Luke 1
1
Luke Writes About Jesus’ Life
1Many have tried to report on the things that happened among us. 2They have written the same things that we learned from others—the people who saw those things from the beginning and served God by telling people his message. 3Since I myself have studied everything carefully from the beginning, most excellent Theophilus, it seemed good for me to write it out for you. I arranged it in order, 4to help you know that what you have been taught is true.
Zechariah and Elizabeth
5During the time Herod ruled Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah who belonged to Abijah’s group. Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, came from the family of Aaron. 6Zechariah and Elizabeth truly did what God said was good. They did everything the Lord commanded and were without fault in keeping his law. 7But they had no children, because Elizabeth could not have a baby, and both of them were very old.
8One day Zechariah was serving as a priest before God, because his group was on duty. 9According to the custom of the priests, he was chosen by lot to go into the Temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10There were a great many people outside praying at the time the incense was offered. 11Then an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, standing on the right side of the incense table. 12When he saw the angel, Zechariah was startled and frightened. 13But the angel said to him, “Zechariah, don’t be afraid. God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to a son, and you will name him John. 14He will bring you joy and gladness, and many people will be happy because of his birth. 15John will be a great man for the Lord. He will never drink wine or beer, and even from birth, he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. 16He will help many people of Israel return to the Lord their God. 17He will go before the Lord in spirit and power like Elijah. He will make peace between parents and their children and will bring those who are not obeying God back to the right way of thinking, to make a people ready for the coming of the Lord.”
18Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I know that what you say is true? I am an old man, and my wife is old, too.”
19The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand before God, who sent me to talk to you and to tell you this good news. 20Now, listen! You will not be able to speak until the day these things happen, because you did not believe what I told you. But they will really happen.”
21Outside, the people were still waiting for Zechariah and were surprised that he was staying so long in the Temple. 22When Zechariah came outside, he could not speak to them, and they knew he had seen a vision in the Temple. He could only make signs to them and remained unable to speak. 23When his time of service at the Temple was finished, he went home.
24Later, Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and did not go out of her house for five months. Elizabeth said, 25“Look what the Lord has done for me! My people were ashamed of me, but now the Lord has taken away that shame.”
An Angel Appears to Mary
26During Elizabeth’s sixth month of pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin. She was engaged to marry a man named Joseph from the family of David. Her name was Mary. 28The angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord has blessed you and is with you.”
29But Mary was very startled by what the angel said and wondered what this greeting might mean.
30The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary; God has shown you his grace. 31Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of King David, his ancestor. 33He will rule over the people of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.”
34Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I am a virgin?”
35The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you. For this reason the baby will be holy and will be called the Son of God. 36Now Elizabeth, your relative, is also pregnant with a son though she is very old. Everyone thought she could not have a baby, but she has been pregnant for six months. 37God can do anything!”
38Mary said, “I am the servant of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!” Then the angel went away.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39Mary got up and went quickly to a town in the hills of Judea. 40She came to Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the unborn baby inside her jumped, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42She cried out in a loud voice, “God has blessed you more than any other woman, and he has blessed the baby to which you will give birth. 43Why has this good thing happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44When I heard your voice, the baby inside me jumped with joy. 45You are blessed because you believed that what the Lord said to you would really happen.”
Mary Praises God
46Then Mary said,
“My soul praises the Lord;
47my heart rejoices in God my Savior,
48because he has shown his concern for his humble servant girl.
From now on, all people will say that I am blessed,
49because the Powerful One has done great things for me.
His name is holy.
50God will show his mercy forever and ever
to those who worship and serve him.
51He has done mighty deeds by his power.
He has scattered the people who are proud
and think great things about themselves.
52He has brought down rulers from their thrones
and raised up the humble.
53He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with nothing.
54He has helped his servant, the people of Israel,
remembering to show them mercy
55as he promised to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his children forever.”
56Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
The Birth of John
57When it was time for Elizabeth to give birth, she had a boy. 58Her neighbors and relatives heard how good the Lord was to her, and they rejoiced with her.
59When the baby was eight days old, they came to circumcise him. They wanted to name him Zechariah because this was his father’s name, 60but his mother said, “No! He will be named John.”
61The people said to Elizabeth, “But no one in your family has this name.” 62Then they made signs to his father to find out what he would like to name him.
63Zechariah asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John,” and everyone was surprised. 64Immediately Zechariah could talk again, and he began praising God. 65All their neighbors became alarmed, and in all the mountains of Judea people continued talking about all these things. 66The people who heard about them wondered, saying, “What will this child be?” because the Lord was with him.
Zechariah Praises God
67Then Zechariah, John’s father, was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
68“Let us praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to help his people and has given them freedom.
69He has given us a powerful Savior
from the family of God’s servant David.
70He said that he would do this
through his holy prophets who lived long ago:
71He promised he would save us from our enemies
and from the power of all those who hate us.
72He said he would give mercy to our ancestors
and that he would remember his holy promise.
73God promised Abraham, our father,
74that he would save us from the power of our enemies
so we could serve him without fear,
75being holy and good before God as long as we live.
76“Now you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High God.
You will go before the Lord to prepare his way.
77You will make his people know that they will be saved
by having their sins forgiven.
78With the loving mercy of our God,
a new day from heaven will dawn upon us.
79It will shine on those who live in darkness,
in the shadow of death.
It will guide us into the path of peace.”
80And so the child grew up and became strong in spirit. John lived in the desert until the time when he came out to preach to Israel.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Luke 1
1
Introduction
1Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to compile an orderly account of the things which have been fulfilled among us [by God], 2exactly as they were handed down to us by those [with personal experience] who from the beginning [of Christ’s ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word [that is, of the teaching concerning salvation through faith in Christ], 3it seemed fitting for #1:3 Luke may have been a Gentile. If so, he is the only Gentile author whose work is included in the NT. In addition to The Gospel of Luke, he wrote The Acts of the Apostles, and is thought by some scholars to have been the author of The Letter to the Hebrews.me as well, [and so I have decided] after having carefully searched out and investigated all the events accurately, from the very beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus; [Acts 1:1] 4so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been #1:4 Or orally instructed.taught [that is, the history and doctrine of the faith].
Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5In the days of Herod [the Great], king of Judea, there was a certain priest whose name was #1:5 I.e. Zechariah. The spelling is different because a Greek word cannot end with an “h,” and in place of “ah” the common Greek ending “-as” was substituted.Zacharias, of #1:5 King David organized the priests into 24 groups or divisions, each headed by a president. A division served twice a year for a week at a time (1 Chr 24:1-19).the division of Abijah. His wife was #1:5 Lit from the daughters of.a descendant of Aaron [the first high priest of Israel], and her name was Elizabeth. 6They both were righteous (approved) in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. 7But they were childless, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both far advanced in years.
8Now it happened while Zacharias was serving as priest before God in the appointed order of his priestly division, 9as was the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter [the sanctuary of] the temple of the Lord and #1:9 I.e. normally a once-in-a-lifetime privilege for a priest.burn incense [on the altar of incense]. [Ex 30:7] 10And all the congregation was praying outside [in the court of the temple] at the hour of the incense offering. 11And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12When Zacharias saw the angel, he was troubled and overcome with fear. 13But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, because your petition [in prayer] was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him #1:13 John the Baptist is considered the last of the Old Testament prophets. His mother, Elizabeth, and Mary the mother of Jesus, were related (1:36), and Mary may have been with Elizabeth at the time John was born (1:56). John the Baptist is not to be confused with John the Apostle who, along with his brother James, was among the twelve disciples of Jesus. John and James were the sons of Zebedee and Salome. John the Apostle authored the Gospel of John, three brief letters (1 John, 2 John, 3 John), and Revelation.John. 14You will have great joy and delight, and many will rejoice over his birth, 15for he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord; and will never drink wine or liquor, and he will be filled with and empowered to act by the Holy Spirit while still in his mother’s womb. [Num 6:3] 16He will turn many of the sons of Israel back [from sin] to [love and serve] the Lord their God. 17It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous [which is to seek and submit to the will of God]—in order to make ready a people [perfectly] prepared [spiritually and morally] for the Lord.” [Is 40:3; Mal 4:5, 6]
18And Zacharias said to the angel, “How will I be certain of this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in age.” 19The angel replied and said to him, “I am Gabriel; I stand and minister in the [very] presence of God, and I have been sent [by Him] to speak to you and to bring you this good news. [Dan 8:16; 9:21] 20#1:20 Lit behold.Listen carefully, you will be continually silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe what I told you; but my words will be fulfilled at their proper time.”
21The people [outside in the court] were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering about his long delay in the temple. 22But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them. They realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute. 23When his time of priestly service was finished, he returned to his home.
24Now after this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and for five months she secluded herself completely, saying, 25“This is how the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor on me, to take away my #1:25 At this time childlessness was a social stigma.disgrace among men.” [Gen 30:23; Is 4:1]
Jesus’ Birth Foretold
26Now in the sixth month [of Elizabeth’s pregnancy] the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27to a virgin #1:27 The first stage of marriage (called shiddukin in Hebrew) in Jewish tradition and law, usually lasting for a year before the wedding night; unlike an engagement, it was legally binding and required a divorce to nullify it. The woman remained with her parents during the betrothal year and was referred to as a “wife” even though the marriage was not consummated during this period of time.betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28And coming to her, the angel said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29But she was greatly perplexed at what he said, and kept carefully considering what kind of greeting this was. 30The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31Listen carefully: you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32He will be great and eminent and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33and He will reign over the house of Jacob (Israel) forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end.” [Is 9:6, 7; Dan 2:44] 34Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin and have no intimacy with any man?” 35Then the angel replied to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a cloud]; for that reason the holy (pure, sinless) Child shall be called the Son of God. [Ex 40:34; Is 7:14] 36And listen, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. 37For with God nothing [is or ever] shall be impossible.” 38Then Mary said, “#1:38 Mary’s response was significantly different from Zacharias’ (v 18). Zacharias would not take Gabriel’s word, and instead wanted some kind of miraculous sign as proof.Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel left her.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39Now at this time Mary arose and hurried to the hill country, to a city of Judah (Judea), 40and she entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, her baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him. 42And she exclaimed loudly, “Blessed [worthy to be praised] are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? 44For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45And blessed [spiritually fortunate and favored by God] is she who believed and confidently trusted that there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her [by the angel sent] from the Lord.”
The Magnificat
46And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies and exalts the Lord,
47And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48“For He has looked [with loving care] on the humble state of His maidservant;
For behold, from now on all generations will count me blessed and happy and favored by God!
49“For He who is mighty has done great things for me;
And holy is His name [to be worshiped in His purity, majesty, and glory].
50“And His mercy is upon generation after generation
Toward those who [stand in great awe of God and] fear Him. [Ps 103:17]
51“He has done mighty deeds with His [powerful] arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
52“He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And exalted those who were humble.
53“He has filled the hungry with good things;
And sent the rich away empty-handed.
54“He has helped His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
55Just as He promised to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his descendants forever.” [Gen 17:7; 18:18; 22:17; 1 Sam 2:1-10; Mic 7:20]
56And Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months, and then returned to her home.
John Is Born
57Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. 58Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown His great mercy toward her, and they were rejoicing with her.
59It happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child [as required by the Law], and they intended to name him Zacharias, after his father; [Gen 17:12; Lev 12:3] 60but his mother answered, “No indeed; instead he will be called John.” 61And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by that name.” 62Then they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called. 63And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote as follows, “His name is John.” And they were all astonished. 64At once Zacharias’ mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking, praising and blessing and thanking God. 65Then fear came on all their neighbors; and all these things were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. 66All who heard these things kept them in mind, saying, “What then will this little boy turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him [to bring about his birth].
Zacharias’ Prophecy
67Now Zacharias his father was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him, and he prophesied, saying,
68“Blessed (praised, glorified) be the Lord, the God of Israel,
Because He has visited us and brought redemption to His people,
69And He has raised up a #1:69 In the OT a symbol of strength.horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Savior] for us
In the house of David His servant—
70Just as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times—
71Salvation from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us; [Ps 106:10]
72To show mercy [as He promised] to our fathers,
And to remember His holy covenant [the promised blessing],
73The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
74To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75In holiness [being set apart] and righteousness [being upright] before Him all our days.
76“And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord (the Messiah) to prepare His ways; [Is 40:3; Mal 4:5]
77To give His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
78Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise (the Messiah) from on high will dawn and visit us, [Mal 4:2]
79To shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
To guide our feet [in a straight line] into the way of peace and serenity.” [Is 9:2]
80The child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel [as John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah].
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