In Luke 1:46b-55, we find the Magnificat, a song that celebrates a God who acts.
I begin with a theological reflection. Verses 46b-55 is the Magnificat, a song that celebrates a God who acts. Mary responds humbly by drawing attention to what God is doing. As Luke tells the story, she responds to Elizabeth's greeting by delivering one of the most beautiful prayers of praise we have in all of Scripture. It is a hard, strong, and relentless song about the power of God and powerless quality of humanity. [1] With this emphasis, the song raises a question regarding divine action. We need to ponder whether we have any right, given the flow of nature, the history of human injustice and evil, and the darkness we face within, to sing of divine action. We may long for the world to be different than it is, which expresses a hope, but the reality is the world will remain the same. This song resembles hymns of praise, such as Psalm 33, 47, 48, 113, 117, 135, and especially 136. The closest pattern, however, is I Samuel 2:1-10, the Song of Hannah. In fact, I would urge a reader of this passage to allow the Song of Hannah to sink in a bit. Then, read the Song of Mary.
The songs of Mary and Hannah have often been compared, even though the two women, one of the New Testament and the other of the Old Testament, were quite different in some respects and similar in others.
· Hannah was married; Mary was not.
· Hannah was desperate for a child; Mary, for obvious reasons, was not.
· Hannah was relatively old; Mary was a teenager.
· Hannah was the object of gossip for being barren; Mary was a target of gossip for getting pregnant.
· Hannah not only wanted a child, she wanted a son; Mary wasn’t looking to have a child but was told she’d have one anyway — a son.
· Hannah was persistent in prayer for a child; Mary wasn’t looking to have a child.
· Hannah wanted a son who would bring salvation to her country, a nation in serious decline; Mary learned that her son would “be called Son of God” (v. 35).
· Both mothers took their sons to the temple.
The song displays the humility of Mary in response to the declaration from Elizabeth. The point in this song is that everything happening to Mary is a result of who God is. Luke has portrayed Elizabeth and Mary in the pattern of women in the Old Testament of heroes born miraculously to women who should not be able to conceive children. Their counterparts are Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Hannah. In fact, Luke is drawing on similarities between Hannah and Mary, as well as Samuel and Jesus. Verses 46b-50, the first part, Mary will sing of herself. In the darkness of her world, living in Roman occupied Israel, Mary could have remained silent. Instead, she sings. Darkness and death hate music, as do all tyrants. God takes a simple, humble, young woman and looks with favor upon her, and blesses her. She responds with faith in her time. Will we? Hannah opens her prayer by referring to heart and strength exulting in the Lord and in God, with Mary beginning her song with a poetic parallel referring to her soul and spirit magnifying and rejoicing in God as her Savior, suggesting that her whole being offers praise to God. It suggests that the beauty or glory of the Lord attracts her so much that it elicits this response. God stoops down to humanity in such a way as to become an object of desire, joy, pleasure, yearning, and enjoyment. This is an example of how God enlightens, convinces, and persuades us. God has this superior force, this power of attraction, which speaks for itself, which wins and conquers. God, when we have the eyes to see, is that beautiful.[2] In this case, such beauty and glory is the result of God looking with favor on her, who is nothing but a servant of God. Yet, because of the favor bestowed upon her, she says boldly that all generations will refer to her as blessed, agreeing with the prior statement of Elizabeth she is blessed, but clarifying that it is so only because God has chosen to act through her. Such a statement about Mary makes sense only against the background of early Christian worship that occurred around Jerusalem. Though she speaks of herself, the words direct us away from her and toward God. [3] Although the Roman Catholic Church will use such statements as the basis of their dogmatic statements regarding Mary, especially as mediatrix co-redemptrix, such verses are quite little on which to base so much. She refers to herself as servant of the Lord. That is all that we need to see here. If she is a servant of the Lord, we can see her as a model in her reception of the word regarding her Son and in her reception of grace.[4] She refers to God as the Mighty One, an appellation frequently associated with Jacob ((e.g., Genesis 49:24; Psalm 132:2, 5; Isaiah 49:26; 60:16). She then sings that the name of Mighty One is holy, while Hannah refers to the Lord as the Holy One. Those who fear the Mighty One receive mercy from generation to generation. Verses 51-55, the second part of the hymn, incorporates her personal experience of grace into the gracious activity of God on behalf of the people of God, using the imagery of the exodus. The strength of the arm of the Mighty One scatters the proud in the thoughts of their hearts, inspired by Hannah praying that others will not talk proudly and arrogantly. Mary sings that the Mighty One has brought down the powerful and lifted up the lowly, inspired by Hannah praying that the Lord has already broken the bows of the mighty and strengthened the feeble, raising the poor, lifting the needy, and given them a seat with princes so that they receive honor. Both women refer to the past redemptive acts of God toward Israel, with this song hinting at the future redemptive work that God will accomplish thrugh the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Such statements of the exercise of divine power do not mean blind, brute power working causally and mechanically. God does not make of human beings a mere spectator or puppet. We are to think of liberating power as we find it in the divine Word, and thus opposed to all compulsion. Such is the power of the free grace of God revealed in Christ. When Christ exercises divine power on humanity, the result is that humanity may breathe, live, rise, and stand with Christ. God illuminates humanity with this power so that it may understand life clearly, enlightening the understanding, so that people recognize the freedom they already have. Faith has its roots in recognition, and therefore in obedience.[5] Similar to Hannah, Mary sings that the Mighty One ahs filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. The sociological implications of intervention from God into human affairs are clear. Whether conservative or liberal in politics and economics, one must always keep the effect of such policies on the poor. Theologically, for example, the one who believes in free enterprise or capitalism needs to make the case that their position improves the lot of all persons, but especially the poor. The same is true for those who believe in a “smaller” government. Yet, the focus of the song is still on praising an active and saving God, rather than a call toward new saving activity. We can see the way in which the joy and praise of the mother becomes the job description of Jesus. Jesus launches his ministry by announcing that the Spirit of the Lord has anointed him “to bring good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18), and he goes on to warn people about the danger of riches: “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). In the parable of the rich fool and elsewhere, Jesus makes clear that destruction will come to those “who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21). Here is the basis for some theologians to say that God has a prejudice against the high, mighty, and wealthy in the world in favor of the weak, meek, and lowly. Although such language makes me nervous, I do get it. Those who do not have economic or political power are those whom the powerful can easily forget. In the New Testament, an extension of this notion is that God ignores the righteous for the sake of the sinner; it shifts attention from Israel to the Gentiles.[6] Yet, Mary ends the song, as did Hannah, with a focus on Jewish national interests, for the Mighty One has helped Israel as a servant of the Lord in remembrance of the mercy of the Lord has historically shown Israel. God remembers the needs of the people and brings comfort, connecting the knowledge of God with the idea of omniscience.[7]The historical merciful actions of the Mighty One are in accord with the promise made to the patriarchs, especially Abraham and to his descendants. The promises that God made to Abraham and the ancestors were for land and progeny (Genesis 12; 15). God is still interested in helping Israel. God still takes up the cause of Israel. This merciful and redemptive visitation of Israel by God is the theme of the song.[8] The song ends with praise to the accessibility of the mercy of God as experienced by Abraham, then the nation of Israel, and now to the descendants of Abraham. We need to exercise some care here. The point in the context of the narrative of Luke is not that Jesus will reclaim the land for the Jewish people or liberate Israel from Rome. In fact, the message of the New Testament is a matter of reconstituting the people of God in such a way that incorporates the promises to Abraham and to Israel into a people open to the incorporation of the Gentiles.
I now share some exegetical and homiletical thoughts.
Mary responds humbly by drawing attention to what God is doing. As Luke tells the story, she responds to Elizabeth's greeting by delivering one of the most beautiful prayers of praise we have in all of Scripture. She writes a psalm that we call the "Magnificat," or Mary’s hymn. It may be the most passionate, wild, and revolutionary Advent hymn ever sung. We do not see the gentle, tender, dreamy Mary we see in paintings. This song is not sweet, nostalgic, and does not have a playful tone that so many Christmas carols have. The song is a hard, strong, and inexorable song about the power of God and powerless quality of humanity.[9]
If we are honest, as much as we long for such divine action, as much as this song celebrates the actions of God in the past, we become skeptical. With all the darkness, sin, evil, and oppression still so much in the world, do we have a right to sing of divine action? Every Advent and Christmas season, we long for the world to be different. Yet, one thing is certain. The world will remain the same. You and I will remain the same.
This song bears similarity to the piety of the anawim, the poor saints within Judaism. It resembles hymns of praise, such as Psalm 33, 47, 48, 113, 117, 135, and especially 136. The closest pattern, however, is I Samuel 2:1-10, the Song of Hannah. In fact, I would urge a reader of this passage to allow the Song of Hannah to sink in a bit. Then, read the Song of Mary. The song displays the humility of Mary in response to the declaration from Elizabeth. The point in this song is that everything happening to Mary is a result of who God is. Luke has portrayed Elizabeth and Mary in the pattern of women in the Old Testament of heroes born miraculously to women who should not be able to conceive children. Their counterparts are Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Hannah. In fact, Luke is drawing on similarities between Hannah and Mary, as well as Samuel and Jesus. Both John and Jesus prove to be worthy of the divine intervention that produced them.
Luke 1:46-50 is the first part of the hymn, in which Mary sings of herself. In the darkness of her world, living in Roman occupied Israel, Mary could have remained silent. Instead, she sings. Darkness and death hate music, as do all tyrants. God takes a simple, humble, young woman and looks with favor upon her, and blesses her. She responds with faith in her time. Will we? Hannah opens her prayer by referring to heart and strength exulting in the Lord and in God. 46 And Mary said beginning her song by saying 46b my soul (ψυχή) magnifies (enlarges, intensifies, dramatizes) the Lord 47and my spirit (πνεῦμά) rejoices in God, my Savior (Σωτῆρί). In the poetic parallel between soul and spirit, we can see that her whole being will offer praise to God. It suggests that the beauty or glory of the Lord attracts her so much that it elicits this response. God stoops down to humanity in such a way as to become an object of desire, joy, pleasure, yearning, and enjoyment. This is an example of how God enlightens, convinces, and persuades us. God has this superior force, this power of attraction, which speaks for itself, which wins and conquers. God, when we have the eyes to see, is that beautiful.[10] Mary sees such beauty and glory in God because 48for he has looked with favor on lowliness of his servant, viewing herself as a servant of God. She then makes the bold statement that surely from now on all generations will call me blessed (μακαριοῦσίν). We can hardly imagine such a statement without the assumed background of early Christian worship that occurred around Jerusalem. Thus, while Mary agrees with the prior statement of Elizabeth she is “blessed,” she clarifies that such blessedness is only because God has chosen to work through her. Even though she is speaking of herself, her statements direct us as readers away from her and toward the Lord. The glory of the Lord encompasses her low estate.[11] Although the Roman Catholic Church will use such statements as the basis of their dogmatic statements regarding Mary, especially as mediatrix co-redemptrix, such verses are quite little on which to base so much. She refers to herself as servant of the Lord. That is all that we need to see here. If she is a servant of the Lord, we can see her as a model in her reception of the word regarding her Son and in her reception of grace.[12] She then affirms 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me. The appellation “Mighty One” is common in the OT and frequently associated with Jacob (e.g., Genesis 49:24; Psalm 132:2, 5; Isaiah 49:26; 60:16). While Hannah refers to the Lord as the “Holy One,” Mary sings and holy is his name, an uncommon phrase, although to speak of “his holy name” is not (e.g., 1 Chronicles 16:10; Psalms 30:4; 33:21; 97:12; 103:1; 105:3; 145:21). Hannah sings that the Lord will guard those who are faithful, while Mary sings, 50 His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.
Luke 1:51-55 is the second part of the hymn, in which she incorporates her personal experience of grace into the gracious activity of God on behalf of the people of God by using imagery from Exodus. Her personal experience of grace becomes a sign of hope for the gracious action of God toward humanity. “The joy of the mother will be the job of the son.” Everything Mary includes in her joyful song becomes a line in the job description of Jesus the Messiah.[13] Thus, 51 He has shown strength with his arm. While Hannah prays that others will not talk proudly and arrogantly, Mary prays He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. Hannah prays with the knowledge that the Lord has already broken the bows of the mighty and strengthened the feeble. The Lord rises the poor, lifts the needy, and gives them a seat with princes so that they receive honor. Mary sings that 52He has brought down the powerful and lifted up the lowly. We should note that the statements of the great deeds recounted here are in the aorist or past tense. They refer to the past redemptive acts of God toward Israel. In this context, however, they may also hint at the future redemptive work that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus will accomplish. Further, such statements of the exercise of divine power do not mean blind, brute power working causally and mechanically. God does not make of human beings a mere spectator or puppet. We are to think of liberating power as we find it in the divine Word, and thus opposed to all compulsion. Such is the power of the free grace of God revealed in Christ. When Christ exercises divine power on humanity, the result is that humanity may breathe, live, rise, and stand with Christ. God illuminates humanity with this power so that it may understand life clearly, enlightening the understanding, so that people recognize the freedom they already have. Faith has its roots in recognition, and therefore in obedience.[14] Hannah prays with the expectation that the Lord will make those who have full life now will become slaves, while those hungry now will find fullness, while Mary sings that 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. The sociological implications of intervention from God into human affairs are clear. Whether conservative or liberal in politics and economics, one must always keep the effect of such policies on the poor. Theologically, for example, the one who believes in free enterprise or capitalism needs to make the case that their position improves the lot of all persons, but especially the poor. The same is true for those who believe in a “smaller” government. Yet, the focus of the song is still on praising an active and saving God, rather than a call toward new saving activity. We can see the way in which the joy and praise of the mother becomes the job description of Jesus. Jesus launches his ministry by announcing that the Spirit of the Lord has anointed him “to bring good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18), and he goes on to warn people about the danger of riches: “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). In the parable of the rich fool and elsewhere, Jesus makes clear that destruction will come to those “who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21). Here is the basis for some theologians to say that God has a prejudice against the high, mighty, and wealthy in the world in favor of the weak, meek, and lowly. Although such language makes me nervous, I do get it. Those who do not have economic or political power are those whom the powerful can easily forget. In the New Testament, an extension of this notion is that God ignores the righteous for the sake of the sinner; it shifts attention from Israel to the Gentiles.[15]However, as Hannah ends her song with a focus on the Lord judging the earth and strengthening the king, exalting the power of the one anointed by the Lord, Mary ends this song ends with a focus on Jewish national interests. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy the Lord had shown Israel in the past. God remembers the needs of the people and brings comfort, connecting the knowledge of God with the idea of omniscience.[16] The Mighty One has acted mercifully toward Israel 55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” The promises that God made to Abraham and the ancestors were for land and progeny (Genesis 12; 15). God is still interested in helping Israel. God still takes up the cause of Israel. This merciful and redemptive visitation of Israel by God is the theme of the song.[17] The song ends with praise to the accessibility of the mercy of God as experienced by Abraham, then the nation of Israel, and now to the descendants of Abraham. We need to exercise some care here. The point in the context of the narrative of Luke is not that Jesus will reclaim the land for the Jewish people or liberate Israel from Rome. In fact, the message of the New Testament is a matter of reconstituting the people of God in such a way that incorporates the promises to Abraham and to Israel into a people open to the incorporation of the Gentiles.
The songs of Mary and Hannah have often been compared, even though the two women, one of the New Testament and the other of the Old Testament, were quite different in some respects and similar in others.
· Hannah was married; Mary was not.
· Hannah was desperate for a child; Mary, for obvious reasons, was not.
· Hannah was relatively old; Mary was a teenager.
· Hannah was the object of gossip for being barren; Mary was a target of gossip for getting pregnant.
· Hannah not only wanted a child, she wanted a son; Mary wasn’t looking to have a child but was told she’d have one anyway — a son.
· Hannah was persistent in prayer for a child; Mary wasn’t looking to have a child.
· Hannah wanted a son who would bring salvation to her country, a nation in serious decline; Mary learned that her son would “be called Son of God” (v. 35).
· Both mothers took their sons to the temple.
A childless couple or childless single woman are seldom topics of idle gossip today, but Hannah’s life 3,000 years ago as a barren woman was not good. Her status depended upon her ability to bear children, especially sons. A woman with a brood of children was a blessed woman. By that measure, the mother of King David must have been highly honored in Judah, because she gave her husband Jesse eight sons, the youngest of whom became Israel’s greatest monarch. Ironically, there’s no mention of her name.
Likewise, Mary’s situation was not so awesome. Think about it. Mary was feeling blessed. If she’d hash-tagged this song, she’d have used #feelingblessed, #blessed, #happyinthelord, #goingtohaveababy #mybabyismessiah. This is odd, because Gabriel’s message by rights should not make her #luckiestgirlintheworld. A girl who gets pregnant by an unknown male acquaintance and without benefit of marriage faced a dreary future. But instead, Mary seems happier than a contestant on “The Price Is Right.” “My soul magnifies the Lord,” she sings.
The songs of these two women are similar, one being an echo of the other, an alto-soprano duet separated by a good millennium. The first woman sings, “My heart exults in the Lord” (1 Samuel 2:1). The contrapuntal voice responds: “My soul magnifies the Lord.” And so it continues:
Back before India won its independence, it was under British rule. Bishop William Temple of the Anglican Church warned his missionaries to India not to read the Magnificat in public. He feared that it would be so inflammatory that it might start a revolution!
The song is all the more remarkable when one remembers that, as Luke tells the story, it came from the lips of a simple, teenage girl named Mary. These insights are remarkable in anyone, let alone a teenage girl. She declared the impact that her son would have upon the world. She refers to herself as a lowly servant whom future generations will call blessed. She refers to the great reversal in which God will lift the poor and bring down the rich. She refers to the promise of God to Israel and to Abraham. Yes, God still has a place for Israel. It looks like the road ahead will still be busy, messy, and difficult.
No matter what status one achieves from a human perspective, humility and graciousness are always appropriate responses. Such responses reveal our character. People who think they have achieved such status that they can treat those who serve them with contempt reveal their hearts. Treating people with respect, simply because they are human beings deserving of respect, is a mark of maturity and a Christ-like behavior. The same is true in matters of spiritual blessing. If we sense that God has blessed in a distinct way with some special experience, the proper response, if it is a genuine work of God, is humility and graciousness. We have no right to claim special virtue for ourselves. Human beings are all in the same boat, struggling with our sin, weakness, and darkness. No matter how close we may feel to God, we do not separate ourselves from the rest of humanity. In fact, we might make a case that the closer we are to God, the closer we feel to the “worst” sinner. That is what God has done. As humanity increased in sin, God drew close to us in Jesus. God identified with sinners. If we want to be like Christ, we will do the same.
God takes a simple, humble, young woman and looks with favor upon her, and blesses her. She responds with faith in this messy time in her life. Will we? You see, in these types of moments, Mary becomes, for Luke, a model disciple. She became ready to receive the gift of God. I want to share with you some of the ways in which Luke shows discipleship through her.
First, she modeled discipleship in her willingness to question. The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary in Nazareth. The angel addresses her: Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you. (Luke 1:28) Mary has this response. But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. (Luke 1:29) I take this to mean a quizzical approach to what God is doing in her life right now. She did not understand, and she was not afraid to display her lack of understanding. Further into the story, after the angel has said that she will conceive a child, she responds with a question: How can this be, since I am a virgin? (v. 34) She is not afraid to ask questions.
I will make an assumption, but I think it a safe one. You have had perplexing times in your life. At times, you may have sensed God doing something in your life, but you were not sure what God was up to. If you are a follower of Jesus, the model of Mary tells us, go ahead, be perplexed, and ask questions. You do not understand it all, and that is probably a good thing.
Second, Mary modeled discipleship in her humility. If we continue with the vision of the angel Gabriel, after the angel says that she will give birth through the power of the Holy Spirit, and that nothing is impossible with God, Mary responds with the following words. Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) She displays an open mind and heart to what the Lord was saying to her. She was willing to be obedient, even in the midst of her questions. Be faithful in what you do know, even as you question what you do not understand.
Third, Mary modeled discipleship by her faithfulness. Elizabeth is the one who sees what Mary has done. “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 45 And blessed is she who believed. God blessed Mary and her child. She believed in the Lord. She placed her faith in the word spoken to her.
Martin Luther once said that three miracles occurred at the birth of Christ: God became human, a virgin conceived, Mary believed. For Luther, the greatest miracle that first Christmas was the last: Mary believed.
Fourth, Mary modeled discipleship by her willingness to treasure the works of God in her mind and heart. After giving birth to Jesus, the shepherds told her of their vision of the heavenly choir. Her response was simple. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. (Luke 2:19) Years later, the young boy, Jesus, is in the temple asking and answering questions of the teachers gathered there. Jesus told her that she should have known where he was, for Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house? Neither she nor Joseph understood. Yet, His mother treasured all these things in her heart. (2:51)
At their best, pastors, biblical scholars, and theologians are doing the same thing. They are also pondering the works of God and the word of God. Yet, Mary is a model for us all in this regard. All of us need to spend time with the Bible, which is one way of pondering what God has done and what God is saying. All of us need to set aside time to reflect upon the works of God in our community of faith and in our individual lives, and ponder them in our hearts.
Fifth, Mary modeled discipleship by being part of a praying community. Although Mary is not a prominent figure in the rest of the New Testament story, we read in Acts 1:12-14 that the disciples, the women who gathered at the empty tomb, and Mary, devote themselves to prayer and reflection.
[1] —Dietrich Bonhoeffer, cited by C. Andrew Doyle in Citizen: Faithful Discipleship in a Partisan World (Church Publishing, 2020), 97.
[2] Barth (Church Dogmatics, II.1, [31.3] 654)
[3] Barth (Church Dogmatics, I.2 [15.2], 140)
[4] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.3, [71.4], 603)
[5] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.3 [71]
[6] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.2 [64])
[7] Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, Volume I, 379.
[8] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.2 [64])
[9] —Dietrich Bonhoeffer, cited by C. Andrew Doyle in Citizen: Faithful Discipleship in a Partisan World (Church Publishing, 2020), 97.
[10] Barth (Church Dogmatics, II.1, [31.3] 654)
[11] Barth (Church Dogmatics, I.2 [15.2], 140)
[12] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.3, [71.4], 603)
[13] New Testament scholar Alan Culpepper.
[14] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.3 [71]
[15] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.2 [64])
[16] Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, Volume I, 379.
[17] Barth (Church Dogmatics, IV.2 [64])
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