In the previous post, the visit of the Theotokos to St. Elizabeth was discussed with particular reference to St. Luke’s use of the Old Testament within the narrative to communicate a further depth and context to what is otherwise a reasonably simple event. This post will continue the narrative, particularly addressing the song of the Theotokos, the Magnificat, which would become the Ninth Biblical Ode. Luke 1:46: Verse 46 begins the Magnificat proper. the Theotokos’ response to receiving the sign of St. Elizabeth’s pregnancy and her prophetic testimony is to issue forth this prophetic song, which stands in parallel, as already mentioned, to the pattern within the Old Testament of biblical odes following great acts of deliverance by God in…
