The Divine Embryo

Did you know that Jesus’s divinity was recognized so early in Mary’s pregnancy that Jesus was almost certainly still in the embryonic stage of human development? If not, buckle in as we explore the basis for the belief that Jesus was not yet old enough to be called a “fetus” when He was called “Lord.”

Let’s begin with the specific assertion of Jesus’s divinity that we’re referencing. In Luke 1, we read of a remarkable encounter involving four people: Mary; Mary’s unborn son, Jesus; Mary’s relative, Elizabeth; and Elizabeth’s unborn son, John the Baptist. As Luke explains:

And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy….”

So Elizabeth, after being filled with the Holy Spirit, referred to Jesus as “my Lord,” thus proclaiming His divinity before His birth.

But just because Jesus was not yet born does not mean that He was in the embryonic stage of development when Elizabeth made this statement. The embryonic period ends eight weeks after a child is conceived, so an unborn child graduates from being called an “embryo” to being called a “fetus” in the ninth week after conception. These label changes do not indicate any changes in a child’s humanity, for our humanity is fully established at the moment of conception. The labels of “embryo” and “fetus” simply refer to stages of human development, just as a child is called a “toddler” when he or she begins walking and a “teenager” when he or she turns thirteen.

Now that we know about the embryonic period, let’s turn back to why it is likely that Elizabeth’s proclamation of Jesus’s divinity occurred during the embryonic period of Jesus’s human development—or no more than eight weeks after Jesus’s conception. There are two main reasons for this.

First, immediately after Luke wrote of the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that she would conceive the Son of God, Luke wrote: “Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.” It was then that Elizabeth called Jesus “my Lord.”

We do not know precisely where Elizabeth resided in the “hill country” of Judah or what route Mary took there from her location in Nazareth. Some believe, however, that it was around a 100-mile trip. And we know from Luke 1 that Mary went “with haste.” Thus, it is reasonable to conclude, as Dr. Jared Moore did, that when Mary greeted Elizabeth, “[i]t had only been a few days or a few weeks since Mary had become pregnant.”

Second, the timeline of Elizabeth’s pregnancy provides insights into Mary’s stage of pregnancy when she met with Elizabeth.

When Gabriel appeared to Mary, he told her: “Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.” So we know that Jesus was conceived while Elizabeth was already in the sixth month of pregnancy. After Mary conceived, Luke wrote that Mary traveled to visit Elizabeth and “remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.” The very next words in Luke’s Gospel are: “Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son.” So right after mentioning that Mary returned to her house, Luke tells of the birth of John the Baptist.

While not entirely clear, this seems to suggest that Mary left Elizabeth’s home shortly before John’s birth. But whether Mary left shortly before John’s birth or shortly after it, it appears that Mary’s initial meeting with Elizabeth occurred well within the first eight weeks of Mary’s pregnancy—the embryonic period. Just do the math! Mary conceived while Elizabeth was in the sixth month of pregnancy, stayed with Elizabeth for about three months, and seems to have left right around the time of John’s birth. If it took Mary more than eight weeks to reach Elizabeth’s home after Mary conceived, you’d have to conclude either (1) that Elizabeth had an extraordinarily long pregnancy or (2) that Mary stayed with Elizabeth for weeks following John’s birth.

It light of all the evidence, it is reasonable to conclude that the amazing meeting between Mary and Elizabeth—and the unborn Jesus and John the Baptist—probably occurred while Jesus was still in the embryonic stage of development. Yet He was called “Lord” even then, because that is precisely who He was—and is!