Luke 1
1 Whereas many have undertaken to compose a narrative of the things, which have been fully certified among us;
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,
2 as they delivered them to us, who were from the beginning eye-witnesses of them, and ministers of the word;
just as they were reported to us by those who from the beginning were eye-witnesses, and afterward became bearers of the message.
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,
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,
4 most excellent Theophilus, that thou mayst know the certainty of the things wherein thou hast been instructed.
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.
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.
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.
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 people, who lived blameless lives, guiding their steps by 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, Elizabeth being barren; and both of them were 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,
One day, when Zechariah was officiating as priest before God, during the turn 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:
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;
10 and all the people were praying without at the time of offering incense.
and, as it was the Hour of Incense, the people were all praying outside.
11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right hand of the altar of incense.
And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the Altar of Incense.
12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was startled and struck with fear:
Zechariah was startled at the sight and was awe-struck.
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, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, whom you will call by the 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,
He will be to you a joy and a delight; and many will rejoice over 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; 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,
16 and many of the children of Israel shall he convert unto the Lord their God.
and will reconcile many of the Israelites 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 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.”
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.
“How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man and my wife is 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:
“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.
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.
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.”
21 And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondered at his staying so long in the temple:
Meanwhile the people were watching for Zechariah, wondering at his remaining so long 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 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.
23 and as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
And, as soon as his term of service was finished, he returned home.
24 And after these days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and retired five months,
After this his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and lived in seclusion for five months.
25 saying, the Lord hath thus dealt with me in the days wherein he looked upon me to take away my reproach among men.
“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.”
26 But in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee called Nazareth,
Six months later the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called 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 maiden there who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. Her 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;
Gabriel came into her presence and greeted her, saying, “You have been shown great favor – the Lord is with you.”
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.
Mary was much disturbed at his words, and was wondering to herself what such a greeting could mean,
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found favor with God:
when the angel spoke again, “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:
And now, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will give him the name 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,
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,
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 descendants of Jacob for ever; And to his kingdom there will be no end.” (aiōn g165)
34 Then said Mary to the angel, How can this be, since I am a virgin?
“How can this be?” Mary asked the angel. “For I have no husband.”
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 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.’
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;
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;
37 for nothing is impossible with God.
for no promise from God will fail to be fulfilled.”
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.
“I am the servant of the Lord,” exclaimed Mary. “Let it be with me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
39 Then Mary arose and went with speed into the hill-country, to a city of Juda,
Soon after this Mary set out, and made her way quickly into the hill-country, to a town in Judah;
40 and came into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.
and there she went into Zechariah’s house 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 child moved within her, and Elizabeth herself 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:
and cried aloud, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is your unborn child!
43 and whence is this honor to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
But how have I this honor, 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, as soon as your greeting reached my ears, the child moved within me with delight!
45 and blessed is she that believed; for there shall be a performance of the things that were told her from the Lord.
Happy indeed is she who believed that the promise which she received from the Lord would be fulfilled.”
46 And Mary said, "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour;
And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord,
47 for He hath regarded the low estate of his handmaid:
and my spirit delights in God my Savior,
48 for behold, from henceforth shall all generations call me blessed:
for he has looked with favor on his humble servant girl. From now on all generations will call me blessed!
49 for He that is mighty hath done great things for me,
“For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
50 and his name is holy, and his mercy is on them that fear Him, unto all generations.
He has mercy on those who revere him in every generation.
51 He hath wrought powerfully with his arm; He hath confounded those that were proud in the imagination of their heart.
“Mighty are the deeds of his arm! He has scattered the self-satisfied proud,
52 He hath cast down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble.
he has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and he uplifts the humble,
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, and the rich he has sent away empty.
54 He hath supported Israel his servant,
“He has stretched out his hand to his servant Israel, ever mindful of his 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 promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and his descendants for ever.” (aiōn g165)
56 And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her own house.
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned to her home.
57 Now when Elisabeth's time for her delivery was fully come, she brought forth a son:
When Elizabeth’s time came, 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;
and her neighbors and relatives, hearing of the great goodness of the Lord to her, came to share her joy.
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:
A week later they met to circumcise the child, and were about to call him Zechariah after his father,
60 but his mother said, No, but he shall be called John:
when his mother spoke up, “No, he is to be called John.”
61 and they said to her, There is none of thy relations of this name.
“You have no relation of that name!” they exclaimed;
62 And they made signs to his father, what name he would have him called by.
and they made signs to the child’s father, to find out what he wished the child to be called.
63 And he called for a writing-tablet, and wrote upon it, His name is John: and they all wondered.
Asking for a writing tablet, he wrote the words – ‘His name is John.’ Everyone was surprised
64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake and praised God.
and immediately Zechariah recovered his voice and the use of his tongue, and began to bless 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.
All their neighbors were awe-struck at this, and throughout the hill-country of Judea the whole story was much talked about.
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 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.
67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the holy Spirit,
Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and, speaking under inspiration, said:
68 and prophesied, saying, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He hath visited and wrought redemption for his people,
“Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who has visited his people and wrought their deliverance,
69 and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us,
and has raised up for us the strength of our salvation 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 promised by the lips of his holy prophets of old – (aiōn g165)
71 even salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us,
salvation from our enemies and from the hands of all who hate us,
72 to display his mercy towards our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant,
showing mercy to our ancestors, and mindful of his sacred covenant.
73 according to the oath which He sware to Abraham our father,
This was the oath which he swore to our ancestor Abraham –
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,
that we should be rescued from the hands of our enemies,
75 all the days of our life.
and should serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness, in his presence all our days.
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 prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to make ready his way,
77 to make known salvation to his people,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness 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,
through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the dawn will break on us from heaven,
79 to enlighten them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to direct our feet into the way of peace."
to give light to those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, and 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 grew and became strong in spirit, and he lived in the wilds until the time came for his appearance before Israel.
