When the angel appeared to Mary and said “highly favored,” she was confused.
Not excited. Not immediately grateful. The text says she was troubled and began to wonder what kind of greeting this could be.
And that response is more honest than the way the phrase is often used today, as a triumphant declaration of blessing and divine preference.
Being highly favored by God in Scripture is not primarily a description of a comfortable life.
Mary was about to carry an illegitimate pregnancy in a culture that stoned women for that.
Noah was about to build a boat while everyone around him thought he had lost his mind.
Joseph was favored by God and spent years in a pit and a prison before the favor became visible in the form everyone recognizes.
Favor in Scripture is divine positioning for divine purpose.
It is God choosing to work through a specific person in a specific way for outcomes that often only become clear in retrospect.
It is real, it is personal, and it is consistently attached to missions that cost something.
What it means, what it looks like, and what the favored person can actually expect is built verse by verse below.
The Foundation: What Favor From God Actually Is
1. You Have Found Favor in My Sight
“The LORD said to Moses, ‘This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.'” — ESV, Exodus 33:17
God told Moses he had found favor, and the proof was that God knew him by name.
Favor is relational before it is positional.
2. Hail, Highly Favored One
“And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!'” — ESV, Luke 1:28
The angel’s greeting to Mary was not about her achievements.
It was about what God had decided to do through her, which is the nature of favor.
3. For I Know the Plans I Have for You
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” — ESV, Jeremiah 29:11
God’s favor includes being the subject of intentional divine planning.
The favored person is not navigating a random universe. They are living inside purposes already prepared.
4. The Lord’s Favor Is Not Based on Human Strength
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.” — ESV, Zechariah 4:6
Favor does not belong to the strongest or most capable.
It belongs to the one God chooses to work through, which is often the least likely candidate.
5. He Gives Grace to the Humble
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” — ESV, James 4:6
Grace and favor are closely related in Scripture.
The person positioned to receive divine favor is the person who has stopped insisting on their own sufficiency.
What Being Highly Favored Looks Like in Real Lives
6. Noah Found Favor in the Eyes of the Lord
“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” — ESV, Genesis 6:8
This is the first use of the word favor in Scripture.
Noah was favored while the entire surrounding culture was moving in the opposite direction.
7. Joseph Was Favored and It Cost Him
“The LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.” — ESV, Genesis 39:2
The favor of God was on Joseph even in slavery.
His pit and his prison were not evidence against God’s favor. They were part of the path the favor was taking.
8. Ruth Found Favor in Boaz’s Sight
“Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, ‘Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?'” — ESV, Ruth 2:10
Ruth did not expect to be noticed.
The favor that found her came through an ordinary field, an ordinary day, and an ordinary act of faithful work.
9. The Lord Was With Samuel
“And the young man Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the LORD and also with man.” — ESV, 1 Samuel 2:26
Samuel grew in favor with both God and people.
Divine favor does not always produce human opposition. Sometimes it produces a life that both God and people recognize as blessed.
10. Jesus Grew in Wisdom and Favor
“And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” — ESV, Luke 2:52
The same description given to Samuel was given to Jesus in his development.
Favor is a growing reality, not a static condition.
The Promises That Come With God’s Favor
11. Surely Goodness and Mercy Shall Follow Me
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” — ESV, Psalm 23:6
The word surely is the confidence of someone who has experienced what divine favor looks like over time.
Not hope. Surely.
12. No Good Thing Does He Withhold
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.” — ESV, Psalm 84:11
The favored life is a life from which no genuinely good thing is withheld.
Not every desired thing. Every good thing.
13. Favor Is Like a Cloud of the Spring Rain
“A king’s wrath is like the growling of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.” — NIV, Proverbs 19:12
Divine favor is compared to dew and rain: it comes from above, it refreshes, and it produces growth.
It arrives not from human effort but from the willingness of the one who sends it.
14. Blessings Crown the Head of the Righteous
“Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.” — NIV, Proverbs 10:6
The crown of blessings is the visible expression of favor over time.
It does not arrive in a single day. It accumulates across a righteous life.
15. The Righteous Are Never Forsaken
“I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.” — ESV, Psalm 37:25
This is the testimony of a lifetime of observing how divine favor operates.
The favored person is not abandoned when the season becomes difficult.
Conditions That Position You for God’s Favor
16. Whoever Finds Wisdom Finds Favor From the Lord
“For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD.” — ESV, Proverbs 8:35
Wisdom is speaking here in personified form, and she describes herself as the pathway to favor.
Seeking wisdom is one of the most direct routes to divine favor that Proverbs identifies.
17. A Good Name Is Better Than Great Riches
“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” — ESV, Proverbs 22:1
The person who understands value understands that favor exceeds material wealth.
Favor produces what money cannot buy and survives what money cannot protect.
18. Seek First the Kingdom
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” — ESV, Matthew 6:33
The addition of all things is another way of describing the life of divine favor.
The condition is the priority: kingdom first.
19. Delight Yourself in the Lord
“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” — ESV, Psalm 37:4
Delight in the Lord reshapes the desires, and the reshaped desires are what favor satisfies.
The person who delights in God discovers that favor produces what they most genuinely want.
What Highly Favored Requires of the Person Who Carries It
20. To Whom Much Is Given, Much Will Be Required
“Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.” — ESV, Luke 12:48
Favor is not a reward to be kept.
It is a stewardship to be deployed. The more you are given, the more is expected.
21. Mary Said, Be It Done to Me According to Your Word
“And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her.” — ESV, Luke 1:38
The highly favored person’s response to divine favor is submission, not celebration alone.
Mary’s yes was the condition through which the favor became operative.
22. Those Called Must Also Justify, Glorify
“And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” — ESV, Romans 8:30
God’s favor follows a chain: predestined, called, justified, glorified.
Being highly favored is not the end of the story. It is the beginning of a progression toward glory.
23. His Grace Toward Me Was Not in Vain
“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.” — ESV, 1 Corinthians 15:10
Paul understood the favor he had received and refused to receive it passively.
Grace not in vain is grace that produced something. The highly favored person responds with everything they have.
Common Questions About Being Highly Favored by God
What does it mean to be highly favored by God?
It means God has specifically chosen to work through you for purposes he has prepared in advance. Luke 1:28 shows it connected to Mary’s divine calling. Genesis 6:8 connects it to Noah’s righteousness. Favor is not primarily about personal blessing but divine positioning for kingdom purposes, often at personal cost.
How do you know if you are favored by God?
Favor often appears as opened doors that skill alone cannot explain, protection in situations that should have ended badly, and divine appointments that connect you to your purpose. Genesis 39:2 says the Lord was with Joseph even in slavery. Favor is often clearest in retrospect rather than in the middle of the experience.
Is being highly favored the same as being blessed?
They are related but not identical. Blessing often refers to specific gifts, outcomes, or conditions. Favor refers to the relationship and the positioning that produces those outcomes. You can be highly favored and going through a difficult season, as Joseph demonstrates. The favor is present even when the visible blessing has not yet arrived.
What does the Bible say about finding favor with God and man?
Luke 2:52 describes Jesus growing in favor with both God and man. Proverbs 3:3–4 says faithfulness and loyalty produce favor in God’s sight and a good name with people. Being trusted, respected, and welcomed by others is one of the visible fruits of divine favor operating in a person’s life over time.
Does God show favoritism?
Acts 10:34 records Peter declaring that God shows no partiality. Romans 2:11 repeats it. But this is different from favor. God does not play favorites based on ethnicity, status, or human measures. But he does specifically choose people for specific purposes, which is favor, not favoritism. The distinction is between arbitrary preference and purposeful divine selection.
Lord, Let the Favor You Have Placed on My Life Produce Everything You Intended When You Placed It There
Father, I do not fully know what it means to be favored by you.
I have sometimes confused it with a comfortable life.
And then I read about Mary and Joseph and Noah and realize that favor often looks like a mission more than a reward.
So I am not asking for a life without difficulty.
I am asking to be positioned where you need me.
To walk in the purposes you prepared before I arrived.
To be like Paul: aware that the grace toward me is not in vain, responding with everything I have, knowing it is not I but your grace that is with me.
Let the favor you have placed on my life not be wasted on comfort-seeking.
Let it produce the fruit you had in mind when you chose me.
And let me say at the end, as Paul said, I worked hard but it was your grace.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
