This has been in the works for a while now, ever since my Latin class in Spring semester last year, but I've been waiting for Thanksgiving to post it for obvious reasons. In Latin, the word "cornucopia" literally means "horn of plenty," from cornū (horn) and copia (abundance, wealth, or troops). This instantly reminded me of the numerous references to Christ in the scriptures as a horn, and here are the relevant examples:
'my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my savior; you save me from violence.' 2 Samuel 22:3
'There I will make a horn to sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.' Psalm 132:17
'and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,' Luke 1:69
In these cases, we see the Lord prophesying a "horn of salvation" that is said to come "for David." Zechariah in the Benedictus connects this image directly to Christ, saying that the Lord has raised up said horn in the house of David.
The horn is a very potent image in scripture--it is a signal of salvation. To steal an image from the great Rev. Wolfmueller, imagine you are in a castle while there's a great battle outside. As you sit, you can feel the force of the blows on the castle and fear the approaching armies. Imagine then that instead of hiding in the castle you are imprisoned and you hear them blow their particular horn call. Then with every strike against the castle you know that your salvation is approaching. This is the image for Christ. He is the horn that we see raised up and hear say "It is finished," and with that horn we can see the imminence of our salvation.
However, the cornucopia is not simply a horn but a horn of plenty. That is not to say that the horn is irrelevant, but it goes even deeper. This comes from a Greek and later a Roman myth. In the Greek form, it regards the raising of Zeus by Amalthea. When the baby Zeus was hidden from his baby-eating father, he was raised by Amalthea, whose identity is somewhat ambiguous. In some stories, she was simply a she-goat who nursed him from the cave he was hidden in, while in others, she was a nymph shepherdess who tended goats and whose goats nursed him. In either case, the supernaturally strong Zeus broke off the horn of the goat, which became a sort of magic item from which all sorts of produce infinitely flowed to feed him. In a later myth, Hercules was fighting Achelous, a horned river god, and broke off one of his horns, which then became a similar cornucopia. These are not the only two examples, though. The cornucopia is a very common Greek and Roman icon held by folks from Demeter, goddess of agriculture, to Hades, god of the underworld.
What, then, does this have to do with Christ? Well it's honestly hard not to see it! The image of the goat is a common one for Christ in the Old Testament, both in the substitutionary sacrifice of the ram instead of Isaac as well as the two goats on the Day of Atonement. Thus, the taking of the horn is a symbol for the death of Christ. It's important to note who killed the goat in each case: a powerful demon (Zeus) or a demonized man or giant (Hercules). This, then, would be us, who are "by nature children of wrath" and are "following the prince of the power of the air" (Eph 2:2-3). We are those who killed Christ; we are those who broke the ram's horn and fastened a crown of thorns in its place. Like the wicked tennants, we said "This is the heir. Come let us kill him and have his inheritance" (Matt. 21:38). Oh what madness! What death we inflicted in our members! And yet, what were the results of such death? We recieved the Son's inheritance! He is so forgiving that He cried out to His Father to forgive His murderers, and the Father did.
The same is true of the cornucopia. This horn was taken in the brutality and recklessness that is typical of the demonized, but the Lord is so gracious that from such a bloody act comes the abundance of all his good gifts. From that cross came the blood which washes our robes white. So when we see the cornucopia, we see a symbol of the Lord's mercy, that he would bless those who persecute Him, even me, the chief of sinners. And what's more, He gives us the very fruit of the tree of life! Christ is said to be the firstfruits from the dead, and the flesh of this Fruit is that sweetness that we feed on every Lord's day. From Christ, the horn of salvation, we receive this fruit, not the abundance of the earth but the Bread of Heaven Himself. And what more can we give than our thanks for such a marvelous gift!
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