Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:
(Luke 1:39) And Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste to a city of Judah.
At the end of the last post, Mary had just been given the message from the Lord that she would conceive and bear the Son of God. At that time she made an earnest journey into the hill country to a city of Judah. Early commentators said this was probably Hebron, a city of priests, in the hill country of Judea and belonging to the house of Aaron. If that is true, it was a hundred mile journey for Mary! Even though the scripture only mentioned Mary, surely some family member or perhaps Joseph arranged to have Mary join a caravan traveling to Hebron.
(40) And entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elizabeth.
Mary went to the house of Zacharias and Elizabeth. It is understandable that she would go to the one person with whom she could freely talk about her pregnancy, as being a pregnant virgin would not have been well accepted in her village, and no one would have believed her story about how it came to be.
(41) And it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.
This is one of my favorite verses in all the Bible. When Elizabeth heard Mary's entrance and greeting, the baby in her womb leaped! The baby, not a fetus, actually reacted to the voice of Mary. The baby, not Elizabeth's baby and property to do with what she wished. This was a separate human being inside Elizabeth's womb reacting of his own accord. Is there any clearer message that the baby growing inside a woman is indeed a life separate from her? The baby can react and feel pain if he is killed even inside the womb. There is just no way to dispute the fact that abortion is murder of an innocent child! When the baby leaped inside of her, Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
(42) And she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb!"
Elizabeth, being filled with the Holy Spirit, recognized what her baby had just recognized and to what he had reacted, and declared in a loud voice that Mary was blessed among women, using the words the angel had spoken to Mary, and that the child within her womb was blessed which, of course, was the reason why Mary was blessed.
(43) "And why this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?"
Elizabeth continued, citing the Holy Spirit revelation that Mary was the mother of her Lord, and she asked why it was that Mary should come to her, obviously a question in humility that she should be honored with a visit from Mary, and her Lord, especially.
(44) "For lo, as soon as the voice of your salutation sounded in my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy."
Elizabeth continued, telling Mary how the baby in her womb leapt for joy when he heard Mary's salutation.
(45) "And blessed is she who believed, for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord."
Still obviously speaking the words of the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth concluded that Mary was blessed because she had believed the prophecy of the angel, and confirmed that those things that had been told to her by the angel of the Lord would indeed come to pass.
(46) And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord,"
Mary began what is called the Magnificat, said to be a hymn of Mary, surely by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. She said her soul magnified the Lord, meaning not that she herself could magnify or make Him greater, but that her soul realized and declared His greatness.
(47) "And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior."
Mary declared her spirit rejoiced in God her Savior, the Holy Spirit within her declaring that she was saved by God through the redemption that would be in Christ Jesus, the baby in her womb.
(48) "For He has regarded the lowly state of His handmaiden, for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed."
The Lord God had highly favored Mary in her lowly and humble state, meaning there was not any particular excellence in her, except that she was a willing handmaiden of the Lord, but it was from God's excellent love and mercy that she would from then on through all generations be called blessed.
(49) "For He who is mighty has done to me great things, and holy is His name."
Mary declared that the mighty God had done great things for her and specifically to her with regard to her immaculate conception of a child who would become the Savior of the world. She declared God's name as holy, and indeed this miracle within her was brought about with no impurity and only by the Holy Spirit.
(50) "And His mercy is on them who fear Him from generation to generation."
Mary proclaimed God's mercy was on the people who feared Him, meaning a reverential respect for just who He was, from that generation to the next and to the next forever.
(51) "He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts."
God had shown strength with His arm referring to what He had done with His almighty power. He had dispelled the proud and haughty who were high and mighty in their own imaginations and brought them to nothing. He made foolish the wisdom of the world: "For it is written, 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.' Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Has God not made foolish the wisdom of this world?" (1 Corinthians 1:19-20)
(52) "He has put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree."
Mary declared, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that God had taken down the mighty from their thrones, as when Saul was removed as king to establish David's kingdom. However, it is also a prophetic statement about Satan being removed from his throne as the prince of the world by Jesus Christ who conquered death and saved His people from Satan. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34); He exalts people of low esteem as He exalted the young shepherd boy David and He was exalting Mary in her lowly state (v. 48 above).
(53) "He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty."
God has filled the hungry and poor with the good things they need and has blessed them with things greater than the riches of the world. He has sent the rich away empty, not necessarily a proactive move on God's part but because they don't rely on Him for their needs. If they prayed at all, their prayers would likely be those to enrich themselves even more and to make them less likely to depend on God. God might indeed deny or take away riches in order to bring one closer to Him, their only true source of salvation and joy.
(54) "He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy."
God has continued to support Israel, mercifully remembering His covenant with Abraham, "I will make you a great nation, I will bless you and make your name great, and you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you, and in you shall all families of the earth be blessed." (Genesis 12:2-3) The original word translated as "helped" is a very long word meaning so much more than helped. It means to lay hold of and participate in the support of something, in this case Israel. God was always an ever-present support for His people, Israel, and in bringing forth Jesus from Mary's womb, all families of the earth would now be blessed.
(55) "As He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever."
Mary concluded her hymn by adding that God had spoken to and reminded their fathers from Abraham down through the generations through David to Jesus about His promise. From Jesus forward in time the covenant would be with His spiritual seed, as of course, Jesus would have no natural descendants.
(56) And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.
Mary stayed with Elizabeth and Zacharias about three months, which would have been about the time that Elizabeth was to deliver her child, and then she returned to her home.
(57) Now Elizabeth's full time came that she should deliver, and she brought forth a son.
Indeed, it was Elizabeth's time to give birth and she brought forth a son.
(58) And her neighbors and her cousins heard how the Lord had shown great mercy on her and they rejoiced with her.
When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had blessed Elizabeth with a son in her old and barren age, they rejoiced with her. Indeed, this was a fulfillment of the prophecy the angel had given Zacharias in Luke 1:14, that many would rejoice at his birth.
(59) And it came to pass that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they called him Zacharias after the name of his father.
When the baby was eight days old, some of those same neighbors and relatives came to circumcise the baby as was Jewish law. It was the time at which the baby was normally given his name. Those who were in attendance for the circumcision called the baby Zacharias after his father.
(60) And his mother answered and said, "No, he shall be called John."
Elizabeth objected and said that her baby's name was to be John as the angel had said it was to be.
(61) And they said to her, "There is none of your kindred who is called by this name."
However, the people answered back that there was no one in her family who was called by John, as it must have been a usual custom to name babies after others in their family. The name John literally meant "Jehovah is a gracious giver," as He certainly had been in giving Elizabeth this child. This was especially true when you consider who it was that John was sent to proclaim and prepare the way for; the gracious God gave the world Jesus to save them.
(62) And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.
The people used sign language to ask Zacharias what he wanted the baby called.
(63) And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, saying, "His name is John." And they all marveled.
Zacharias motioned for a writing tablet and wrote that the baby's name was to be John. The people were amazed at this, probably because he didn't want the baby named after him, and because he and Elizabeth were in agreement when he had been deaf and dumb this whole time.
(64) And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosened, and he spoke and praised God.
As soon as Zacharias had named the child John, all things being accomplished that the angel had foretold, all impediments to his speech, and to his hearing if there was any, were removed and He was able to speak and praised God.
(65) And fear came on all who dwelt around them, and all these sayings were talked about abroad throughout all the hill country of Judea.
At that, the people marveled even more and were in awe and even fear. They told about the things that had happened and word spread throughout the hill country of Judea.
(66) And all those who heard laid them up in their hearts, saying, "What manner of child will this be?" And the hand of the Lord was with him.
Those who heard about the circumstances surrounding John's birth and naming stored those things in their hearts, wondering what sort of child he would grow to be, as it was obvious to them that the extraordinary circumstances of his birth meant the hand of God was on him. The King James Version of this verse made the statement declarative and exclamatory, rather than a question: "What manner of child will this be!" That suggests the same thing that he must be something special. Indeed, the hand of the Lord was on John.
(67) And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost and prophesied, saying, (68) "Blessed the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people."
Zacharias was then filled with the Holy Spirit and began to prophesy, first by praising His Lord God of all Israel who was with them and was redeeming His people. Zacharias may not have known just how He was doing that, but by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he spoke it as if it were done.
(69) "And has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David."
Obviously still speaking the words of the Holy Spirit, Zacharias went on to say that God had raised up a horn of salvation, the horn signifying strength, glory, and power, for His people from the line of His servant David, who was of course, Jesus Christ. "The horn of my salvation" was quoted by David in Psalms 18:2.
(70) "As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets who have been since the world began, (71) That we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;"
This horn of salvation in the form of Jesus Christ had been spoken of by prophets of God since the beginning of time, from Genesis to Moses to the prophets. This salvation would save them from their enemies and all who hated them in that their sins and Satan and his wicked followers could no longer destroy them. Their mortal earthly bodies might be destroyed, but through the redemption in the saving grace of Jesus Christ, they could live forever with God in heaven.
(72) "To perform the mercy to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant, (73) The oath which He swore to our father Abraham."
In saving His people, God was performing the mercy He promised to their patriarchs and remembering His covenant made with Abraham that He would bless Abraham and make his descendants as numerous as the stars in heaven and that his descendants would possess the gates of his enemies, as with Solomon and David and other kings, and ultimately with Jesus Christ who triumphed over death itself, and in his descendants all nations of the world would be blessed (Genesis 22:17-18).
(74) "That He would grant to us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, (75) In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life."
That promised merciful salvation that the Lord granted to His people even at the time Zacharias was speaking, since His people were being delivered from the hands of their enemies, should allow them to serve Him without fear in true holiness and righteousness, not in mere outward rituals and legal ceremonies. Through the redemption that would be in Jesus Christ, His people would be considered holy and righteous before the Lord and could serve Him all the days of their lives.
(76) "And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Highest, for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways."
Zacharias, turning his prophetic speech to his son, said that this child would be called the prophet of the Highest, the Highest obviously being God, but he could also be called the prophet of the highest calling, as he was the one who went before the Lord Jesus to prepare the way for Him.
(77) "To give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins, (78) Through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the Dayspring from on high has visited us, (79) To give light to them who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."
Zacharias's son John would prophesy and prepare the way of the Lord by giving the knowledge of salvation through the remission of their sins to His people. That salvation would come to be because of the tender mercy of our Father God from whom that morning Light of the World from on high would come down to earth to give light to His people who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide them into the way of spiritual peace and joy.
(80) And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing to Israel.
Zacharias's prophecy now ended, scripture returned to the child of Zacharias and Elizabeth, John, who would become known as John the Baptist. He grew and became strong in spirit and was in the deserts until he entered public ministry. Either he grew up and then went to the desert region until ready to start his ministry, or perhaps the meaning is that while he grew, he spent his time in the deserts near his home, indicating he did not attend the schools of the Jews or apprentice with rabbis. In solitude he was taught by God and he became strong in spirit. He began his ministry at about the age of 30, as Jesus did, as was the law as gleaned from Numbers 4:3.
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