A virgin will conceive
1. Scripture Reading. Today's reading (a portion of which serves as the second Lesson in the Rorate Mass) contains the prophecy of the Messiah's birth of a Virgin. Isaias had been sent to the godless Achaz (ca. 735 B.C.) with the message that the king should demand a miracle from heaven in assurance of divine help against Judah's enemies. Insolently Achaz rejected the prophet's proposal. The king's arrogance called for punishment; now the sign would spell judgment upon Jerusalem and the dynasty of Achaz, evils that would befall the land before the Virgin would give birth to Emmanuel:
Again Isaias spoke to Achaz: 'Ask for yourself a sign from Yahweh, your God, either from the depths of Sheol below or in the heights of heaven above.' But Achaz replied: 'I ask for nothing; I will not tempt Yahweh.'It is a most appropriate passage for Advent. For the first time in prophecy do we meet the lovely picture of Virgin and Child.
Then he said: 'Listen now, you of the house of David. Aren't you satisfied by being noisome to men that you become noisome to my God also? The Lord himself will give you a sign indeed! See, the virgin conceives and bears a Son; she names him Emmanuel and he lives on curd and wild honey{1} when (old enough) to refuse the bad and take the good. For before the boy can refuse the bad and take the good that land will be a desolate waste which now trembles because of those two kings. For the Lord will bring upon you and your people and your father's house days the like of which have not been seen. . . .
The Child's name merits our special attention, Emmanuel, i.e., God with us. In the light of fulfillment we see how this name reveals most sublime truths about our Savior-that He not only assumed our nature through the incarnation but that He raises men to a divine dignity through grace, making them sharers of God's own Nature by living in their souls.
2. The Responsories speak enthusiastically of Emmanuel.
Hear the word of the Lord, ye nations,Early in the morning the Church reflects consolingly: "Fear not, Sion, your God is coming, alleluia" (Ben. Ant.).
and declare it to the ends of the earth.
Say to the isles far off: our Savior is coming!
Declare it, make it known, lift your voice and shout aloud.
Say to the isles far off,: our Savior is coming!
Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord,
when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch.
He will rule as King, He will be wise;
He will execute judgment and justice upon the earth.
And this is the Name that people will call Him:
the Lord our Just One.
In those days Judah will be saved,
and Israel will dwell peacefully.
3. The Messianic Prophecies. Today's reading offers occasion for considering in order the great messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. This will give us a glimpse at the pedagogy by which God sought to reveal the Messiah ever more clearly to men. We start with the protoevangel (Gen. 3:15): "I will put enmities between you and the woman, between your seed and her It'cd. He will crush your head, while you will only wound his heel." The future Conqueror of Satan will be a descendant of Eve.
Next the prophecy of Noe (Gen. 9:18-29). Sem will be the bearer of the messianic promise, while Japhet will share in its blessings. Christ will be of Jewish origin; the Gentiles will not be excluded from His kingdom. The third prophecy was that given to Abraham (Gen. 22:1-19): "In your seed all the peoples of the earth will be blessed."
From a later date we may note the prophetical blessing given by Jacob on his deathbed (Gen. 49:10). It stated that the Messiah will come from the tribe of Judah, and He will save the Gentiles too.
In Moses we have one of the great Old Testament personages prefiguring the Messiah. As deliverer, leader, provider, and teacher of his people he typified Christ, who fulfills these functions par excellence for us Christians. Next in line is David - ancestor, prophet, and type of Christ. More lines in the messianic picture.
It would be a wonderful project to extract the various messianic passages from the psalms and arrange them topically. According to the express words of Jesus, the psalms abound with prophecies and references to the Messiah (Lk. 24:44). Of particular importance are Psalms 2, 15, 18, 21, 39, 44, 68, 71, 88, 109, 131.
The various prophetical books, of course, hold a unique position. Here Isaias ranks highest, the evangelist among the prophets. However, Jeremias, Daniel, Joel, Jonas, Micheas, Zacharias, and others have contributed substantially to the development of Old Testament messianism.
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{1} The fare of the poor; for the Messiah, though of the royal line of David, will not eat from the royal table because the dynasty had perished due to Achaz' sin and insolence.
From The Church's Year of Grace by Dr. Pius Parsch (1957)
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