and cried out with a loud voice and said, Blessed [art] *thou* amongst women, and blessed the fruit of thy womb.
Mary has just heard she will bear the Messiah, and she goes to the hill country to visit her relative Elizabeth. The Holy Spirit fills Elizabeth, and she cries out these words — but where did they come from, and how much honour do they give Mary?
Elizabeth knows Mary's news before Mary has said a word about it. No one could have carried it to her:
She knew both Mary's expectations and Mary's faith. When and how did she learn all this? Mary had not had time to speak of it. No whisper of it carried by human messenger had reached the hill country of Judea. Mary evidently, as Matthew teaches us, had not even told Joseph, to whom she was betrothed.
The answer is in the verse just before: the Holy Spirit filled her. That filling had a purpose:
The Spirit filled her so that she could speak the inspired words she said to Mary: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb."
Elizabeth's opening words are not her own invention. Gabriel had already greeted Mary in the same terms. That repetition is the point:
We see at once that Elizabeth, as one "filled with the Holy Spirit," is in complete agreement with the mind of God about Mary. Gabriel had said to her, "Blessed are you among women," and Elizabeth now says, "Blessed are you among women," adding, "and blessed is the fruit of your womb." God's power opened her eyes, so she saw as God saw. She declares His own estimate of the one He had chosen for this singular favour.
The blessing's second half turns from the mother to the Child in her womb:
It is remarkable how beautifully Elizabeth owns that even the child not yet born was the Lord. We find just the same thing with Mary herself. She has no notion of being taken out of the place of a needy sinner. And the miraculous birth of John does not lessen Elizabeth's sense of the Messiah. It adds to it.
Elizabeth was carrying a miracle son of her own. Still, she takes the lower place, and one writer draws the lesson:
Herself the object of God's favour, she still took the lowest place before the one who was to become the mother of her Lord. Let this instruction sink deep into our hearts: when the Spirit of God is working in souls, He banishes all envy, strife, and jealousy. Love then flows out freely, and humility is the fruit of love. Then she described the effect Mary's greeting had on her, and proclaimed a third kind of blessedness. Mary was blessed as the object of God's sovereign favour. She was blessed as the vessel for the incarnation of our Lord. And she was blessed because of her faith.
Writers weigh the exact wording here, because people have stretched it far. The quote below uses an older translation of the angel's greeting in verse 28, where the ESV reads "O favored one":
The angel tells her she is "highly favoured" (Luke 1:28). Could any woman have a higher favour than to be the mother of our Lord according to the flesh? "Blessed are you among women" is the angel's greeting. "Blessed" she certainly was. Note, it does not say "Most blessed." The language is restrained.
In her own reply a few verses later, Mary calls God her Saviour:
Though the mother of our Saviour, she herself found her Saviour in God.
Later another woman calls out something very like Elizabeth's words. Jesus answers by pointing elsewhere:
A woman, alive to the joy of having a son like Jesus, declares aloud the value of such a natural family tie to Him. The Lord puts this blessing, as He did in the case of Mary, on those who heard and kept His word.
- Filled — No one had told Elizabeth Mary's news. The Spirit filled her so that she could speak these words.
- Echoed — She repeats Gabriel's own greeting. Her verdict on Mary is God's verdict, not a relative's warm welcome.
- Owned — The blessing runs past the mother to the unborn Child, whom she calls her Lord.
- Freed — Where the Spirit works, envy goes. Elizabeth rejoiced in another woman's honour instead of guarding her own.
- Shared — Mary was blessed as chosen, as the vessel, and for her faith. And Jesus later held out a blessing to anyone who hears God's word and keeps it.
And whence [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Elizabeth is the older woman, and she is expecting a son of her own. Yet when her young relative walks in, she treats the visit as an honour she cannot account for. Her question turns on two words: who is "my Lord," and why should His mother come to her?
Mary's child is not yet born. Elizabeth already speaks of Him as her Lord.
Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, breaks out into an acknowledgment of the place God had given Mary. "And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" It is remarkable how beautifully she acknowledges that even the child not yet born was the Lord.
That confession came before He entered the world.
The One these women spoke of, the Babe of Bethlehem, will soon be acknowledged as supreme in the universe. But before His birth, before He came into this world in lowly Manhood, Elizabeth's words already bore testimony to His supremacy — "my Lord."
In that world "Lord" was also an ordinary word of respect between people. The same word does far more work here.
These words are usually translated "lord." People use them as a term of respect between one person and another… Scripture gives the title "Lord" to God (Ps. 90:1, Adonai). In the New Testament it gives the same title to the Lord Jesus, not only as a term of respect, but as owning His constituted lordship (Acts 2:36; Phil. 2:11). For the Christian He is the Lord above all, eclipsing every other, and the Christian delights to claim Him as "My Lord."
Because the name carries that much, it is not one to handle casually.
How beautiful the language of the older woman calling the Virgin "the mother of my Lord." Surely this was a great revelation she received. With holy reverence we also should use that worthy Name. It has been well said, "Let us remember the deep meaning of the words 'the Lord' and beware of using them lightly and carelessly."
Elizabeth names a secret Mary has had no chance to tell her. So where did she learn it?
Mary crossed the threshold of Elizabeth's house and greeted her cousin. The expectant mother of John then learned who was to be the mother of her Lord… She knew both Mary's expectations and Mary's faith. Mary had not had time to speak of it. No whisper of it had reached the hill country of Judea by any human means. Mary clearly, as Matthew teaches us, had not even told Joseph, to whom she was betrothed (Matt. 1:18-19). How did Elizabeth know?
Nothing in the account says that anyone told her.
What was it that made her address her young relative like that? We are not told that she had heard of the angel's visit to Mary, so how did she know what lay ahead of her? The answer is that she "was filled with the Holy Spirit" (v. 41), and she spoke by divine inspiration.
Elizabeth had God's favour on her own life. Still she puts herself below the younger woman.
With her eyes opened by the power of God, she saw as God saw. She speaks God's own estimate of the one He had chosen for this singular favour. Filled with the Spirit, she also acknowledged with meekness and humility that the grace of God had lifted Mary high… She was herself an object of God's favour. Yet she took the lowest place before the one who was to become the mother of her Lord.
Mary answers Elizabeth moments later. Her reply shows how she took the honour given her.
Mary had no thought of exaltation. She says, "all generations will call me blessed," but not a blesser. She was the object of blessing, not the giver or mediator of it. "He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name" — not a word of her own. "And His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation" — not for those who pray to or worship me.
Both women keep their eyes on the same Person, not on each other.
Humility and contented lowliness mark their whole conversation… He was the One who filled their vision… Mary herself is content to take the "humble estate" of a "servant." God's mighty thoughts were not to reach their completion in Mary. Someone else has well said of her — "she lost her place if she made anything of herself, but in truth she did not," a helpful word for today!
- Lord already. Before Bethlehem, before He was born, Elizabeth calls the unborn child her Lord.
- Lord revealed. No one told Elizabeth. The Holy Spirit filled her, so she saw as God saw and spoke by inspiration.
- Lord honoured. Because He is Lord, the older woman takes the lowest place before the younger. She asks why such a visit should come to her at all.
- Lord alone the blesser. Mary is the object of blessing, never its giver — called blessed by all generations, but "not a blesser."
- Lord mine. The Christian claims Him as "My Lord" — a name too weighty to use lightly.
For behold, as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the babe leaped with joy in my womb.
Two expectant mothers meet in the hill country, and neither child has been born yet. The first to welcome Jesus is the baby inside Elizabeth, who leaps at the sound of Mary's voice.
Nobody had told Elizabeth. Mary had only just arrived, and no news of her had reached the hill country.
Mary crossed the threshold of Elizabeth's house, greeted her cousin, and the expectant mother of John learned who was to be the mother of her Lord. We do not know what words Mary used, but we have her answer. It came from a woman filled with the Holy Spirit. She lifted up her voice with a loud cry. She knew both Mary's expectations and Mary's faith. When and how did she learn all this? Mary had not had time to speak of it. No whisper of it carried by human means had reached the hill country of Judea. How did Elizabeth know? She told it, as she alone could declare it: "For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy." The mother of her Lord was there.
The baby's leap honoured Mary. But the honour behind it was for the Messiah she carried.
Mary then arises, enters the house of Zacharias and greets her relative Elizabeth. This gives occasion to the wonderful homage paid even by the unborn child, Elizabeth's son. He paid it to Mary, the chosen mother of the Messiah, in honour of the Messiah Himself. The result was that Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, breaks out into an acknowledgment of the place God had given Mary. "And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" It is remarkable how beautifully she owns that even the child not yet born was the Lord.
Years later John and Jesus would meet at the Jordan as men who had never met — John raised in Judea, Jesus in Galilee — and John would still know Him instantly. That instinct has a starting point in this verse.
On the Lord's approaching John to be baptized, John at once acknowledged Him — acknowledged Him without any introduction. There seems to have been in his soul some consciousness that this was He. He had, indeed, acknowledged Him even before He was born (Luke 1:44). The world knew Him not, but John knows Him, and so condemns the world.
John gave up wine, one of the ordinary pleasures men enjoy together. From the outside his life looked joyless. It was not.
He deprived himself of wine — the sign of joy to the heart of the natural man in the company of his equals. ... This passage shows him as set apart in a special way from everything that makes up the joy of a sociable man. The world, on seeing him, would no doubt have said, "He is a sad and gloomy man who hates people." What a mistake! The world knows only this natural joy. In the prophet's heart another joy took its place — the joy that communion with the Saviour gives.
Elizabeth had a child of her own coming. Her inspired words go to Mary's blessing instead.
As Mary entered the house and spoke, the baby in Elizabeth's womb leaped. Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, broke out in a short but beautiful prophecy. Here the living power of the Spirit of God goes together with a lowly humility. She finds delight in the blessing of another, and she recognizes that Mary is to be the mother of the Lord.
The greeting Mary got at the door did something for her own faith.
The greeting Mary received shows that her visit to Elizabeth was of the Lord. That greeting must have confirmed her faith in a remarkable way. As soon as Elizabeth heard her relative's greeting, it reminded her of her own condition. At the same moment the Holy Spirit filled her and moved her to proclaim the blessedness of the one whom the Lord had so honoured by His grace.
- Joy first. John leaped in the womb. It is the first honour Jesus received, and neither child had been born.
- Joy revealed. No messenger had reached the hill country. The Holy Spirit filled Elizabeth, and she knew who stood at her door.
- Joy confessed. Elizabeth worships instead of pointing to herself. She calls the unborn child "my Lord" and she delights in another woman's blessing.
- Joy sustained. John gave up the ordinary pleasures the world lives on. Communion with the Saviour gave him a different joy in their place.
- Joy that lasts. What began with a leap in the womb ended at the Jordan. There John knew Jesus with no introduction, while the world did not.
And blessed [is] she that has believed, for there shall be a fulfilment of the things spoken to her from [the] Lord.
Elizabeth ends her greeting with a word about Mary's faith, not about her honour. Mary is blessed because she believed God would do what He said. So what makes believing God's word a blessing? And how does it differ from the unbelief seen a few verses earlier, in this same house?
Elizabeth is not paying Mary the warm compliment of an older relative. Something else is at work in her words.
Notice at once that Elizabeth, "filled with the Holy Spirit," shares God's own mind about Mary. Gabriel had said to her, "Blessed are you among women." Elizabeth now says the same, and adds, "and blessed is the fruit of your womb." God had opened her eyes. She saw as God saw, and she spoke His own verdict on the woman He had chosen for this rare honour.
The greeting names more than one blessing, and this verse supplies the last of them. It rests on something Mary did — she took God at His word.
Mary was blessed as the object of God's sovereign favour. She was blessed as the one through whom our Lord came into the world as a man. And she was blessed because of her faith — a faith that rose above every obstacle and rested on the almighty power of God. Like Abraham, she did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but "found strength in faith," giving glory to God. She had taken a firm hold of God's word. She had no doubt that He would do what He had promised. She honoured God in this way, and now God gave her, through Elizabeth's lips, the assurance that the Lord's word to her would come true.
Mary had asked the angel how such a birth could happen. Commentators are careful to distinguish that question from unbelief.
God had shown Mary such favour that she asks with holy confidence how this would happen, since it lay outside the natural order. She has no doubt that it would happen — Elizabeth calls her the one who believed.
Elizabeth had watched her own husband, Zacharias, lose his speech because he did not believe. That memory gives her words their edge.
At the same time she acknowledges that God has shown special favour to Mary's soul. "Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." Elizabeth knew that unbelief was what had struck her husband. She sets his failure against Mary's humble, believing heart.
The certainty is not in the strength of Mary's believing but in the source of the message. It came from the Lord Himself.
She calls Mary the mother of her Lord — the One at whose voice her own baby had leaped for joy. She declares her blessed as well for the faith that received God's message. And what the Lord had spoken to her would surely happen.
The blessing pronounced here honours Mary's faith. It does not lift her out of the ranks of those who need saving — her own song, moments later, says otherwise.
Mary was the mother of our Lord as a man. She was "blessed among women," chosen for the highest honour a woman could have. Yet in her song of praise she says, "my spirit rejoices in God my Savior" (Luke 1:47). If Mary had been sinless, she would have had no need of a Savior. But she did need one, just like the rest of us.
What Elizabeth commends is not unique to Mary. Anyone who rests on what God has said stands on the same ground.
Gabriel brought Mary a message from heaven, and she answered, "let it be to me according to Your word" (Luke 1:38). That answer is the language of everyone who rests on what God has said. How simple! How beautiful! Faith never makes itself an object. It looks up to the Lord and says, "I want no better guarantee of certain blessing than the one 'Your word' gives me."
- Word spoken. The certainty rests on the source. The Lord Himself spoke to Mary, so His word would stand.
- Word believed. Mary's question was about how, never about whether — asking God for understanding is not the same as doubting Him.
- Word doubted. God left Zacharias unable to speak because of his unbelief, in the very house Mary entered. Elizabeth sets his failure beside Mary's believing heart.
- Word confirmed. Elizabeth, filled with the Spirit, saw as God saw. Through her, God assured Mary that He would keep His promise.
- Word for us. Faith never makes itself the object. It asks no better guarantee than God's own word. That ground is open to anyone — even to Mary, who called God her Savior.