Luke 1
1 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].
Forasmuch as many haue taken in hand to set foorth the storie of those things, whereof we are fully persuaded,
As they haue deliuered them vnto vs, which from the beginning saw them their selues, and were ministers of ye word,
3 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.
It seemed good also to me (most noble Theophilus) assoone as I had searched out perfectly all things from the beginning, to write vnto thee thereof from point to point,
4 I want you to know the truth about what you have been taught {what others have taught you}.
That thou mightest acknowledge the certaintie of those things, whereof thou hast bene instructed.
5 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.
In the time of Herod King of Iudea, there was a certaine Priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabet.
6 [God considered that] both of them were righteous, because they constantly completely obeyed everything that God had commanded.
Both were iust before God, and walked in all the commandements and ordinances of the Lord, without reproofe.
7 But they had no children, because Elizabeth had been unable to bear children. Furthermore, she and her husband were very old.
And they had no childe, because that Elisabet was barren: and both were well stricken in age.
8 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.
And it came to passe, as he executed the Priestes office before God, as his course came in order,
9 Following their custom, [the other priests] chose him by lot to enter the Lord’s temple and burn incense.
According to the custome of the Priests office, his lot was to burne incense, when he went into the Temple of the Lord.
10 While he was burning the incense, many people were outside [in the courtyard], praying.
And the whole multitude of the people were without in prayer, while the incense was burning.
11 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.
Then appeared vnto him an Angel of the Lord standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
12 When Zechariah saw the angel, he was startled and became very afraid.
And when Zacharias sawe him, he was troubled, and feare fell vpon him.
13 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.
But the Angel saide vnto him, Feare not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard, and thy wise Elisabet shall beare thee a sonne, and thou shalt call his name Iohn.
14 He will cause you to be very happy, and many other people will also be happy because he is born.
And thou shalt haue ioy and gladnes, and many shall reioyce at his birth.
15 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.
For he shalbe great in the sight of the Lord, and shall neither drinke wine, nor strong drinke: and he shalbe filled with the holy Ghost, euen from his mothers wombe.
16 He will [persuade] many people in Israel to turn away [from their sins and please] the Lord their God.
And many of the children of Israel shall he turne to their Lord God.
17 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].”
For he shall goe before him in the spirite and power of Elias, to turne the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisedome of the iust men, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
18 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]”
Then Zacharias said vnto ye Angel, Whereby shall I knowe this? for I am an olde man, and my wife is of a great age.
19 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].
And the Angell answered, and sayde vnto him, I am Gabriel that stand in the presence of God, and am sent to speake vnto thee, and to shew thee these good tidings.
20 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]”!
And beholde, thou shalt be domme, and not be able to speake, vntill the day that these things be done, because thou beleeuedst not my words, which shalbe fulfilled in their season.
21 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?”
Now the people waited for Zacharias, and marueiled that he taried so long in the Temple.
22 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.
And when hee came out, hee coulde not speake vnto them: then they perceiued that hee had seene a vision in the Temple: For he made signes vnto them, and remained domme.
23 When Zechariah’s time to work [as a priest in the Temple] was finished, he [left Jerusalem and] returned to his home.
And it came to passe, when the daies of his office were fulfilled, that he departed to his owne house.
24 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].
And after those daies, his wife Elisabet conceiued, and hid her selfe fiue moneths, saying,
25 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]!”
Thus hath the Lord dealt with me, in the daies wherein he looked on me, to take from me my rebuke among men.
26 When Elizabeth had been [pregnant] [EUP] [for almost] six months, the angel Gabriel was sent by God {God sent the angel Gabriel} [again].
And in the sixth moneth, the Angell Gabriel was sent from God vnto a citie of Galile, named Nazareth,
27 [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.
To a virgin affianced to a man whose name was Ioseph, of the house of Dauid, and the virgins name was Marie.
28 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}!”
And the Angel went in vnto her, and said, Haile thou that art freely beloued: the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
29 But Mary was very confused [when she heard] that. She wondered what [the angel meant] by these words.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and thought what maner of salutation that should be.
30 Then the angel said to her, “Mary, God is very pleased with you [(sg)], so do not be afraid.
Then the Angel saide vnto her, Feare not, Marie: for thou hast found fauour with God.
31 You will become pregnant and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus.
For loe, thou shalt conceiue in thy wobe, and beare a sonne, and shalt call his name Iesus.
32 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.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Sonne of the most High, and the Lord God shall giue vnto him the throne of his father Dauid.
33 He will be the King of [the] Jews, the descendants [MTY] of [your ancestor] Jacob, forever. He will rule as king forever!” (aiōn g165)
And hee shall reigne ouer the house of Iacob for euer, and of his kingdome shall bee none ende. (aiōn g165)
34 Then Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin, so how can I [have a baby]?”
Then sayde Marie vnto the Angel, How shall this be, seeing I knowe not man?
35 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).
And the Angel answered, and said vnto her, The holy Ghost shall come vpon thee, and the power of the most High shall ouershadowe thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall bee borne of thee, shall be called the Sonne of God.
36 [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!
And behold, thy cousin Elisabet, she hath also conceiued a sonne in her olde age: and this is her sixt moneth, which was called barren.
37 [You should not be surprised at that], because God can do everything!”
For with God shall nothing be vnpossible.
38 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.
Then Marie said, Behold the seruant of the Lord: be it vnto me according to thy woorde. So the Angel departed from her.
39 Very soon after that, Mary got ready and went quickly to a town in the highlands of Judea [district] where Zechariah lived.
And Marie arose in those daies, and went into ye hil countrey with hast to a citie of Iuda,
40 She entered his house and greeted [his wife] Elizabeth.
And entred into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabet.
41 As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary greet her, the baby moved inside [Elizabeth’s] womb. The Holy Spirit took complete control of Elizabeth,
And it came to passe, as Elisabet heard the salutation of Marie, the babe sprang in her bellie, and Elisabet was filled with the holy Ghost.
42 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!
And she cried with a loud voice, and saide, Blessed art thou among women, because the fruit of thy wombe is blessed.
43 (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!
And whence commeth this to mee, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 [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].
For loe, assoone as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine eares, the babe sprang in my bellie for ioye,
45 [God] is pleased with you [because] you believed that what (the Lord/God) told you would come true.”
And blessed is shee that beleeued: for those things shall be perfourmed, which were tolde her from the Lord.
46 Then Mary [praised God by] saying/singing: “, how I [SYN] praise (the Lord/God)!
Then Marie sayde, My soule magnifieth the Lord,
47 I am happy because God is the one who saves me.
And my spirite reioyceth in God my Sauiour.
48 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,
For hee hath looked on the poore degree of his seruaunt: for beholde, from henceforth shall all ages call me blessed,
49 because they will hear about the things that God [MTY], the mighty one, has done for me. He [MTY] is awesome!
Because hee that is mightie, hath done for me great things, and holy is his Name.
50 He acts mercifully toward all those who respect him.
And his mercie is from generation to generation on them that feare him.
51 He shows people that he [MTY] is very powerful. He scatters those who think proudly.
Hee hath shewed strength with his arme: hee hath scattered the proude in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He does not let mighty kings rule [MTY] any more, but he honors people who are oppressed (OR, humble).
Hee hath put downe the mighty from their seates, and exalted them of lowe degree.
53 He gives good things to eat to those who are hungry, but he sends away the rich people without giving them anything.
Hee hath filled the hungrie with good things, and sent away the rich emptie.
54 And now he has remembered what he promised. So he has helped me and all the other people of [MTY] Israel who serve him.
Hee hath vpholden Israel his seruaunt to be mindefull of his mercie
55 He promised to Abraham and all our other ancestors who descended from him that he would act mercifully toward them forever.” (aiōn g165)
(As hee hath spoken to our fathers, to wit, to Abraham, and his seede) for euer. (aiōn g165)
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months. Then she returned to her home.
And Marie abode with her about three moneths: after, shee returned to her owne house.
57 When it was time for Elizabeth to give birth to her child, she bore a son.
Nowe Elisabets time was fulfilled, that shee should be deliuered, and shee brought foorth a sonne.
58 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].
And her neighbours, and cousins heard tell howe the Lord had shewed his great mercie vpon her, and they reioyced with her.
59 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.
And it was so that on the eight day they came to circumcise the babe, and called him Zacharias after the name of his father.
60 But his mother said, “No, [his name will not be Zechariah]. His name will be John!”
But his mother answered, and saide, Not so, but he shalbe called Iohn.
61 [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]!”
And they saide vnto her, There is none of thy kindred, that is named with this name.
62 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.
Then they made signes to his father, howe he would haue him called.
63 [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!
So hee asked for writing tables, and wrote, saying, His name is Iohn, and they marueiled all.
64 Immediately Zechariah was able to speak again [MTY], and he praised God.
And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue, and he spake and praised God.
65 All their neighbors were amazed/awestruck! They told other people who lived all over the highlands of Judea about what had happened.
Then feare came on all them that dwelt neere vnto them, and all these woordes were noised abroade throughout all the hill countrey of Iudea.
66 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].
And al they that heard them, laid them vp in their hearts, saying, What maner childe shall this be! and the hand of the Lord was with him.
67 [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:
Then his father Zacharias was filled with the holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,
68 “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.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, because he hath visited and redeemed his people,
69 He is sending us someone who will powerfully [MTY] save us, someone who is descended from [MTY] King David, who served God well.
And hath raised vp the horne of saluation vnto vs, in the house of his seruant Dauid,
As he spake by ye mouth of his holy Prophets, which were since the world began, saying, (aiōn g165)
71 He will rescue us from our enemies, and he will save us from the power of all those who hate us.
That he would sende vs deliuerance from our enemies, and from the hands of all that hate vs,
72 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.
That he might shewe mercie towards our fathers, and remember his holy couenant,
73 That is what he strongly promised our ancestor Abraham that he would do.
And the othe which he sware to our father Abraham.
74 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,
Which was, that he would graunt vnto vs, that we being deliuered out of the handes of our enemies, should serue him without feare,
75 that he would cause us to be completely dedicated to him, and enable us to live righteously all of our lives.”
All the daies of our life, in holinesse and righteousnesse before him.
76 [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).
And thou, babe, shalt be called the Prophet of the most High: for thou shalt goe before the face of the Lord, to prepare his waies,
77 You will tell God’s people how he will forgive them and save them from being punished for their sins.
And to giue knowledge of saluation vnto his people, by the remission of their sinnes,
78 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.
Through ye tender mercy of our God, wherby the day spring from an hie hath visited vs,
79 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.”
To giue light to them that sit in darknes, and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feete into the way of peace.
80 [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.
And the childe grewe, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the wildernesse, til the day came that he should shewe him selfe vnto Israel.
