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Advent Season · Third Sunday of Advent · Year B

Luke 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54 (Isaiah 61:10b)

Mary’s Song

December 13, 2026

The Visitation, Philippe de Champaigne
The Visitation, Philippe de Champaigne, 1643–1648Princeton University Art Museum
Champaigne's two women meet on a stone step with almost nothing around them, painted in his later, plainer manner.My soul magnifies the Lord: the Magnificat is spoken at this meeting.Philippe de ChampaigneA Brussels-born painter who became the portraitist of Richelieu and of Port-Royal, and whose style grew plainer as his Jansenism deepened.Princeton University Art MuseumA teaching museum on the Princeton campus, free to enter, rebuilt and reopened in 2025.Princeton University Art Museum
Roman Lectionary
GospelJohn 1:6-8, 19-28Jn 1:6-8, 19-28
Second Reading1 Thess. 5:16-241 Thes 5:16-24
First ReadingIsa. 61:1-2a, 10-11Is 61:1-2a, 10-11
Responsorial PsalmLuke 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54 (Isaiah 61:10b)Lk 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54 (Is 61:10b)

Overview & Insights

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:46-47)

In our first two sections of Luke’s text the angel Gabriel has announced two births to mothers who should not have been expecting a baby (one too old, the other not yet married). Before the births of John and Jesus are narrated, the two families are brought together, and we have in this domestic scene an opportunity to reflect on the significance of these two special people. The unborn John and his mother recognize the superior status of Mary’s son, and Mary speaks with delight and wonder of the incredible honor of being the mother of God’s Son. The paradoxical values expressed in Mary’s song prepare the reader for the repeated challenges to the status quo that will mark Jesus’s ministry as this Gospel will describe it.

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Take it further: Luke 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54 (Isaiah 61:10b)

Commentary

Luke 1:46b-55 CommentaryLk 1:46b-55 Commentary Center for Excellence in Preaching

Reformed reflection on Mary's song as a delirious hymn of reversal and joy.

Enduring Word Bible Commentary Luke Chapter 1Enduring Word Bible Commentary Lk Chapter 1 Enduring Word · David Guzik

Verse by verse study of the Magnificat and its echoes of Hannah's song.

BibleHub Commentaries on Luke 1 (Magnificat)BibleHub Commentaries on Lk 1 (Magnificat) BibleHub

Classic commentators on My soul magnifies the Lord and the great reversal that follows.

Background & Word Study

Luke 1:46 Greek InterlinearLk 1:46 Greek Interlinear BibleHub

Word by word Greek of megalynei (magnifies) with parsing and Strong's numbers.

The Church Fathers

Catena Bible: Church Fathers on Luke 1Catena Bible: Church Fathers on Lk 1 Catena

Patristic comment gathered verse by verse across Luke 1, including the Magnificat.

Questions preachers ask

What is the Magnificat?

Mary's song at the Visitation praises the God who lifts up the lowly and fills the hungry with good things, casting down the proud and the mighty. It is the church's evening song of the great reversal.

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