ContradictionsReading order 531Bible context 2 min read
Was Mary (the mother of Jesus) blessed?
Gabriel blesses Mary, while Jesus shifts a woman's praise of his mother toward obedient hearers without explicitly excluding Mary.
- Textual conflict
- Weak contradiction
- The supplied passages do not establish incompatible claims. Different events, meanings, or conditions may account for the difference.
- Importance
- Major
- A major event or claim with wider implications.
Blessing obedient hearers does not deny Mary's blessedness or say that she fails the stated condition.
An editorial assessment of the quoted passages. Importance describes the stakes; it does not increase certainty. Reading order weighs both.
Gabriel calls Mary blessed among women
And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
Luke 1:26-28
Translation / edition: King James Version (KJV)
Read the full chapter:Luke 1
Jesus redirects praise toward hearing and keeping God's word
And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
Luke 11:27-28
Translation / edition: King James Version (KJV)