And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it to me according to your word. And the angel departed from her.
Behold.
2 Samuel 7:25-29 And now, O LORD God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, establish it for ever, and do as thou hast said…
Psalm 116:16 O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds.
Romans 4:20,21 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; …
be.
Psalm 119:38 Stablish thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear.
"May it happen to me according to your word."
Mary's statement demonstrates her faith in God's promise and her trust in His plan. This phrase is reminiscent of the faith shown by the prophets who trusted in God's word despite uncertain outcomes. It also connects to the theme of God's word being fulfilled, as seen throughout Scripture, such as in Isaiah 55:11, where God's word accomplishes what He desires. Mary's acceptance of God's will prefigures Jesus' own submission to the Father's will, particularly in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42). Her faith is a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14, where a virgin would conceive and bear a son, highlighting her role in God's redemptive plan.
Then the angel left her.
The departure of the angel signifies the completion of the divine message and the beginning of its fulfillment. This moment marks a transition from divine revelation to human action, as Mary now carries the responsibility of bearing the Messiah. The angel's departure is similar to other biblical instances where divine messengers deliver God's word and then leave, such as the angelic visitations to Abraham and Gideon. This emphasizes the sufficiency of God's word and the trust placed in human agents to carry out His will. The angel's leaving underscores the reality of Mary's situation, as she must now navigate the challenges ahead with faith and reliance on God's promise.
– Mary embraces her identity before doing anything. She calls herself “servant”—literally a bond-slave—placing God’s authority above her own aspirations.
– This echoes the pattern of faithful followers: • Moses, who answered “Here I am” when God called (Exodus 3:4-12). • Samuel, who said “Speak, for Your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:10). • Paul, who introduced himself as “a servant of Christ Jesus” (Romans 1:1).
– By confessing her status, Mary shows that availability matters more than ability. She trusts God’s sovereign plan as described in Isaiah 64:8: “We are the clay; You are our potter.”
– Application: True discipleship starts with surrender. Like Mary, believers today acknowledge that every gift, dream, and plan belongs first to the Lord (Romans 12:1).
– Her response is immediate. There’s no bargaining, no delay, no hint of reluctance.
– Quick obedience mirrors Abraham, who “rose early in the morning” to obey God’s command (Genesis 22:3), and the fishermen who “left their nets at once and followed Him” (Mark 1:18).
– Mary’s answering faith is relational, not ritual. She engages in conversation with God’s messenger, reflecting David’s readiness in Psalm 40:8, “I delight to do Your will, O my God.”
– Mary submits not to vague fate but to God’s spoken promise. “Your word” links her faith directly to divine revelation, exactly as Hebrews 11:11 praises Sarah for judging God “faithful who had promised.”
– Her statement includes:
• Consent: She welcomes God’s plan into her personal life, knowing the social cost of bearing a child before marriage (Matthew 1:19).
• Confidence: She trusts God’s power to accomplish the impossible, as the angel just affirmed in Luke 1:37, “For nothing will be impossible with God.”
• Cooperation: She aligns her will with God’s, mirroring Jesus’ later prayer, “Yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42).
– Faith always rests on God’s Word. Psalm 119:140: “Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and Your servant loves them.”
– The divine messenger departs because his mission—delivering God’s Word—was complete. Revelation produces responsibility; once Mary believes, the next step is for her to walk it out by faith.
– Similar scenes occur when:
• The angel leaves Gideon after commissioning him (Judges 6:21-24).
• The risen Christ vanishes from the Emmaus road once the disciples grasp the truth (Luke 24:31-32).
– God often withdraws visible signs after speaking so that trust matures in unseen obedience (2 Corinthians 5:7).
– From here, Mary moves forward in practical faith—traveling to Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-45) and ultimately carrying the Messiah—showing that real belief produces real action (James 2:22).
Luke 1:38 portrays the essence of living faith: humble identity (“servant”), immediate response (“Mary answered”), wholehearted submission (“May it happen…”), and confident obedience even when the messenger departs. Mary’s words invite every believer to stand on God’s unbreakable promises, yield personal plans to His perfect will, and step forward trusting that “He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
(38) Behold the handmaid of the Lord . . .--The words seem to show a kind of half-consciousness that the lot which she thus accepts might bring with it unknown sufferings, as well as untold blessedness. She shrinks, as it were, from the awfulness of the position thus assigned to her, but she can say, as her Son said afterwards, when His time of agony was come, "Not my will, but Thine be done." It may be that the more immediate peril of which St. Matthew speaks (1:19). flashed even then upon her soul as one that could not be escaped. (Comp. Luke 2:35.)Verse 38. - Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. "God's message," writes Godet, "by the mouth of the angel was not a command. The part Mary had to fulfill made no demands on her. It only remained, therefore, for Mary to consent to the consequences of the Divine offer. She gives this consent in a word at once simple and sublime, which involved the most extraordinary act of faith that a woman ever consented to accomplish. Mary accepts the sacrifice of that which is dearer to a young maiden than her very life, and thereby becomes pre-eminently the heroine of Israel, the ideal daughter of Zion." Nor was the immediate trouble and sorrow which she foresaw would soon compass her round by any means the whole burden which submission to the angel's message would bring upon the shrinking Nazareth maiden. The lot proposed to her would bring probably in its wake unknown sufferings as well as untold blessedness. We may with all reverence think Mary already feeling the first piercings in her heart of that sharp sword which was one day to wound so deeply the mother of sorrows; yet in spite of all this, in full view of the present woe, which submission to the Divine will would forthwith bring upon her, with an unknown future of sorrow in the background, Mary submitted herself of her own free will to what she felt was the will and wish of her God.