Gospels Part 085
In describing Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, Luke includes a lengthy section of Mary’s praise toward God. What is this all about?
Next, we come to a section that is sometimes puzzlingly called “the Magnificat” or “the Magnificat of Mary.” This title is confusing, as “Magnificat” isn’t a biblical word in either Hebrew, Greek, or English. It’s Latin. The first word of the phrase that introduces Mary’s words here—Magnificat anima mea Dominum—as it’s translated in the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible, dates to about A.D. 400. This title holds no particular significance.
What is significant, however, is what Mary says in her praise to God. It’s easy to read through this and not realize that she is quoting phrase after phrase from her “Bible,” the Hebrew Scriptures. Her words recorded here show her to be a young woman who is intimately familiar with the Scriptures, and it flows from her lips as she praises God.
Mary’s praise is built on various themes of these Scriptures. The overall shape of her praise parallels Hannah’s prayer in 1 Samuel 2:1-10, spoken after the birth of her son Samuel, which Mary quotes or paraphrases twice.
Her praise begins with God’s blessings shown personally to her (Luke 1:47-49), then expands outward to God’s interactions with her people, Israel, and the wider world (Luke 1:50-55). Mary recognizes that her own unique calling—to give birth to the very Son of God—is not an isolated event, but part of God’s continuing plan of redemption and salvation. She praises God for His concern for the suffering and oppressed. She expresses her confidence in God’s faithfulness to right every wrong and correct every evil and injustice.
Mary’s words are a sweeping portrait of God’s character, power, and His long pattern of action in Israel’s story dating back almost 2,000 years to the patriarch Abraham. She glorifies God that she has been chosen for a role in this ongoing story.
To make it easier for you to see the phrases from Scripture that she quotes or paraphrases, her words from Luke’s Gospel are italicized below, followed in regular type by the quoted or paraphrased portions and where they appear in the Hebrew Scriptures. Note that, as explained in a previous Daily Dose, the words don’t align exactly because Mary’s words would have originally been spoken in Aramaic or Hebrew, which Luke then translates into Greek when writing His Gospel, which is then translated into English. Many of the original Hebrew words have a broader range of meaning and thus can be translated various ways into other languages. (All quotes below are from the New English Translation.)
46 “And Mary said,
‘My soul exalts the Lord,
“I will boast in the Lord” (Psalm 34:2).
“My heart has rejoiced in the Lord” (1 Samuel 2:1).
47 and my spirit has begun to rejoice in God my Savior
“I will rejoice in the Lord” (Psalm 35:9).
“I will rejoice because of the Lord” (Habakkuk 3:18).
48 because he has looked upon the humble state of his servant.
“If you would truly look on the suffering of your servant” (1 Samuel 1:11).
“Though the Lord is exalted, he looks after the lowly” (Psalm 138:6).
48 For from now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 because He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name;
“You have done great things” (Psalm 71:19).
“‘The Lord has accomplished great things for these people.’ The Lord did indeed accomplish great things for us” (Psalm 126:2-3).
50 from generation to generation He is merciful to those who fear him.
“But the Lord continually shows loyal love to His faithful followers, and is faithful to their descendants, to those who keep His covenant, who are careful to obey His commands” (Psalm 103:17-18).
“for I, the Lord, your God . . . showing covenant faithfulness to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments” (Exodus 20:5-6).
“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness, keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin” (Exodus 34:6-7).
51 He has demonstrated power with His arm;
“He performs amazing deeds. His right hand and His mighty arm accomplish deliverance” (Psalm 98:1).
“The Lord’s right hand gives victory; the Lord’s right hand conquers” (Psalm 118:16).
51 He has scattered those whose pride wells up from the sheer arrogance of their hearts.
“The Lord frustrates the decisions of the nations; he nullifies the plans of the peoples” (Psalm 33:10).
52 He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up those of lowly position.
“The Lord impoverishes and makes wealthy; he humbles and he exalts. He lifts the weak from the dust; he raises the poor from the ash heap to seat them with princes—He bestows on them an honored position” (1 Samuel 2:7-8).
53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and has sent the rich away empty.
“those who hunger he has filled with food” (Psalm 107:9).
54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering his mercy,
“You, my servant Israel” (Isaiah 41:8).
“He remains loyal and faithful to the family of Israel” (Psalm 98:3).
55 as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.
“I will confirm my covenant as a perpetual covenant between me and you. It will extend to your descendants after you throughout their generations. I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you” (Genesis 17:7).
These were thoughts that were in Mary’s mind that reflect her thinking about what she had been told by Gabriel shortly before her visit with Elizabeth. Luke concludes this section with these words in Luke 1:56:
“So, Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned to her home.”
How did Luke know all this? He was not present for any of this; he would not come along until some 40 to 50 years later. No one else is recorded as being there, and Elizabeth and Zechariah were long dead by the time Luke arrived on the scene. The logical conclusion is that Luke met and talked with Mary later in her life, and that is where his information recorded here came from. This agrees with his statement in Luke 1:1-2 that his information is based on “the accounts passed on to us by those who were eyewitnesses and servants of the word from the beginning.” So, Mary herself is the most likely source for Luke’s detailed information about these events.
© 2026 Scott Ashley. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
UYA Team | uya@ucg.org
United Young Adults (UYA) primarily serves the 18–32-year age group for the United Church of God. There are three main areas of contribution to the lives of the young adults: Promoting Spiritual Growth, Developing Meaningful Relationships and Making the Most of Your Talents. The Know Your Sword series is a daily expository message introducing God’s Word from a trusted perspective.
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Scott Ashley
Scott Ashley was managing editor of Beyond Today magazine, United Church of God booklets and its printed Bible Study Course until his retirement in 2023. He also pastored three congregations in Colorado for 10 years from 2011-2021. He and his wife, Connie, live near Denver, Colorado.
Mr. Ashley attended Ambassador College in Big Sandy, Texas, graduating in 1976 with a theology major and minors in journalism and speech. It was there that he first became interested in publishing, an industry in which he worked for 50 years.
During his career, he has worked for several publishing companies in various capacities. He was employed by the United Church of God from 1995-2023, overseeing the planning, writing, editing, reviewing and production of Beyond Today magazine, several dozen booklets/study guides and a Bible study course covering major biblical teachings. His special interests are the Bible, archaeology, biblical culture, history and the Middle East.
