Luke 1
1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us,
Given that many have undertaken to set in order a narrative concerning those things that really did take place among us,
2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word;
just as those who became eyewitnesses, from the beginning, and ministers of the Word delivered them to us,
3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus,
it seemed good to me also, most excellent Theophilus, having taken careful note of everything from Above, to write to you with precision and in sequence,
4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.
so that you may know the certainty of the things in which you were instructed.
5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judæa, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife [was] of the daughters of Aaron, and her name [was] Elisabeth.
In the days of Herod, the king of Judea, there was a certain priest named Zacharias, of the priestly division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron and her name was Elizabeth.
6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord.
7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were [now] well stricken in years.
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren; and they both were well advanced in years.
8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course,
Now it happened, as he was officiating as priest before God in the order of his division,
9 According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.
according to the custom of the priesthood, that his lot was to burn incense, upon entering the sanctuary of the Lord;
10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.
and the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense.
11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense;
12 And when Zacharias saw [him], he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
and upon seeing him Zacharias was shaken, and a fear fell upon him.
13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.
But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, because your prayer was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
And you will have joy and exultation, and many will rejoice over his birth.
15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.
For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; he must not drink either wine or strong drink; indeed, he will be filled with Holy Spirit already from his mother's womb.
16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.
And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God;
17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
in fact he himself will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of fathers to children’ and the disobedient to the mindset of the righteous, to prepare a people made ready for the Lord.”
18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.
But Zacharias said to the angel: “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”
19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings.
So in answer the angel said to him: “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God; I was sent to speak to you and bring you this good news.
20 And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.
Now look, you will be silent and not able to speak until the day in which these things happen, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.
Now the people were waiting for Zacharias and wondering at his delay in the sanctuary.
22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.
But when he came out he was unable to speak to them, and they understood that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary—he kept gesturing to them while remaining mute.
23 And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
And so, when the days of his service were fulfilled, he took off for home.
24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,
Well after those days his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and stayed in seclusion five months. She kept saying,
25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on [me], to take away my reproach among men.
“So that's what the Lord has done for me in the days when He concerned Himself to take away my reproach among the people!”
26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee named Natsareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name [was] Mary.
to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; the virgin's name was Mary.
28 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.
So upon entering where she was the angel said, “Rejoice, recipient of grace, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
29 And when she saw [him], she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
But upon seeing him she was perplexed at his word and was trying to figure out what sort of greeting it might be.
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
The angel said to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Now then, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
He will be great, and will be called ‘Son of the Most High’; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David,
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. (aiōn g165)
and He will reign over the house of Jacob into the ages; indeed, of His kingdom there will be no end!” (aiōn g165)
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
So Mary said to the angel, “How shall this be, since I do not know a man?”
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
In answer the angel said to her: “Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will hover over you; precisely for this reason the holy One who is to be born will be called ‘Son of God’!
36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
Furthermore, your relative Elizabeth, she has actually conceived a son in her old age and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren;
37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
because any word spoken by God will be possible.”
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
So Mary said: “Yes, I am the Lord's slave! Let it happen to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda;
Then Mary quickly got ready and went into the hill country in those days, to a town of Judah,
40 And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.
and entered the house of Zacharias and saluted Elizabeth.
41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:
Well it happened that as Elizabeth heard Mary's salutation the babe bounced up and down in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with Holy Spirit.
42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed [art] thou among women, and blessed [is] the fruit of thy womb.
And she cried out with a great voice and said: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the Fruit of your womb!
43 And whence [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Why am I so favored that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.
Yes indeed, because as the sound of your salutation came into my ears the babe bounced up and down in my womb for joy.
45 And blessed [is] she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.
Blessed is she who believed, because there will be a fulfillment of the things that have been spoken to her from the Lord.”
46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
So Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
and my spirit has exulted over God my Savior,
48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
in that He paid attention to the humble station of His slave (f). Yes indeed, because from now on all generations will declare me to be highly favored,
49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy [is] his name.
in that the Mighty One did sublime things for me, and Holy is His name.
50 And his mercy [is] on them that fear him from generation to generation.
His mercy is for generations of generations to those fearing Him.
51 He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has dispersed the arrogant in the reasoning of their hearts.
52 He hath put down the mighty from [their] seats, and exalted them of low degree.
He has dethroned rulers and exalted the lowly.
53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.
He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty.
54 He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of [his] mercy;
He has taken the part of His servant Israel, in remembrance of mercy,
just as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed while there is an age.” (aiōn g165)
56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.
So Mary stayed with her about three months, and returned to her house.
57 Now Elisabeth’s full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.
Now the time for Elizabeth to give birth was completed and she bore a son.
58 And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.
Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had used His great mercy with her, and they rejoiced with her.
59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child, and they started calling him by the name of his father, Zacharias.
60 And his mother answered and said, Not [so]; but he shall be called John.
His mother reacted and said, “Absolutely not; he shall be called John!”
61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
So they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.”
62 And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.
So they started motioning to his father, as to what he would have him called.
63 And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.
Asking for a writing tablet he wrote this: “His name is to be John!” They all marveled.
64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue [loosed], and he spake, and praised God.
Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed and he started to speak, blessing God.
65 And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judæa.
(Well a fear came on all who lived around them; and all these sayings kept being talked about throughout all the hill country of Judea.
66 And all they that heard [them] laid [them] up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be! And the hand of the Lord was with him.
All who heard kept them in their hearts saying, “What then will this child be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.)
67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,
Now his father Zacharias was filled with Holy Spirit and prophesied saying:
68 Blessed [be] the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and provided redemption for His people;
69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
and has raised up a horn of deliverance for us in the house of His servant David
70 As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began: (aiōn g165)
—just as He spoke through the mouth of His holy prophets from antiquity— (aiōn g165)
71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
deliverance from our enemies and out of the hand of all who hate us;
72 To perform the mercy [promised] to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
to use mercy with our fathers, even to remember His Holy covenant,
73 The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,
the oath that He swore to our father Abraham;
74 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,
to grant to us (having been rescued from the hand of our enemies) to serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
76 And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
And you, child, will be called Prophet of the Most High, because you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77 To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
to give a knowledge of salvation to His people by the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,
through the merciful compassions of our God, with which the divine Dawn has contemplated us,
79 To give light to them that sit in darkness and [in] the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
to give light to those who are sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
80 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.
So the child kept growing and being strengthened in spirit, and he stayed in uninhabited areas until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
