Luke 1:39-56

Applebury's Comments

Mary Visited Elizabeth
Scripture

Luke 1:39-56 And Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah; 40 and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elisabeth. 41 And it came to pass, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit; 42 and she lifted up her voice with a loud cry, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. 43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come unto me? 44 For behold, when the voice of thy salutation came into mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And blessed is she that believed; for there shall be a fulfilment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord. 46 And Mary said,

My soul doth magnify the Lord,

47

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

48

For he hath looked upon the low estate of his handmaid:

For behold, from hence forth all generation shall call me blessed.

49

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;

And holy is his name.

50

And his mercy is unto generations and generations

On them that fear him.

51

He hath showed strength with his arm;

He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their heart.

52

He hath put down princes from their thrones,

And hath exalted them of low degree.

53

The hungry he hath filled with good things;

And the rich he hath sent empty away

54

He hath given help to Israel his servant,

That he might remember mercy

55

(As he spake unto our fathers)

Toward Abraham and his seed for ever.

56

And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned unto her house.

Comments

into the hill country with haste.The angel had informed Mary that Elizabeth was to give birth to a son. Mary went in haste to visit her relative and remained with her for about three months. The home of Zacharias and Elizabeth was in a city of Judah in the hilly country south of Jerusalem. The name of the city is not given.

Upon her return to Nazareth, Joseph learned that she was with child of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18).

Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.What she said was not an emotional outpouring of words, but words of truth spoken under the control of the Holy Spirit.

Blessed art thou among women.Elizabeth and Zacharias knew that the child to be born to them would go before the Lord who would give remission of sins to His people. Elizabeth also knew that the child to be born to Mary would fulfill God's promise to redeem man from the bondage to sin. She could properly call Mary blessed because she was to be the mother of Our Lord. In no other way is it suggested that she is to be elevated above other godly women. It is to her credit and that of others also that she was found in the company of believers after the resurrection of the Lord (Acts 1:14).

And Mary said.The words of Marybeautiful poetic words full of meaning to all believers in Christare the expression of the humble handmaid of the Lord. They exalt God Our Savior for His mercy and power and His remembrance of His promise to Abraham. There is no hint here that Mary was anything more than the pure, humble servant of the Lord.

God my Savior.A reference to God, not Jesus. See also 1 Timothy 1:1; 1 Timothy 2:3; Titus 3:4 which also refer to God as Savior. But see Titus 2:13 which, in all probability, refers to Jesus Christ as the great God and Our Savior.

all generations shall call me blessed.We can join with the saints of all the ages to thank God that Mary was able to serve the Lord as she did. And since Christ came, having been born of woman, born under the law, that he might redeem them that were under the law (Galatians 4:4), we may also join them who obey Him that they may have the rights of sonship bestowed on them by the heavenly Father.

Toward Abraham.See Paul's explanation of the gospel promise to Abraham which was fulfilled through Christ (Galatians 3:8; Galatians 3:16; Galatians 3:29). Mary's understanding of this promise stands in bold contrast to that of many Jews who felt that being the literal descendants of Abraham was a guarantee of their right to enter the heavenly kingdom, See Matthew 3:9; Matthew 8:11-12; and John 8:31-46.