Mary's Song

And Mary said:

My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.

Luke 1:46-55

I often find that a single verse in the Bible has enough space to live in it -not only for an immediate moment or a day or a week but for a lifetime.

Mary's song recorded by Luke has a depth to it which is hard to search out. The full meaning is available to us, however, if we will only take the time to meditate on the words as God reveals them to us through His Spirit, just as the Spirit revealed them to Mary.

With that in mind I would like to review Mary's Song -not gulping down the words for a 'big picture' view- but slowly, verse by verse.

"My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior"

Mary begins her song expressing the state of her soul and her spirit. She later speaks of how God has blessed all Israel, but she begins by focusing on the praise in her own soul and her own spirit.

So often it is common to hear of the 'world historical' significance of Christ's birth.

When Christ is discussed in our day there is no possessive sense in the words. We hear them in a more academic tone, as if there was some extravagant System to structure them. Consider Mary's words without the possessive adjectives:

'The soul glorifies the Lord and the spirit rejoices in God the Savior.'

The words are so similar, and yet how vastly different from the way Mary actually spoke! Who's soul glorifies the Lord? Who's spirit rejoices in God their savior?

Mary is not singing on behalf of other people or there opinions. Her song does not admit of a plurality of voices, only Mary's voice can be heard in her words as her God leads her. The possessive voice claims to speak of what is clear to her and not clear to the masses or any kind of historical generalization -even if her blessing is a blessing for all.

...For he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.

Mary continues to speak of herself, although now she speaks indirectly of herself ... as a servant of humble state.

Mary is reflecting on her identity indirectly. These are the things her heart is hearing from her 'heart of hearts'.

She sees that God pays special attention to those of humble state. She realizes dramatically that she herself is such a person.

From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is his name.

Just as God's holiness sets Him apart from all things, so too has the Almighty set Mary apart from all generations.

Mary cherishes the way God has set her apart. She does not laugh and delight as the pagans do in their worldly distinctions. She does not find her happiness in her appearances -the color of her hair, the cost of her clothes, the decor of her home.

Those honors come and go through time, but Mary has found a distinction that transcends history. She has been set apart by God. If we listen to Mary with a teachable spirit, we will learn to cherish the way God sets His servants apart.

His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.

This verse parallels Zechariah's song later in the chapter, that God takes it upon Himself: "to enable us to serve him without fear" (v. 74).

On the one hand, Mary is able to praise God for the mercy He shows to those who fear him, and Zechariah praises God for enabling his people to serve him without fear.

Could these speakers praise God in such different ways? Could they be praising the same God? If there was some common praise that united Mary and Zechariah's thanksgiving, what would it sound like?

The mystery is this: God enables those who fear Him to serve Him without fear.

On the one hand, his people have every reason to fear Him, and yet, at the same time, those who truly serve him have no reason to fear Him.

Zechariah and Mary praise God for this. If a person will take a careful account of their lawless thoughts and then turn to the mercy of God, they will also understand the mystery and the wonder of praising God in this same way.

He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.

Here we see a common theme in Mary's song: that God has chosen the lowly to know the fullness of His blessings.

Mary is so puzzled, so amazed that God has committed Himself to the least of all people that she finds herself praising God and thanking Him for his generosity which exceeds every human conception.

What would it take to join in with Mary in this song?

Doesn't Mary openly understand something which we also understand? Doesn't she realize something we try to conceal? If we were going to be honest with ourselves about ourselves, wouldn't the song of our lives sound a lot like her song?

He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.

Now that Mary has spoken the way she feels about how God has dealt with her personally, she continues to praise God. Though she continues personally praising God, it is for what He has done for others.

How many others?

She refers to the way God has helped His servant Israel. Is she referring to the descendents of Isaac's son -the descendents who would become more numerous than the sands of the coast or the stars of the sky?

Maybe.

As over-educated believers, we so often forget that long before Israel was a nation, Israel was a single individual who was earlier called Jacob.

God sees the Jacobs. The crafty and the deceivers are in His eyes. This is another way of saying that God sees us personally and the work which we have done against Him.

Perhaps -if we are able to confess to God this unseemly aspect of our ways- we will be able to say with Mary, "He has helped his servant Israel". He has given us a new name, and a new gift - His Son, Jesus.

"...remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever"

Often we remember Mary as a woman who faced harsh circumstances: rejected by her fiancee, becoming an unmarried mother, and so forth.

This is all certainly true. There is a lot we do not understand about the depth of Mary's praise simply because we do not know the depth of her hardship.

But the harsh circumstances did not make Mary who she was. To paraphrase her son's words, God can make harsh circumstances out of rocks in the ground.

Mary identified with Abraham, the father of faith.

Abraham also faced difficult tasks: waiting so long to receive his first-born, and then his calling to sacrifice him.

Abraham's difficulties did nothing to inform God of Abraham's obedience, but when Abraham trusted that God would bring Isaac back from the dead -though he raised the knife against him- the angel told Abraham, 'Now I know that you fear God' and then later that all nations would be blessed because of his obedience.

Mary praised God for remembering Abraham and showing mercy to his descendants forever.

In saying this, Mary was not refering to the mortal offspring of Abraham. She was refering to those who were descendants of Abraham by sharing in his faith.


During Christmas time it is easy to become so busy, so hurried, that one forgets the things one values the most.

How peculiar for a time when we thank God for giving us what we claim to value the most! (And then to consider the burden He bears to hear His people say that they are doing this very thing in His name ...).

If one wishes to identify with Mary this year, consider the way she identified with the least, the way she praised God for caring about the nobodies, the ragamuffins, the so-called leftovers of society. Consider the way God regards those who have shown Him no regard, considers sinners that God sent His Son to, and how like those sinners we are.

As you meditate on God's providence and His wonderful gift, may your heart rejoice with Mary during this time of celebration and promise.