Three Powerful Truths for Meditation at Christmas-Time
η δε μαριαμ παντα συνετηρει τα ρηματα ταυτα συμβαλλουσα εν τη καρδια αυτης
Luke 2:19
Kept (συνετηρει [sunetērei]). Imperfect active. She kept on keeping together (συν- [sun-]) all these things. They were meat and drink to her. She was not astonished, but filled with holy awe. The verb occurs from Aristotle on. She could not forget. But did not Mary keep also a Baby Book? And may not Luke have seen it? Pondering (συνβαλλουσα [sunballousa]). An old Greek word. Placing together for comparison. Mary would go over each detail in the words of Gabriel and of the shepherds and compare the sayings with the facts so far developed and brood over it all with a mother’s high hopes and joy.
29.1 συντηρέωb: to exert mental effort in storing information so as to have continual access and use of it—‘to cause oneself to be fully aware of, to keep in mind, to remember.’ ἡ δὲ Μαριὰμ πάντα συνετήρει τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα συμβάλλουσα ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτῆς ‘Mary kept all these things in mind and thought deeply about them’ Lk 2:19. An equivalent of ‘to keep in mind’ may be ‘to keep thinking about’ or ‘to continue to think about’ or even ‘not to stop thinking about.’
59.23 πᾶςa, πᾶσα, πᾶν; ἅπας, ασα, αν (alternative form of πᾶς):2 the totality of any object, mass, collective, or extension—‘all, every, each, whole.’ τότε οἱ μαθηταὶ πάντες ἀφέντες αὐτὸν ἔφυγον ‘then all the disciples left him and ran away’ Mt 26:56; ἦλθεν ὁ κατακλυσμὸς καὶ ἦρεν ἅπαντας ‘the flood came and swept them all away’ Mt 24:39; ὥρμησεν πᾶσα ἡ ἀγέλη κατὰ τοῦ κρημνοῦ ‘the whole herd rushed down the side of the cliff’ Mt 8:32; οὕτως πᾶς Ἰσραὴλ σωθήσεται ‘this is how all Israel will be saved’ Ro 11:26; σοὶ δώσω τὴν ἐξουσίαν ταύτην ἅπασαν ‘I will give to you all this power’ Lk 4:6; ὁ … πᾶς νόμος ‘the whole Law’ Ga 5:14; πάντα γὰρ ὑμῶν ἐστιν ‘for everything is yours’ 1 Cor 3:21.
30.7 συμβάλλωa; ἐπιβάλλωe: to give careful consideration to various implications of an issue—‘to reflect on, to think about seriously, to think deeply about.’
συμβάλλωa: ἡ δὲ Μαριὰμ πάντα συνετήρει τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα συμβάλλουσα ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτῆς ‘Mary remembered all these things and thought deeply about them’ Lk 2:19.
ἐπιβάλλωe: καὶ ἐπιβαλὼν ἔκλαιεν ‘and as he thought seriously about this, he cried’ Mk 14:72. For another interpretation of ἐπιβάλλω in Mk 14:72, see 68.5.
Notes for 2:19
53 tn The term συμβάλλουσα (sumballousa) suggests more than remembering. She is trying to put things together here (Josephus, Ant. 2.5.3 [2.72]). The words “what they might mean” have been supplied in the translation to make this clear. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.