Luke 1
1 To his Excellency, Theophilus. Many attempts have been already made to draw up an account of those events which have reached their conclusion among us,
Seeing that many took in hand to set in order a narration of the matters that have been fully assured among us,
2 just as they were reported to us by those who from the beginning were eye-witnesses, and afterward became bearers of the message.
as they delivered to us, who from the beginning became eyewitnesses, and officers of the word,
3 And, therefore, I also, since I have investigated all these events with great care from their very beginning, have resolved to write a connected history of them for you,
it seemed good also to me, having followed from the first after all things exactly, to write to you in order, most noble Theophilus,
4 in order that you may be able to satisfy yourself of the accuracy of the story which you have heard from the lips of others.
that you may know the certainty of the things wherein you were instructed.
5 In the reign of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the division called after Abijah. His wife, whose name was Elizabeth, was also a descendant of Aaron.
There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the division of Abijah, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth;
6 They were both righteous people, who lived blameless lives, guiding their steps by all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord.
and they were both righteous before God, going on in all the commands and righteousnesses of the LORD blameless,
7 But they had no child, Elizabeth being barren; and both of them were advanced in years.
and they had no child, because that Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in their days.
8 One day, when Zechariah was officiating as priest before God, during the turn of his division,
And it came to pass, in his acting as priest, in the order of his division before God,
9 it fell to him by lot, in accordance with the practice among the priests, to go into the Temple of the Lord and burn incense;
according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot was to make incense, having gone into the temple of the LORD,
10 and, as it was the Hour of Incense, the people were all praying outside.
and all the multitude of the people were praying outside, at the hour of the incense.
11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the Altar of Incense.
And there appeared to him a messenger of the LORD standing on the right side of the altar of the incense,
12 Zechariah was startled at the sight and was awe-struck.
and Zacharias, having seen, was troubled, and fear fell on him;
13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, whom you will call by the name John.
and the messenger said to him, “Do not fear, Zacharias, for your supplication was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear a son to you, and you will call his name John,
14 He will be to you a joy and a delight; and many will rejoice over his birth.
and there will be joy to you, and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,
15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; he will not drink any wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from the very hour of his birth,
for he will be great before the LORD, and wine and strong drink he may not drink, and he will be full of the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb;
16 and will reconcile many of the Israelites to the Lord their God.
and he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the LORD their God,
17 He will go before him in the spirit and with the power of Elijah, to reconcile fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, and so make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”
and he will go before Him, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn hearts of fathers to children, and disobedient ones to the wisdom of righteous ones, to make ready for the LORD, a people prepared.”
18 “How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”
And Zacharias said to the messenger, “Whereby will I know this? For I am aged, and my wife is advanced in her days?”
19 “I am Gabriel,” the angel answered, “who stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
And the messenger answering said to him, “I am Gabriel, who has been standing near before God, and I was sent to speak to you, and to proclaim this good news to you,
20 And now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day when this takes place, because you did not believe what I said, though my words will be fulfilled in due course.”
and behold, you will be silent, and not able to speak, until the day that these things will come to pass, because you did not believe my words that will be fulfilled in their season.”
21 Meanwhile the people were watching for Zechariah, wondering at his remaining so long in the Temple.
And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondering at his lingering in the temple,
22 When he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision there. But Zechariah kept making signs to them, and remained dumb.
and having come out, he was not able to speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, and he was beckoning to them, and remained mute.
23 And, as soon as his term of service was finished, he returned home.
And it came to pass, when the days of his service were fulfilled, he went away to his house,
24 After this his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and lived in seclusion for five months.
and after those days, his wife Elizabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,
25 “The Lord has done this for me,” she said, “he has shown me kindness and taken away the public disgrace of childlessness under which I have been living.”
“Thus the LORD has done to me, in days in which He looked on [me], to take away my reproach among men.”
26 Six months later the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
And in the sixth month the messenger Gabriel was sent by God, to a city of Galilee, the name of which [is] Nazareth,
27 to a maiden there who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. Her name was Mary.
to a virgin, betrothed to a man, whose name [is] Joseph, of the house of David, and the name of the virgin [is] Mary.
28 Gabriel came into her presence and greeted her, saying, “You have been shown great favor – the Lord is with you.”
And the messenger having come in to her, said, “Greetings, favored one, the LORD [is] with you; blessed [are] you among women”;
29 Mary was much disturbed at his words, and was wondering to herself what such a greeting could mean,
and she, having seen, was troubled at his word, and was reasoning of what kind this salutation may be.
30 when the angel spoke again, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
And the messenger said to her, “Do not fear, Mary, for you have found favor with God;
31 And now, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will give him the name Jesus.
and behold, you will conceive in the womb, and will bring forth a Son, and call His Name Jesus;
32 The child will be great and will be called ‘Son of the Most High,’ and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David,
He will be great, and He will be called Son of the Highest, and the LORD God will give Him the throne of His father David,
33 and he will reign over the descendants of Jacob for ever; And to his kingdom there will be no end.” (aiōn g165)
and He will reign over the house of Jacob for all ages; and of His kingdom there will be no end.” (aiōn g165)
34 “How can this be?” Mary asked the angel. “For I have no husband.”
And Mary said to the messenger, “How will this be, seeing I do not know a husband?”
35 “The Holy Spirit will descend on you,” answered the angel, “and the Power of the Most High will overshadow you; and therefore the child will be called ‘holy,’ and ‘Son of God.’
And the messenger answering said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you, therefore also the holy-begotten thing will be called Son of God;
36 And Elizabeth, your cousin, is herself also expecting a son in her old age; and it is now the sixth month with her, though she is called barren;
and behold, Elizabeth, your relative, she also has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month to her who was called barren;
37 for no promise from God will fail to be fulfilled.”
because nothing will be impossible with God.”
38 “I am the servant of the Lord,” exclaimed Mary. “Let it be with me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
And Mary said, “Behold, the maidservant of the LORD; let it be to me according to your saying,” and the messenger went away from her.
39 Soon after this Mary set out, and made her way quickly into the hill-country, to a town in Judah;
And Mary having arisen in those days, went into the hill-country, with haste, to a city of Judea,
40 and there she went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.
and entered into the house of Zacharias, and greeted Elizabeth.
41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child moved within her, and Elizabeth herself was filled with the Holy Spirit,
And it came to pass, when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the baby leapt in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,
42 and cried aloud, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is your unborn child!
and spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed [are] you among women, and blessed [is] the Fruit of your womb;
43 But how have I this honor, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
and from where [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord might come to me?
44 For, as soon as your greeting reached my ears, the child moved within me with delight!
For behold, when the voice of your salutation came to my ears, the baby in my womb leapt in gladness;
45 Happy indeed is she who believed that the promise which she received from the Lord would be fulfilled.”
and blessed [is] she who believed, for there will be a completion to the things spoken to her from the LORD.”
46 And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord,
And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the LORD,
47 and my spirit delights in God my Savior,
And my spirit was glad on God my Savior,
48 for he has looked with favor on his humble servant girl. From now on all generations will call me blessed!
Because He looked on the lowliness of His maidservant, For behold, from now on all the generations will call me blessed,
49 “For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
For He who is mighty did great things to me, And holy [is] His Name,
50 He has mercy on those who revere him in every generation.
And His kindness [is] to generations of generations, To those fearing Him;
51 “Mighty are the deeds of his arm! He has scattered the self-satisfied proud,
He did powerfully with His arm, He scattered abroad the proud in the thought of their heart,
52 he has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and he uplifts the humble,
He brought down the mighty from thrones, And He exalted the lowly,
53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.
He filled the hungry with good, And the rich He sent away empty;
54 “He has stretched out his hand to his servant Israel, ever mindful of his mercy,
He has taken hold of His servant Israel, To remember kindness,
As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed—throughout the age.” (aiōn g165)
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned to her home.
And Mary remained with her about three months, and turned back to her house.
57 When Elizabeth’s time came, she gave birth to a son;
And to Elizabeth was the time fulfilled for her bringing forth, and she bore a son,
58 and her neighbors and relatives, hearing of the great goodness of the Lord to her, came to share her joy.
and the neighbors and her relatives heard that the LORD was making His kindness great with her, and they were rejoicing with her.
59 A week later they met to circumcise the child, and were about to call him Zechariah after his father,
And it came to pass, on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child, and they were calling him by the name of his father, Zacharias,
60 when his mother spoke up, “No, he is to be called John.”
and his mother answering said, “No, but he will be called John.”
61 “You have no relation of that name!” they exclaimed;
And they said to her, “There is none among your relatives who is called by this name,”
62 and they made signs to the child’s father, to find out what he wished the child to be called.
and they were making signs to his father, what he would wish him to be called,
63 Asking for a writing tablet, he wrote the words – ‘His name is John.’ Everyone was surprised
and having asked for a tablet, he wrote, saying, “John is his name”; and they all wondered;
64 and immediately Zechariah recovered his voice and the use of his tongue, and began to bless God.
and his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue, and he was speaking, praising God.
65 All their neighbors were awe-struck at this, and throughout the hill-country of Judea the whole story was much talked about.
And fear came on all those dwelling around them, and in all the hill-country of Judea were all these sayings spoken of,
66 All who heard it kept it in mind, asking one another – “What can this child be destined to become?” For the Power of the Lord was with him.
and all who heard laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” And the hand of the LORD was with him.
67 Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and, speaking under inspiration, said:
And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,
68 “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who has visited his people and wrought their deliverance,
“Blessed [is] the LORD, the God of Israel, Because He looked on, And worked redemption for His people,
69 and has raised up for us the strength of our salvation in the house of his servant David –
And raised a horn of salvation to us, In the house of His servant David,
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Which have been from the age; (aiōn g165)
71 salvation from our enemies and from the hands of all who hate us,
Salvation from our enemies, And out of the hand of all hating us,
72 showing mercy to our ancestors, and mindful of his sacred covenant.
To do kindness with our fathers, And to be mindful of His holy covenant,
73 This was the oath which he swore to our ancestor Abraham –
An oath that He swore to Abraham our father,
74 that we should be rescued from the hands of our enemies,
To give to us, without fear, Having been delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
75 and should serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness, in his presence all our days.
To serve Him, in holiness and righteousness Before Him, all the days of our life.
76 And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to make ready his way,
And you, child, Prophet of the Highest will you be called; For you will go before the face of the LORD, To prepare His ways.
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,
To give knowledge of salvation to His people In forgiveness of their sins,
78 through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the dawn will break on us from heaven,
Through the yearnings of our God, In which the rising from on high looked on us,
79 to give light to those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, and guide our feet into the way of peace.”
To give light to those sitting in darkness and death-shade, To guide our feet to a way of peace.”
80 The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he lived in the wilds until the time came for his appearance before Israel.
And the child grew, and was strengthened in spirit, and he was in the deserts until the day of his showing to Israel.
