Amazing Parallels Between Mary and the Ark of the Covenant

NC Register ^ | 13 December 2018 | Dave Armstrong

[Cronos]

Mary as the ark of the new covenant. :

Luke 1:35 (RSV) And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”

The Greek word for overshadow is episkiasei, which describes a bright, glorious cloud. It is used with reference to the cloud of transfiguration of Jesus (Mt 17:5; Mk 9:7; Lk 9:34) and also has a connection to the shekinah glory of God (Ex 24:15-16; 40:34-38; 1 Ki 8:10).

Mary is, therefore, in effect, the new temple and holy of holies, where God was present in a special fashion. Scripture draws many parallels between Mary, the “ark of the new covenant” and the ark of the (old) covenant:

Exodus 40:34-35 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting, because the cloud abode upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.

The Greek Septuagint translation uses the same word, episkiasei, in this passage.

1 Kings 8:6-11 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim. ...

[Cronos]

More direct parallels occur as well:

2 Samuel 6:9 And David was afraid of the LORD that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the LORD come to me?”

Luke 1:43 And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

2 Samuel 6:15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the horn.

Luke 1:42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”

2 Samuel 6:14, 16 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. . . . King David leaping and dancing before the LORD . . . (cf. 1 Chr 15:29)

Luke 1:44 For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy.

***

2 Samuel 6:10-11 So David was not willing to take the ark of the LORD into the city of David; but David took it aside to the house of O’bed-e’dom the Gittite. And the ark of the LORD remained in the house of O’bed-e’dom the Gittite three months . . .

Luke 1:39, 56 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, . . . And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.

[Cronos]

[Cronos]

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[STJPII]

Are you the same guy who used to post on CARM? I loved reading your stuff

[eastsider]

Without diminishing in any way the pious understanding of Mary as the Ark of the New Covenant, the Church isn't presenting Luke's narrative of the Visitation in today's Gospel to reflect on Mary and Elizabeth but rather to reflect on the children they bore and the intimate relationship that their missions bore to one another.

The Gospels proclaimed over the past two Sundays have featured John the Baptist preparing the way for the Lord. Advent is a celebration of Christ's coming, and John the Baptist is his herald.

Yes, it is Elizabeth who says that the child leapt in her womb, but it's John who does the leaping. Yes, it's Elizabeth who says, "how does this happen to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me," but Elizabeth is simply speaking for her son John the Baptist, who when he has grown up and is able to speak for himself will say to Jesus at the Baptism in the Jordan, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" And yes, it's Elizabeth who says that the child leapt in her womb at the sound of Mary's greeting, but is there any doubt that John the Baptist is leaping not at the sound of Mary's voice but rather in recognition of the Messiah whose coming it is his mission to announce?

This should give us pause to consider an earlier understanding of the Ark of the Covenant as prefiguring Christ himself -- an understanding famously articulated by St. Thomas Aquinas and which St. Thomas shared with the earliest Church fathers.

Of particular note in this understanding of Christ as the Ark of the Covenant are the three items held in the Ark which correspond to the three offices of Christ as priest, prophet and king. The rod of Aaron, symbol of Aaron's priestly office, corresponds to Christ's priestly office to sanctify the people. The Ten Commandments that came from the mouth of God correspond to Christ's prophetic office to teach the people. And the manna from heaven correspond to Christ's kingly office to govern and feed the people as a shepherd feeds his flock -- which he continues to do to this day with the more perfect bread from heaven, the Most Holy Eucharist.

[Montana_Sam]

Honoring Mary, for henceforth all generations shall call her “Blessed”. And she IS, indeed, the Ark of the New and Everlasting Covenant, the Word made flesh.

[stinkerpot65]

Every Christian is the ark of the covenant, beginning with the day of Pentecost.

[BiglyCommentary]

Once Christ ascended and the the apostles and disciples of Jesus went about preaching and speaking and writing the books of New Testament, DO THEY mention Mary AT ALL, GIVE HER ANY HEED, IN ANY TEACHINGS OR WORSHIP OR ANYTHING?

The answer is basically NO. Mary disappears, no Mary deification, statue’s, shrines, etc.

[BiglyCommentary]

Great and theologically correct answer.

[SheepWhisperer]

Correct.
A better parallel comparison would be the Mary which is venerated today to Isis

[Ezekiel]

Hopefully I'm in before the doctrinal bar fights. Nobody wants to hear "Gimme Some Lovin'"!

The transitive property (of equality):

If A = B, and B = C, then A = C

The Hebrew title of that page: [יחס טרנזיטיבי], "transitive relation" (yachas), from which derives the word Yichus:

n. "Pedigree, lineage, family background." (JPS)
n. Bragging rights based on respected family history.

And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”

The Holy Spirit in the form of a dove (because what's in a name?), the symbol of purity, innocence, and peace:

American Progress

the child to be born will be called holy:

From post 73 on "14 biggest historical mysteries that will probably never be solved ... Will we ever find Cleopatra's tomb or the Ark of the Covenant? Some mysteries may never be resolved."

>>>

Everybody knows the rules... No Peeking!!!

And their faces -- a man to his brother (Exodus 25:20)

Detailed close-up:

A US Government warehouse was the perfect place to stash the Ark of the Covenant, because who would be able to sort through and decipher the vast lists of bureaucratic acronyms. They could mean any number of things. There are even acronyms for acronyms. The pit is deep. The Ark belongs with the Hebrews, in any case:

United States (ARtzot HaBrit):

ארה"ב

Ark of the Covenant (ARon HaBrit):

ארה"ב

Of course, no one is actually going to use the abbreviation ארה"ב for the Ark of the Covenant, because then the Ark might get "confused with" the United States. Perfect! ;)

<<<

No wonder the Hebrew title of the Book of Numbers is Bamidbar, "In the desert" -- no man loves the desert..

transitive relationship [יחס טרנזיטיבי] = 385 = [שכינה] Shekhina,

denoting the presence (face of) God, (live):

Jo Ann Castle would like to play for you,

You are My Sunshine

***

40 All Time Honky Tonk Hits (Full Album)
As Advertised on T.V.

"This should be the compulsory sound in all pubs." ~ Richard Davies 6 years ago

"A lot less bar fights if this was played in taverns." ~ Ron Caldwell in reply 3 years ago

Joy to the World -- Nat King Cole

[Texas_Guy]

Another Jack Chick conspiracy theorist I see!

[Texas_Guy]

The end of the bible is not the end of the story, nor is it the entirety of the teachings of the Church. The bible wasn’t even compiled until 400 years later.

Faith comes through hearing, not reading.

Follow the instructions of St. Paul and “hold fast to the traditions” he taught you.

[Zionist Conspirator]

But how do you know the Ark of the Covenant wasn’t just another fairy tale, like the rest of the Hebrew Bible?

[Cronos]

Why do you think the Hebrew Bible is a fairy tale?

You seem to think that Adam and Eve were, as you put it "a Babylonian myth" and now you say the entire Old Testament is a fairy tale?

[BenLurkin]

[SheepWhisperer]

“Another Jack Chick conspiracy theorist I see!”

***

You don’t see clearly at all, but are basing your conclusion upon a false premise, because I’d have to know who “Jack Chick” is, which I don’t, to be what you claim.

My observations are conclusions based upon the study of religions and the similarities between ancient fertility goddess worship and Mary worship, which demonstrate that they are nearly identical, right down to the iconic symbolism. This said without even mentioning the sun and bull horn symbolism in these comparisons.

[G Larry]

Surprised he didn't cite:

Luke 1:44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.

To correspond with:

2 Samuel 6:14, 16 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. . . . King David leaping and dancing before the LORD . . . (cf. 1 Chr 15:29)

[G Larry]

Surprised he didn't cite:

Luke 1:44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.

To correspond with:

2 Samuel 6:14, 16 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. . . . King David leaping and dancing before the LORD . . . (cf. 1 Chr 15:29)

[G Larry]

Keep in mind, Mary didn't text Elizabeth to tell her that she was coming, or that she was miraculously pregnant with Christ.

Elizabeth's response was spontaneous and divinely inspired. (As was John's leaping in her womb)

"Yes, it is Elizabeth who says that the child leapt in her womb, but it's John who does the leaping. Yes, it's Elizabeth who says, "how does this happen to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me," but Elizabeth is simply speaking for her son John the Baptist, who when he has grown up and is able to speak for himself will say to Jesus at the Baptism in the Jordan, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" And yes, it's Elizabeth who says that the child leapt in her womb at the sound of Mary's greeting, but is there any doubt that John the Baptist is leaping not at the sound of Mary's voice but rather in recognition of the Messiah whose coming it is his mission to announce?"