The Wicked and the Righteous One: God's Hidden Counsels or Deeper Magic
March 15, 2024 - Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22; Psalm 34:17-18, 19-20, 21 and 23; John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30
In the book of Wisdom, which features in our first reading, chapter 2 presents the way of life of the wicked (2:1-9). It is characterized by materialism and hedonism. Then, the biblical author reveals an inner dialogue of the wicked who plan to deal with the righteous one. They cannot stand the just person because his way of life criticizes their way of life (2:10-20, particularly 2:12). From the perspective of the Gospel, the wicked represents the Judeans, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who tried to arrest Jesus, the righteous one.
Commenting on the inner dialogue of the wicked and their plans to destroy the righteous, the biblical author criticizes their reasoning, stating that they do not know the mysteries of God. This statement reminds me of C.S. Lewis' "The Chronicles of Narnia" and the law that governs the land of Narnia known as deep magic. The Book of Wisdom says that the wicked want to torture the righteous to know whether his claims that he is the son of God are true. But, by doing it, they did not take into consideration "the hidden counsels of God; neither did they count on a recompense of holiness" (Wisdom 2:22). The White Witch from Narnia knew the law of deep magic that stated that every traitor was to be punished by death. But, she overlooked a "deeper magic" that preceded the law of deep magic that stated: "when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitor's stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backward."
Psalm 34 continues the topic introduced by the Book of Wisdom. We hear that "The LORD confronts the evildoers" (Psalm 34:17). They have no chance to survive the confrontation with the Lord. They would not only be defeated but even entirely forgotten: the Lord would "destroy remembrance of them from the earth" (Ps 34:17). On the other hand, the righteous one shall be rescued from all his troubles, and not even one of his bones shall be broken.
The event presented in the Gospel took place on the festival of Tabernacles celebrated in Autumn. The feast was associated with the eschatological hope of the righteous people living with God in the age to come. Jesus gave us a glimpse of that hope on Mount Tabor when he transfigured himself before his disciples "and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light" (Matt. 17:2). He also assured us of our participation in His glory when He said that "the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father" (Matt. 13:43). But, the way to the fulfillment of that eschatological hope and the participation in that glory leads through the scandal of the cross.
By prophesying the mystery of Jesus' death and resurrection, both fragments from the Old Testament in our liturgy of the Word help us realize the profound truth of the famous saying of Saint Augustine that "The New Testament lies hidden in the Old" Testament. And by witnessing the confrontation between Jesus and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, we can grasp the second part of Augustine's saying about the Old Testament being unveiled in the New Testament. Jesus is the Righteous One against whom the wicked plotted and whom they put to death. But, they did not realize that Jesus willingly sacrificed Himself for the sins of humanity. Moreover, the Father heard the cry of His Son and rescued Him from death. Now, everyone who puts their trust in Jesus shall never be put to shame.