Isaiah 60: 1 – 6
This Sunday, we will hear again from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah. The section we will hear is from the 60th chapter, so we know that it is from trito-Isaiah, which comes from the time when the people have returned from the Babylonian exile. Whereas Isaiah’s prophecy is filled with warnings of impending doom, here we will hear a message of hope. Those of you who have the Catholic Study Bible will want to check the footnote on these verses: The Church makes use of these verses for the first reading of the Mass on the feast of Epiphany, for she sees in them symbols of her universality.
1 Rise up in splendor! Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you.
glory of the Lord: this phrase always signals an extraordinary illumination, as though God’s presence comes from within the tent or Jerusalem (cf. Ex 40:34; Dt. 33:2).
2 See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; But upon you the LORD shines, and over you appears his glory.
darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples: Recall from the Book of Ezra how the Israelites struggled to rebuild the temple; the darkness and thick clouds represent the confusion and discord they experienced (cf. Ez. 3:1; 4:1-4, 23-24; 6:13-15). According to this account, the temple was finally completed in 515BC.
3 Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.
4 Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come to you: Your sons come from afar, and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.
Raise your eyes and look about: notice the similarity with 49:18, 22.
5 Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow, For the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you, the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.
6 Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; All from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.
Midian, Ephah, Sheba: these are all descendants of Abraham (cf. Gn 25:1 – 4), so they are entitled to this patrimony, even though the Jews do not recognize them. The lands of Midian (the land to the east of the Gulf of Aqaba, where Moses fled), Ephah, (a tribal land in northern Arabia) and Sheba (the leading principality in what is now called Yemen) speak of the foreigners who would come to worship the Lord.
Gold and frankincense: these gifts signify their awareness that they are coming to worship a king or a god. Of course, for our purposes, they prepare us for this Sunday’s Gospel.
Matthew 2: 1 – 12
This week, we will hear from Matthew’s Gospel, the only Gospel to have the story of the Magi. As you know, Matthew, whose Gospel will be the principle one we hear this year, wrote with an eye to showing the connection between the faith of the first Christians and the history of Israel. Most Catholic scripture scholars today would admit that this is a haggadah, that is, a tale fashioned to make a theological point. Haggadah refers to the narrative material – parables, maxims or anecdotes – in the Talmud and other rabbinical literature which serves to illustrate the meaning of the law, custom or Biblical passage being presented. The purpose of this story is to chastise the Jews for missing this important event of the birth of the Messiah; the Magi, wise men from afar, didn’t miss it.
So, how is it that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, according of Matthew? We recall that it was because of a Roman census, but that’s found in Luke’s Gospel, not in Matthew’s. And, many magi were there? We assume three because that’s how many gifts they gave, but it could have been an entire retinue; we just don’t know. And, when did they arrive in Bethlehem? We associate it with Christmas but you will notice that Herod has all of the infants two years and younger put to death, based on the information he had received from the magi. This seems to indicate that they came up to years after Jesus’ birth. With this new insight, let’s re-examine this pericope with new eyes.
1 When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
In the days of King Herod: Herod reigned from 37 to 4BC This is one of the rare chronological references found in Matthew’s gospel, and it supports later evidence that Jesus was, indeed, born before 1AD.
Magi: originally, the word was “magoi”, a designation of the Persian priestly caste. The word came to refer to anyone skilled in occult knowledge and power – hence our word “magic.” Matthew’s magi are astrologers.
2 saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”
We saw his star: it was a common ancient belief that a new star appeared at the time of a ruler’s birth. Matthew also draws upon the Old Testament story of Balaam, who had prophesied that “A star shall advance from Jacob” (Numbers 24:17), though there the star means not an astral phenomenon but the king himself – David. Despite the efforts of many fundamentalists, it is impossible to identify a particular heavenly body as the star of Bethlehem and most Catholic scholars would assert that any attempt to do so would be futile and useless.
3 When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
he inquired of them: Herod’s consultation with the chief priests and scribes has some similarity to a Jewish legend about the child Moses in which the “sacred scribes” warn Pharaoh about the imminent birth of one who will deliver Israel from Egypt and the king makes plans to destroy him. Matthew 2:11: Cf Psalm 72:10,15; Isaiah 60:6. These Old Testament texts led to the interpretation of the magi as kings.
5 They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet:
6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.'”
And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah: cf. Micah 5:1 – 3; 2 Sm 5:2. According to Matthew, this is why Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
7 Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance.
8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.”
9 After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
10 They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
11 and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh: cf. Ps 72:10, 15; Is 60:6; These Old Testament texts led to the interpretation of the magi as Kings. Most scripture scholars interpret the reason for these gifts as recognition of Jesus’ kingship (gold) as well as a god (frankincense) and in preparation for his death and burial (myrrh).
12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.
As I mentioned above, most Catholic scripture scholars understand this account as a lesson rather than a recounting of an actual event. While the Jews were oblivious to the birth of Jesus – their long-awaited Messiah and king – wise men from afar recognized this important event; it would affect all of creation!
Ephesians 3:2 – 3a, 5 – 6
We hear from the letter to the community in Ephesus. This letter is, as we see in 3:1, written while Paul is in prison. There has been serious debate, however, about whether Paul is the author of this work or if it was written by his secretary or a later disciple.
2 if, as I suppose, you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for your benefit,
Stewardship: the Greek is the same term employed at Eph 1:10 for the plan that God administers (Col 1:25) and in which Paul plays a key role.
3 (namely, that) the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly earlier.
4 When you read this you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,
5 which was not made known to human beings in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit,
6 that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners: the Greek words for these three descriptions of the Gentiles emphasize that they share with the Jews the same promise; all three begin with the Greek suffix ςυν: ςυγκλερονομα, ςυσομα, and ςυμμετοχα.
All three readings help us to understand that this little infant, Jesus, born of Mary in the obscure village of Bethlehem, was destined to save not just the Jews but all who came to believe in him. His salvation is meant to be universal. But, not all will accept it. That’s the reason for the new translation in the Roman Missal of the words of consecration. As the priest raises the chalice, he says, “Take this, all of you, and drink from it. For this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be shed for you and for many…” The original Latin is “ad multos” meaning “for many”. This is not intended to show that Christ did not shed his blood for everyone but that not everyone will accept it. But, as we see in this Sunday’s readings – with Isaiah prophesying that “nations shall walk by your light,” with the magi coming from afar, and with Paul reflecting on the revelation that “the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise of Christ Jesus”, that Jesus came to save all who put their faith in him.