke deliberately weaves the inclusion: the fiat of the
Annunciation (Lk 1:38), the blessedness of faith on the lips of Elizabeth
(«blessed is she who believed,» Lk 1:45), the culmination in Lk
11:28.
Lumen Gentium 58: «The Blessed Virgin advanced in her
pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully kept her union with her Son until
the cross.»
Mary is, simultaneously, Mother and Disciple; model
and mediatrix; figure and member of the Church. Whoever contemplates her in
Scripture learns to be a Christian: to listen, meditate, keep,
obey, offer, stand at the foot of the cross, and await the Spirit in
prayer.
Surse
- Holy Bible. Official CEE version —
conferenciaepiscopal.es/biblia - Holy Bible. University of Navarre —
unav.edu/web/sagrada-biblia - Catechism of the Catholic Church, nn. 484-511,
963-975 - Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium ch.
VIII (nn. 52-69) - Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus (1854)
- Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus
(1950) - Paul VI, Marialis Cultus (1974)
- St. John Paul II, Redemptoris Mater
(1987) - St. Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses III
- St. Augustine, De sancta virginitate; Marian
sermons - St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song;
Homilies Missus est (BAC) - St. Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, True Devotion
to the Blessed Virgin Mary (BAC) - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, The Glories of
Mary (BAC) - Dictionary of Mariology (Stefano De Fiores,
Salvatore Meo)