Luke 1:46-50
Luke 1:46 (KJB)
And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
The next ten verses is known as Mary’s Magnificat. A magnificat was basically an
utterance of praise. When Mary states that her soul magnifies the Lord, she is
not stating that He can be made bigger or enlarged. It means that she is
ascribing greatness to the Lord for allowing her to bring forth the Messiah. At
this point it seems that she is prophesying through the Holy Spirit. Her
response was a spontaneous outburst of praise, something which was unrehearsed.
It was in response to the announcement of Elisabeth.
Luke 1:47 (KJB)
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
This verse states that Mary believed in the Messiah and knew that He is God.
This verse also states that Mary knew that she needed a Savior just like every
other person born on this earth. Mary was not deity nor was she saved apart from
Christ. She knew that she needed a Savior and her spirit rejoices in the fact
that the Savior has come to the world. (Titus 3:4 KJV) But after that the
kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Titus confirmed
what Mary knew all along that God was our Savior who was about to be incarnate.
Luke 1:48 (KJB)
For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from
henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
What had motivated Mary’s adoration of God was the fact how He had greatly
blessed her. She did not exalt herself as she considered herself to be of low
estate. The words “low estate” in the Greek carries with it the meaning of
“humiliation or humble state.” She was magnifying God because He did not look in
palaces or among the rich to bring His Son into the world, instead, He chose a
very faithful maiden among the poor people of Nazareth. God knew she was not
wealthy or in the privileged class, yet He chose her for this task. (1 Cor
1:26 KJV) For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after
the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: Then Mary states
that because of her privilege of bringing forth the Messiah, all generations
till the end of time will consider her blessed. She had recognized God’s
faithfulness and that caused her whole being to go out to praise and worship
God.
Luke 1:49 (KJB)
For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.
Here Mary is making it totally clear that what is happening is completely of the
Lord and she takes no credit for any of it. God was blessing her, not for her
sake alone, but also for the sake of His holy name. The reference to Holiness
was also an expression of her complete trust in Him. It also was reference to
the fact of separation and dedication. She knew that something great has
happened to her because ever since the time Adam and Eve, there was a waiting
and a desire for the coming of Messiah. Now after thousands of years of waiting,
the great thing, the coming of Messiah is here and Mary knew that she was now
carrying Him.
Luke 1:50 (KJB)
And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
Up to this point, Mary had ascribed to God holiness, mercy, might, and
faithfulness. Mary had also been able to understand a great aspect of the
redemptive plan of God. The mercy of God will be found in the Gospel where a
person is forgiven for all their sins and their sins are removed from them
eternally. The Gospel would be found in His Son whom she was carrying.
Generation to generation means till the end of this world and eternity begins.
(Deu 13:4 KJV) Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep
his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto
him. Mary knew the Hebrew Scriptures and probably had the Scripture from
Deuteronomy 13:4 in mind when she speaks about the mercy of God being on them
that fear him, in other words, the saved. Those who do not fear God, are those
who are unbelievers. (Psa 36:1 KJV) The transgression of the wicked saith
within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes.