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The Psalm of Mary
By Lisa Rampton
(print
version)
“My
soul doth magnify the Lord.”
Thus spake the
Virgin Mary upon hearing of her grand calling to be the mother
of the Savior of the world. And so begins one of the purest and
humblest passages in all scripture (Luke 1:46-55), referred to
in the Christian world as the “Magnificat”, from the first word
of the Latin canticle (Magnificat anima mea Dominum, et exultavit
spiritus meus in Deo salutari meo). But who is this
“precious and chosen vessel” (Alma 7:10) who expresses a willingness
to submit to the will of the Father and to magnify Him?
In truth, the
scriptures give us very few details about Mary’s personal history,
though much has been speculated. Still, the song of praise that
bursts forth from Mary’s own lips in response to the tremendous
news is our best resource of insight into her heart and her faith.
In it, Mary speaks of the true nature of God, and models ways
of responding to Him. We see a woman eager to fulfill any mission
– no matter how daunting or seemingly impossible – that the Father
might place before her. Though aware of her weaknesses and humble
in her approach to Deity, she also knows that “with God nothing
shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37); as she magnifies Him, Mary recognizes
that the Father will magnify her. In addition, Mary’s song of
praise shows a deep knowledge of Old Testament scripture and God’s
covenants with Israel. She draws freely from the words of Deuteronomy,
Psalms, and Isaiah, scriptures which later become some of the
most important for the New Testament Church.
When we look
closely at Mary’s “Magnificat”, each phrase is instructive. Moreover,
each one is echoed in other scripture. Let us now make a journey
through her “psalm”, illuminated by scriptures of a similar nature.
In doing so we too can come closer to Mary’s understanding of
God the Father and thus, like she, more readily trust in His power.
The
Psalm of Mary or Mary’s Magnificat
46
And Mary said, My
soul doth magnify the Lord
My
soul delighteth to prophesy concerning [the Savior], for I have
seen his day,
and
my heart doth magnify his holy name. (2 Nephi 25:13)
Let your light so
shine before this people, that they may see your good works,
and
glorify your Father who is in heaven. (3 Nephi 12:16)
And whatsoever thing ye
shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father
may
be glorified in the Son. (John 14:13)
47 And
my spirit hath rejoiced in the Lord my Savior.
And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth
in the Lord, mine horn is
exalted
in the Lord…; I rejoice in thy salvation. There is none holy
as
the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:1-2)
And we
talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ,
we
prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophesies,
that
our children may know to what source they may look
for
a remission of their sins. (2 Nephi 25:26)
48 For
he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden:
And [Hannah] said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed
look on the affliction
of
thine handmaiden, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid,
but wilt
give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him
unto the
Lord all the days of his life. (1 Samuel 1:11)
The Lord...inviteth them all to come unto him and partake
of his goodness,
and
he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and
free,
male
and female…; and all are alike unto God… (2 Nephi 26:33)
Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly of heart.
(Matthew 11:29)
for, behold, from henceforth
all generations shall call me blessed.
Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above
rubies…
Her
children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also…
A
woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.
(Prov 31:10, 28, 30)
And the
angel came in unto [Mary], and said, Hail, thou virgin, who art
highly
favored of the Lord. The Lord is with thee, for thou art chosen
and
blessed
among women. (JST Luke 1:28)
Elizabeth
was filled with the Holy Ghost; and she spake out with a loud
voice,
and
said, Blessed art thou among women, & blessed is the fruit
of thy
womb.
(Luke 1:42)
She [the woman who anointed Christ with oil] hath done
what she could: and
this
which she has done unto me, shall be had in remembrance in
generations
to come, wheresoever my gospel shall be preached; for verily
she
has come beforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
(JST Mark
14:8)
49 For
he that is mighty had done great things;
Then
was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with signing:
then said
they
among the heathen, The Lord hath done great
things for them.
(Psalm 126:2)
Yea, how is it that ye
have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for
us…,
and how it is that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to
do all
things
according to his will, for the children of men, if they exercise
faith
in
him? Wherefore, let us be faithful unto him. (1 Nephi 7:11-12)
By small and simple things
are great things brought to pass; and small means in
many
instances doth confound the wise. And the Lord God doth work
by
means
to bring about his great and eternal purposes. (Alma
37:6-7)
Let them
praise thy great and terrible name, for it is holy. (Psalm
99:3)
Our Father
which are in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. (Matthew
6:9)
Who shall
not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name?
For thou only art holy. (Revelation 15:4)
50 And
his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
Gather
me the people together, and I will make them hear my words,
that they
may
learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth,
and
that
they may teach their children. (Deuteronomy 4:10)
The Lord
is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy…For
as
the
heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them
that
fear
him…The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon
them
that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children.
(Psalm
103)
51 He
hath showed strength with his arm;
Awake,
awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord…The Lord hath made bare
his
holy
arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth
shall see
the
salvation of our God. (Isaiah 51:9; 52:10)
And [Jesus]
took [the little children] up in his arms, put his hands upon
them,
and
blessed them. (Mark 10:16)
The
Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory,
and am I
encircled
about eternally in the arms of his love. (2 Nephi 1:15)
he hath scattered the proud
in the imagination of their hearts.
For,
behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the
proud, year,
and
all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh
shall
burn
them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither
root
nor
branch. (Malachi 4:1)
52 He
hath put down the mighty from their seats,
But
it must need be done in mine own way; and behold this is the way
that I, the
Lord,
have decreed to provide for my saints, that the poor shall be
exalted,
in
that the rich are made low. (Doctrine & Covenants 104:16)
and exalted them of low
degree.
And
Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that
sold and
bought
in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money-changers,
and
the
seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, It is written,
My
house
shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den
of
thieves.
And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he
healed
them. (Matthew 21:12-13)
But he
that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever
shall
exalt
himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall
be
exalted.
(Matthew 23:11-12)
53 He
hath filled the hungry with good things;
And he
took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to
his
disciples
to set before them; and they did set them before the people.
And
they
had a few small fishes; and he blessed, and commanded to set them
also
before them. So they did eat, and were filled…(Mark 8:6-8)
And blessed
are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they
shall
be
filled with the Holy Ghost. (3 Nephi 12:6)
And he
said unto them: He that eateth this bread eateth of my body to
his soul;
and
he that drinketh of this wine drinketh of my blood to his soul;
and his
soul
shall never thirst, but shall be filled. (3 Nephi 20:8)
and the rich he hath sent
empty away.
And behold,
one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall
I
do,
that I may have eternal life?...Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt
be
perfect,
go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt
have
treasure
in heaven: and come and follow me. But when the young man
heard
that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
(Matthew
19:16, 21-22)
54 He
hath helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy.
Thou
wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which
thou has
sworn
unto our fathers from the days of old. (Micah 7:20)
55
As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.
Blessed
be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his
people…To
perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember
his
holy covenant; The oath which he sware to our father Abraham…
(Luke 1:68, 72-73)
As Mary, may we each
seek to magnify the Lord and to rejoice in our Savior. May we
have faith that the Father’s ability to do great and blessed
things in our own lives. May we trust in His word, His justice,
and His mercy. In doing so, we will find that we are filled with
good things and with a greater testimony of God our Eternal Father.
Author’s Bio
Lisa Rampton has extensive
experience in Middle Eastern History. She attended the BYU Jerusalem
Center, completed her Undergraduate and Masters Degrees at Stanford
University in International Relations and Modern Jewish &
Middle Eastern History, spent a year studying and researching
in Israel on Fulbright and Wallenburg scholarships, and is fluent
in Hebrew. Lisa currently teaches high school English and serves
as a Gospel Doctrine teacher in the Stanford 2nd Ward.
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