A song I’ve never heard before this year is an old one that’s been around for quite a while — which goes to show you what you “miss” when you don’t listen to “Christian” radio. Lately this song has been showing up all over the Internet on blogs and social media. Pretty melody but, in my opinion, nonsensical lyrics. The song? “Mary Did You Know.” Here are the lyrics:
"Mary Did You Know"
(originally by Mark Lowry (lyrics) and Buddy Greene (melody))
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would one day walk on water?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has come to make you new?
This Child that you delivered will soon deliver you.
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will calm the storm with His hand?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little Baby you kissed the face of God?
Mary did you know.. Ooo Ooo Ooo
The blind will see.
The deaf will hear.
The dead will live again.
The lame will leap.
The dumb will speak
The praises of The Lamb.
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would one day rule the nations?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
The sleeping Child you're holding is the great "I am”
The questions about what Mary knew are silly — OF COURSE SHE KNEW!!!
Think about it; what did the angel tell her and Joseph? “
“Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21) “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end. … The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:30-35)
Joseph and Mary, being good Jews, would have known the prophecies about the Messiah, such as Isaiah 29:18 and 35:5 telling about how the deaf will hear and the blind will see, and Isaiah 61:1 about the coming savior. Isaiah 7:14 said his name would be “God with us.”
So, yes, Mary knew all the things that the song is asking her. The author of the lyrics should have known that she knew these things, so what was the point of asking rhetorical questions?
Or is this song a statement about the ignorance of Scripture rampant among Christians, that most Christians didn’t realize that Mary understood who her child was?
5 comments:
Another Christmas song I dislike is "Do You Hear What I Hear?" The night wind and the little lamb cannot talk. The shepherd boy would never be able to speak to the king. The king at the time of Jesus' birth, Herod, didn't want people to pray for peace and he wanted to kill Jesus, not bring Him silver and gold. In fact, the song was written as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis. You can read more about that here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Do_You_Hear_What_I_Hear%3F.
And when did "My Favorite Things" from "The Sound of Music" become a Christmas song? The lines about packages tied up with strings and snowflakes are the only things remotely about Christmas in that song.
Hi Diane,
Well, I find nothing wrong with that song and here's why:
Even in Scripture we have creation talking and praising God - it's poetic. It is anthropomorphic. As for the shepherd boy saying something to the king, that again is poetic and I see it as if the boy is facing the city and shouting it out. The last phrase with the king praying for peace is wishful thinking, perhaps? or is the "king" in this instance God/Christ? And it certainly isn't pretending doctrine, whereas "Mary did You Know" is discussing the deity of Christ.
Your wikipedia link didn't have any article. But I don't see why it matters why it was written.
I was unaware "My Favorite Things" was put forward as a Christmas song. Even if it was, it would be a Clausmas song, since it doesn't even hit at Christ.
Glenn,
I Googled this song to learn more about it and found this interesting article:
http://thefederalist.com/2016/12/21/mary-know-biblically-illiterate-christmas-tune/
Even a Catholic Answers blog states this song is heretical! Now that is saying something. Overall, it is a beautiful tune, but I agree about the nonsense rhetorical questions that Mary already knew answers to.
Wayne
Wayne,
Thanks for the article link. Very interesting, but the two articles it linked to were quite bizarre with their ideas about why people focus on Mary's virginity. Of course Mary was not a virgin after Jesus was born, because the Bible says she had more children -- but facts like that don't faze Roman Catholics, who indeed worship her virginity.
When I looked up the lyrics I was surprised at how old the song was before I heard it!
Diane,
In regards to anthropomorphism, a very old and popular song has this:
Joy to the World, the Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods
Rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy
So do fields, flood, rocks, hills, or plains "repeat the sounding joy"?
Post a Comment