What Did Mary Know by Heather Lewis
Mary responded: “Oh, how I praise the Lord. How I rejoice in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and now generation after generation will call me blessed.
For he, the Mighty One, is holy, and he has done great things for me.
His mercy goes on from generation to generation, to all who fear him. His mighty arm does tremendous things! How he scatters the proud and haughty ones! He has taken princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
He has satisfied the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.
And how he has helped his servant Israel. He has not forgotten his promise to be merciful. For he promised our ancestors — Abraham and his children — to be merciful to them forever.
(Luke 1:46-55, NLT)
I’m guessing most of you are familiar with the classic Christmas song, “Mary, Did you Know?” In my family, the song will forever be a part of our family lore because of a long-ago performance during a Christmas Eve service. A very lovely and sincere person attempted to put a new spin on this very familiar song, and it fell a bit flat. Unfortunately, that well-intentioned rendition of yesteryear kind of ruined the song for us and became an often-repeated family story.
Nevertheless, the song’s familiar refrain has played in my mind as I’ve pondered today’s scriptures. I’ve wondered: What did Mary know about her new reality as she was singing these words? After all, her world was turned upside down just days earlier by an angel bearing news about a baby.
Her words give us some insight — here are four themes I see in these verses:
The Lord is worthy of praise. Verses 46-47: “Oh, how I praise the Lord. How I rejoice in God my Savior!
God did what He told her He would. Verse 49: “For he, the Mighty One, is holy, and he has done great things for me.
God loves the oppressed. Verses 52-53: “He has taken princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly. He has satisfied the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.”
He does not forget his promises. Verse 54: “He has not forgotten his promise to be merciful. For he promised our ancestors — Abraham and his children — to be merciful to them forever.”
My hope is that Mary found comfort and strength as she sang these brave words. May we, too, draw strength from her wisdom and remember these truths that Mary already knew.
Heather Lewis