We dont know what if any relationship existed between elizabeth and mary prior to this event. It is unclear whether the women were first cousins or more distant relatives, as the bible simply refers to them as cousins. Mary meets elizabeth a clip from jesus of nazareth 1977. According to christian theology she conceived jesus through the holy. Jan pointed out something that caught my attention. Matthew henry comments, mary knew that elizabeth was with child, but it does not appear that elizabeth had been told any thing of her relative mary s being designed for the mother of the messiah. Where each woman provides reassurance and support and mentorship to the other. The term relative is most likely referring to a blood relationship, so it is reasonable to believe that they were related through elizabeths blood relationship to. She jumped in to help by mentoring mary in her time of need. I believe mary left elizabeths home a stronger and more confident woman in her.
The natural reaction would be to condemn yet elizabeth was. In luke, elizabeth, a daughter of the line of aaron, and the wife of zechariah, was righteous before god and was blameless but childless. The king james version describes them as cousins, but most other translations. But there is another parallel story told in these versesthe story of the relationship between mary and elizabeth, the mother of john the baptist who would be the forerunner of jesus. Elizabeth was significantly older than mary and was also her cousin. Zechariah, her husband, a priest in the service of the temple of jerusalem. Even though many generations of israelites had been born since the time of levi and judah, the lord saw all of the descendants of jacobs 12. This story is the dramatic and happy reunion of two cousins the virgin mary and her older cousin, elizabeth, the mother of john the baptist. We re first introduced to marys cousin, elizabeth, and her husband zechariah.
Comparison is the thief of joy and there is much we can learn from the relationship. How are mary, the mother of jesus, and elizabeth, the mother of. This gives three possible ways in which mary could be a relative of elizabeths, either by blood or by marriage. While elizabeth is largely known by her relationship to others namely, as john the baptists mother, marys kinswoman, and zechariahs wife, she emerges in. Spend time with someone 20 years older and youll leave wiser. Mary is referred to as elizabeths cousin in the gospel of luke. Twentyeight weeks, the end of a womans second trimester, is the normal time to expect an unborn baby to kick in the womb, and this may well have been the first time elizabeths unborn. Bible studies setting aside time to do a bible study can be challenging, but once you make the effort, its astonishing how the lord multiplies your time. Mary was a firstcentury galilean jewish woman of nazareth, the wife of joseph, and the mother of jesus, according to the canonical gospels and the quran mary in islam the gospels of matthew and luke in the new testament and the quran describe mary as a virgin. Elizabeth and zechariah are called righteous and blameless people who walked in all the commandments of the lord luke 1. Elizabeth, mentioned in the book of luke, is the cousin of mary, mother of jesus. Thus, elizabeth and mary were descendants of aaron and david, respectively, by way of their fathers ancestry, and not necessarily of their mothers. But there is another parallel story told in these versesthe story of the mentoring relationship between mary and elizabeth, the mother of john the baptist who would become the forerunner of jesus. Lured by walsingham into signing letters authorising the assassination of elizabeth, mary queen of scots effectively signed her own death warrant.
The passage in luke actually sets the scene by pointing out that elizabeth was six months pregnant. This gives three possible ways in which mary could be a relative of elizabeth s, either by blood or by marriage. This is the story of how, through her own recklessness and poor judgement, mary stuart became the prisoner of elizabeth and remained so until her death. Ernest borgnine on the film jesus of nazareth emmytvlegends.
Not long after the angel left her side, mary was on her way to see elizabeth. Elizabeth had the lords wisdom, and as a result, recognized marys distress. Hindi and, behold, thy cousin elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age. Now she has physical confirmation that god can work in the womb because she sees a reaction in the womb that is interpreted to her as the movement of gods holy spirit upon that. But mary and her song are good news for my neighbors, both locally and globally, who continue to be crushed under a world that thrives on exploitation and injustice. I would love to hear about your elizabeth and mary experiences. The angel also informed mary her cousin elizabeth was within three months of delivering a son luke 1. And as someone who is trying to take the bible seriously, i know that loving my neighbor is the no.
She was the first person mary sought after the angel gabriel told her she would give birth to the son of god. Elizabeth mentors mary, the mother of jesus erik and. Elizabeth and mary in the bible can teach us a lot about friendship. What mary and elizabeth in the bible can teach us about. Elizabeth, prophetess, mother of john, sheltered the pregnant mary of nazareth who spoke the magnificat. Mary had found favor with god and was chosen to conceive and give birth to a son who would be named jesus luke 1. Thank you for using that beautiful relationship between mary and elizabeth to.
Skeptic dennis mckinsey, for example, asked in his journal, biblical errancy, if, using the genealogy in luke, jesuss claim to descent sic from david, of the tribe. Apologetics press how were mary and elizabeth related. Elizabeth was married to zachariah, a jewish priest. Elizabeth is relationship with mary, queen of scots dominated english and scottish politics for 20 years. In his testament to the power of the spirit, the angel says, even elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month luke 1. The bible says mary from the house of david and elizabeth a levite were. Mary visits her relative elisabeth, who in her old age will also soon give birth to a miraculous child. The bible says mary from the house of david and elizabeth a levite were cousins. First we see elizabeth as a wife to zechariah and then as a cousin to mary, the mother of jesus. While this appears to be a clear cut answer, there is more than meets the eye as to how mary and elizabeth were related.
This elderly couple ha s long experienced the pain of infertility when one day gabriel shows up promising the faithful priest that his wife is going to conceive a son. Just like elizabeth and mary, god will work miracles in our relationship, if we just give him the time. How are mary, the mother of jesus, and elizabeth, the. She mentioned that the picture that we get about elizabeth in scripture is in the frame of her relationships. When elizabeth heard marys greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and. Elizabeth in the bible was the wife of a priest named zechariah. On the 7th of september 1533, queen anne boleyn gave birth to princess elizabeth. Ive gathered some of my favorite bible studies i know will fill you with inspiration and motivation to keep growing your relationship with christ. The story of mary and elizabeth in the bible paints a picture of the best of relationships, free from any envy and full of genuine love. Mary and elizabeth were pregnant at the same time, but elizabeth was much older than mary, past the normal child bearing age. Since elizabeth and mary are cousins and elizabeth is a descendant of aaron, therefore mary is a descendant of aaron as well. Elizabeth is called the relative or kinswoman of mary in all other translations, only in the kjv we read thy cousin elisabeth. Mary was chosen to be the mother of our savior whose kingdom will never end.
Scripture doesnt tell us all they talked about, but i am sure it was personal. Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to mary, god has blessed. Being 2 of the 12 sons of jacob also called israel elizabeth s ancestor levi and mary s ancestor judah were brothers. Esv 36 and behold, your relative elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. Luke 1 commentary marys meeting with elizabeth biblegateway.
How was elizabeth related to mary, mother of jesus. Mary and elizabeth both found themselves in situations they never could have imagined. Now, as a new film mary queen of scots, starring saoirse ronan and margot robbie, airs in the us, we look back at a 2015 article written by anna whitelock charting the two queens stormy rivalry, from fleeting detentes to bloody denouement. Elizabeth, also spelled elisabeth derives from elisheba was the mother of john the baptist and. What is the relationship between mary and elizabeth in the. References henry, matthew 1997, commentary on the whole bible electronic database. While i totally agree with your comments around elizabeth reassuring mary, i also imagine that mary reassured elizabeth as well. And in joseph and marys relationship, we hear from mary, but joseph is absent and unheard. In matthew and luke she is betrothederusin to joseph. One of my favorite examples of female friendship in the bible is the relationship between mary and elizabeth. Mary always refused because she was loyal to her mother.
Mary is referred to as elizabeth s cousin in the gospel of luke. Elizabeth comes from the gospel, the book of luke, in particular. What i love about real, honest and genuine relationships between women is that we can find comfort and encouragement from a sister in similar circumstances. In bible study today jan taught on elizabeth, the mother of john the baptist. Mary stayed with elizabeth for about three months and then returned home. Right away she blesses mary and the baby in her womb. The angel also told her of her cousin elizabeth s pregnancy in her old age. Luke is the only evangelist who mentions the relationship between elizabeth and mary. There are so many wonderful women of the bible we can compare. The baby would be born holy and would be called the son of god. Now she has personal confirmation that god does conception miracles and that what gabriel says is true, that through the testimony of elizabeth.
Please share in the comments so others can be blessed. The term relative is most likely referring to a blood relationship, so it is reasonable to believe that they were related through elizabeth s blood relationship to either mary s father or mother in the tribe of judah. When mary finally came into the presence of her cousin elizabeth, elizabeth was overjoyed. While that may be what mary believed, its definitely not the truth henry is responsible for this as anne tried several times to have a relationship with mary.
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