by Peter J. Leithart
First Things
11/24/23
Excerpt:
When the shepherds hear the angels’ message, they praise God, honor the infant king, and announce his arrival throughout the region. The shepherds of Bethlehem are a pledge that Jesus’s birth will usher in a new era for the people of God, when sheep will no longer be terrified by their own shepherds.
As Mary sings in the Magnificat, Jesus comes to scatter the proud, bring down rulers from their thrones, and send the rich away empty. Mary’s song isn’t metaphorical, and we shouldn’t spiritualize it, any more than we should spiritualize the similar song Hannah sings at the birth of her son, Samuel. Like Samuel, Jesus revives his people, and to do that he needs to topple bloodthirsty kings like Herod and cast down scribes who, like Pharaoh, weigh down the people with unbearable burdens. When Jesus is finished with Israel, she has a new elite. Humble fishermen are exalted to the chief seats, the poor and hungry are filled. Peter, James, and John replace Herod’s court, and the converted Pharisee, Paul, displaces greedy, glory-seeking Pharisees as chief teacher.
It’s been happening ever since...
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