Bible Study - The Christmas Story Part 7 - Luke 1:39-56

This week’s study focuses on the conversation between the two key women in the Christmas story, Elizabeth and Mary, the mothers of John the Baptist and Jesus. The angel, Gabriel, had told Mary not only of the coming of the Savior through her virgin birth, but also that her relative Elizabeth was expecting a child in a miraculous way, since she was far too old to have a child.

In Luke 1:39-40, we hear that Mary decided to visit Elizabeth and quickly went to the town in the hill country of Judah where she and Zechariah lived. She must have thought that Elizabeth would surely be welcoming of her and understanding of her unusual circumstances, since both were experiencing a miraculous birth.

When Mary greeted Elizabeth, baby John leaped in her womb. This was no ordinary movement of a baby in the womb. Verse 44 tells us that baby John “leaped for joy.” Luke 1:15 records the words of the angel that John would “be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb,” and was enabled by the Spirit to respond to Mary and the Savior coming to them.

Elizabeth was also “filled with the Holy Spirit,” and spoke well of Mary and her child, with a loud cry, as “blessed” by God Himself. She even recognized that baby Jesus was “her Lord,” the One John was to prepare people for. (See again Luke 1:17.) Why, she asked, was this privilege given to her to see Mary, and with her, the Lord Jesus? Elizabeth then used another word for Mary being blessed that means more like her being “happy and fortunate” that by God’s grace, she believed the Word of God brought by angel Gabriel and trusted that God would fulfill His promise to her - unlike Elizabeth’s husband, Zechariah, who at first doubted it all (Luke 1:42-45).

Note that the focus is more upon God’s grace to Mary in giving her the great privilege of being the mother of the Lord and Savior than upon Mary’s greatness. Elizabeth also knew that she herself did not deserve the honor and privileges given to her.

Words similar to what was said to Mary were also spoken to some in the Old Testament. See the story of a woman, Jael, in Judges 4, who was able to kill Sisera, leader of enemies of God’s people. Jael is called “most blessed of women” in Judges 5:24, but it is clear that God enabled her to do what she did, and He “subdued” the enemies of God’s people (Judges 4:23). Jael was simply His instrument by which this happened. See also Deuteronomy 28:4, where God says to all his people, and to all Jewish women, “Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb” because out of that nation would eventually come the Savior, who was now coming through Mary.

See also Luke 11:27-28, where Jesus was speaking and a woman cried out to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts at which you nursed.” Certainly Jesus respected and loved His mother. He made sure she was taken care of in John 19:26-27.  But in Luke 11:28, Jesus responded to the woman, “Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.” Hearing God’s Word and trusting in Jesus is most important.

Mary responded to what Elizabeth said by also giving the glory to God, not to herself. (The words she said are used in worship and in hymns still today in what is called the “Magnificat.”) Mary “magnified the Lord.” She glorified and praised God, not herself. She used words and ideas that come right out of the Old Testament and people’s praise of God in the past.

See, for example, the song of Hannah in 1 Samuel 2:1-10. Hannah also was miraculously blessed to be able to have a child, Samuel. Hannah began, “My heart exults in the Lord… I rejoice in Your salvation.” Mary said something very similar: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:47). Both Hannah and Mary knew that they were imperfect and needed the Savior God was sending. See in Matthew 1:21 the most important part of the meaning of Jesus’ name as Savior: “for He will save His people from their sins.” The Bible never claimed that Mary was sinless; rather it says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” other than Jesus (Romans 3:23).

Mary rejoiced because God looked upon her in her humble estate as a simple servant of God. She knew that future generations would call her “blessed” (happy and fortunate), not because she was so great in herself, but because the “Mighty” God “had done great things for her,” in allowing her to be the mother of the Savior. Mary did not call herself holy. She said of God, “Holy is His Name,” as Hannah also did in 1 Samuel 2:2 (Luke 1:48-49).

Mary also emphasized the mercy of God. “Mercy” means “compassion” or “pity” on those who are needy and really need some help, but still “fear God,” with reverence and trust in Him (Luke 1:50). See also Luke 1:54, where Mary remembers that “God has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy” to them - not because they deserved it, but because He was compassionate to them. The word for “helped” in this verse means “taking someone’s part and coming to their aid.”

An Old Testament example of that is in Isaiah 41:8-10, where God says to His servant Israel, “You are My servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off; fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” God does not forget. The fact that He remembers his mercy simply means that He is ready to go into action in help to people, as He did in the greatest way in finally sending Jesus into the world to be the Savior, through Mary.

Mary was expressing confidence, not in herself, but in God, in this great responsibility of giving birth to the Savior and then in helping raise Him. Note also that God had made such promises of help to “Abraham and his offspring forever” (Luke 1:55). Who are these “offspring”? The New Testament says that they now include all believers in Christ, whoever they are, including us today who trust in Jesus and are baptized. (See Galatians 3:7-9, and 13 and 26-29, and Romans 4:16, etc.)

So much more could be said about this song of Mary, in its parallels to the song of Hannah, and many psalms and other Scriptures. The commentator, William Arndt, summarizes Mary’s words in this way:

1) She thanks God for having favored her, a humble maid of Israel, in such extraordinary fashion (v.46-50).

2) She praises God for resisting the haughty, the proud, and the self-righteous, and for aiding the poor, the lowly, that is, the humble sinners (51-53).

3) She exalts the name of God because the Lord fulfills the promises which he had made to the fathers in the Messianic prophecies 
(54-55).

We could look at many more such passages, similar to what Mary said. Some of these I mention in the full podcast, and you could look at more of these on your own.

• From the Psalms: Psalm 34:2-8, Psalm 35:9, Psalm 107:8-9, Psalm 111:9-10
• Jesus’ words: “Some are last who shall be first, and some are first who shall be last.” (Luke 13:30)
• Reminders that many of the blessings that God gives are spiritual, not physical: Romans 14:17, 2 Corinthians 8:9, 1 Corinthians 1:4-9, I Peter 2:9-10, 2 Peter 1:19

Finally, we read that Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned home (Luke 1:56). That may mean that she stayed through the birth of Elizabeth and Zechariah’s son, John. If so, Mary received even more in encouragement from what happened there and the prophecy of Zechariah, as we will hear and be encouraged next week, too.