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He Hath Done Great Things -- The God Who Acts

Series: Luke: An Orderly Account - Dr. Randy White

I. He Performs His Word (vv. 39-45)

The Promises Met In One House

• Mary went "with haste"—with earnest promptness, not panic or flight—to the hill country and greeted Elisabeth. Luke leaves the city unnamed; Elisabeth's pregnancy, not a traditional site, was Gabriel's confirmation of God's word.
• At Mary's greeting, the unborn John leaped for joy and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. The promised forerunner was already responding to the presence of the greater One (Luke 1:15; John 3:29).
• Luke calls the prenatal John a "babe," the same word used of the newborn Jesus (Luke 2:12, 16). The wording supports continuity of personal life, though John's leap was a unique prophetic sign.
• Elisabeth called the child "my Lord" and called Mary blessed because "the fruit of thy womb" was blessed. Mary's honor was real but derived from Christ's identity; the Holy Ghost disclosed His presence before Mary gave any recorded explanation (Psalm 110:1).

The Lord's Performance Was Believed

• "Blessed is she that believed" quietly contrasts Mary's faith with Zacharias's unbelief.
• Faith did not create the promised event. Mary believed "there shall be a performance" because the Lord would perform what He had spoken. His word was visible in Elisabeth, recognizable in Mary, and joyful to John (Romans 4:20-21).

II. He Regards The Lowly (vv. 46-49)

Mary Magnified The Lord, Not Herself

• The Magnificat sounds like an Old Testament psalm and strongly echoes Hannah's song (1 Samuel 2:1-10). Mary understood her privilege within the language and hope of Israel's Scriptures.
• "My soul doth magnify the Lord" establishes the subject of Mary's song. Her privilege directed attention to the Lord rather than enlarging herself (Psalm 34:3).
• "My soul" and "my spirit" form poetic parallelism for Mary's whole-person praise. She rejoiced in "God my Saviour," placing herself among those dependent upon God's saving mercy.
• God "hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden." Her low estate describes her humble condition; her blessedness came from God's gracious regard.

The Mighty One Had Done Great Things

• All generations would call Mary blessed because "he that is mighty hath done to me great things." God was the actor and Mary the favored recipient; His might remained consistent with His holiness: "holy is his name."
• Scripture requires recognition of Mary's unique blessedness without making her divine, sinless, or an object of prayer. Neglect and excess are opposite errors (Luke 11:27-28).

III. He Reverses Human Greatness (vv. 50-53)

The Proud And Mighty Were Brought Low

• The repeated "hath" statements survey God's established pattern and celebrate the promised reversal as certain. Biblical songs can speak of declared victory as accomplished.
• God's mercy is "on them that fear him from generation to generation." Mercy welcomes reverent dependence rather than proud autonomy (Psalm 103:17).
• He "hath shewed strength with his arm," scattered the proud, put down the mighty, and exalted the lowly. Messiah's coming confronts human independence; earthly rank never escapes God's sovereignty (1 Samuel 2:7-8; Daniel 4:17).
• God's "arm" pictures active power, while "seats" means thrones. The passage does not condemn authority merely for existing; it declares God's sovereignty over those who possess it.

The Hungry Were Filled

• He "hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away." Acknowledged need receives from God; self-sufficiency leaves empty (1 Samuel 2:5; Psalm 107:9).
• Poverty is not inherently righteous, nor is wealth inherently sinful. The contrast is needy dependence against self-reliance: proud human power will not endure, but those who fear God will know His mercy.
• "Good things" means beneficial gifts, not everything desired. Possessions cannot make God indebted, and Mary's reversal anticipates Luke's later kingdom warnings (Luke 6:20-25).

IV. He Remembers His Covenant (vv. 54-56)

Israel Was His Servant

• God "hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy." The incarnation is presented as covenant help to the nation Scripture actually names (Isaiah 41:8-10; Psalm 98:3).
• God's remembrance is faithful action upon promised mercy. The Magnificat is not detached spirituality or generic social improvement; it interprets Jesus' coming through God's purpose for Israel.
• "Holpen" is the older participle of help and pictures taking hold to support. God was taking hold of His servant Israel in covenant faithfulness.

Ancient Promise Governed The Praise

• God acted "as he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever." Christ's coming advances the Abrahamic promise rather than beginning a plan unrelated to Israel (Genesis 12:1-3; 17:7; Micah 7:20).
• Christ is the promised Seed in the focused sense, but that truth does not erase the promise's stated connection to Abraham's descendants (Galatians 3:16).
• "For ever" most naturally describes the enduring mercy and help promised to Abraham and his seed, not endless speech to the fathers.
• Mary returned to "her own house" after about three months, still in her betrothal setting. Luke does not say whether she attended John's birth; he closes the visit without embellishment. Her song had declared the governing truth: He performs His word, regards the lowly, reverses human greatness, and remembers His covenant—"he that is mighty hath done to me great things."