Fourth Sunday of Advent; 19 December 2021; Advent 4C (RCL); Micah 5:2-5a; Psalm 80:1-7; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-55.
Who is the woman who is to give birth in Micah’s prophecy? Obviously, Christians have read her as Mary. I suspect that Micah was thinking about the people in Exile. Hosea sees Israel/Judah as God’s wife, and I think Micah is thinking along the same lines. While their present circumstance is difficult (Exile), it is comparable to a woman in labor. The outcome will be joyous.
Micah began prophesying when Assyria was threatening Israel (the Northern Kingdom), and others apparently prophesied in his name and style after the fall of the Northern Kingdom when Babylon now threatened Judah. Micah saw that the poor paid much more heavily the costs of tribute to Assyria, and the destruction of Exile. And now, Micah is imagining a restoration. Note that the ruler is not called a King, nor the Anointed (Messiah); the restoration will avoid the mistakes of the monarchy. All of God’s people will be gathered back to God, and the new ruler will feed God’s flock like a shepherd (echoes of David, along with Bethlehem and Ephrathah). This will renew God’s ancient covenant. It is no wonder that Christians picked this up and applied it to Jesus and Mary.
In Luke, Mary in some sense fills the same role as Israel in Micah and the prophets. She is humiliated, and yet through her, the divine plan comes to fulfillment. Like many a pregnant, unmarried girl, Mary runs to a wise old kinswoman, who sees the situation differently than men would see it. This child is to be the Lord of her own child.
Luke then quotes Hannah’s song in the song he puts on Mary’s lips. Hannah sang a song about Samuel (some scholars believe it was originally written for Saul, but then moved to Samuel after the embarrassment of Saul). The king conceived in her will protect the vulnerable, and undo the humiliation of the people.
Mary begins her song with a frank acknowledgement of her situation. The NRSV translates the line, “He has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.” The Greek will not support such a translation. Better would be “He has gazed at the humiliation of his slave girl.” This would fit with how we encounter God throughout the Bible. At the burning bush, God tells Moses, “I have heard the cry of my people.”
And from Mary’s humiliation, the divine plan will find its fulfillment, but not at all like Hannah’s song expected with a warrior king to rule and protect God’s people. Instead, this Messiah will suffer, and Mary will suffer along with him (a sword will pierce your own soul as well).
We are in labor (in Micah’s and Mary’s days, a dangerous time), struggling to give birth to hope. Mary’s song gives us a glimpse of God’s future and what is coming to birth. In the meantime, we live with humiliation.