Luke 1:46-49 46And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked upon the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed, 49for the mighty one has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
In response to Elizabeth’s prophetic word, Mary responds with what appears to be a song because of its poetic elements. Her song has been traditionally called the Magnificat. The song has many lines that are poetically parallel, which is a characteristic of Hebrew poetry. The structure of this song indicates it was based on an Aramaic original. In the first section, Mary begins by exalting the Lord for what he has done for her. The end of verse 46 and the beginning of verse 47 are synonymously parallel. The two statements begin with the verb, similar to Hebrew sentence structure, followed by the subject, ending with the direct object. Magnifies is parallel to rejoices, my soul is parallel to my spirit, and Lord is parallel to God my Savior. Mary praised God and had great joy for what he was doing in her life. Her spontaneous response to Elizabeth matched the inspiration Elizabeth experienced through the presence of the Holy Spirit. This was an anointed experienced for both women, unique in all of time. The Forerunner in the womb met for the first time the Messiah in the womb, and the result was great joy for what God was about to do in history. God as Savior was coming as Savior Jesus and using Mary as the instrument.
Verse 48 focuses on Mary’s personal experience of what was happening. She saw herself as a humble servant. All of what was happening was beyond her power, ability, and imagination. The only thing she could do was believe and follow God’s leading. Her future was uncertain. She likely knew the shame and rejection she faced in the coming days. Her journey would not be easy, but she humbled herself before God to do as God directed. Even as a young woman, her faith is evident in this passage.
The last part of verse 48 may seem like a reversal of the humility of the first part of the verse as Mary acknowledges her position before all generations. The humility is still present, but she saw herself as special in history. What made her special was not anything in herself but the child in her womb. Her blessing was not from selfish pride but from the privilege of being the vessel of God. Verse 49 makes this clear when she acknowledges that it is God who has done great things, and not her. He is the one to be praised. Mary gives a model of someone who knows God is doing something awesome in her and believes it is God who is holy and not herself. God deserves all the praise.
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