Blessed Among Women

Liz Bowers
4 hours ago
10 min read

Luke 1:39-56

Dear Christian,

When you define success today, what is the metric you use? My guess is that your measurements would vary from making a certain amount of money, having a certain amount of followers on different platforms, having achieved a certain title or role at work, or even by the level of peace you've achieved in your relationships and the good opinion people hold of you. Here is perhaps an even deeper question: What does it mean to be blessed? Which is more desirable, to be blessed or to be successful?

In this passage, Mary is called "blessed among women," and in response, she launches into this beautiful song known as her Magnificat. If you pay very close attention to its lyrics, the contents may surprise you for why she so joyously sings, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."

Main Idea

Blessing comes through hearing, believing, and obeying the Word of God.

Background Information

How far was it from Nazareth to the hill country of Judah?

It was about 80-100 miles or a 3-5 day journey, depending upon whether she walked or traveled with a caravan.

Would Mary have traveled alone?

While her visit to Elizabeth is certainly implied to be alone, not with Joseph or any of her other relatives. It is probable that she did travel with a caravan or other group of travelers making their way in the same direction. It was highly unusual for anyone to travel alone because of the dangers of the road and potential bandits. Luke doesn't have to mention how she got to the hill country because his readers would have understood the means of travel for a woman of her social standing and pregnant condition at the time. However, because it's not specified in Scripture, we can only speculate.

How long was a month in Israel during Augustus Caesar's rule?

By this time, the Roman Empire would have been using the Julian Calendar, with months being an average of 30 to 31 days, similar to the Gregorian Calendar we use today, which was instituted by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.

What was God's promise to Abraham and his offspring?

Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all other families of the earth shall be blessed." Genesis 12:1-3 (esv)

Greek Words to Know

hagios - most holy thing, a saint

pneuma - spirit, rational by which humans feel, think, and decide

psychē - breath of life; soul, the seat of all feelings, desires, affections, and aversions

eulogeō - to praise, to celebrate with praises; to cause to prosper; favored of God.

makarios - blessed, happy

kyrios - he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has the power of deciding; master, lord

megalynō - to deem or declare great; to esteem highly, extol, celebrate

tapeinōsis - lowness, spiritual abasement, leading one to perceive and lament their (moral) littleness and guilt

doulē - a female slave, bondmaid, handmaid

Scripture Study

Vs. 39-40

In our last study, Mary received the wonderful news that she would be the mother to the long-awaited Messiah, but that wasn't the only announcement the angel gave her. Gabriel also told Mary that her relative Elizabeth, who had been barren and past the time for childbearing, was also pregnant! The angel departs, and Mary decides that she must go and see what the Lord has done for Elizabeth.

Vs. 41-45

Upon her arrival, Mary greets Elizabeth as was customary at the time. Likely embracing her and kissing her. When Elizabeth's baby hears Mary's voice, he leaps for joy in his mother's womb! Then Elizabeth was filled with the hagios pneuma (Holy Spirit) and she declared over Mary,

"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." Luke 1:42-45 (esv)

Blessed (eulogeō) among women, according to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, the way "blessed" is used in this context is in praise, celebration, and thanksgiving; the word can also mean made to prosper or favored by God. Notice that the only thing that is hagios (most holy) in our passage is the Spirit of God that filled Elizabeth and caused her to exclaim this incredible declaration. Also, "blessed is the fruit of your womb" (eulogeō).

The word for blessed in Greek changes when Elizabeth says, "blessed is she who believed..." (makarios). This kind of blessing is simply happiness, "happy is she who believed..." would be an equally accurate translation. Why is Mary celebrated and happy? She believed that God would fulfill what He said He would do for her!

It's also interesting to point out how Elizabeth addresses or calls the Lord when she makes this declaration. She calls Him kyrios or master, the one with the power to decide over both herself and Mary.

Vs. 46-55

In response to Elizabeth's Holy Spirit-prompted declaration, Mary breaks into song. This is actually the first of three hymns that we'll study in the opening chapters of Luke.

My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever. Luke 1:46-55

Mary's Magnificat (so named from the Latin Vulgate for magnify) is rich in meaning and worship! So let's take it line by line...

First, Mary sings that her soul (psychē) magnifies (megalynō) the Lord (kyrios). In other words, the very essence of her being declares the greatness of her master, who is the Lord of all Creation.

And her spirit (pneuma) rejoices in God (theos), her Savior (sōtēr). If I'm understanding this properly from the Greek translations, similar to how we refer to our mind and to our heart when explaining how we think, feel, and have being in the world so they used psychē (the heart) and pneuma (the mind) when referring to the concept of the soul. Expressing her joy and worship here, Mary gives us a hint of something very interesting: she views theos as kyrios and her sōtēr. In plain English, she views God as her master and her savior, but what could the Virgin Mary, selected from all the women of the earth to bear the Messiah, need saving from?

"For he has looked on the humble estate (tapeinōsis) of his servant (doulē)." Humble estate is a strange phrase in English, but it is the reason Mary gives for why she identifies herself as a handmaiden or female bondservant or slave of kyrios in need of a sōtēr. The key is in the full understanding of tapeinōsis, which means lowness, spiritual abasement, leading one to perceive and lament their (moral) littleness and guilt. Mary is acknowledging that she is a sinner in need of a savior, and she is rejoicing in the wonderful realization that God is sending that Savior for her and all generations!

If you're familiar with the Old Testament, you may also be thinking as you read the Magnificat, "Where have I heard this before?"

And Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the LORD; my horn is exalted in the LORD. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is none holy like the LORD: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble bind on strength. Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn. The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up. The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts up the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and to inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, and on them he has set the world. He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail. The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed." 1 Samuel 2:1-10

For context, Hannah was also a woman thought to be unable to have a child. Like Elizabeth, she was barren, and this grieved her so deeply that when she prayed in the House of the Lord at Shiloh, the priest Eli thought she was drunk! The priest, upon discovering that she was fervently praying, blessed her and said, "Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him." Hannah obediently dried her eyes and went home. A few years later, she is back at the temple with her husband, this time with a very special gift: the child she had weaned and was then giving back to the Lord. It is on this occasion that she sings the song that so closely foreshadows Mary's Magnificat.

However, Mary is not simply singing a song she may have learned in girlhood about the famous mother of the prophet Samuel. Let's compare...

In the first stanza, both women exult in the LORD and rejoice in His salvation. They both point to the holiness of the LORD.

Mary - "Holy is his name."

Hannah - "There is none holy like the LORD:"

Another theme that repeats for both women is the humbling of the proud and the lifting up of the lowly in spirit, the filling up of the hungry, and the destitution of the rich.

Mary - "He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty."

Hannah - "Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble bind on strength. Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn... The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor."

Unique to Hannah's song is an extolment of the Lord's power over life and death - "The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up." Hannah also speaks more of the Lord's judgment of the earth, while Mary exults in God's mercy. The most astonishing thing about both songs is how much they both speak to what God is going to do with the lives of the children He has blessed them with!

Samuel is an administrator of God's judgment on a disobedient nation who anoints both the first king of Israel, Saul, and Jesus' ancestor, King David.

Jesus is the fulfillment of God's covenant with His people, Israel. He is the rightful judge and king of all the ends of the earth, but in His life on earth, His mission is to bring mercy and rescue for all His people! Ultimately, Jesus is the anointed one who fulfills the end of Hannah's song...

"He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail. The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed." (1 Samuel 2:9-10)

As He had promised...

"He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever." (Luke 1:54-55)

Conclusion

We started today's study by considering what it means to be successful and what it means to be blessed. If you measure your success by your wealth, know this: "he has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent away empty." If you measure your success by your reputation and influence, know this: "he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate." The truth is, our worldly success means nothing! The Lord is the master and creator of the universe. It is within His right and power alone to give life and to take it away, to give riches and to take them away, to raise up to power and to cast down from thrones. Consider King David's own line; they ruled in peace and prosperity so long as they obeyed the Lord and honored Him. When they turned away from Him to follow their own paths and worship other gods, they were cast down and disciplined. Hannah rejoiced as she obediently fulfilled her word to the Lord when He gifted her a son and returned that son to the service of the Lord. Mary rejoiced that she had been chosen to carry her Savior and that God had given her cousin a child as well, trusting that the Lord was true to His word and would be with her come what may. Blessing comes through hearing, believing, and obeying the Word of God.