Luke 1
1 Whereas many have undertaken to compose a narrative of the things, which have been fully certified among us;
Since many have undertaken to set in order a narrative concerning those matters which have been fulfilled among us,
2 as they delivered them to us, who were from the beginning eye-witnesses of them, and ministers of the word;
even as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word delivered them to us,
3 it seemed good to me also, having thoroughly traced them all from the very first, to write an account of them in order to thee,
it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write to you in order, most excellent Theophilus;
4 most excellent Theophilus, that thou mayst know the certainty of the things wherein thou hast been instructed.
that you might know the certainty concerning the things in which you were instructed.
5 There was in the days of Herod king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia; and his wife was of the family of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the priestly division of Abijah. He had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
6 And they were both righteous in the sight of 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, for Elisabeth was barren; and they were both far advanced 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, while he was in the order of his course performing the priest's office before God,
Now while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his division
9 according to the custom of dividing the office of the priests, that it fell to his lot to burn incense, entring into the temple of the Lord:
according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.
10 and all the people were praying without at the time of offering incense.
The whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right hand of the altar of incense.
An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was startled and struck with fear:
Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and 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 request has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
14 and he shall be a joy and transport to thee, yea, many shall rejoice on account of his birth; for he shall be great in the sight of the Lord,
You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
15 and he shall drink neither wine nor any other strong liquor; and he shall be filled with the holy Spirit even from his birth;
For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will drink no wine nor strong drink. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
16 and many of the children of Israel shall he convert unto the Lord their God.
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 unto the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to prepare for the Lord a people well-disposed.
He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to prepare a people prepared for the Lord.”
18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife far advanced in years.
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 to him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God, and I am sent to speak to thee, and to tell thee this good news:
The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God. I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
20 and now shalt thou be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall come to pass; because thou believedst not my words, which shall be fulfilled at their season.
Behold, you will be silent and not able to speak until the day that these things will happen, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
21 And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondered at his staying so long in the temple:
The people were waiting for Zacharias, and they marveled that he delayed in the temple.
22 but when he came out he could not speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he made signs to them, and continued speechless:
When he came out, he could not speak to them. They perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple. He continued making signs to them, and remained mute.
23 and as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
When the days of his service were fulfilled, he departed to his house.
24 And after these days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and retired five months,
After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and she hid herself five months, saying,
25 saying, the Lord hath thus dealt with me in the days wherein he looked upon me to take away my reproach among men.
“Thus has the Lord done to me in the days in which he looked at me, to take away my reproach among men.”
26 But in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee called Nazareth,
Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
27 to a virgin who was betrothed to a man, whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the name of the virgin was Mary.
to a virgin pledged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And when the angel came in to the room to her, he said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured; the Lord is with thee;
Having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, you highly favored one! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women!”
29 blessed art thou among women! and when she saw him, she was confused at what he said, and pondered in her mind what sort of salutation this could be.
But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered what kind of salutation this might be.
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found favor with God:
The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31 and behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS:
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and shall name him ‘Jesus.’
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God shall give Him the throne of David his father,
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. 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 for the ages (aiōn g165). There will be no end to his Kingdom."
34 Then said Mary to the angel, How can this be, since I am a virgin?
Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?”
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee, and therefore thine holy offspring shall be called the Son of God: and lo,
The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.
36 thy cousin Elisabeth also hath conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month with her that was called barren;
Behold, Elizabeth your relative also has conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.
37 for nothing is impossible with God.
For nothing spoken by God is impossible.”
38 Then Mary said, Behold the servant of the Lord, may it be unto me according to thy word. So the angel departed from her.
Mary said, “Behold, the servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
39 Then Mary arose and went with speed into the hill-country, to a city of Juda,
Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah,
40 and came into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.
and entered into the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.
41 And as soon as Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the child leaped in her womb, and Elisabeth was filled with the holy Spirit:
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42 and she cried out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb:
She called out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
43 and whence is this honor 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 behold, as soon as the voice of thy salutation reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy:
For behold, when the voice of your greeting came into my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy!
45 and blessed is she that believed; for there shall be a performance of the things that were told her from the Lord.
Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord!”
46 And Mary said, "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour;
Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord.
47 for He hath regarded the low estate of his handmaid:
My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
48 for behold, from henceforth shall all generations call me blessed:
for he has looked at the humble state of his servant. For behold, from now on, all generations will call me blessed.
49 for He that is mighty hath done great things for me,
For he who is mighty has done great things for me. Holy is his name.
50 and his name is holy, and his mercy is on them that fear Him, unto all generations.
His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.
51 He hath wrought powerfully with his arm; He hath confounded those that were proud in the imagination of their heart.
He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He hath cast down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble.
He has put down princes from their thrones, and has exalted the lowly.
53 He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent away empty.
He has filled the hungry with good things. He has sent the rich away empty.
54 He hath supported Israel his servant,
He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,
55 in remembrance of his mercy (even as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed, ) for ever." (aiōn g165)
as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring for the age (aiōn g165)."
56 And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her own house.
Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her house.
57 Now when Elisabeth's time for her delivery was fully come, she brought forth a son:
Now the time that Elizabeth should give birth was fulfilled, and she gave birth to a son.
58 and her neighbours and kindred heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy towards her, and they congratulated her;
Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.
59 and on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child: and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father:
On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
60 but his mother said, No, but he shall be called John:
His mother answered, “Not so; but he will be called John.”
61 and they said to her, There is none of thy relations of this name.
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, what name he would have him called by.
They made signs to his father, what he would have him called.
63 And he called for a writing-tablet, and wrote upon it, His name is John: and they all wondered.
He asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John.” They all marveled.
64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake and praised God.
His mouth was opened immediately and his tongue freed, and he spoke, blessing God.
65 And an awe fell upon all that dwelt round about them; and all these things were divulged through the whole hill-country of Judea.
Fear came on all who lived around them, and all these sayings were talked about throughout all the hill country of Judea.
66 And all that heard them, laid them up in their hearts, saying, What a child will this be? And the hand of the Lord was with him.
All who heard them laid them up in their heart, saying, “What then will this child be?” The hand of the Lord was with him.
67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the holy Spirit,
His father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,
68 and prophesied, saying, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He hath visited and wrought redemption for his people,
“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people;
69 and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David
70 in the house of his servant David, as He spake by the mouth of his holy prophets from the beginning, (aiōn g165)
(as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets who have been from the age (aiōn g165)),
71 even salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us,
salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;
72 to display his mercy towards our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant,
to show mercy toward our fathers, to remember his holy covenant,
73 according to the oath which He sware to Abraham our father,
the oath which he swore to Abraham our father,
74 to grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him,
to grant to us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, should serve him without fear,
75 all the days of our life.
in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
76 And thou, my child, shalt be called the prophet of the most High; for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord,
And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to make known salvation to his people,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins,
78 in the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the day-spring hath visited us from on high,
because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the dawn from on high will visit us,
79 to enlighten them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to direct our feet into the way of peace."
to shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death; to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
80 And the child grew, and became strong in spirit: and he was in the deserts till the time of his being manifested to Israel.
The child was growing and becoming strong in spirit, and was in the desert until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
