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       There was an unknown circumstance in Mary’s young life that spoke of great humility. We don’t know what this was exactly, and Luke does not elaborate. But there are directive clues. Read on:


        The following is from Part 1: There is something else here that Luke’s narrative hints at which he does not delve into, possibly because he knew his audience was aware of whatever particulars were involved with Mary and the circumstances of her humble life.

         In the very beginning, after initially being told by the angel Gabriel that she was highly favored and the Lord was indeed with her, Mary became, depending on the translation, troubled/disturbed/perplexed. The Greek says greatly agitated. She wondered where this extraordinary greeting came from and what it could possibly be about. One senses she thought it must be meant for another, that the joyous messenger must have the wrong house.

         In answering a faithful reader’s comment on Part 3 today, who said of Mary, She must have indeed been a highly intelligent, spiritually sensitive young woman, I wrote the following:

         “Yes. A perfect choice. And she had to somehow come to a quick understanding of this fact though her humble nature would otherwise preclude it. She had to look beyond her humble circumstances and do her best to see herself as God saw her. He needed her. He wanted her to be the one. Here we have a good look into the counterintuitive nature of humanity. If Mary had previously thought herself as the best choice she would be disqualified, since that would reveal the presence of sinful pride. But if she thought herself unworthy and could never be persuaded to the contrary she would disqualify herself.”

         Why did she feel so unworthy? And why did she refer to herself not once but twice as a bondslave? I mentioned this in Part 1. The Hebrew word for a female slave is shiphchah. The Greek word used here is doulos, which speaks directly to a slave of the basest order and is used throughout the New Testament. One gets the idea that young Mary was somehow familiar with such status.

         It is also quite interesting that the New Testament never mentions any interaction with Mary’s parents or possible siblings. We know her father’s name was Eli (Heli), from her genealogy in Luke 3:23, but there is never any mention of her mother or her mother’s name. It appears they were no longer around. It is also evident that Mary was an only child. Imagine that. There is also a distinct possibility that Joseph, her betrothed, was her father’s adopted son, as alluded to in the genealogy. This was actually a Hebrew tradition going back centuries for men with no natural male heirs, so the idea isn’t so far-fetched. Any or all of these challenging life circumstances might be the cause of her feelings of unworthiness, but there is yet another, and it is here where we shall gain even greater understanding of the well known verse, “For God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1Samuel 16:7).

        There is a Greek word that only occurs four times in the NT. It only applies to two specific people in the NT. Those two people are the Lord Jesus and His mother Mary. The word is tapeinosis. It is defined as “lowness, low estate, and humiliation.” Regarding the Lord it appears in Acts 8:33 in which the author references Isaiah 53:8. Here are both verses with the translated English word underlined:



      Here is the verse that references Mary, again with the translated English words underlined:

          “For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; for behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.” [Luke 1:48]   

         The Hebrew word is otser. It is defined as “restraint, coercion.” It is translated primarily as “oppression.” It refers in a sense to prison or being a prisoner. This indicates a form of slavery. Mary did refer to herself as a bondslave. This speaks indirectly of possessing a particular humble state or condition and we now have a better understanding of what that was. Isaiah chapter 53 is an OT prophetic picture of the Lord Jesus. Here is the verse that ties both Son and mother together:

          He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. [Isaiah 53:2][1] 








Posted on December 24, 2019, in Teaching and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 6 Comments.

  1. I’m thinking that Elisabeth, mother of John the Baptist, as a much older cousin and a highly esteemed woman, wife of the priest Zechariah, indicates that Mary did have some pretty good connections in her family tree. I’ve always wondered about her parents because, as you say, they are not mentioned except in that one genealogy; and then it is just the father that we see.

    I look forward to being able to sit and talk with Mary about all of this. Heaven seems sweeter every day!


    • Thanks Linda. Praise the Lord for His great blessings and eternal life!

      Mary was definitely well-connected from the tribe of Judah. Perfectly connected we may say. Regarding her actual blood relation to Elizabeth, many Bible versions, especially the KJV, have incorrectly claimed they were cousins. This is a bad translation. Their actual specific relation is unknown. Here is the verse in question from the NASB:

      “And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month.” [Luke 1:36]

      The Greek word is suggenis. This specific word only appears one time in the entire NT. It is primarily translated as “relative” and “kinswoman.” It is the feminine form of suggenes which occurs several times and usually refers to blood relatives in a general sense but can also refer in a wider sense to simply one’s race or countrymen, or possibly one’s tribe.

      The Greek word for cousin is anepsios. It also occurs only once, in Colossians 4:10, when Paul mentions the relation between Mark and Barnabas.

      One wonders then, why this particular word describing the blood relationship of Mary and Elizabeth is used only once in relation to its root. It must be quite unique and must denote a unique relationship. There is any number of possibilities. The parents of John were both of the tribe of Levi which was the only tribe whose members could legally marry outside of it. So at some point the prior relatives of Elizabeth’s tribe married into Mary’s tribe of Judah.

      Thus, for now, all we can gather is that they were related. What is more important is that they were very close. The Lord knew they would need each other and that His own mother would especially need Elizabeth. It was providential of the Lord to arrange it and was all part of the plan. How great it was that these two highly honorable women had each other.

      Blessings to you. I appreciate you keeping up with this series.

      Liked by 1 person

  2. Very thought provoking teaching. You’ve obviously done a great deal of research on the subject. Thank you, and seasons greetings.


    • Thank you. It has certainly been a lot of work but always a labor of love. I have learned a lot. Mary is an extraordinary individual. Off the charts even. So willing to serve, to put herself at risk, to honor the Lord in such a meaningful way. She defines pure discipleship. This awesome woman was there from the very beginning to the end. No one else could claim this. She served the Lord as a child, accepted her calling without question as a young teen, went through all the ups and downs of the outer reactions to her Son’s perfect and powerful life, was there at the cross and Resurrection, and even made it to the Upper Room and was baptized in the Holy Spirit! And she did it all with grace. She was not outwardly attractive but possessed a beautiful, beautiful spirit. Gabriel said it all in advance: “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”

      Blessings to you Scarlett. May you have a wonderful Merry Christmas.

      Liked by 1 person

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