When did Mary know for certain that Jesus was the Son of God?
Luke 2:16-19: " 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby m lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But n Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart." Luke 2:48-51: "And when his parents 1 saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, d your father and I have been searching for you in great distress." 49 And he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that e I must be in f my Father's house?" 2 50 And g they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. 51 And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And h his mother treasured up all these things in her heart." Here are two passages that speak of Mary "pondering things in her heart" about what was being said about Jesus. One passage occurs when he was first born, and the second occurs when he was a young boy. It's not clear when Mary truly began to believe Jesus was the Son of God. What do you think?
Luke 2:48 - 51
ESV - 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress. 49 And he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?
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Asked January 07 2019
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Kathlelen Kelnhofer
Supporter
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Tim Maas
Supporter
I would say that Mary knew from a factual standpoint (and also believed through faith) that the child she would bear would be the Son of God from the moment that Gabriel informed her how her child would be conceived and what His title would be (Luke 1:35). This knowledge would have been deepened when Elizabeth greeted her (Luke 1:43) as the mother of her Lord (despite Mary apparently not having previously informed her of the pregnancy or the manner of Jesus' conception). The subsequent references to her pondering in her heart indicate the process over time and with passing events (the appearance of the angels at Jesus' birth, and Jesus' indication of what His relationship to the Father entailed, and would continue to entail, in terms of His priorities) by which she came to realize the full implications of that fact, and which might have become obscured to a degree in the course of her pregnancy, or of day-to-day life in Nazareth over several years, and which is what might have prompted Mary (in speaking to Jesus in Luke 2:48) to refer to Joseph and herself as "your father and I". However, by the time of the wedding in Cana many years later (John 2:1-11), it appears that Mary had faith in Jesus' ability (by supernatural means if necessary) to address the lack of wine, even though Jesus had performed no such recorded actions to that point.
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