“My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.”
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
Mary sat down, emotionally drained from hearing the words of her relative. "Blessed among women" she was. How did she get here? What made her worthy? She wasn't any better than any other sinner. She tried to live out the Law God had given Moses. She tried to be as blameless as she could but still she was stained with sin.
She sat and pondered the Scriptures, and maybe out loud started singing this song. Maybe she wrote down. My guess is she kept singing it through out her life as a reminder to her how blessed she was. Maybe she sang it to Jesus at night. Somehow Luke knew of this song and recorded it for us.
Much of the lines are not direct quotes, but direct thoughts taken from the Psalms. She rearranged some wording, but about three fourths of the song is taken from the Psalms. I love that Mary was glorified by Elizabeth, and in this moment chose to glorify God instead of soaking up the blessing she'd been given.
In the opening lines Mary sings, "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." Here Mary recognizes she also is in desperate need of a Savior. She had no right to be called worthy of this task yet God deemed her perfect for the job. Her soul was no more free of sin than ours are today but the difference being that so many times I don't choose to give God the glory. This season I've tried to remember that "The Mighty One has done great things for me-- holy is His name", as Mary put it. But a lot of days it's easy to get distracted in myself.
The last thing I loved about this is her reference at the end of Abraham and Israel. She knows what she's about to embark on is seeded in a promise God made so many years ago. She was reminded of how God is merciful to Abraham's descendants (that being her and us). If only she knew the promise God made her, that she would give birth to the Savior who would save the world, would be a much more painful sacrifice than Abraham ever saw.
Hey God,
I'm speechless at the promises You make and keep. Humble my soul, Lord, so I can give You the glory today. When there are so many days that I wonder how useful I really am, remind me that even the smallest of tasks can give You praise.
Amen.
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