First sermon.*)
Luc. 1, 39-56.
And Mary arose in those days, and went up into the mountains to the end of the city of Jude, and came into the house of Zacharias, and greeted Elizabeth. And it came to pass, when Elisabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost, and cried with a loud voice, saying, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence cometh it unto me, that the mother of my Lord cometh unto me? Behold, when I heard the voice of thy greeting, the child leaped with joy in my womb. Blessed art thou that hast believed, for that which was spoken unto thee of the Lord shall be fulfilled. And Mary said, My soul exalteth the Lord, and my spirit rejoiceth in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the lowliness of his handmaid. Behold, from henceforth all the children shall call me blessed. For he has done great things for me, who is mighty, and whose name is holy. And his mercy endureth for ever unto them that fear him. He wieldeth violence with his arm, and scattereth them that have hope in their heart. He pushes the mighty from their seats and lifts up the lowly. He fills the hungry with goods and leaves the rich empty. He remembereth mercy, and restoreth his servant Israel, as he spake unto our fathers, unto Abraham, and to his seed for ever. And Mary abode with her three months; and after that she returned again.
This feast is also called the Feast of Our Lady, which the pope instituted only a short time ago to drive out the Turks with it, as can be seen in the lection that is sung at matins. There it says: "Just as the Virgin Mary walked over the mountains and trampled the mountains, so she should be invoked to trample the Turks under her with the same feet. But the longer we celebrated this feast and called upon the Virgin Mary, the more the Turk trampled us. Therefore, we should not and will not celebrate this feast for this reason.
But we want to celebrate it by thanking God for the glorious revelation that happened on this day, that Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, and since she did not know about Christ and his conception before, she now comes out and confesses that Mary is the true mother of her Lord and God; and that John shows his Lord in the womb with leaping, and that Mary sings the beautiful hymn, the Magnificat, from which we see how learned she is, and we learn to sing after her. All this is well worth it,
*) Held in the house, 1532.
that we celebrate in order to learn and thank God for it. The Pabst's celebration is to call upon Mariam, but our celebration is to praise and thank God, according to the example of the dear virgins, so that we may celebrate as she celebrated.
Let us take and act on two things from this Gospel: the first is the example of the virgin Mary, according to works and outward manners; the other is praise or thanksgiving, that she gives thanks to God and sings to us the beautiful hymn of praise; so that we may learn fine outward discipline before the world, and both outward and inward works before God, gladness, thanksgiving and faith, which we owe to God to give with words and heart.
The first part is about external discipline and manners. Fine, beautiful virtues are presented to us. The first virtue is humility. The young maiden Mary, although she is highly honored (for she is God's mother, that Elizabeth should follow her), nevertheless, because God has decreed that old people should be honored, she follows the same teaching, and even though she is already higher, she still falls down, bows her heart and humbles herself, that
she follows her friend so far and desires to serve her during the six weeks. Even though Elizabeth is older than Mary, she humbles herself before the young maiden and says: "Where does it come from that the mother of my Lord comes to me?
This is a very glorious adornment and great adornment of the dear virgin, that she does not become proud of the honor she has, that she is God's mother and is to give birth to the Son of God. It would not be surprising that she would have fallen into a greater hell, deeper than Lucifer with his companions. For behold, what do we poor mud sacks do? If we have a penny or a florin, no one can get along with us for court. A cattle-maid, who has a beautiful hair, puffs herself up and becomes proud; a young man, who has a beautiful skirt, - all together he becomes proud and insolent, if he has something special; be it beauty, art, money, nobility, he knows neither end nor measure of his arrogance, and yet all is like dung in the street against the great grace, which this virgin has here.
6. For with her it is not a matter of silver and gold; if all the gold that is in the world were in one lump, it would be a stink compared to this great honor, which no man on earth has ever had, that the angels in heaven themselves, and after them Elizabeth, the great woman who gave birth to the greatest Son after Christ, call her the mother of God and the most noble of all women; and yet this highest, noblest, holiest mother does not look at her great gift, but gives herself down and says to the angel: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord!"And so comes a long way to Elizabeth to serve her.
(7) The angel greeted her with glorious words, and said that she was the most precious of women; and Elizabeth also cast herself down, and said unto her, Thou art the mother of my Lord; I am not worthy that thou shouldest come unto me. From such honor a carnal heart would be swollen and broken with hope; for how is it possible that a human heart should not be lifted up by it and become hopeful? Let us have ten guilders or a new skirt for the
She is not moved by the great honor. But she does not let the great honor move her, but keeps herself in humility, and serves not only her friend Elizabeth, but also all of us, and brings the Son into the world, who is the Savior of us all.
8 Ah, how the great humility of this high person will disgrace our courting on the last day, when we will see the dear virgin, and she will address us proudly and say: I have not been proud or boastful, and I have had more than you can have as empress and queen. But what was the cause of your court? Why have you been so proud? A golden chain, a beautiful skirt, a beautiful body made you so proud. But what is this compared to the fact that I have been the mother of God, and the angels and all the saints have praised me, that I am the most noble and most gracious of women? And yet I have not exalted myself to this.
9 So, you mad saints, you heretics, you riffraff, who think you are so learned that your belly wants to burst with art, what can you do that you are so puffed up, so sure and presumptuous? Do you think you can make a verse in the Magnificat with all your art? I have also been able to speak of our Lord God, and yet I have not been hopeful, but have forgotten all my honor, walked over the mountains, served old Elizabeth during the six weeks, cooked, washed diapers, and done all the other household chores from the heart and with joy, like another maid, and have not taken on anything. Thus Mary, with her humility, will disgrace all those who hope.
10. disgrace yourself, you shameful hope, and only be ashamed who can be ashamed of this great humility, which is here, that this maiden, who is God's mother and the greatest woman in heaven and earth, can forget all goods and have such a lowly heart that she goes and is not ashamed to wash the diapers, wipe the little child John and bathe etc. Such humility is too high. It would have been cheap to have ordered her a golden chariot and to have driven her with four thousand horses.
and shouting and screaming in front of the wagon: Here rides the woman above all women, the princess among the whole human race! But all this is silent, the poor maiden goes on foot such a long way, up to twenty miles, and yet she is already God's mother. It is no wonder that all the mountains would have leapt and danced for joy. It is possible that she did not go alone, but Joseph and some other maiden with her. But Lucas says of her alone, for it is most of all in her, and it is she alone who proves such humility.
This is the first virtue: great humility. All men and women should take this image into their hearts and be afraid of their proud and stubborn heads. For we see and experience how naughty, proud and insolent the world is now, and especially the servants and the household. The master and the wife must, as the servant and the maid will, so much pride is among the people, and yet they are only poor, miserable beggars; let alone what the great noblemen and women do, since honor, power, property, art and other things. This will not last long; thunder and lightning will have to strike in the end to feed pride.
But if we were Christians, we would think: Dear, has this mother been able to humble herself in this way, what do I, a wretched man, want to be so pompous, unworthy and proud of? If I already have yellow hair, a red skirt, golden chains, if I am already learned, noble, rich, powerful, what is it then? On such hopefulness, they say, the devil wipes his ass; for in truth it is all a poor, miserable, stinking beggar's hope. Therefore, I will not be proud, poor sack of maggots, but I will learn to follow this example, so that I may hear what the dear virgin does, who is God's mother, and who could have stayed at home for half an hour; she sets out on foot and goes to serve in foreign lands, bathes the dear little girl, the little Baptist, lifts and lays her, washes her diapers; in sum, she does what the least little child in the crowd is used to doing.
(13) So this example serves us, that everyone, especially young children, learn to serve gladly and to humble themselves, regardless of whether you are already more worthy and greater than the one you can serve. Mary does this; John has a delicious nursemaid in her, our Lord God has especially given it to him. John was dear to him, therefore he let the Virgin Mary serve him, wash him, wipe him, carry him etc. This was a great glory that God bestowed on dear John. This is prescribed for us as an example, that we also learn to serve one another humbly, and say: "If the holy, highly graced mother of Christ has done it, why would I not also do it? And even if I did ten times more, it would still be nothing; for this person is too high, she is the queen and empress among all women, is therefore far more, if she humbles herself of a straw, than if I humbled myself for a thousand miles. Therefore, this example stands here as a mockery and disgrace to us against our arrogance, pride and disobedience.
The other virtue is that Lucas says: She has finally gone over the mountains, that is, finely chaste, not out of arrogance and recklessness, as the young servants go to the milk, to the dance and to the church consecration, washes from one' house to another, and everywhere opens rattling benches *) and throws the eyes back and forth. These are not called chaste virgins, but slut paners. **But virgins and women shall remain in their houses, or where they have to go in the street, they shall go about finely, they shall not remain outside for two hours, they shall not count all the tiles on the roof, all the sparrows under the roof, nor shall they keep all the stands along the way. So the Virgin Mary did not keep herself; she goes about her business, does not count the trees, does not stand here and there, but her heart was set on duty, thinking: You want to visit the mother Elisabeth, you want to serve the dear Hans. Before the thought
If someone spoke to her on the way, she answered briefly, and only hurriedly went to dear Mother Elizabeth and to the dear little Baptist.
For this reason, St. Lucas was diligent in using the word "endlessly," so that maids and women would not say, "Why should I always stay at home like a nun in a convent? Why should I always stay at home, like a nun in a convent, and not go for a walk? But the Virgin Mary did! If it was not a sin for her, it is not a sin for me. Yes, do it with fine manners, as she did, and with chaste, virginal gestures. For she did not go out of inconsideration, but meant to serve her mother, since the angel had told her of how she would go with a son in her old days. So she does more outside her home than she would have done at home. Do the same, and do it well and morally, with the chaste behavior that befits a virgin and a woman, and it will not be a sin for you.
16 But just as the people of women do not follow the dear virgin in humility, but are hopeful and proud, so they do not follow discipline either, as is unfortunately evident to the eyes. There are few of them, women and virgins, who would let themselves think that they could be cheerful and chaste at the same time. With words they are impudent and coarse, with gestures wild and lewd. That means to be in good spirits now. But discipline and cheerfulness should and could go hand in hand if one were to look at this example. In particular, however, it is very bad that the young maidens are so exceedingly insolent with words and gestures, and swear like the lansquenets, not to mention the shameful words and annoying coarse sayings that one always hears and learns from the other. This is due to the fact that the mothers in the house give them such examples and do not pay more attention to the discipline of the youth. But this is a special and certain sign of a great future punishment, where discipline tends to fall among women. For after the mothers, the children and the maids learn it from the women, until finally neither discipline nor honor remains in all classes; as we have seen.
Unfortunately, in our times, we also have to see and therefore wait for the deserved punishment.
(17) This is the example of outward discipline and manners, and especially of profound humility, which the fine Virgin Mary presents to us, so that she may disgrace us with our stinking, nasty court life, since she humbles herself so highly that no one is equal to her among all virgins and women. We should follow this by beating ourselves up and saying: "Oh, did she do that, the dear Virgin Mary, who was not guilty of it (for she could have had herself celebrated cheaply, but she did not): what did I want to boast about and be held high? Always down and humble yourself etc. So this example should show us, whether we are beautiful, learned, sensible, rich, young and strong, that we do not elevate ourselves, but let ourselves down, and serve others gladly and diligently.
18 Elizabeth humbles herself, even though she is an old matron, yet she throws herself down and says to Mary: "How can I be honored that the mother of my Lord should come to me? This is also a deep humility. But the Virgin Mary's humility is greater because of the greatness of her person. Therefore she should be our example, and especially the example of all virgins and women.
The other part of this Gospel is that Mary sings the Magnificat. With this she proves her doctorate and mastery, and teaches how one should behave toward God. Above, she teaches with her example how to behave toward people in outward discipline and fine manners; here, she teaches how to behave toward God with praise and thanksgiving. She does not deny before God what she is, whether she already humbles herself and lets herself down. For this is false humility, when one denies what God has given us; as the monks in the monasteries did, they called the people who praised them liars. If one said to them: You have a fine memory, a good mind; they said: No, whether it was already the truth.
20 Thus do the young maidens; when they are beautiful, they speak: I am not beautiful, but am black; and yet to them is not
for the heart. Rich people, when they are called rich, cannot leave it unanswered, complaining themselves poorer than those who are really poor. This is not called humility, but a twofold hopefulness and a deliberate lie, which also brings dishonor to God.
(21) What God has given and bestowed should be confessed and not denied. One should say: Praise God, who has given it! I have good food, I am not so vile, I can study well, I am learned, I am not an adulterer, I am a princess, a countess. For what God has given, be it money or goods, they are all God's gifts. One should not deny them, but confess them and thank God for them, and see how one can use them. For the sun does not say that it is black, but confesses it and proves that it is the light of the world, for it shines without ceasing. So a tree also does not deny its kind, does not say: I bear no apples, no pears, no cherries, no nuts; but what God has given it, that it lets see freely in public. Therefore, if you want to lie and say that you do not have what you have, this is not called humbling yourself; but if God has given you something, say: I have this and this, it is true; but I have it not from myself, God has given it to me; therefore I should not and will not exalt myself, nor despise others who do not have it. Just as the beautiful sun does; it is more beautiful than all the other creatures in the sky, but for this reason it does not despise the other creatures, but says: "Although you moon, star, tree etc. do not shine as beautifully as I do, you are nevertheless also a beautiful creature of God: for this reason I will not despise you, but help you to remain with your light, green foliage, and may you also shine and serve the people. So shall we also do.
The Virgin Mary does the same. She does not say no to the fact that she is blessed before other women and that she is the Mother of God. It is all true, she says; I have received the greatest grace and honor from God. But from where and for what do I have it? I do not exalt myself with it, but "my soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior"; for from the same
I have it, and not from me nor from men. I did not create it, nor did it come from my motherhood; it is all the gift of our Lord God. Therefore, dear Elisabeth, it does not apply here that I want to plead against you or against another person; therefore, even though I have such gifts, I can still be your handmaid and serve you and your household. "He has done great things for me, who is mighty and whose name is holy. Therefore God forbid that I should profane or blaspheme his name, or that I should glory in my own name, saying, I have these things of myself. His name is holy, he has done it, he may be praised for it, and even though people also praise me for such grace and call me blessed, I will bring it home to God. For his name is holy and he is mighty, therefore he alone shall have the glory.
It is a beautiful song, and is sung by the papists, monks, nuns and priests in all churches, but it is a sin and a shame that one should sing it without understanding and devotion. They have the words in their mouths and bleat them out like rough donkeys, so that the organ whistles it much better than they sing it. They don't pay attention to it, nor do they desire to understand it, but just plop along and chatter like geese cackle the straw.
My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
(24) She says that her soul is exalting something; that is, she must praise and extol something, that she rejoices from the heart, so that there is nothing in her heart that is not full of joy and gladness. What is it then? Whom, then, does she exalt? Herself? No. I, she says, have nothing, nor do I want to make anything of myself, so that you may praise me, dear Elizabeth. I praise and extol the Lord and God, whom all the world should praise and extol, of whom I uphold and confess that all that I have is of our Lord God.
(25) So the little word "raise" has a very fine meaning. For "to exalt" means to praise highly, just as, on the other hand, to court means to ride high. He who exalts another
oppresses and humbles herself. Because she now says, "My soul lifts up the Lord," she confesses that she throws herself down and lifts up another, namely, our dear Lord God. This means, however, that we poor beggars have been run into the side, and a high lesson has been given to all of us, one and another, not only to servants and maids, peasants and citizens, but also to noblemen, scholars, wise men and saints. For what do we do? The common saying is among our citizens and peasants: What? Ick heb och noch twe Pennig to vertehren; can therefore insist on money and property, on guilders and thalers. Well, you fainthearted belly, will you rise up? Shouldn't you say: it's someone else's property; God gave it, he can also take it away again: why would I want to exaggerate? So, a spirit of the mob goes along in glory, considers himself learned and flaunts his art, as Zwinglius says: "I am also learned. Well then, be learned as you wish, but do you know it? or where did you get it from? From yourself? Yes, the devil on your head! Thou art from above, therefore thou shalt not boast; but he that hath given thee, and may at any moment take it away again.
(26) It is not only annoying and disgraceful, but also a foolish and ridiculous thing to boast about other people's property, as great lords are wont to do: We by the grace of God etc. King of Jerusalem etc., and yet have nothing of it but the mere title. That is, to boast of a mere bag. Item, if one says: My neighbor has much money; it is just the same here, without it being much more dangerous here. We have body and life, members, reason, art, honor from God, and yet we boast of it as ours, and yet it is not ours, but God's. "What have you that you have not received? But if you have received it, what do you boast of, as if you had not received it?" says St. Paul, 1 Cor. 4:7. But it does not help to say what you will. The devil is in the people, who teaches them to be ungrateful against God (since they have it all from Him), and to be proud, and to throb Him with His own gift. Well, whoever does not want to leave it, he can take him off again, as bare as he took Judam off:.the
was also proud and abused his office to betray Christ; but it so happened that he got himself over it.
The dear young lady here does not do so. "My soul", she says, "exalts the Lord"; that is, I praise and extol God, not only with my mouth, but my heart and my whole life, all my strength and limbs, and everything that governs my soul, would gladly sing and praise God. For "soul" does not mean anything else than our life, which speaks, hears, sees, eats, drinks, smells. In sum, everything that is and sustains life, all my hair, all my drops of blood, I wanted it all to be able to sing the Magnificat, and thus exalt and praise a gracious God. We hopeless drops, when we bring it up, do it with the mouth alone, the life and the soul do not experience it, the Magnificat sticks to us only like a foam on the tongue. If it were thalers, guilders, beautiful houses, beautiful clothes, we would also sing the Magnificat, but in small honor of God.
28 "My spirit," she continues, "rejoices also in God my Savior. My "spirit," that is, my inner being, my entire knowledge, since I also know God, does not rejoice in the temporal, but in God. This is also the right joy, when one rejoices in God. We rejoice no sooner than we have money in our pockets, and, which is sin and shame, rejoice ten florins more than God Himself. For, tell me, is this not true? I have life and limb up to the fiftieth year, healthy eyes, ears, hands and feet; the dear sun has served me so long during the day, the night has given me sleep: but when have I ever been so happy about such things, as when a man finds about ten florins? Fie on you, that we cannot also rejoice in God! So, tell me: Who rejoices that Jesus Christ is born? Yes, one pursues it in addition. But if we were not so blind, we should always jump to the fact that God has given us not only body and soul, but His only begotten Son, and through Him eternal life.
29 Therefore, let all the spirits come together.
If all the teachers on earth try to make a verse that resembles this verse, they will see where their art lies. She sets her sights high, and yet is humble, and so humble that she, the great doctor and prophetess, who is more learned than all the apostles and prophets, becomes a nursemaid and waitress to dear Elizabeth; and we rascals, as soon as one knows a Greek vocable, we do not know where to stay for hope. We should be thrown out with lungs, one with the other, for the sake of the shameful hopefulness, which we do for such a small thing, and forget this example here, that the dear virgin does not exalt herself of the great, high goods, but she has her joy in God, whom she praises and glorifies, as follows:
For he has looked upon the lowliness of his handmaid. Behold, from now on all the children will call me blessed.
30 "Me," she says, "all the children will praise blessedly"; that is, all the world will sing about me and say that God has made me so great and blessed. Dear virgin, would it not be time for you to become hopeful, so that the whole world can praise you? No, she says, I do not want to become hopeful for that reason. But this is that I rejoice, that I am a wretched, despised maiden, and yet God, my Lord, hath not despised me, but hath looked upon me with favor. For she will have been a young maiden, and yet poor, wherefore no man esteemed her specially; she was not brought forth, she went not forward. I know well, she says, I was nothing. But God, who created heaven and earth, has graciously opened his eyes upon me and brought me forth for such a great work. He could have found others who were great and proud virgins, but he did not look at any of them; he looked at me, a poor little girl in my torn skirt. This makes me happy, and I thank God for it. In sum: I, she says, am nothing at all; but what I am and what I have, I have only from God's goodness and grace. That is pure praise to God and His grace.
For he has done great things for me, who is mighty, and whose name is holy.
(31) She will not touch the name of our Lord God, that is, she will not exalt herself in her gifts, always recognizing that what she has is God's and not her own; therefore she wants us all to recognize him as powerful alone, but us as weak, powerless people, and that his name alone is holy, that is, that his name alone is praised and exalted, but our name, as an unholy name, should not be praised. But here look around you again in the world: where are those who do it? Everybody would like him to be thought great and great, and especially everybody would like to be praised for holiness and piety. But Mary teaches us to consider God alone as powerful and His name as holy, that is, to praise God alone and His grace, and nothing else.
And his mercy endures forever for those who fear him.
Here she stops with her person and reaches out to the whole world, praising God, not only for her sake, but for the sake of all people, that he may be gracious and merciful to everyone who fears him and humbles himself before him. Just as we pray and give thanks not only for the gifts we alone have, but also for those that other Christians have with us. Mary does the same and says: God has not only done much good to me, but also does much good to others. And this is a special masterpiece, that she so finely puts together God's mercy and God's fear, that where one fears God, He will be merciful, and where one does not fear God, there will be neither mercy nor grace, but punishment and wrath.
He wields violence with his arm and scatters those who are hopeful in their hearts.
She takes a lot in one heap, the dear doctor. There are three kinds of people who cannot refrain from arrogance and pride. Those who are wise and prudent think highly of themselves and insist on it; those who are powerful and rich do the same. All of them will hope-
as if they had no need of our Lord God. But here, listen to how such hopefulness counsels them.
(34) He is mighty, saith he, and opposeth all that is wise and proud; great things can he make small, small things can he make great: this is his potter's work. He has rather taken a great king and emperor by the head and pulled out a poor servant. Now he takes K. F. by the head, soon H. G., sheer M. J. For they want to be proud, straighten the comb, as if they had everything from themselves. I am a F. V. S., they say, shouldn't I stand up to the priest? That is what they say about us. Well, says our Lord God, be wicked and wise, you will still have to sit me down. I also have an arm; if I draw it, beware, it is very heavy, and it will make thee astray, that thou shalt not know where thou art at home. Thus great kingdoms and principalities have been wiped out. The Virgin Mary here knows how to sing about this; she is a learned virgin and a high doctor.
35 But why does she use such words, saying, "He scatters them in the mind of their hearts"? Because it is God's way: when he wants to overthrow people for the sake of their hope, he first makes fools of them and blinds them; then, when they are blinded, they are soon disgraced, so that they have to throw away their wisdom. This is called scattering the wise in their hearts. When he wants to overthrow them, he leads them to ruin with their own wisdom. When they have decided in the best way and say, "Let us attack in such and such a way," our Lord God mocks them and says, "Good, good, my lords, you are very wise; come quickly! Into the pride he leads them up, plump they lie there in a heap. So he pushes and falls them in their proud sense. That is the one heap, which does not fear God, but is proud and relies on its wit and cleverness. Now the other bunch follows, who rely on their power and violence. There it sings also thus from:
He pushes the mighty from the throne and lifts up the lowly.
In sum, our Lord God wants to have humble people, to whom he will do all good; but he will punish that which is hopeful. Therefore, even if he exalts the lowly, as soon as they overlook it and become proud, they must come down. Saul was a poor donkey herder from the lowest tribes of Israel. God said to him: Come here, I will make a king out of you. But as soon as his belly swelled and he would not humble himself against God and His word, God overthrew him with all his family, so that not one remained. It was the same with David. God made him king from a shepherd, and he remained so high with his tribe until they became proud; then they had to come down again. Thus we see in all other histories: what is proud runs into the spear of our Lord God and must be humbled; in turn, what is humble and God-fearing rises up. Poor little students who are pious and study often become doctors, bishops and great lords.
This is the way of our Lord God. What wants to be low, that he wants to have up; again what wants to be high, that he wants to have down. He who will not believe it, let him know it. There have been many who have punished this song and wanted to make it false; but they have learned it to their detriment, that it is true. For the Virgin Mary cannot lie, because she speaks from the Holy Spirit and from her own experience. She has been humble and God-fearing, therefore God draws her out and brings her to great honors. On the other hand, Herodis', Caiphas' and other great lords' daughters have been worthy of hope; they have gone so far that no one knows where they are. Therefore, if everyone learns to fear God and to humble himself, there will be no need, even if things go badly for a while.
The poets also had it from experience that they said: Magnisque negatum stare diu: What is great does not stand long. Cause: when it becomes great and feels great, pride follows; then our Lord God must come and make what is great small and humble it. Rome has come very high, so, where one only calls the name Rome
that all the world had to take off their little hats and bend down in front of it. But what has finally become of it? It lay in a heap, and is now destroyed and devastated for the third time. For the Virgin Mary says here: No one shall be too high for God, he will overthrow them all if they want to be proud.
He fills the hungry with goods and leaves the rich empty.
(39) This is the third group, which is proud and presumptuous because it is rich and has much money and good things. Our Lord God must also do his work here, so that he lets great possessions disgracefully slip away and not come to the third heir. Again, he gives poor people such great fortune that they come to great goods. Now if everyone were so wise and learned this art and humbled himself, he would let them all stay and, what is more, he would give more and more from day to day, the longer the more. So would great kings, princes, then reasonable and wise people also remain, God could and would well suffer them; for it is he who makes them kings and great lords, if only they could leave pride. But no one wants to do it, everyone still wants to defy our Lord God with his gifts. God cannot and will not suffer such things, and says: "Stop, journeyman; if you want it, I will advise you well. If I have made thee fat, I can make thee lean and scrawny again. These are the three piles where God shows himself not merciful but angry, and so he will deal with all who do not fear him nor humble themselves, but want to insist on their wisdom, power and wealth.
He remembers his mercy and helps up his servant Israel; as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his seed forever.
This is the last part of this song, in which Mary sings of the greatest and highest grace, that God has visited and redeemed Israel through His only Son. The
The first piece concerns her in particular, that she praises God and gives thanks for the grace and good deeds that he has shown to her person. The other piece concerns the world, in which it sings of the great miraculous works that God performs without ceasing for all people in the whole world, that He wants to be the helper of the humble and the poor, but overthrow the proud. The third part concerns Christianity, and is the greatest and highest work of God, that He remembers His promise and gives not only body and soul, but also His Son. This is the greatest and most spiritual good, which He spoke to Abraham and other fathers, and has now accomplished through this virgin, that she should bear the Son of God into the world, and that He should help us through His suffering and resurrection from sins and eternal death to eternal life. With this she also concludes her song.
(41) And this song is an example from which we should learn how to thank and praise God for all His spiritual and bodily gifts, to carry them home to Him, and not to exalt ourselves because of them, but to say in all humility: Lord, they are Your gifts; and I thank You because I know that they are Your goods and not mine; as we see that the dear virgin is setting an example for us with her example.
(42) From this gospel we are to learn two things: first, discipline and humility, so that we will not be proud, so that you young men will think to yourselves, "You young man, how are you so proud? Remember the Mother of God, who went and served her mother Elisabeth and washed the winds of the dear little Hans, the Baptist; if the dear holy virgin was able to do this, why would I not do it too? So a young maiden and a little child should be accustomed from their youth not to be proud and to serve old people gladly. Secondly, praise and thanksgiving, that we thank our Lord God from the bottom of our hearts for all His benefits, bodily and spiritual, and especially that He has sent us His dear Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who has redeemed us from sin and death. To this end, may God grant us His grace, Amen.