Saturday 17 December 2022

Psalm 73

Background

Mary enthusiastically praises (‘magnifies’) God on hearing the Spirit-inspired declaration that, in God’s eyes, she is the most blessed of all women (1:42, extended in v. 48b). God’s affirmation dispels the public shame of becoming pregnant before marriage. She exults: ‘God is my Saviour’ (v. 47); and says: "For he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant." (v. 48a).

Mary’s personal joy leads to a statement of the way the God of mercy consistently acts in history powerfully to correct political and economic imbalances (vs 50-53). Then in verses 54-55 Mary celebrates God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 17:4-8) and his descendants (Israel), which God has always kept - as God will now fulfil the promise to Mary (1.45).

This passage is a psalm of a type that was commonly written in Jewish and Christian circles in the first century AD. It is a mosaic or collage of citations from the Book of Psalms in particular (see how Psalm 4:2-3 appears in v. 46) and texts from many other Old Testament books. This tradition of creative writing emphasised the continuity and faithfulness of God’s character, concerns and actions. (It recurs later in Luke, in 1:68-79 and 2:29-32.) 

Strangely, a small number of ancient copies of "And Mary said, 'My soul magnifies the Lord'." (v.46a) attribute the psalm to Elizabeth. Maybe a scribe felt that, apart from v. 48b, there were echoes here of the song of the long childless Hannah once she had conceived (1 Samuel 2:1-10). That would better fit Elizabeth’s story than Mary’s. But this amendment did not catch on. We can be fairly certain that Luke put the psalm on the lips of Mary.  

 Mary stayed with Elizabeth up to the point when she was to give birth (v.56).

To Ponder:

• Excluding v.48b, Mary's psalm can easily serve for general use in the Church:  for men and women, and for many situations where God’s call focuses on people who are humble, marginal or unlikely ‘leadership material’. It stresses the response to God’s presence of joyful wonder and praise; and commits people to expect change, in themselves and also in church and society. Can you identify moments where this psalm (suitably adapted) could be helpful?
•  The Psalm of Mary weaves together the personal, the political and the scriptural. This is a fruitful combination. Listen for these themes and their inter-relationships, in church services and in your own daily reflections. If any of the three elements is missing, how can it be included to enrich the whole?