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2002 11 11
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The Gospels
- Luke
  - Chapter 1

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Chapter 1

^¹ Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us,

just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us,

I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus,

so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.

^² In the days of Herod, King of Judea, ^³ there was a priest named Zechariah of the priestly division of Abijah; his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

Both were righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.

But they had no child, ^⁴ because Elizabeth was barren and both were advanced in years.

Once when he was serving as priest in his division's turn before God,

according to the practice of the priestly service, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense.

Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside at the hour of the incense offering,

the angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right of the altar of incense.

Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him.

But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, ^⁵ Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John.

And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,

for he will be great in the sight of (the) Lord. He will drink neither wine nor strong drink. ^⁶ He will be filled with the holy Spirit even from his mother's womb,

and he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.

He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah ^⁷ to turn the hearts of fathers toward children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord."

Then Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."

And the angel said to him in reply, "I am Gabriel, ^⁸ who stand before God. I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news.

But now you will be speechless and unable to talk ^⁹ until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time."

Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah and were amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary.

But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He was gesturing to them but remained mute.

Then, when his days of ministry were completed, he went home.

After this time his wife Elizabeth conceived, and she went into seclusion for five months, saying,

"So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit to take away my disgrace before others."

^¹⁰ In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,

to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary.

And coming to her, he said, "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you."

But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.

He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, ^¹¹ and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,

and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" ^¹²

And the angel said to her in reply, "The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.

And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived ^¹³ a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;

for nothing will be impossible for God."

Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah,

where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.

When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit,

cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.

And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord ^¹⁴ should come to me?

For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.

Blessed are you who believed ^¹⁵ that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."

And Mary said: ^¹⁶ "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;

my spirit rejoices in God my savior.

For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.

The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him.

He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart.

He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly.

The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty.

He has helped Israel his servant, remembering his mercy,

according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.

^¹⁷ When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child she gave birth to a son.

Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.

^¹⁸ When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,

but his mother said in reply, "No. He will be called John."

But they answered her, "There is no one among your relatives who has this name."

So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.

He asked for a tablet and wrote, "John is his name," and all were amazed.

Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.

Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea.

All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, "What, then, will this child be?" For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.

Then Zechariah his father, filled with the holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:

^¹⁹ "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and brought redemption to his people.

^²⁰ He has raised up a horn for our salvation within the house of David his servant,

even as he promised through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old:

salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,

to show mercy to our fathers and to be mindful of his holy covenant

and of the oath he swore to Abraham our father, and to grant us that,

rescued from the hand of enemies, without fear we might worship him

in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord ^²¹ to prepare his ways,

to give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God by which the daybreak from on high ^²² will visit us

to shine on those who sit in darkness and death's shadow, to guide our feet into the path of peace."

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.

1 [1-4] The Gospel according to Luke is the only one of the synoptic gospels to begin with a literary prologue. Making use of a formal, literary construction and vocabulary, the author writes the prologue in imitation of Hellenistic Greek writers and, in so doing, relates his story about Jesus to contemporaneous Greek and Roman literature. Luke is not only interested in the words and deeds of Jesus, but also in the larger context of the birth, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus as the fulfillment of the promises of God in the Old Testament. As a second- or third-generation Christian, Luke acknowledges his debt to earlier eyewitnesses and ministers of the word, but claims that his contribution to this developing tradition is a complete and accurate account, told in an orderly anner, and intended to provide Theophilus ("friend of God," literally) and other readers with certainty about earlier teachings they have received.

2 [⇒ 1:5-⇒ 2:52] Like the Gospel according to Matthew, this gospel opens with an infancy narrative, a collection of stories about the birth and childhood of Jesus. The narrative uses early Christian traditions about the birth of Jesus, traditions about the birth and circumcision of John the Baptist, and canticles such as the Magnificat (⇒ Luke 1:46-55) and Benedictus (⇒ Luke 1:67-79), composed of phrases drawn from the Greek Old Testament. It is largely, however, the composition of Luke who writes in imitation of Old Testament birth stories, combining historical and legendary details, literary ornamentation and interpretation of scripture, to answer in advance the question, "Who is Jesus Christ?" The focus of the narrative, therefore, is primarily christological. In this section Luke announces many of the themes that will become prominent in the rest of the gospel: the centrality of Jerusalem and the temple, the journey motif, the universality of salvation, joy and peace, concern for the lowly, the importance of women, the presentation of Jesus as savior, Spirit-guided revelation and prophecy, and the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The account presents parallel scenes (diptychs) of angelic announcements of the birth of John the Baptist and of Jesus, and of the birth, circumcision, and presentation of John and Jesus. In this parallelism, the ascendency of Jesus over John is stressed: John is prophet of the Most High (⇒ Luke 1:76); Jesus is Son of the Most High (⇒ Luke 1:32). John is great in the sight of the Lord (⇒ Luke 1:15); Jesus will be Great (a LXX attribute, used absolutely, of God) (⇒ Luke 1:32). John will go before the Lord (⇒ Luke 1:16-17); Jesus will be Lord (⇒ Luke 1:43; ⇒ 2:11).

3 [5] In the days of Herod, King of Judea: Luke relates the story of salvation history to events in contemporary world history. Here and in ⇒ Luke 3:1-2 he connects his narrative with events in Palestinian history; in ⇒ Luke 2:1-2 and ⇒ Luke 3:1 he casts the Jesus story in the light of events of Roman history. Herod the Great, the son of the Idumean Antipater, was declared "King of Judea" by the Roman Senate in 40 B.C., but became the undisputed ruler of Palestine only in 37 B.C. He continued as king until his death in 4 B.C. Priestly division of Abijah: a reference to the eighth of the twenty-four divisions of priests who, for a week at a time, twice a year, served in the Jerusalem temple.

4 [7] They had no child: though childlessness was looked upon in contemporaneous Judaism as a curse or punishment for sin, it is intended here to present Elizabeth in a situation similar to that of some of the great mothers of important Old Testament figures: Sarah (⇒ Genesis 15:3; ⇒ 16:1); Rebekah (⇒ Genesis 25:21); Rachel (⇒ Genesis 29:31; ⇒ 30:1); the mother of Samson and wife of Manoah (⇒ Judges 13:2-3); Hannah (⇒ 1 Sam 1:2).

5 [13] Do not be afraid: a stereotyped Old Testament phrase spoken to reassure the recipient of a heavenly vision (⇒ Genesis 15:1; ⇒ Joshua 1:9; ⇒ Daniel 10:12, ⇒ 19 and elsewhere in ⇒ Luke 1:30; ⇒ 2:10). You shall name him John: the name means "Yahweh has shown favor," an indication of John's role in salvation history.

6 [15] He will drink neither wine nor strong drink: like Samson (⇒ Judges 13:4-5) and Samuel (⇒ 1 Sam 1:11 LXX and 4QSama), John is to be consecrated by Nazirite vow and set apart for the Lord's service.

7 [17] He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah: John is to be the messenger sent before Yahweh, as described in ⇒ Malachi 3:1-2. He is cast, moreover, in the role of the Old Testament fiery reformer, the prophet Elijah, who according to ⇒ Malachi 3:23 (4 :5) is sent before "the great and terrible day of the Lord comes."

8 [19] I am Gabriel: "the angel of the Lord" is identified as Gabriel, the angel who in ⇒ Daniel 9:20-25 announces the seventy weeks of years and the coming of an anointed one, a prince. By alluding to Old Testament themes in ⇒ Luke 1:17, ⇒ 19 such as the coming of the day of the Lord and the dawning of the messianic era, Luke is presenting his interpretation of the significance of the births of John and Jesus.

9 [20] You will be speechless and unable to talk: Zechariah's becoming mute is the sign given in response to his question in v 18. When Mary asks a similar question in ⇒ Luke 1:34, unlike Zechariah who was punished for his doubt, she, in spite of her doubt, is praised and reassured(⇒ Luke 1:35-37).

10 [26-38] The announcement to Mary of the birth of Jesus is parallel to the announcement to Zechariah of the birth of John. In both the angel Gabriel appears to the parent who is troubled by the vision (⇒ Luke 1:11-12, ⇒ 26-29) and then told by the angel not to fear (⇒ Luke 1:13, ⇒ 30). After the announcement is made (⇒ Luke 1:14-17, ⇒ 31-33) the parent objects (⇒ Luke 1:18, ⇒ 34) and a sign is given to confirm the announcement (⇒ Luke 1:20, ⇒ 36). The particular focus of the announcement of the birth of Jesus is on his identity as Son of David (⇒ Luke 1:32-33) and Son of God (⇒ Luke 1:32, ⇒ 35).

11 [32] Son of the Most High: cf ⇒ Luke 1:76 where John is described as "prophet of the Most High." "Most High" is a title for God commonly used by Luke (⇒ Luke 1:35, ⇒ 76; ⇒ 6:35; ⇒ 8:28; ⇒ Acts 7:48; ⇒ 16:17).

12 [34] Mary's questioning response is a denial of sexual relations and is used by Luke to lead to the angel's declaration about the Spirit's role in the conception of this child (⇒ Luke 1:35). According to Luke, the virginal conception of Jesus takes place through the holy Spirit, the power of God, and therefore Jesus has a unique relationship to Yahweh: he is Son of God.

13 [36-37] The sign given to Mary in confirmation of the angel's announcement to her is the pregnancy of her aged relative Elizabeth. If a woman past the childbearing age could become pregnant, why, the angel implies, should there be doubt about Mary's pregnancy, for nothing will be impossible for God.

14 [43] Even before his birth, Jesus is identified in Luke as the Lord.

15 [45] Blessed are you who believed: Luke portrays Mary as a believer whose faith stands in contrast to the disbelief of Zechariah (⇒ Luke 1:20). Mary's role as believer in the infancy narrative should be seen in connection with the explicit mention of her presence among "those who believed" after the resurrection at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles (⇒ Acts 1:14).

16 [46-55] Although Mary is praised for being the mother of the Lord and because of her belief, she reacts as the servant in a psalm of praise, the Magnificat. Because there is no specific connection of the canticle to the context of Mary's pregnancy and her visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat (with the possible exception of v 48) may have been a Jewish Christian hymn that Luke found appropriate at this point in his story. Even if not composed by Luke, it fits in well with themes found elsewhere in Luke: joy and exultation in the Lord; the lowly being singled out for God's favor; the reversal of human fortunes; the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The loose connection between the hymn and the context is further seen in the fact that a few Old Latin manuscripts identify the speaker of the hymn as Elizabeth, even though the overwhelming textual evidence makes Mary the speaker.

17 [57-66] The birth and circumcision of John above all emphasize John's incorporation into the people of Israel by the sign of the covenant (⇒ Genesis 17:1-12). The narrative of John's circumcision also prepares the way for the subsequent description of the circumcision of Jesus in ⇒ Luke 2:21. At the beginning of his two-volume work Luke shows those who play crucial roles in the inauguration of Christianity to be wholly a part of the people of Israel. At the end of the Acts of the Apostles (⇒ Acts 21:20; ⇒ 22:3; ⇒ 23:6-9; ⇒ 24:14-16; ⇒ 26:2-8, ⇒ 22-23) he will argue that Christianity is the direct descendant of Pharisaic Judaism.

18 [59] The practice of Palestinian Judaism at this time was to name the child at birth; moreover, though naming a male child after the father is not completely unknown, the usual practice was to name the child after the grandfather (see ⇒ Luke 1:61). The naming of the child John and Zechariah's recovery from his loss of speech should be understood as fulfilling the angel's announcement to Zechariah in ⇒ Luke 1:13, ⇒ 20.

19 [68-79] Like the canticle of Mary (⇒ Luke 1:46-55) the canticle of Zechariah is only loosely connected with its context. Apart from ⇒ Luke 1:76-77, the hymn in speaking of a horn for our salvation (⇒ Luke 1:69) and the daybreak from on high (⇒ Luke 1:78) applies more closely to Jesus and his work than to John. Again like Mary's canticle, it is largely composed of phrases taken from the Greek Old Testament and may have been a Jewish Christian hymn of praise that Luke adapted to fit the present context by inserting ⇒ Luke 1:76-77 to give Zechariah's reply to the question asked in ⇒ Luke 1:66.

20 [69] A horn for our salvation: the horn is a common Old Testament figure for strength (⇒ Psalm 18:3; ⇒ 75:5-6; ⇒ 89:18; ⇒ 112:9; ⇒ 148:14). This description is applied to God in ⇒ Psalm 18:2 and is here transferred to Jesus. The connection of the phrase with the house of David gives the title messianic overtones and may indicate an allusion to a phrase in Hannah's song of praise (⇒ 1 Sam 2:10), "the horn of his anointed."

21 [76] You will go before the Lord: here the Lord is most likely a reference to Jesus (contrast ⇒ Luke 1:15-17 where Yahweh is meant) and John is presented as the precursor of Jesus.

22 [78] The daybreak from on high: three times in the LXX (⇒ Jeremiah 23:5; ⇒ Zechariah 3:8; ⇒ 6:12), the Greek word used here for daybreak translates the Hebrew word for "scion, branch," an Old Testament messianic title.

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