< Luke 1 >

1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to arrange in order a narration about the deeds that have been brought to fullness among us,
My noble [friend] Theophilus, many people saw the things that [Jesus] did while he was with us, from the time when he started [MTY] [his ministry]. They served God [by teaching people] the message [about the Lord Jesus]. Many of those who heard what they taught wrote down for us accounts of the things that [Jesus did from the time when] he began [his ministry].
2 just as they delivered them to us, who became from the beginning eyewitnesses and servants of the word,
3 it occurred to me also, having followed closely from the beginning all things accurately, to write to thee in order, eminent Theophilus,
I myself have studied these accounts carefully. So I decided that it would be good for me also to write for you [(sg)] an accurate account of these matters.
4 so that thou might know the certainty of the declarations about which thou were instructed.
I want you to know the truth about what you have been taught {what others have taught you}.
5 It came to pass in the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a certain priest, named Zacharias, from the division of Abijah, and his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
When King Herod [the Great ruled] Judea [district], there was a [Jewish] priest named Zechariah. He belonged to the [group of priests called] the Abijah group. He and his wife Elizabeth were both descended from the [first priest of Israel], Aaron.
6 And they were both righteous before God, going in all the commandments and righteous things of the Lord blameless.
[God considered that] both of them were righteous, because they constantly completely obeyed everything that God had commanded.
7 And there was no child to them because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in their days.
But they had no children, because Elizabeth had been unable to bear children. Furthermore, she and her husband were very old.
8 But it came to pass during his service as a priest in the course of his division in the presence of God,
One day [Zechariah’s] group was doing their work [in the Temple in Jerusalem], and he was serving as a priest in God’s presence.
9 that, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to burn incense after entering into the temple of the Lord.
Following their custom, [the other priests] chose him by lot to enter the Lord’s temple and burn incense.
10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
While he was burning the incense, many people were outside [in the courtyard], praying.
11 And an agent of the Lord became visible to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
Then an angel whom God had [sent] appeared to him. The angel was standing at the right side of the place [where the priests burned] incense.
12 And Zacharias having seen, was shaken, and fear fell upon him.
When Zechariah saw the angel, he was startled and became very afraid.
13 But the agent said to him, Fear not, Zacharias, because thy plea was heard, and thy wife Elizabeth will bear a son for thee. And thou shall call his name John.
But the angel said to him, “Zechariah, do not be afraid! When you [(sg)] prayed [asking God for a son] (OR, [that God would send the Messiah]), God heard what you prayed. [So] your wife Elizabeth shall bear a son. You must name him John.
14 And there will be joy and exultation for thee, and many will rejoice at his birth.
He will cause you to be very happy, and many other people will also be happy because he is born.
15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he should, no, not drink wine and strong drink. And he will be filled of the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's belly.
God will consider him to be very important. He must never drink wine or any other alcoholic drink, [in order that he will be completely dedicated to God]. He will be controlled by the Holy Spirit {The Holy Spirit will control him} from before he is born.
16 And he will turn back many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God.
He will [persuade] many people in Israel to turn away [from their sins and please] the Lord their God.
17 And he will go ahead, in front of him, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn back the hearts of fathers toward children, and the disobedient in a mentality of the righteous, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.
As [God’s] Spirit enables him [to preach] powerfully as [the prophet] Elijah did, he will precede [the Messiah]. He will cause parents [SYN] to act [peacefully] toward their children [again]. He will cause [many] people who do not obey [God to hear and obey] the wise things that righteous people [tell them]. He will do this in order to help [many] people to be ready when the Lord [comes].”
18 And Zacharias said to the agent, How will I know this? For I am aged, and my wife is advanced in her days.
Then Zechariah said to the angel, “I am very old, and my wife is also so old [that she cannot bear a child. So] (I cannot [believe] that what you [(sg)] said [will happen]!/how can I [believe] that what you [(sg)] said [will happen]?) [RHQ]”
19 And having answered, the agent said to him, I am Gabriel who stand in the presence of God. And I was sent to speak to thee, and to announce these good news to thee.
Then the angel said to him, “I am [God’s chief angel], Gabriel! [I do what God tells me, because] I constantly am in God’s presence! I was sent {[He] sent me} to tell you [(sg)] something good [that is going to happen to you].
20 And behold, thou will be mute, and not able to speak until that day these things will come to pass, because thou did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.
What I have told you will certainly happen at the time [God decides], but you did not believe what I told you. So now [God will make] you will be unable to talk until the day [your son is born]”!
21 And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and they wondered during his delay in the temple.
While [Zechariah and the angel] were talking, the people [in the courtyard] were waiting for Zechariah [to come out]. They wondered, “Why is he staying in the Temple for such a long time?”
22 And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they recognized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he was beckoning to them, and remained speechless.
When Zechariah came out, he was not able to speak to the people. Because he could not talk, he made motions with his hands [to try to convey what had happened]. Then they realized that he had seen (a vision [from God]/something that [God] showed him) while he was in the Temple.
23 And it came to pass, when the days of his service were fulfilled, he departed to his house.
When Zechariah’s time to work [as a priest in the Temple] was finished, he [left Jerusalem and] returned to his home.
24 And after these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and she concealed herself five months, saying,
Some time later his wife Elizabeth became pregnant [EUP]. She did not leave their house for five months, [because she knew that people would laugh at her if she told them that she was pregnant].
25 Thus the Lord has done to me during the days in which he looked, to take away my shame among men.
But she thought, “God has enabled me to become pregnant. He has pitied me and I will no longer be ashamed [because I have no children]!”
26 Now in the sixth month the agent Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
When Elizabeth had been [pregnant] [EUP] [for almost] six months, the angel Gabriel was sent by God {God sent the angel Gabriel} [again].
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary.
[This time] he went to Nazareth [town] in Galilee [district], to a virgin whose name was Mary. It had been {[Her parents] had} promised that she would marry a man named Joseph, who was descended from [King] David.
28 And the agent having come in near her, he said, Hail, thou who are highly favored. The Lord is with thee, thou who are blessed among women.
The angel greeted her and said, “(The Lord/God) is with you [(sg)] and you will be greatly blessed {[has decided to] greatly bless you}!”
29 But having seen, she was perplexed at his saying, and was pondering what kind of greeting this might be.
But Mary was very confused [when she heard] that. She wondered what [the angel meant] by these words.
30 And the agent said to her, Fear not, Mary, for thou have found favor with God.
Then the angel said to her, “Mary, God is very pleased with you [(sg)], so do not be afraid.
31 And behold, thou will conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son. And thou shall call his name JESUS.
You will become pregnant and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus.
32 This man will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David.
He will become great. He will be called {[People will] call him} (the Son of God/the man who is also God). God, the Lord, will make him a king [MTY] as his ancestor [King] David was.
33 And he will reign over the house of Jacob into the ages. And of his kingdom there will be no end. (aiōn g165)
He will be the King of [the] Jews, the descendants [MTY] of [your ancestor] Jacob, forever. He will rule as king forever!” (aiōn g165)
34 And Mary said to the agent, How will this be, since I know not a man?
Then Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin, so how can I [have a baby]?”
35 And having answered, the agent said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon thee, and the power of the Most High will overshadow thee. Therefore also the holy thing that is begotten will be called the Son of God.
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come to you; the power of God [MTY/EUP] will overshadow you [and enable you to become pregnant]. So the child [you will] bear will be completely set apart {give himself completely} to obey God, and he will be called {[people] will say that he is} (the Son of God/the man who is also God).
36 And behold, Elizabeth thy kinswoman, she also has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.
[I also need to tell you something else]. Your cousin Elizabeth is very old, and it was thought {[people] said} that she could not bear any children. But she has been [pregnant] [EUP] [for almost] six months, and will bear a son!
37 For no word from God will be impossible.
[You should not be surprised at that], because God can do everything!”
38 And Mary said, Behold the maid-servant of the Lord. May it happen to me according to thy word. And the agent departed from her.
Then Mary said, “All right, I want to serve (the Lord/God), so may what you [(sg)] have said about me come true!” Then the angel left her.
39 And having risen in these days, Mary went with haste into the hill country, into a city of Judah,
Very soon after that, Mary got ready and went quickly to a town in the highlands of Judea [district] where Zechariah lived.
40 and entered into the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.
She entered his house and greeted [his wife] Elizabeth.
41 And it came to pass, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her belly. And Elizabeth was filled of the Holy Spirit,
As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary greet her, the baby moved inside [Elizabeth’s] womb. The Holy Spirit took complete control of Elizabeth,
42 and she exclaimed in a great voice, and said, Blessed are thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy belly.
and she said loudly [to Mary], “[God] has blessed you [more than] he has blessed [any other] woman, and [he has] blessed the child you will bear!
43 And why is this to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?
(I am not worthy that [God would allow you] to visit me!/Why is [God allowing you] to visit me?) [RHQ] You will be the mother of my Lord!
44 For lo, when the voice of thy greeting happened in my ears, the babe leaped with joy in my belly.
[I realize this because] as soon as I heard you greet me, the baby inside my womb moved because he was so happy [that you had come].
45 And blessed is she who believed, because there will be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her from the Lord.
[God] is pleased with you [because] you believed that what (the Lord/God) told you would come true.”
46 And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord,
Then Mary [praised God by] saying/singing: “, how I [SYN] praise (the Lord/God)!
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
I am happy because God is the one who saves me.
48 because he has looked upon the lowliness of his bondmaid. For behold, from henceforth all generations will regard me blessed,
I was only his lowly servant girl, but he did not forget me. So from now on, everyone will say that God was pleased with me,
49 because the Mighty has done great things to me. And his name is holy.
because they will hear about the things that God [MTY], the mighty one, has done for me. He [MTY] is awesome!
50 And his mercy is for generations of generations to those who fear him.
He acts mercifully toward all those who respect him.
51 He did a mighty work by his arm. He scattered the proud in the mentality of their heart.
He shows people that he [MTY] is very powerful. He scatters those who think proudly.
52 He brought down potentates from thrones, and raised up lowly men.
He does not let mighty kings rule [MTY] any more, but he honors people who are oppressed (OR, humble).
53 He filled those who are hungry with good things, and those who are rich he sent away empty.
He gives good things to eat to those who are hungry, but he sends away the rich people without giving them anything.
54 He helped his boy Israel to be reminded of mercy,
And now he has remembered what he promised. So he has helped me and all the other people of [MTY] Israel who serve him.
55 just as he spoke to our fathers: to Abraham and his seed into the age. (aiōn g165)
He promised to Abraham and all our other ancestors who descended from him that he would act mercifully toward them forever.” (aiōn g165)
56 And Mary dwelt with her about three months, and returned to her house.
Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months. Then she returned to her home.
57 Now the time for Elizabeth was fulfilled for her to give birth, and she brought forth a son.
When it was time for Elizabeth to give birth to her child, she bore a son.
58 And her neighbors and her kinfolk heard that the Lord magnified his mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.
Her neighbors and relatives heard how (the Lord/God) had greatly blessed her [by enabling her to bear a child], so they were happy along with [Elizabeth].
59 And it came to pass on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child, and they were calling it by the name of his father Zacharias.
Seven days later they gathered together for the [ceremony for] circumcising the baby [to show that he belonged to God]. They wanted to give the baby the same name as his father, Zechariah.
60 And his mother having answered, said, No, but he will be called John.
But his mother said, “No, [his name will not be Zechariah]. His name will be John!”
61 And they said to her, There is no man among thy relatives who is called by this name.
[So] they said to her, “[John] is not the name of any of your [(dl)] relatives, [so you(dl) should not give him that name]!”
62 And they made signs to his father, whatever he wanted to call him.
Then they made motions with their hands to Zechariah, [for him] to indicate what name [he] wanted to be given {to give} to his son.
63 And having asked for a writing tablet, he wrote, saying, His name is John. And they all marveled.
[So] he signaled that they [should give him] a tablet [to write on. When they gave him one], he wrote [on it], “His name is John.” All those [who were there] were surprised!
64 And immediately his mouth was opened, and his tongue, and he spoke, praising God.
Immediately Zechariah was able to speak again [MTY], and he praised God.
65 And fear developed in all who dwell around them. And all these sayings were talked about in the entire hill country of Judea.
All their neighbors were amazed/awestruck! They told other people who lived all over the highlands of Judea about what had happened.
66 And all who heard stored up in their heart, saying, What then will this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him.
Everyone who heard about it kept thinking about it. They were saying, “We wonder what will this child do [for God when] he [grows up] [RHQ]!” They wondered that because [from what had happened they were sure that] God would be helping that child [SYN] [in a powerful way].
67 And his father Zacharias was filled of the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,
[After] Zechariah’s [son was born], Zechariah was completely directed by the Holy Spirit {the Holy Spirit completely directed Zechariah} as he spoke these words that came from God:
68 Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, because he came to help, and made ransom for his people.
“Praise the Lord, the God whom we(inc) people of Israel worship, because he has come to set us, his people, free from our enemies.
69 And he raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his boy David,
He is sending us someone who will powerfully [MTY] save us, someone who is descended from [MTY] King David, who served God well.
70 just as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, (aiōn g165)
Long ago God caused his prophets to say that he would do that. (aiōn g165)
71 salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all who hate us,
He will rescue us from our enemies, and he will save us from the power of all those who hate us.
72 to do mercy with our fathers, and his holy covenant to be remembered,
He will do this because he has not forgotten what he promised our ancestors; he made an agreement that he would act mercifully to us, their descendants.
73 the oath that he swore to Abraham our father, to give to us,
That is what he strongly promised our ancestor Abraham that he would do.
74 without fear from the hand of our enemies, having been saved to serve him
God told him that we would be rescued {he would rescue us} from the power of our enemies, that he would enable us to serve him without being afraid,
75 in piety and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
that he would cause us to be completely dedicated to him, and enable us to live righteously all of our lives.”
76 And thou, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High. For thou will go ahead, before the face of the Lord, to prepare his ways,
[Then Zechariah said this to] his little son: “My child, you will be called {people will say that you are} a prophet whom God [MTY/EUP] has sent; you will begin your work before (the Lord/Messiah) comes; you will prepare people so that they will be ready for him. (OR, you will begin your work before the Messiah comes).
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the remission of their sins,
You will tell God’s people how he will forgive them and save them from being punished for their sins.
78 because of the bowels of mercy of our God, by which the dayspring from on high came to help us,
Our God will do that because he is very kind to us. Just like a new day begins when the sun rises [MET], God will do that new thing for us when the Messiah comes to us from heaven.
79 to give light to those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into a way of peace.
People who do not know God [MET] are like those who sit in the darkness. They are afraid [MTY] that they will soon die. But when the Messiah tells us God’s message, it will be like causing such people to see a bright light. He will guide us [SYN] so that we will be living peacefully.”
80 And the child grew, and became strong in spirit. And he was in the desolate regions until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
[Later], Zechariah’s son grew up and became spiritually strong. Then he lived in a desolate region until he began to preach to the Israeli people.

< Luke 1 >