She was childless in a culture that valued large families. She was no longer young. She was from a small town. There is no mention of her education or career. She didn’t matter to anyone but her husband who loved her. Her name was Hannah. All the people who have read the Scriptures down through the ages know her. Her proclamation of faith, recorded for all ensuing generations is stunning in its scope and deep understanding of the working of God.
Centuries later another woman was childless in a culture that valued large families. She was no longer young. She was from a small town. There is no mention of her education or career. She didn’t matter much to anyone except her husband who loved her. Her name was Elizabeth. All those who have read the New Testament know her. Her influence lives on.
At that same time, there was another woman so young she wasn’t yet married. She also came from a small town. There is no mention of her education or the start of a career. She was unremarkable in her society. Her name was Mary and all those who have read the New Testament know her. Her proclamation of faith, recorded for all generations following is stunning in its scope and deep understanding of the working of God.

Hannah, Elizabeth, and Mary were ordinary women with no prestige, power, or influence in their small nation. They knew they had nothing to deserve God’s kindness or even his notice. They personified humility. They knew they were nothing in the eyes of their society. But they recognized that wealth and position are human values and God can reverse them. Possessions can be taken from the wealthy and power from the influential. They themselves became examples of God stooping down to lift up the unimportant to importance in his kingdom. God determines who falls and who rises and often it isn’t what we would expect.

“It is not by strength that one prevails; those who oppose the Lord will be broken.” Hannah in 1 Samuel 2:9-10

“Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him.” Luke 2:34-35

“The first will be last and the last will be first.”  Matthew 20:16

“Then Jesus asked them, “Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures?
‘The stone that the builders rejected
has now become the cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing,
and it is wonderful to see.’ Psalm 118:22-23
I tell you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation that will produce the proper fruit. Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.” Matthew 21:42-44

Their statements of faith weren’t made in private between the person and God. They were made in the presence of others. Hannah prayed to God in the presence of Eli the priest, her son, Samuel, and possibly her husband at the Tabernacle entrance. Mary made her statement to her relative, Elizabeth, and possibly Elizabeth’s husband, in their home after Elizabeth had made her declaration of faith. Faith is nurtured in community. It isn’t a DIY faith. We were meant to encourage, support, and teach each other according to God’s plan.

Mary had a visit from an angel who disclosed that God had chosen her to be the mother of the Messiah.   He also let her in on the secret that her old relative was already in her sixth month of pregnancy and would have a son.    ^” A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town  where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.  At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, ‘God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.’
Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me.
He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him.
His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands.
He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful.
For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.”  Luke 1:39-55

It appears that Hannah’s humble prayer had a strong influence on Mary’s humble statement of faith. Mary must have memorized Hannah’s prayer as a girl and when her own mother’s heart overflowed in gratitude she expressed those beautiful thoughts in her own way. Below I’ve compared the words of Hannah with the words of Mary.

Hannah:  My heart rejoices.
Mary:  My spirit rejoices

Hannah:  My horn is lifted high.
Mary:  All generations will call me blessed

Hannah:  There is no one holy like the Lord.
Mary:  The Mighty One is holy

Hannah:  I delight in your deliverance.
Mary:  He has done great things for me

Hannah:  Do not keep speaking so proudly
Mary:  He has scattered the proud and haughty ones

Hannah:  The bows of the warriors are broken.
Mary:  He has brought down princes

Hannah:  Those who stumbled are armed with strength.
Mary:  Exalted the humble

Hannah:  Those who were hungry are hungry no more.
Mary:  He has filled the hungry with good things

Hannah:  Those who were full hire themselves out for food.
Mary:  sent the rich away with empty hands

Hannah:  He will guard the feet of his faithful servants.
Mary:  He has helped his servant

Both Hannah of old and Mary spoke out of their happiness and gratitude. They talked about the Lord’s holiness, strength, superiority, reliability, and promises. Both Hannah and Elizabeth’s sons exhibited the strong faith of their mothers and became leaders who called their people back to God. Mary spoke 41 words about herself, and 96 about God. She honestly expressed her own feelings and she also got the big picture of who God is and what he has done/is doing in the world. I tend to think more about the gifts than the Giver. How many times when I thank God for a blessing I got do I also thank him for who he is and what he’s doing/done in the world? How often do I acknowledge that it’s his perogative to run the world as he sees fit?   It’s so easy to be self-centered which makes for a very small worldview! Dear Husband remembers to keep the Giver in mind when he prays before meals, “Thank you for this good food that you always provide for us. You are good to us.” This kind of prayer honors God for his faithfulness and goodness and reminds us what kind of God we serve.

Take-aways:
Give God the thanks he deserves for personal blessings and for his work in the world since the beginning of time upending what society considers important.
Talk to each other about God.
Remember that God often picks unimportant people to do his important work.

For Extra Reading
*Hannah’s prayer:
Then Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
in the Lord my horn[a] is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.

“There is no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.

“Do not keep talking so proudly
or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
for the Lord is a God who knows,
and by him deeds are weighed.

“The bows of the warriors are broken,
but those who stumbled are armed with strength.
Those who were full hire themselves out for food,
but those who were hungry are hungry no more.
She who was barren has borne seven children,
but she who has had many sons pines away.

“The Lord brings death and makes alive;
he brings down to the grave and raises up.
The Lord sends poverty and wealth;
he humbles and he exalts.
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
he seats them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of honor.

“For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;
on them he has set the world.
He will guard the feet of his faithful servants,
but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.

“It is not by strength that one prevails;
those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most High will thunder from heaven; (interestingly this literally happened in 1 Samuel 7:10 “ But the Lord spoke with a mighty voice of thunder from heaven that day, and the Philistines were thrown into such confusion that the Israelites defeated them. Maybe in answer to a mother’s prayer?!)
the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.

“He will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.”(written before there was a king in Israel. So this last verse must be a Messianic prophecy as is perhaps the first verse.) 1 Samuel 2:1-10