Was Jesus' mother Mary divine or just human?

Just human

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by Scott Bailey

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To be the birth mother of Jesus Christ the Messiah had to be special, but it was not divine. Mary was chosen by God before the foundations of the world to be the womb through which God the Son, Jesus, would be born. I am sure Mary was humbled by this fact once the angel told her of what was to come, yet, not even Mary made any claims to being divine. Imagine being alone in a quiet room and have an angel of God appear to tell you that you will be the mother of the coming Messiah without laying with your soon to be husband. That must have been one of the most remarkable events in Mary's young life I am sure.

Jesus was to be born through the bloodline of King David. This was the fulfillment of prophecy from the Old Testament that was to come to pass and did as you can refer to Psalm 132:11, Jeremiah 23:5, 33:15, and Isaiah 11:10. Mary being a young virgin had all the qualities God wanted and along with Joseph can be traced back to the lineage of King David although it is not as clear on Mary's side as they did not keep the historical records of women the same as they did the men. The virgin birth was also fulfillment of prophecy found in Isaiah 7:14. Many of the other qualities God placed in Mary could have been her humility that God had chosen her for this task, her faith that God would see her through this, and her confidence that God is Sovereign and in control of His creation. The most important quality she had was being obedient to God in birth and raising of Jesus.

I do think that if Mary was to be divine it would have been plainly evident in the New Testament writings and would have been prophesied in the Old Testament. This was never the case. Mary was not part of the ministry of Jesus throughout His life on this earth in any significant way and if she was "Divine" one would consider her a tremendous asset to the ministry.

Mary birthed other children by Joseph, Jesus' earthly father. We find this evident in the New Testament. One example is The Letter of James in the New Testament is thought to be written by the half brother of Jesus supported by many scholars to its authenticity and authorship. If Mary was "Divine" she would not have ever given birth again and would have remained a virgin all the way to her death. However, we have accounts of her having other children after the virgin birth of Christ.

Let us take a quick look at the meaning of "Divine" for a moment. We find "Divine" being spoken of here relating to someone proceeding directly from God. It is also referring to a deity which would be the Savior Jesus and divine worship is always directed at deity as well. We can find throughout the scriptures that "Divine" can be attributed to Jesus Christ as Messiah and God the Son, but we can find nothing directing anything divine towards Mary. To be favored is to be chosen by God to the fulfillment of His perfect plan, but does not necessarily mean the person is "Divine". Certainly Mary was not a deity and was not to be worshipped. In John 1:1 we find Jesus called "The Word" and He was with God the Father from the beginning. However, we do not find Mary with God from the beginning thus she is not a part of the Holy Trinity of God.

Furthermore, worship or as it is better described as "worthship" is reserved for God alone. This means God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit as one divine God and worthy of worship. To worship anyone else or to elevate anyone else to an equal status with God is heresy. To call Mary "Divine" would be elevating her to such status and this was not the intent of God in using Mary. Mary was a vessel or tool for God's holy use as each of us on this earth are simply a vessel for God's use. Again, Mary never makes any claims to being divine or a deity in relation to God.

Was Mary divine? It is my clear conclusion that Mary was just a woman with a special task in the Sovereign plan of God as a part of His creation. The fact that Mary was a virgin when she bore Jesus was to fulfill Old Testament prophecy, but did not make her divine. The fact that she was married to Joseph who was a direct descendent of King David was to fulfill Old Testament prophecy, but did not make her divine. The fact that Mary had other children naturally and no longer had her virginity with those births shows she was not divine. We can find a special place in our hearts for Mary as the mother of our Lord and Messiah, however, we are not to worship her nor are we to pray to her. Our focus and allegiance is to be to our Lord Jesus Christ and our prayers are to be directed to Him and none other.

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