Big Idea: God has chosen the insignificant Mary for great honor. This is an example of how he overturns human values and conventions.
Understanding the Text
In our first two sections of Luke’s text the angel Gabriel has announced two births to mothers who should not have been expecting a baby (one too old, the other not yet married). Before the births of John and Jesus are narrated, the two families are brought together, and we have in this domestic scene an opportunity to reflect on the significance of these two special people. The unborn John and his mother recognize the superior status of Mary’s son, and Mary speaks with delight and wonder of the incredible honor of being the mother of God’s Son.
The paradoxical values expressed in Mary’s song prepare the reader for the repeated challenges to the status quo that will mark Jesus’s ministry as this Gospel will describe it.
Outline/Structure
Mary’s song in 1:46–55, the “Magnificat,”1is the first of three poetic declarations that are a striking feature of Luke’s birth narratives; the others are the songs of Zechariah (the “Benedictus” [1:68–79]) and of Simeon (the “Nunc Dimittis” [2:29–32]). Their familiar Latin names derive from their use as canticles in church worship since the early Christian centuries. They have been valued as expressions of joy in God’s saving work that can be applied far beyond their original context, even though each is clearly designed to reflect the specific circumstances in which they are uttered in Luke’s narrative.2Their language and structure reflect those of the Old Testament psalms, with their poetic parallelism, so that their Semitic style stands out within Luke’s generally more Hellenistic writing. The Magnificat in particular breathes the atmosphere of traditional Jewish piety and contains no specifically Christian language.
Historical and Cultural Background
Mary’s visit to her relative Elizabeth involved a long walk of some seventy miles from Nazareth to somewhere probably in the Jerusalem area; the traditional site of the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth is Ain Karim, five miles west of Jerusalem. In 2:4 Mary will have to undertake almost the same journey in a much more advanced state of pregnancy.
Mary’s song echoes, both in its opening words and in its general theme, the song of Hannah in 1 Samuel 2:1–10, though Hannah’s song follows rather than precedes the birth of her child, Samuel. That too had been a birth against natural expectation (Hannah was believed to be unable to have children), and the child was recognized from birth as having a special role in God’s saving purpose. Hannah, like Mary, celebrated God’s choice of the despised and downtrodden rather than the world’s natural leaders. But most of Mary’s song does not repeat the actual words of Hannah’s; rather, it is a collage of echoes of psalms and other poetic sections of the Old Testament.3
Interpretive Insights
1:41 the baby leaped in her womb. John is to have an important role in God’s saving purpose, but it will be a subordinate one, and already the unborn John, filled with the Holy Spirit (1:15), recognizes the presence of the Messiah, for whom he will prepare the way.
Luke’s emphasis on the Holy Spirit is well known, and this is especially true of these opening chapters. The Spirit already fills John in the womb (1:15) and has been the means of Mary’s pregnancy (1:35). He now inspires the prophetic utterance of Elizabeth, as he will also those of Zechariah (1:67) and Simeon (2:25, 27). So these words of Elizabeth are not simply an enthusiastic family greeting; they are a prophecy about Mary’s role and status in the drama of salvation, as “the mother of my Lord.”
1:45 Blessed is she who has believed. The customary English rendering “blessed” obscures the fact that two different Greek words are used here and in 1:42. Euloge?, used twice in 1:42, speaks of God’s blessing on Mary and on her unborn child. Makarios (a less directly religious word), used here and echoed by the verb makariz? in 1:48, speaks rather of how other people regard her: they recognize what God has done for her and congratulate her on the blessing that she has received. We will see in 6:20–22 how makarios is used to speak of the good life, to commend and to congratulate those who are in an enviable position. But Mary is to be congratulated not on good fortune, but on her own faith, which has been willing to take God at his word even when what is promised seems incredible.
1:47 God my Savior. This is a familiar Old Testament phrase (e.g., Hab. 3:18). In view of the exaggerated place that has been given to Mary in some Christian traditions, even describing her as “co-redeemer” with her son, it is salutary to notice that in this song she appears only as the grateful recipient of God’s saving work. She is a model of faith (1:45) rather than the object of it, and it is as such that she is to be congratulated for all generations (1:48).
1:48 the humble state of his servant. This is the only part of the song that focuses directly on Mary’s situation. God has chosen a person of no social importance as the means of his saving work. As Paul later put it, God’s “power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). See Paul’s observations in 1 Corinthians 1:26–29 on the social insignificance and helplessness of those whom God has chosen as his people.
1:50 those who fear him. This phrase, together with “the humble” in 1:52 and “the hungry” in 1:53, recalls the frequent depiction in the psalms of the God-fearing “meek” or “poor,” who are contrasted with the powerful and arrogant. The psalms depict them as downtrodden and exploited by the ungodly, who seem to have all the odds on their side, but as putting their trust in God to vindicate them over their callous oppressors. God’s “bias toward the poor” and his saving action on their behalf mean that the world’s power structures are overturned, so that “the meek shall inherit the earth” (Ps. 37:11 KJV). It is this subversive ideology that will underlie Jesus’s own ministry, which will, as Luke notes, be “good news to the poor” (4:18).
1:51–53 brought down rulers . . . lifted up the humble. The direct reversal of earthly status and privilege in 1:51–53 is the most striking echo in the Magnificat of Hannah’s song (1 Sam. 2:4–8). The past tenses indicate that this is no new pattern, but that God has always worked like this, even though in this song the focus is on what is still to come through the ministry of the as yet unborn Messiah. It is not so much that God’s people will be given actual political power and material prosperity, but rather that under God’s new regime there will be a new scale of values, and the old social divisions will cease to matter. The first will be last, and the last first.
1:54 He has helped his servant Israel. The spirituality of the Magnificat and of the Benedictus remains firmly within the tradition of Old Testament religion. It is only with the Nunc Dimittis that Luke’s canticles will begin explicitly to look beyond the Messiah’s primary role to envisage also “revelation to the Gentiles.” Subsequent Christian history, with its increasingly universal scope, has made it inevitable that we think today of Jesus as primarily the Savior of the whole world, but these early chapters of Luke remind us that while he may be much more than the redeemer of Israel, he is never less. His coming is the fulfillment of God’s promises to his chosen people throughout the Old Testament, beginning with Abraham.
1:56 about three months. Since Mary’s conception was announced when Elizabeth was already in her sixth month of pregnancy (1:26, 36), Mary’s stay with her relative lasts until close to the time when John is due to be born; if she stayed for the birth, Luke does not tell us so.
Theological Insights
Mary’s song reveals two complementary aspects of the character of God well known from the Old Testament. He is the mighty warrior who overthrows those who oppose him, but he is also the God of the covenant whose love and faithfulness ensure the ultimate blessing of his chosen people.
So the theme of God’s fulfillment of his Old Testament promises remains central to this passage. Mary’s joyful exultation celebrates the entire scope of his saving work. But it is focused on his choice of an obscure and socially insignificant girl to be his servant and so to be advanced to the highest honor. This is how God works, defying human conventions of honor and importance. He is the God of the underdog. Luke will go on to narrate how the ministry of Mary’s son will embody the radical values of the Magnificat.
Teaching the Text
It is possible to treat the Magnificat in isolation from its context as both a memorable celebration of the character of the God of Israel and a challenge to the world’s values. As such, it has much to teach us in a society that unthinkingly assumes that might is right, and whose celebrity culture promotes the prosperous and successful as those to be envied and emulated.
But the Magnificat comes to us as the inspired utterance of a particular person in a unique situation, and its message is best understood when Mary’s own situation is taken into account. The teacher or preacher may helpfully encourage listeners to place themselves in Mary’s shoes and to imagine her reaction to Elizabeth’s striking greeting. The general truths of the Magnificat gain extra force when they are read as the amazed response of an insignificant girl whom God has chosen for an unimaginably important role in his plan of salvation.4
When Mary visits Elizabeth, even though both women have cause to praise God for what he has done for them, this is not a scene of mutual congratulation. All the focus is on Mary’s pregnancy and on the future ministry of her child. It is this that both Elizabeth and her unborn baby recognize, and it is this that Mary sings about.
Mary’s words challenge the modern reader to think how far our social and political life (and even our church life) can militate against God’s scale of values. Recent movements such as liberation theology have reminded us of God’s “bias toward the poor” and of the question marks that the biblical tradition places against privilege and power. The Magnificat assures us that this is not solely an Old Testament theme, and Luke’s account of Jesus’s ministry will constantly bring it back to our attention.
Many Protestants, reacting against the excessive devotion to Mary in some church circles, have tended to undervalue her importance. This passage provides a valuable opportunity to “rehabilitate” her both as a central figure in God’s redemptive purpose and as a model for Christian faith, obedience, and vision. She is to be congratulated.
Illustrating the Text
Being undeservedly set apart for special service brings overwhelming awe and gratitude.
Television: Reference any current reality television series that is based on the idea of a talent search or progressive elimination (think American Idol, Miss America, etc.). Go as in-depth as you feel is appropriate, and use clips if you want. Point out how everyone likes to root for a regular person who begins as just a face in the crowd and who ends up set apart as one in a million. Focus on the moment in which the winner’s name is announced and the confetti falls and the tears flow. Talk about the emotions the person feels at that moment: overwhelmed, overjoyed, honored, appreciated, grateful, and even deeply humbled. Explain that this phenomenon of being called out and set apart is what it means to be part of the church (“the called ones”), to be made holy (“set apart for special purposes”), and to be called a saint (“holy one”). Point out that, while contests are often about superficial qualities or skills that mark a person as comparatively unique, the specialness a saint feels is simply based on God’s undeserved and gracious call.
Quote: John Lennon is quoted as saying, “Jesus was alright, but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It’s them twisting it that ruins it for me.” Point out that Mr. Lennon is fundamentally misunderstanding the fact that God intentionally chooses thick, ordinary disciples like Zechariah, Mary, Elizabeth, Peter, and all of us to reveal his amazing grace and power. Far from twisting the intent of Jesus’s gospel, this undeserved sanctifying and deploying of regular, unremarkable people into amazing ministry proves the power of God and ensures a grateful, humble people of God.
God is the rescuer of the poor and afflicted, and responds generously to those who acknowledge their powerlessness.
Bible: This concept can be well illustrated with a brief look into a number of Scriptures, such as the Beatitudes (Matt. 5); Psalm 34:18; or the widow’s oil (2 Kings 4).
Object Lesson: Use three clear glasses. The first should be filled with red wine or grape juice. The second should be empty. The third should be empty and broken or punctured so that it will leak. Tell your listeners that the three glasses represent three hearts. The first (wine/juice) is already filled to overflowing with rich things. The second is empty, but still rigid and proud. The last is both empty and broken by the trials and sorrows of this life. Show your listeners a bottle of olive oil and say it represents gifts and power as conveyed by the Holy Spirit. (1) Pour a little olive oil into the wine-filled glass, comment on how little room there is for God’s gifts, and point out how they won’t mingle with the rich things already there. The gift of God becomes a superficial layer that never penetrates to the depths of that heart. (2) Pour oil into the empty glass and point out that there is room to receive the oil but that heart is a dead-end for those blessings. The empty but proud heart is willing to receive and hoard, but the blessings will spoil over time. (3) Pour oil into the empty and broken glass (make sure to have something underneath to catch the leaks). Explain that an empty, broken heart pleases God since it must receive more of him daily, and always leaks his blessings out to others. Just as Mary proclaims, God delights to fill the poor, broken, and hungry with good things as a way of enriching the world and revealing his glory.
Mary is a role model and example who is worthy of our respect and honor.
Church History: Take some time to talk about your tradition’s take on Mary. If you come from a tradition that venerates her, explain what that does and does not mean, and show how the honor paid her relates to her humility and modesty in the face of God’s call. If you come from a tradition that shies away from special doctrines about her, take a moment to acknowledge the ways in which it is appropriate to respect and honor her as a sister in faith and as a role model for ordinary people who would be used by God.
