O Key of David
O Key of David, and Sceptre of the house of Israel,
O Clavis David et Sceptrum domus Israel :
qui aperis et nemo claudit, claudis, et nemo aperit :
veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris,
sedentem in tenebris et umbra mortis.
O Key of David, and Sceptre of the house of Israel;
who openest and none shutteth; who shuttest and none doth open;
come and bring out the captive from the prison-house,
that sitteth in darkness and the shadow of death.
Is 22:22; Rev 3:7; Lk 1:79
The O Antiphons are an ancient tradition and prepare us well for the Nativity of the Lord. Like a collection of choicest wines, they are lined up for us in these last days of Advent in order for us to taste and see how good the Incarnation is. In them we see well-aged prophecy from a royal grape, matured in the barrels of the Church; all charged with messianic intensity, having a royal personality. Taste and see that the Lord is good!
These antiphons are old and have been chanted up and down the centuries; they come around each year and are familiar to us, and yet when they do come, they appear to be new: they are voluptuous and yet light; mature and still youthful. There is an already and a not yet in them: we think we know all the flavours and yet, as we meditate upon them each year, new textures of flavour appear. We know that the Lord has come and how He continues to come to us through the Church but we prepare for His coming again.
The O antiphon of today, O Key of David, certainly carries all the main characteristics of a fine wine. It is a vintage bottle of prophecy, has a rich, messianic aroma with a racy and sharp finish. After we finish a glass of it, we would like another. It is very good. Let us explore the ravishing texture of flavours which are opened up to us as the Church places this O antiphon upon our lips:
The two titles which are applied to the Eternal Word capture the overall depth of flavour: O Key of David and Sceptre of Israel.
First, the Key of David taken from Revelation 3:7 is mentioned in John’s message to the Church of Philadelphia, praising them for their endurance while encouraging them to hold fast to what they have as they wait for a great trial. The expression is found in Isaiah 22:22 where the keys of the house of David are passed on from one royal steward, Shebna, to another, Eliakim. Their particular office was to be in charge of the royal palace and served directly under the Davidic King, being able to open and close, that is, to be in charge of the administration of the kingdom. Jesus Christ is the descendent of David (Rm 1:3) and has been given the throne of his Father David and his kingdom will have no end (Lk 1:32). As the messianic king, He possesses the fullness of royalty and kingship, and will later pass on the keys of the kingdom to Peter, who will have authority over his kingdom on earth, that is the Church (Mt 16:9).
The second title that applies to the King is Sceptre of Israel, which emphasises the kingship and rule over the twelve tribes of Israel. Balaam’s fourth oracle in Numbers 24:17 says: “a sceptre shall rise out of Israel” and will subdue the nations. This was partially fulfilled by King David who defeated Edom, Moab and Amalek, and united the tribes. It is fully realised in Jesus Christ who draws all men to himself and defeats sin and death.
Strong messianic notes emerge as the second part of the antiphon swirls around the mouth: Come and lead out the captive from the prison-house. We pray for deliverance. At this point, the verb educere, to lead out, provides us with a flash of the Exodus story where God led his people out of slavery in Egypt. He also led his people out of exile and guided their return to the Promised Land. Then we are drawn back to the prophet Isaiah who announced that: “the Lord has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound (Is 61:1).” It would be one of the Messianic proofs that He is here. He applied those words to himself at the start of his ministry (Lk 4:16-21). John rejoiced when he heard about these prophetic signs being worked by Jesus. Souls were being delivered from the power of the devil, bodies were healed and minds restored.
Acidity and tannins are well pronounced in the last words: darkness and shadow of death. They are found in the Benedictus or Canticle of Zechariah (Lk 1:79) who prophesied that John would prepare the way for the Messiah. In those days, many were held in captivity and lived in spiritual darkness. In this final line of the antiphon, we are presented with the drama of the human condition after the Fall of Adam. He was deceived by the devil and remains in captivity until God himself comes to save him. After he committed the first sin, he hid from God in shame. Then he was expelled from Paradise, the place where He once walked in friendship with God. He was then subjected to death for the wages of sin is death. These images show the consequences of sin : it weakens the will, darkens the intellect and the life of virtue and leads to spiritual death. In other words, to quote St John of Damascus, “we have darkened and destroyed the likeness of the divine image in which we were created by the filth of the passions (Homily on the Transfiguration, 4).”
There is only one remedy for this. He prepared the way through the Law and the prophets, wars, victories and defeats, changes in cities and nations, but these could not eliminate the real disease of sin. A stronger remedy was needed. God himself has to become man and form human nature from within and lead it back to Himself. Gregory Nazianzen tells us that this second communion which He has shared with us is more wonderful than the first. He mingles his divine nature with human nature, so that we who are poor might have assume the richness of His Godhead (On the Theophany, Oration 38, 13.). As he comes down to us, he gives us the possibility to move upwards. Just as keys open doors and allow us to move into new spaces, so the Incarnation is the Key that opens up for us the life of grace, communion with God, the sacraments and growth in the spiritual life.
As we pray for God to come down and lead us out, we awake from our slumber and rise to meet him. God descends and we ascend: we meet in the confessional. There we meet the Incarnate Lord. There we experience deliverance and freedom from captivity. Through that door we enter into eternal life. It is the key that opens the door to heaven and closes it to the devil. There shadows and darkness disappear. There joy and penance embrace. A priest once saw a group of sisters glowing with joy and he said to them: “Sisters, you all look so redeemed,” to which one replied: “Yes, Father, because we’ve just been to confession.”
We have Advent joy because we know that the Lord is near: the reality of the Nativity is made present every day on our altars and the confessional door is not far away. The third Sunday of Advent left us with that imperative as we press onwards: “rejoice in the Lord always (Phil 4:4-5).” As John rejoiced upon hearing about the deeds of Christ (Mt 11:2) and prayed all the more for him to come and set captives free, we too, having experienced God’s saving power in the countless sacramental graces we have received throughout the year, we chant this prayer of deliverance with great joy. At Vespers we will remember this in the Magnificat which follows the antiphon: my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour . . .The Almighty works marvels for me.” We chant this antiphon with our life
As we sip, then, on the O antiphon today, let us taste something of the eternal kingship of Christ, the sweetness of heaven, the closeness of Jesus, the goodness of God and the liberating power of grace and the joy of conversion; and may it open up new a new understanding of the mystery of the Incarnation. Let us taste and see that it is good, very good.
By Fr Chris Doig