The Lowly Manger

The Manger

Luke 2:7 (ESV) - And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Manger - A trough out of which animals were fed.

Mary lays him “in a manger,” a feeding trough for animals.

Scholars say that Jesus was either born in a barn of some sort, or a lower level of a house since animals at that time period were kept indoors at night.

The King of the world is born in humble poverty, but Mary has already said that the Lord brings down the mighty from their rule and exalts the humble (Luke 1:52).

The King of Israel, the King of the universe, is born in humble circumstances.

He Brought Down the Mighty

Luke 1:51–53 ESV

51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; 52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; 53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.

From the Manger to the Throne: A Theology of Luke Conclusion > Chapter 1: The Great Reversal

Mary’s prophecy that God would bring down rulers but exalt the humble is one of the most salient themes in Luke’s Gospel, striking at the heart of Jesus’s ministry.

Mary praises the Lord because he casts down the mighty and exalts the humble.

Hannah says that the Lord “brings low and he exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor” (1 Sam. 2:7–8).

The casting down of the proud and the lifting up of the humble is characteristic of God (Prov. 3:34; cf. Luke 14:11).

The Lord worked in such a way in Israel’s past, especially in freeing Israel from Egypt, and now the capstone of his work is taking place in Jesus.

The Lord satisfies the hungry and the poor but frustrates the rich (cf. Ps. 107:9). We have seen already that Luke emphasizes the dangers of riches. Jesus promises blessing for the poor and woe to the rich (Luke 6:21, 24).

Hannah sounds the same note: “Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger” (1 Sam. 2:5).

In Jesus God is acting to bring to fruition what he promised to the humble, to the poor, to the faithful. His covenant promises will come to pass, and the godly will experience eschatological riches.

Luke puts his finger on the defeat of powers and the exaltation of the poor—an emphasis that runs throughout all of Luke-Acts.

The Evangelist also explains how the Lord will do so: just as God redeemed Israel from the clutches of Egyptian slavery, he will deliver Israel once more and with great finality.

The combination of words and expressions in the hymn, such as “the Mighty One” (1:49 CSB), “great things” (1:49), “holy is his name” (1:49), “strength” (1:51), “arm” (1:51), “scattered” (1:51), “thrones” (1:52), and “his servant Israel” (1:54), brings to mind the first exodus.

But, unlike the first exodus, God promises Mary that he will not redeem Israel primarily from political might but from the powers of sin and the devil.

Consummate redemption will occur only at the second coming of Christ, not at his first coming.We would also do well to contemplate the larger context of Hannah’s prayer and the overall thrust of 1-2 Samuel.

Hannah’s prayer goes beyond David (and Solomon), finding its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus, the Son of David (see Luke 1:32–33). In sum, God will bring down all forms of rule, physical and spiritual, through King Jesus and redeem his people in the second exodus.

Seat of Honor

1 Samuel 2:8 ESV

8 He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and on them he has set the world.

In 1 Samuel 2. Hannah confesses, There is none holy like the LORD:for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. (1 Sam. 2:2)

Then, based on his utter uniqueness, the Lord reverses present realities. He alone possesses the right and authority to bring down “mighty” warriors in judgment, and he “exalts” the weak to a lofty position of authority (1 Sam. 2:4, 7–8). In addition to a great reversal, we can also discern royal overtones woven throughout Hannah’s prayer. According to 1 Samuel 2:8, God takes the “poor from the dust” and makes them “sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor.” The word here for “seat” is probably better rendered as “throne” (see LXX, CSB, NIV), suggesting that the poor will inherit a prominent place of rule in the kingdom of God, perhaps at the end of history (cf. Ps. 113:7–8; Dan. 4:17). The final verse in the prayer zeroes in on the Lord’s judgment falling on Israel’s enemies through a royal figure:The LORD will judge the ends of the earth;he will give strength to his kingand exalt the horn of his anointed. (1 Sam. 2:10; cf. Ps. 2:9)While the readers aren’t yet privy to the precise identification of this successful “king,” they will soon discover that, at least initially, the referent is none other than King David.As we compare and contrast Hannah’s and Mary’s prayers, several points of contact are worthy of consideration. But before we contemplate the two, let’s take a moment to consider the incredible exchange between Mary and Elizabeth immediately before the Magnificat.

Luke has placed Jesus squarely in an explicit, Israelite monotheistic confession. Further, and in this vein, Luke’s readers should also assume that Israel’s Lord who breaks the “bows of the mighty,” “exalts” the “poor,” and places his people among the “princes” (1 Sam. 2:4, 7–8)

The Second Exodus

Basket & Manger Motifs

Basket and Ark is the same word in Hebrew. Manger and basket motifs.

Exodus 2:3 ESV

3 When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank.

Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 2

2:3 a papyrus basket The Hebrew word used here, tevah, is the same term used for Noah’s ark (Gen 6:14). God once again uses a water vessel to preserve life—in this case, that of the baby Moses and his entire people.

The JPS Torah Commentary: Exodus The Abandonment and Salvation of Moses (2:1–10)

Its use here underscores both the vulnerability of its occupant and its being under divine protection. Evocation of the Flood narrative also suggests, once again, that the birth of Moses signals a new era in history.

Brought Down Hades

Luke 10:15 (ESV) - And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades.

Capernaum was the home town of Jesus after He moved from Nazareth. The city was exalted to heaven in privilege because Jesus lived there. The people in Capernaum rejected Jesus and missed its day of opportunity. So it will be brought down to Hades in judgment.

The Great Reversal

In the gospel of Luke, God is described as the “most High,” and was referred to heaven as the “highest” or “on high.”

On one hand, there was a an exaltation transpiring. On there other, there was a downward movement that was simultaneously occuring.

Mary states that God has “brought down [katheilen] the mighty” (1:52).

Jesus asserts that Capernaum will be “brought down [katabēsē] to Hades” (10:15), and a few verses later he states, “I saw Satan fall [pesonta] like lightning from heaven” (10:18).

Why such a vertical concern? The answer is found in (1:52)

In the end, the exaltation of the humble led to the humiliation of the proud. The humiliation that Christ’s suffered in his life, and his kingly sacrifice on the cross qualified him to be exalted to the Father’s right hand.