Miriam

Music in the Worship of the Old Testament

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Music was an important element of both temple and synagogue worship. Undoubtedly this music and its forms influenced the form and use of music in the early Christian church. Both Jews and Christians revere a transcendent God and both give honor to Scripture. For these reasons and others, Jewish synagogue worship and modern Christian services are similar in content and spirit.

Through almost three thousand years of Hebrew/Christian history, music has been inseparable from worship, and the Bible contains much of our early heritage of worship song. The Psalms come from many periods of the ancient Jewish culture, and they were augmented by canticles that date back to Israel’s deliverance from Egypt.

Synagogue worship probably developed among the Jews as a result of their dispersion in the fifth century before Christ. With its emphasis on the reading and explanation of Scripture, prayers, and the singing of psalms and canticles, it was very significant in the framing of early Christian worship. Music in the synagogue was led by cantors—soloists who may have been trained in the temple Levitical ministry—and included some congregational participation.

The New Testament era began with the canticles surrounding Christ’s birth, recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke. The new faith and its expression were supported with several types of music—“psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” according to the apostle Paul. The epistles do contain some general principles: the Scriptures were to be read and the gospel was to be preached, certain types of prayer were encouraged, and believers were expected to celebrate the Eucharist or Communion.

The Early Traditions

The first biblical reference to musical experience is a narrative of musical thanksgiving, led by Moses and his sister Miriam after the Israelites had been delivered from the Egyptians: Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord: “I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea.… ” Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing. Miriam sang to them: “Sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea” (Exod. 15:1, 20–21).

This performance was both instrumental and vocal, involved both men and women, and was accompanied by expressive movement. The song was a prototype of the expressions of praise to God that are found throughout the Old Testament, particularly in the Psalms.

Erik Routley has reminded us that there are two musical worship traditions in the Old Testament: one was spontaneous and ecstatic, the other formal and professional (Church Music and the Christian Faith, p. 6). The first of these is mentioned as part of Saul’s preparation to become king of Israel; the prophet Samuel was giving the instructions:

After that you will go to Gibeah of God … as you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, tambourines, flutes, and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. The Spirit of the Lord will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them, and you will be changed into a different person. (1 Sam. 10:5–6)

In this early period, music was apparently expected to assist the worshiper’s experience of God. The same idea is expressed in connection with an occasion when the Prophet Elisha foretold God’s judgment: “But now bring me a harpist.” While the harpist was playing the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah and said, “This is what the Lord says” (2 Kings 3:15–16). The expectation that music can affect human behavior (ethos) was common in Scripture times and has persisted through history. The Bible also records an early use of music in therapy: whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him (see 1 Samuel 16:23).

Music in the Temple

The second Old Testament musical tradition—the music for the temple—was formal and professional, and was initiated by Israel’s shepherd-king who was himself a musician and hymn composer: David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers to sing joyful songs, accompanied by musical instruments: lyres, harps, and cymbals (1 Chron. 15:16).

As priest-musicians, these performers gave full time to their musical service. They were chosen on the basis of their talent (1 Chron. 15:22) and were thoroughly trained, serving five years of apprenticeship before being admitted to the regular chorus. The Jewish choir was organized under at least three composer-conductors—Asaph, Herman, and Jeduthun (2 Chron. 5:12). The singing was accompanied by many kinds of instruments—lyres, pipes, harps, trumpets, and cymbals—and was also associated with dance (Ps. 150:4).

The Musical Sound

In ancient Hebrew worship, the words of Scripture were never spoken without melody; to do so was considered to be inappropriate. They were always sung in a fervent cantillation. (“Shout to God with loud songs of joy!” Ps. 47:1). They were accompanied by instruments in what is believed to have been a sort of heterophony, in which the instruments provided embellishments of the vocal melody. As in most early cultures, Hebrew instruments were of three basic types:

  • String—kinnor (“lyre,” related to the Greeks’ kithara) and nebhel (“harp” with up to ten strings, sometimes called “psaltery” in kjv).
  • Wind—shophar (a ram’s horn), halil (a double-reed, like the oboe), hazozerah (a metal trumpet), and ugabh (a vertical flute, used mainly in secular music).
  • Percussion—toph (tambourine, or hand drum), zelzelim (cymbals), and mena an im (a sistrum). (See The New Oxford History of Music, vol. 1, 295–296, and footnoted references.)

In Old Testament worship antiphonal singing was probably the norm, as evidenced by the fact that many of the Psalms are couched in a responsorial pattern. In modern liturgical church practice, each verse is divided into a versicle and response.

V: God be merciful unto us, and bless us;
R: And cause his face to shine upon us. (Psalm 67:1, KJV)
V: O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good:
R: For his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalms 136:1, KJV)

It is natural for us to try to guess what this ancient music sounded like. Some Jewish worship musicians insist that they still retain much of the original character of their chants, even though they may have been originally preserved only by oral tradition. Recent musicologists have reasoned that the early Christian chant styles were patterned after Jewish antecedents. It is probable that certain traditions in the Byzantine chant of the Greek, Antiochian, and Palestinian churches carry some remnants of the original sounds. Eric Werner says that all the foremost authorities (Curt Sachs, A. Z. Idelsohn, and R. Lachman) agree that the chants were based on four-note (tetra-chordal) melodic motives, and that “the archetype of chant was similar to ancient Gregorian tunes, which means that they were based upon small melodic patterns of a rather narrow range, usually not exceeding a fourth or a fifth” (Eric Werner, Jewish Music, 623).

Within the last few years, French musician and scholar Suzanne Haik Vantoura released the results of her four years of research in the book La Musique de la Bible Revelee (The Music of the Bible Revealed). She is convinced that mysterious signs scattered throughout the Hebrew scriptures, both above and below the letters, are actually a system of musical notation, and not punctuation or accent marks as has been traditionally believed. Furthermore, she has reduced these signs to a system of notation, and has transcribed and recorded the melodies for approximately three hours of Bible music.

Werner also describes the musical performance in the Jews’ Second Temple: The morning sacrifice was accompanied by three trumpet blasts; the cymbals clashed, signaling the beginning of the Levitical chant. At the end of each portion the trumpets joined the singing to indicate to the congregation the moment when they were to prostrate themselves. Every song was probably divided into three portions. (Werner, 623)

Most scholars agree that music in the temple was almost completely professional and sacerdotal (performed by priests). The Jewish people participated principally as listeners. It is reasoned that they may have frequently joined in the traditional responses “amen” and “alleluia,” and possibly in an antiphonal refrain like “for his steadfast loves endures for ever” (Ps. 136).

The book of Psalms has been called the “hymnal of Israel.” The Psalms were sung in regular sequences following the morning and evening sacrifice on specified days of the week and were accompanied by instruments that occasionally indulged in an interlude indicated by the word Selah.

Psalms offered specific types of worship expression:

  • Praise: For it is good to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is seemly (Ps. 147:1).
  • Petition: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou who leadest Joseph like a flock! Thou who art enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh! Stir up thy might, and come to save us! (Ps. 80:1–2).
  • Thanksgiving: I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my supplications (Ps. 116:1).

There were special psalms associated with festival occasions—royal psalms to honor the kings (e.g., 21, 45, 101), processional psalms (e.g., 24, 95, 100), and penitential psalms for periods of national repentance (e.g., 130). The “Egyptian Kings” Psalms (113–118) were very significant in the observance of the Passover and other times of national penitence.

There were at least four different modes of presentation:

1. A simple psalm (e.g., 46:1), sung by one person alone.
2. A responsive psalm (e.g., 67:1, 2), in which a choir answers the solo chant.
3. An antiphonal psalm, with several lines beginning or ending with the same phrase (e.g., 103:1, 2, 20–22), sung by two choirs in alternation.
4. A litany (e.g., 80:2, 3, 6, 7, 18, 19), which included a repeated refrain (Werner, 621–623).

Eric Werner also gives four design types: (Eric Werner, The Sacred Bridge, p. 133.)

1. The plain, direct psalm—no strophic arrangement.
2. The acrostic psalm—phrases in alphabetical sequence (e.g., 119).
3. The refrain psalm—each verse ending with the same refrain (e.g., 136).
4. The Hallelujah psalm—begins or closes with the ecstatic exclamation (e.g., 145–150).

In addition to the Psalms, a number of important biblical canticles were used regularly by the Hebrews in worship, and have been carried over into many Christian traditions as well. These are the best known:

1. Moses’ (and Miriam’s) song of victory over Pharaoh (Exod. 15).
2. Moses’ prayer before his death (Deut. 32).
3. The song of Hannah (1 Sam. 2), a prototype of Mary’s song in Luke 1:46–55.
4. The song of Habakkuk (Hab. 2).
5. Isaiah’s song (Isa. 26).
6. The prayer of Jonah in the fish’s belly (Jonah 2).
7. The prayer of Azariah—Benedictus es, Domine (Daniel 3, Douay version; Vulg., 3:26–49, Apocrypha).
8. The song of the three Hebrew children in the furnace—Benedicite omnia opera Domini (Dan. 3, Douay version; Vulg. 3:52–90, Apocrypha).

Worship and the Calendar

Historic Jewish worship acknowledged that God is the Lord of times and seasons in the ebb and flow of life. The sacrifices were observed in both the morning and evening every day in the tabernacle and later, in the temple. In addition, the Jewish family regularly offered prayers at home at stated hours and at mealtime. The Sabbath was a time for more exacting expressions of worship; it commemorated God’s rest from the acts of creation and was observed in obedience to his command. Finally, there were times of intensely celebrative or penitential worship: Passover, to commemorate their deliverance from Egypt; the Day of Atonement, at the beginning of the New Year; Pentecost, associated with the giving of the Law, at the corn harvest; and the Feast of Booths (tabernacles) as “harvest home.” As we will see later, most of these practices based on the calendar have been fulfilled in Christ and transformed into Christian worship.

Worship Music and the Experience of God

The Hebrews shared richly symbolic worship that appealed strongly to the senses. The music which accompanied the sacrifices was a conspicuous part of the sensory experience. Musical sound revealed the presence of God, as evidenced in the accounts of the ecstatic moments of Saul and Elisha, and also in the requirement that song-chant would always be the vehicle of the holy scriptures.

One occasion when God was pleased to reveal his presence through musical performance was the dedication of Solomon’s temple: Now when the priests came out of the holy place (for all the priests who were present had sacrificed themselves, without regard to their divisions; and all the Levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, their sons and kinsmen, arrayed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and lyres, stood east of the altar with a hundred and twenty priests who were trumpeters; and it was the duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard in unison in praise and thanksgiving to the Lord), and when the song was raised, with trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures for ever,” the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God (2 Chron. 5:11–14).

Worship in the Synagogue and the Jewish Home

The tradition of synagogue worship is of uncertain origin. Some scholars surmise that Jewish laypersons gathered in remote parts of Palestine at the time of the regular sacrifices in the temple at Jerusalem; others guess that the practice may have begun among Jews who were captives in other lands. Because the traditional sacrifices could only be offered in the temple, “sacrifices of praise and prayer” were substituted for offerings of animals and grain. Synagogue worship was in full flower during the lifetime of Jesus and the early days of the Christian church. It is not surprising then that early Jewish Christians modeled their worship partly on what they had experienced in the synagogue.

Synagogue worship was essentially a Service of the Word; it centered on the ceremonial reading of the Scripture, especially the Torah and the prophets, followed by an explanation of their meaning in a homily. It should be understood that the synagogue service was essentially congregational; though the position of the rabbi (teacher) developed in its context, it was essentially a meeting of laypersons, who probably participated in the prayers, and also in the free discussion which might follow the Scripture lection (see Acts 17:17).

These then are the component parts of synagogue worship, most of which have come down to us from the earliest traditions.

  • Scripture Readings (Torah; the Prophets)
  • Homily, followed by discussion
  • Psalmody
  • The Kedusha, “Holy, Holy, Holy,” (Isa. 6:3)
  • Prayers (The Yotzer and the Ahabah, emphasizing the creative acts of God and his love for his people, ending with the Shema—“Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord,” etc., a declaration of faith and a glad benediction, from Deut. 6:4–9, 11:13–21; Numbers 15:37–41)
  • The Eighteen Benedictions (expressions of praise, petitions for material and spiritual blessings, and intercessions for many people, concluded with a united “amen”)

It is not known when music entered synagogue worship, but it is surmised that certain Levitical singers may have continued to practice their art in the lay-oriented gathering. We do know that only one or two solo singers (cantors) were involved in a service. They chanted the Scripture readings, the Psalms, the post-biblical prayers (Benedictions), and, according to some scholars, certain “melismatic” songs which may have been similar both to the ecstatic music of earlier days and to the “spiritual songs” mentioned in Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:19. The musical style must have been related to that of temple worship, though presumably no instruments were involved since they were associated only with animal sacrifices. It is also surmised that, in the congregational character of this gathering, all the worshipers joined in the psalms which they knew, and very frequently in a repeated refrain, a “Hallelujah” and an “amen.”

We make this latter assumption partly on the witness of Mark (14:26): “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” On the occasion of the last supper of our Lord with his disciples, the hymn sung was possibly one of the “Egyptian Kings” Psalms (113–118), traditionally used in the observance of Passover. In the custom of a typical Jewish home, Jesus pronounced a blessing over a loaf of bread, broke it, and gave portions to all those around the table. Similarly, at the end of the meal, a Jewish host would take a cup of wine mixed with water, give thanks, and then pass it around for all to drink. So it was that at the Upper Room supper, Jesus transformed this traditional act of thanksgiving and made it new, instituting the Lord’s Supper, or Eucharist, which many Christians believe to be the most significant single act of worship. The full order of historic Christian liturgy was developed by uniting the pattern of Jewish synagogue worship with the Eucharist.

Modern Jewish services continue in synagogues, without significant change in the basic elements. (In the orthodox Jewish tradition, the singing is still largely cantoral and unaccompanied.) The feasts are still observed as in ancient times, with one significant addition: Hanukkah, “the festival of lights,” is celebrated in December to commemorate the rededication of the temple in the second-century b.c., following the victory over the Syrians under Antiochus IV. In connection with the cycle of annual worship centering in the festivals, a regular schedule of Scripture readings (the lectionary), psalms, and prayers was developed to support the emphasis of each season. (The close relationship between Jewish and early Christian activity in the developing of “propers” for daily worship is related in Werner, 50–101.)

Music in the Israelite Temple

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Music in the temple was made for the worship of God. More than 10 percent of the people serving in temple ministries were musicians. Their music occupied a central place in the worship of God’s people.

The idea of special creative skills in cultic worship occurs long before the advent of professional musicians. In the building of the tabernacle of Moses, artisans were chosen to “make artistic designs” and were given the Holy Spirit to do so (Exod. 35:30–36:2). The ability to devise these works is interestingly related to intelligence, knowledge, and finally craftsmanship. Although the mention of music is minimal in the matter of worship in the tabernacle, Exodus 28:34–35 describes a golden bell attached to the lower hem of Aaron’s robe, which sounds as he goes into the Holy Place.

The trained musicians who eventually appear around the time of David and Solomon mark a distinctive change in the history of biblical music. Before this time much of the music was made by women. Miriam led a group of women in singing and dancing that followed the song of Moses and the children of Israel, celebrating the overthrow of the Egyptians (Exod. 15:1–21); women sang, danced, and played for the conquering David (1 Sam. 18:6–7); Jephthah’s daughter met her father with timbrels and dance upon his return from battle (Judg. 11:34).

With the professionalization of music in the royal courts, and more especially in temple worship, music-making was restricted to men. This is not to say that in the nonprofessional realm women ceased making music; this continued as before. In the accounts in Chronicles that give the statistics of the temple ministries, 4,000 of the 38,000 Levites chosen by David for temple service were musicians (1 Chron. 15:16 NASB; 23:5). These were “the singers, with instruments of music, harps, lyres, loud-sounding cymbals, to raise sounds of joy.” In 1 Chronicles 25:6–7, the number of musicians is listed as 288, divided into twenty-four orders of twelve each. The descriptions of the musical activities that occur thereafter give the impression of an awesome spectacle. This rich array parallels the existence of professional guilds of musicians in the neighboring kingdoms of Egypt and Assyria.

The transition from an unsettled, nomadic life to one of a centralized monarchy provided an opportunity for training and the regulation of a musical system that would serve the needs of the royal court and the worship in the temple. No efforts, it seems, were spared in the full realization of this. The importation of musical instruments and musical systems was no doubt carried out. The normal cultural intercourse during Israel’s sojourn was formalized in the monarchy. The Midrash alludes to a tradition in which King Solomon’s Egyptian wife included 1,000 musical instruments in her dowry. More concrete archaeological evidence makes clear that the instruments of the ancient world were similar from culture to culture. This implies a similarity of musical systems, although it does not rule out the possibility of indigenous change.

There have been many highly romanticized and exaggerated speculations about a never-to-be-repeated musical situation in the temple. These have distorted a true contextual sense of what might have happened, and since there is no precise knowledge of the full musical style, one must remain content with the central concept of a solemn yet exuberant mode of worship. Moreover, it is important to remember that though these musical activities were quantitatively and qualitatively professional, the matter of functionality mentioned earlier still prevailed. The central importance in temple ritual was a sacrifice. All else served this centrality. The system of daily sacrifices, morning and evening, was carefully regulated. The liturgical activities were complex and cumulative. The Mishnah gives the number of instruments in the temple during the Common Era as follows: nevel, minimum two, maximum six; kinnor, minimum nine, maximum limitless; cymbal, one only; ḥalil, minimum two, maximum twelve.

The choir consisted of a minimum of twelve adult male singers, the maximum limitless. The singers served between the ages of thirty and fifty, with a five-year training period preceding this. The lack of mention of a large percussion group as well as the absence of a corps of dancers might indicate an attempt to evade a similarity to pagan forms of worship, although this is only conjecture. It must be balanced with those occasions in which dance is mentioned as a legitimate way of praise elsewhere in the Old Testament (2 Sam. 6:14; Pss. 149:3; 150:4).

Although a good part of the musical performance must have been left to the trained singers and players, the congregation was also musically involved. There is a record in the first century of three forms of public singing of the Scriptures, including the Psalms, each based on the response principle. (a) First form—the leader intoned the first half verse repeated by the congregation. The leader then sang each succeeding half-line, but the congregation responded with the same first half-line. This became a refrain throughout the entire song. (b) In the second form—the leader sang a half line at a time, and the congregation immediately repeated what had just been sung. (c) Third form—the leader sang the whole first line. The congregation answered with the second line of the verse. This was true responsorial singing.

Women in Worship Leadership in Biblical Times

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Women appear at critical times in the life of their worship communities. Acting as prayer leaders, prophetesses, sages, or apostles, they perform deeds that embody the spirit and life of their community. To read their stories is to discover how this people experienced God and lived in fidelity to that relationship. Their communities remembered them and retold their stories, giving them honored place in the community’s oral and written memory. Their leadership continues to be handed on to renew life and spirit in communities faithful to their tradition. The importance of women in the worship life of biblical times may be seen in the stories of Miriam, Huldah, and the woman who anointed Jesus, as well as in the biblical personification of wisdom as a woman.

Miriam, Leader of Thanksgiving and Worship

In Exodus 20:15–21, at a sanctuary in the wilderness, Miriam leads the people of Israel in a celebration of the miraculous act that formed them. They had been slaves in Egypt and no people at all. Now, at Yahweh’s hand, they had come through the deathly waters of the sea to life as a united people.

Miriam takes up the timbrel, a tambourine-like percussion instrument, and begins a dance and song of thanksgiving and victory. The women follow her, dancing and chanting, “Sing to Yahweh, gloriously triumphant! Horse and rider are cast into the sea!” Her shout becomes their refrain. Her movements and instrument imitate the actions and sounds of Yahweh in the winds and the sea, parting the waters and swallowing the Egyptians. She plays the part of the victorious divine warrior, Yahweh, the One who has saved Israel, the One who is alone among the gods, “magnificent in holiness,” making known his presence in Israel’s midst.

Such dramatic thanksgiving feasts became the very hallmark of Israel’s covenant life with Yahweh. Miriam’s song was like the psalms families later sang at Passover in homes and villages, like those that priests and all the people sang when they gathered for great pilgrimage feasts in the courts of the temple. In the ritual sharing of song, food, and life, young Israel, weary of what seemed to be an endless journey in harsh lands and battling unwelcoming peoples, remembered and renewed the covenant with Yahweh and their bonds as a people.

In a speech indicting the people for their faithlessness Micah the prophet remembers Miriam, with Moses and Aaron, as a leader of the wilderness community, and associates her leadership with divine commissioning (Mic. 6:2–5). Like Moses and Aaron before the days of the temple and priesthood in Israel, Miriam served as leader of the community at prayer, expressing their faith that Yahweh had saved them and continued to be with them. In thanksgiving, they renewed the covenant and committed themselves as a people.

Huldah, Prophet and Interpreter of Yahweh’s Word

Later in Israel, kings came to rule and represent Yahweh’s leadership among them. They became the leaders of worship, calling all Israel together to renew the covenant by reciting, singing, and dancing Yahweh’s deeds. In establishing their rule, Israel’s kings made alliances with neighboring rulers, sometimes through marriage and sometimes by taking in foreign “gods” and customs. Solomon and the kings following him established heavy taxes and large armies to support cities and temples. Gradually they rendered the rural villagers poor, subject to the international economy of the great city Jerusalem. It was then that prophets emerged, in court and village, to recall covenant relationships among the people and with Yahweh and to call those in power, even kings, to reform and fidelity.

When Josiah was king of Judah, his ministers found a book that told of the covenant in the temple. Was this book true to Yahweh? What did it mean for Josiah and the people? Josiah sent his ministers to Huldah, who, by her credentials, was probably a prophet active in his court and well known among the people.

Huldah spoke with authority. The book was true for Judah that very day. The people had turned to other gods and forsaken Yahweh. Yahweh’s anger would blaze against them. And it did, as Josiah burned the sanctuaries of Judah and tried to purify the Jerusalem temple and center Israel’s worship there among a reunited people.

Josiah heard Yahweh’s word through Huldah and, in heartfelt repentance, acted to restore relationships among people and with Yahweh. The word of Yahweh was alive; Huldah had proclaimed Yahweh’s deeds and called king and people to reform, renewing the covenant in their relationships. Yahweh honored Josiah’s courageous leadership, and although the king died in battle at the hand of an Egyptian king, his eyes did not witness the sad march to Babylon, as Huldah had also foretold.

Woman Wisdom, Rebuilding the House of Israel

Wisdom had always been a part of Israel’s experience of Yahweh. The wise were regarded as Yahweh’s messengers, showing by their lives and teaching the Yahweh-fearing way to live as members of the family, clan, and covenant people. In “winged word,” (proverbial sayings that were easy to remember) sages captured the experience of Israel’s faith in action. These proverbs provided models, or morals and cues for action, rooted in the past to renew and shape life in the present.

As Israel returned from exile without the strong national leadership of king and temple, wisdom in daily work—making families and rebuilding homes and villages—was needed more than ever. Israel had lost land and people. Women assumed a larger share in generating family life and managing households and fields. Their wisdom in refashioning home life, households, and communities came to be recognized as the word and work of Yahweh among them. Perhaps in recognition of women’s importance and increased contribution to Israel’s life, this wisdom was even embodied and personified in the female figure of woman Wisdom.

Wisdom was she who, begotten and “given birth” from Yahweh, played before him in the creation of the world and took special delight in human deeds and relationships (Prov. 8:22–31). She spoke with the voice of Yahweh, calling from the gates of the city into the home. She called to all who would listen. Her word was to forsake foolish, foreign, and unfaithful alliances, to come to her table and feast on her food and wine, and there to be filled with her wisdom and knowledge, the fear of the Lord, which characterized the covenant way of old.

Inviting people to find Yahweh in daily experience; in faithful human relationships between husband and wife, children and parents; in family life and public service, she was rebuilding the house of Israel. Wisdom again became the pattern of life, recognized among the people as the “order” in creation itself. Later wisdom writings identified her with Torah (Sirach 190 b.c.). In the earlier poems of Proverbs 1–9 and Proverbs 31:10–31, Wisdom and her counterpart of the faithful wife, speaks in the very “I am” voice of Yahweh and is hymned by husband, family, and people for bearing the very life-giving qualities of Yahweh, the qualities women and men needed to reclaim their lives as family and people. In this way, woman Wisdom embodied the very life of Israel and came to prominence in the rebuilding of Israel as a godly people.

Mary, the Anointing Woman

The community for which Mark wrote understood themselves as Jews who were called to become a new community, bearing “good news” intended to include Gentiles and to reach the whole world as well. The gospel proclamation of Mark’s community is a narrative of the great trial of Jesus and the disciples. Their story is one of struggle to accept a suffering Messiah and to accept their own suffering as the way of discipleship and life in the new community of Jesus, the Christ.

After Rome destroyed the temple and Jerusalem, these Christians were no longer welcome in the synagogues as the Jews struggled to unite and survive. Following Jesus meant leaving family members and official Judaism, the family of their faith. It meant enduring betrayal as Jesus had, welcoming strangers and Gentiles as Jesus did, and finding in this struggling community of believers new family and kin.

During Jesus’ trial, the Jewish high priest had asked, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” Jesus had acknowledged his identity with God and had confessed, “I am” (Mark 14:61–62). In the same way, disciples faced questioning by members of their own community and betrayal and suffering as they followed Jesus.

The story of this trial begins with a scene in which Jesus was at the table among friends (Mark 14:3–10). An unidentified woman came carrying an alabaster jar of expensive aromatic perfume. She broke the jar and began to pour the perfume on his head. In Israel of old, such an outpouring of oil on the head was an act of anointing, the deed by which a prophet recognized and proclaimed a new king for Israel. It was the act by which the Spirit was outpoured, filling God’s servant, the king. When the woman’s action was criticized by some at the table, Jesus defended her, identified her deed with preparation for his burial, and solemnly announced that wherever the Good News was proclaimed throughout the world, what she had done would be told in her memory (Mark 14:9).

The anointing woman’s deed was questioned by some who were at the table, members of her own community. Those at the table were divided. As the author tells it, Jesus himself interpreted her deed. Her anointing embodies both recognition and proclamation. She is the disciple, the one who recognizes this suffering servant-king, the One sent by God, and bears this as good news to others. Jesus continues to be present in the community in its telling of the gospel and in the kinship of his suffering. By her deed, the woman shows who an apostle is and what an apostle does.

In John’s Gospel and for John’s community, Jesus is the one in whom God dwells fully in human flesh and who makes life, the life of self-giving love that is God’s, known. In John’s Gospel, as Jesus’ public ministry is ending and the “hour” of his glory begins, a woman anoints Jesus at the table (John 12:1–11). The woman is identified as Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, a family “loved” by Jesus (John 11:5). Jesus has raised Lazarus in “the village of Mary and her sister Martha,” and as his “hour” is beginning, Jesus is the honored guest at their table again. Martha is serving the meal, and Lazarus is among those at the table. Mary anoints Jesus’ feet with a pound of perfume of genuine aromatic nard, then dries his feet with her hair. The whole house is filled with the ointment’s fragrance, the perfume of her deed.

The extravagance, faithfulness, and hospitality of her deed are contrasted with the response of Judas, who questions her action and suggests that the ointment ought rather to be sold and the profit given to the poor. He is keeper of the common purse, and we are told that he used to help himself to what was deposited there (John 12:6). Jesus himself answers Judas and defends Mary’s action, relating it to the death to which he is about to give himself.

Mary’s deed is cast in eucharistic overtones. The anointing and then drying calls attention to her act. Jesus himself is soon to perform a similar act. In the Gospel of John, the account of the Eucharist is supplanted by Jesus’ washing of the disciples’ feet (John 13:1–20). He tells them this is an example for them of the love they are to have for one another. It is the act of one laying down his life for his friends, as he does in his death and resurrection. This is the service of love by which others will recognize them as his disciples.

This action by Jesus helps to interpret further Mary’s service to him and puts it in even greater contrast with Judas’s self-serving attitude. Jesus concludes his discussion of washing the feet of the disciples with the solemn assurance that what he has done they must do: “Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them” (John 13:17).

Beatitude, blessing, and discipleship are bound with doing as Jesus does. The anointing woman, Mary, gives herself bodily in a simple act of love that foreshadows Jesus’ own self-giving. That the fragrance of the ointment filled the whole house suggests that her deed carries the possibility of bringing others to “come and see” and to recognize Jesus for themselves. Her deed of loving service speaks louder than words. She embodies the meaning of discipleship and, in so doing, bears life for her community.

Conclusion

Examining the deeds of these women in the context of their community’s life and ministry shows them to be leaders of faith in groups that struggled to live their faith. Miriam, Huldah, woman Wisdom, and Mary, by their deeds even more than by their words, manifest God’s life and love and what relationship with God means. Thankful prayer, prophetic proclamation, home-building wisdom, and public service in the face of criticism are the daily ways these women lived their faith and led others to it. While their acts were in some cases questioned, the written record of their deeds tells us that in their communities their service was beloved, public, and indeed divinely commissioned and inspired if not officially recognized or appreciated. Their faith continues to invite men and women to communities that bear the good news of God’s love to the world.