The Woman of the Promise: The Co-redemptrix Foreshadowed in the Old Testament

The Gebirah:Miriam - Exodus 15:19-21

"For when the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, the Lord brought back the waters of the sea upon them; but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea. Then Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and dancing. And Miriam sang to them:

"Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;

The horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.""

Miriam, here, after God's victory over the evil Egyptians, is acting in the place of the Gebirah. As a type of Mary, the Supreme Gebirah, Miriam praises God with timbrels and dance, leading the other women in the same. This event is a foreshadowing of Mary's praises at the Visitation and is a foreshadowing of David dancing in front of the Ark of the Covenant. There are parallels in the Song of Moses, right before Miriam's song and dance, to Mary's Magnificat. We will highlight them below:

"I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed Gloriously ... The Lord is my strength and my Song, and he has become my salvation" (Song of Moses).

"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior" (Magnificat).

"Pharaoh's chariots and his host he has cast into the sea ... The floods cover them; they went down into the depths like a stone" (Song of Moses).

"...he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree" (Magnificat).

"Thou didst stretch out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them" (Song of Moses).

"He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts" (Magnificat).

Deborah - Judges 5:24-27

Deborah and Jael are types of Mary and the Gebirah. Deborah is the "warrior judge" who is also a prophetess like Miriam (cf. 4:4 and Ex 15:20), who commands Barak through the word of the Lord to lead an army against Sisera and his charioteers. Barak says he will go, but "only if Deborah goes with him." The Lord goes before them bringing victory over Sisera's men and when Sisera escapes to the tent of Jael, she lures him in and drives a tent peg through his head, which is a foreshadowing of Mary as Co-redemptrix and reminiscent of Gen 3:15. ¹ The victory song that Deborah sings is similar to the Song of victory of Moses and Miriam. In the part where Deborah praises Jael, there is a line that parallels the Magnificat as well. The part concerning Jael begins, "Most blessed of women be Jael" (Judges 5:24). "For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed" (Luke 1:48). Deborah continues concerning Jael, "She put her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workman's mallet; she struck Sisera a blow, she crushed his head" (Judges 5:26). The reference to "crushing the head" is a type of the victory Our Lady will have over Satan, as is prophesied in Genesis 3:15. Verse 31 states, "And the land had rest for forty years." The crushing of the head of Sisera by Jael and the victory over the Canaanites by Deborah and Barak brings peace for a generation after them. This is also a foreshadowing of the peace Christ and Mary will bring, "through the blood of His Cross," for all generations!

Bathsheba - 1 Kings 1 &2 and Proverbs 31

Bathsheba becomes the main queen mother, Gebirah, of the Old Testament, after the death of King David, sitting at the side of her son Solomon upon his throne. But even before the death of David, she is using her powerful intercession with the king to assure the succession of her son Solomon, according to the plan of God. As is recorded in chapter one of the Book of Kings, Bathsheba and the prophet Nathan make sure the aging David names Solomon as his successor, when his brother Adonijah had already taken the crown and made himself king. Solomon is anointed king, David dies in peace, and Solomon begins his rule. Then in chapter two, there is the mysterious incident of Adonijah, who had previously tried to usurp the throne, approaching Bathsheba to intercede for him with Solomon to give him a woman as his wife. The story doesn't explain who Abishag the Shunammite is, however, this request was seen by Solomon as another attempt to usurp his authority and for Adonijah to get the throne (cf. v. 22). The important parts of this passage are in vv. 19-20, where we see Bathsheba entering King Solomon's court to make intercession for Adonijah. Solomon "rose to meet her," "and bowed down to her," and "he had a seat brought for the king's mother; and she sat on his right." All of these things foreshadow the heavenly Queen who sits at the right hand of the King of heaven, "one greater than Solomon" (Matt 12:42). There is an element of the "warrior queen" in this passage as well, for it was from the queen's intercession that Solomon in his wisdom is able to discern that Adonijah is scheming to usurp the throne and thus he has Adonijah killed and defends his throne.

Dr. Edward Sri in an essay on the Queen Mother, citing Miguens, mentions that the Gebirah holds the prominent position of second, after the king, in the kingdom. ² Citing Gray, he states, "Nowhere else in the Bible does the king honor someone as Solomon does the Gebirah." ³ I would agree that there is nowhere else in the Old Testament where the king honors someone as he does the Gebirah, however, I would respectfully disagree that it does not occur in the whole bible. In Revelation 12, the King of kings honors the Supreme Gebirah in a greater way than Solomon ever could have. Sri goes on to mention the queen mother as counselor to the king and cites Proverbs 31 as evidence of this. Here is where we find a direct connection to the term Gebirah, as Bathsheba counsels Solomon on finding a "good wife" (RSV translation).

We use here a fascinating exegetical and philological study of Proverbs 31:10-31 by Al Wolters, as was cited above. Wolters points out many interesting things that assist us in our attempt to connect Bathsheba with the other women who foreshadow Mary as the Gebirah. Firstly, Wolters says that Proverbs 31:10-31 is of a hymnic genre, reminiscent of the Song of Deborah and other heroic poetry from the time of the Judges to the time of David: "It has been pointed out that the literature of ancient Israel also contains poetry of this type. The Song of Deborah is a notable example, as is David's lament for Saul and Jonathan in 2 Samuel 1." ⁴ Wolters goes on to explain that the term used in 31:10 is best translated as "mighty woman of valor," which stems from the Hebrew root word for warrior, gibbor hayil: "The subject of the song is called eset hayil, a term which has been translated in many different ways, but which in this context should be understood as the female counterpart of the gibbor hayil, the title given to the 'mighty men of valor' which are often named in David's age. The person celebrated in this song is a 'mighty woman of valor.'" ⁵ This connects our Gebirah with the very term itself, which has been translated poorly in most English versions. This is part of Wolters' thesis and the reason for his title of "Valiant Woman." So, verse 10 could be translated in English, "A mighty woman of valor who can find?" Or, as relates to our case: "A Gebirah, who can find?" The reason we are going at pains to explain this is to show the thread of foreshadowings of Mary as the "warrior queen," so that it is easier for us to see the latent passages in the Old Testament that are a type of the Co-redemptrix.

You will see that there is more than this also. The Fathers of the Church have commented extensively on this passage and some see the woman allegorically as the Church, or wisdom, but others interpret her as a type of the Blessed Virgin Mary. ⁶ St. Andrew of Crete in a homily on the Nativity of the Virgin Mary says of verse 29, "Many daughters have gained riches, many have done mighty deeds, but you transcend and have surpassed them all." ⁷ St. Bede commenting on v. 22 quotes Ps 45:10, stating that the woman is of royal stature. This verse in previous Patristic commentary had already been interpreted as referring to Mary. ⁸ Later on, theologians like Cornelius a Lapide (d. 1637) and Augustin Calmet (d. 1757) would give a Mariological interpretation of the Song as well.

We see the last five verses of the Song as relating to Mary and in a particular sense concerning her attributes and virtues.

1. V. 26 - "She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue." Mary's Magnificat in Luke displays these sentiments.

2. V. 27 - "She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness." St. Paul, in Ephesians 2:19 says, "So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and the household of God." Mary is the Mother of that household, and continually makes intercession for her children in that household.

3. V. 28 - "Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:" vv. 27 & 28 are connected; She intercedes for her children and protects them, and in turn "they rise up and call her blessed." The second aspect is that Mary is Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son and Spouse of the Holy Spirit. Her husband (Spouse), the Holy Spirit, through the magisterium of the Church, praises Her in having her doctrines solemnly defined for all the faithful.

4. V. 29 - "Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all." We have already shown how St. Andrew of Crete used this verse. Incidentally, he seems even to be implicitly referring to some of the heroic women we have mentioned who have foreshadowed Mary. Mary, because of her merits as the Mother of God, has surpassed all women, and men and even angels.

5. V. 30 - "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." This verse is an inclusio to the whole Book of Proverbs which begins, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (1:7). ⁹ Mary is called the "seat of wisdom." She bore "Wisdom Incarnate" in her womb for nine months. She received personal, intimate instruction from the "One greater than Solomon" (Matt 12:42) for more than thirty years. No creature was more worthy to receive praise for her wisdom, because of her "fear of the Lord," than Mary.

6. V. 31 - "Give her the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates." "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb" (Luke 1:42). Because of her Fiat at the Annunciation, and the perfect conformity of her will to God's will the rest of her life on earth, "all generations call her blessed." They praise her at the "gates of heaven," and at the gates of every Catholic Church on earth!

Interestingly, Mary, in the Magnificat, uses the word "mighty" twice, once for God and once for the proud. She uses "strength" in relation to God's arm. In the Song of the Gebirah, "mighty" and "strength" are attributes of the "Valiant Woman" (cf. vv. 10; 17; and 25); however, we must note the first line of the Magnificat: "My soul magnifies the Lord." These attributes are of both God and Mary. Note also in the Magnificat it says, "He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty." Compare v. 20 of Proverbs 31: "She opens her hand to the poor, and reaches out her hands to the needy." One of the greatest attributes of Christ was His poverty and solidarity with the poor. Our Lady, in imitation of her Lord, has down through the ages, been there for the poor and needy. She has been there especially for the spiritually impoverished, as is witnessed by the countless conversions she has effected.

We want to conclude this section with a comparison of the passages in 2 Sam 6 & 7 which foreshadow the whole New Covenant, with Jesus and Mary at the center. There is such rich typological symbolism in these passages that a separate paper would have to be written to cover all of it. However, we will try to highlight the important aspects of how the kingdom of David, with David, Solomon and Bathsheba, foreshadows the eternal Kingdom of God, with Jesus and Mary (the King and Queen) on their thrones.

Sri connects 2 Sam 7 with the great Isaiah prophecy of the coming Messiah (Is 7:14). Speaking on this he says:

At the most basic level, the child represents an heir to the Davidic throne. Such a view best demonstrates how this sign for the house of David relates to the immediate context of the dynastic crisis at hand. Not only is the Davidic line in danger of expiring (Is 7:6), but as a result, God's faithfulness to the Davidic dynasty (2 Sam 7:11-14) is called into question ... this view finds further support in the fact that the child's name ("God with us") is itself bound up with the idea of the preservation of the Davidic dynasty. Since God promised to be "with" the sons of David in a special way (2 Sam 7:9; 1 Kings 1:37; Ps 89:22, 25; 1 Kings 11:38), the sign of a child named "Immanuel" gives assurance that God will remain faithful to his promise to the Davidic dynasty ... Once we see the Immanuel child as a Davidic king, the young woman (almah) conceiving this child would have been understood as the mother of the king. Furthermore, in this oracle addressed specifically to the Davidic household (Is 7:13), the young woman bearing the royal son, an heir to the throne, would have been understood as a queen mother. With Isaiah's overriding concern for dynastic succession in the house of David, it is fitting that this prophecy links the royal son with his queen mother. ¹⁰