Lk 1:26-38
26The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 27to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, 33and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” 35And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 36And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; 37for nothing will be impossible for God.” 38Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
HANDMAID OF THE LORD: In response to the angel Gabriel’s message from God, Mary gives her fiat (agreement) because she considers herself “the handmaid” of the Lord. The Greek doule means female slave or servant, and in the cultural world of the time a female slave is a commodity of the master, that can be sold, exchanged, and made to work for her owner. However, in the Bible there is an honored group of people called “servants of Yahweh,” prominent among whom are the prophets. Others distinguished by the title are the patriarchs, Moses, Joshua, and King David. In Deutero-Isaiah, we have the mysterious figure called the Ebed-Yahweh (“Servant of Yahweh”) who is considered as the image of the Messiah.
In declaring herself the slave of the Lord, Mary is saying that she is totally at the Lord’s disposal. For the evangelist Luke, the humble girl of Nazareth is “looked upon with favor” by the Lord. She is closer to Hannah, the mother of Samuel, who reacted to the news that God would grant her petition for a son with the words, “Let your handmaid find favor in your eyes” (1 Sm 1:18). Mary, the Lord’s handmaid, has already found favor in the Lord’s eyes (Lk 1:30). Mary as handmaid belongs to the distinguished list of women in Israel chosen by the Lord to accomplish his work of salvation.