Does Old Testament Typology Point To Mary Being Queen Of Heaven?

• Discussion:

          -Roman Catholic apologist Tim Staples wrote an article attempting to substantiate from Scripture the notion of Mary being the queen of heaven. He resorts to Old Testament typology as well as historical context to make his case. Each of the author's claims are cited in bold and followed with critical commentary:

          "It can be difficult for us in the modern Western world to understand ancient monarchical concepts. But first-century Jews understood the notion of the kingdom that Jesus preached because they lived it. They knew that a kingdom meant that there was a king. And, in ancient Israel as in many nearby cultures, if there was a king there was a queen mother."

          The above statements are true in and of themselves. However, the conclusion that there must be a queen mother in heaven does not follow or fit as a logical flow from the original premise of the argument. What has been argued has been assumed rather than proven, which is circular reasoning. Further, a heavenly "kingdom" is spiritual and an analogy. There is no need for a queen in an analogy.

          "In the New Testament, the inspired author of Hebrews 1:8-9 quotes verses 6-7 of this very text [Psalm 45:1-9] as referring to Christ, his divinity, and his kingship. But immediately following those verses is another, lesser-known, prophecy that speaks of Mary. Who is this woman of whom the Lord said, “I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you forever and ever”? Not one of Solomon’s wives fit the prophetic description."

          Texts such as Ephesians 5 and Revelation 20 employ imagery of a bride to a king when speaking of the church. Moreover, passages in the Old Testament offer the same description of the relationship of God to Israel (Ezekiel 16:8-21; Hosea 1:1-3). However, Mary is never given such a description in the Bible. The "woman" of Psalm 45 refers to a collective group rather than a specific individual. It was not even hinting at the mother of Jesus.

          "Most every Christian—indeed most of the world beyond Christendom—knows the name of the Mother of God—Mary—who in fulfillment of this prophetic text said, “All generations shall call me blessed” (Luke 1:48)."

           We can agree that Mary is blessed among women for the reason of her being used by God in a unique fashion. She brought the Jewish Messiah into the world. However, this argument begs the question in that it is not specified as to how or in what manner Mary should be blessed. Tim Staples' arguments here are all fluff and nonsense.

          A very detailed picture of heaven is given in chapters four and five of Revelation. God is seated on His throne and surrounded by twenty-four elders and four living creatures (Revelation 4:4). Jesus Christ (i.e. the lamb) is standing in the middle of the throne. Several thousand angels circle the throne worshiping and singing God's praises. However, there is no mention or any implication of Mary's presence. In fact, only Jesus was found to be worthy of breaking the seals and opening the scroll (Revelation 5:1-5). If Mary were the queen of heaven, then this would have been an ideal context to mention her position of exaltation. But that does not happen.