Luke 1

Dedication to Theophilus

1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us,2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us,3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Birth of John the Baptist Foretold

5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,t of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.10 And 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 side of the altar of incense.12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God,17 and 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 make ready for the Lord a people prepared."

18 And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."19 And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time."21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple.22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute.23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying,25 "Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people."

Birth of Jesus Foretold

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,27 to a virgin betrothedt to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary.28 And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!"t29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.30 And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

34 And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?"t

35 And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be bornt will be called holy—the Son of God.36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.37 For nothing will be impossible with God."38 And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servantt of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah,40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.45 And blessed is she who believed that there would bet a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord."

Mary's Song of Praise: The Magnificat

46 And Mary said,
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
47  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48  for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49  for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50  And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51  He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52  he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
53  he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
54  He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55  as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever."

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

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.58 And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father,60 but his mother answered, "No; he shall be called John."61 And they said to her, "None of your relatives is called by this name."62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called.63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, "His name is John." And they all wondered.64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea,66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, "What then will this child be?" For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Zechariah's Prophecy

67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,

68  "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
69  and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
70  as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71  that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
72  to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
73  the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74  that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
75  in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76  And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77  to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
78  because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit ust from on high
79  to give light to those who sit in darkness and in 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 wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

Luke 1

Explanatory Preface

1 Nowt many have undertaken to compile an accountt of the thingst that have been fulfilledt among us,2 like the accountst passed ont to us by those who were eyewitnesses and servants of the words from the beginning.t3 Sot it seemed good to me as well,s because I have followedt all things carefully from the beginning, to write an orderly accounts for you, most excellent Theophilus,

4 so that you may know for certaint the things you were taught.t

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

5 During the reignt of Herods king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged tot the priestly division of Abijah,s and he had a wife named Elizabeth,t who was a descendant of Aaron.ts6 Theyt were both righteous in the sight of God, followingts all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.t

7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren,s and they were both very old.t
8 Nowt while Zechariaht was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,ts9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood,t to entert the holy placet of the Lord and burn incense.10 Nowt the whole crowdt of people were praying outside at the hour of the incense offering.t11 Ant angel of the Lord,t standing on the right side of the altar of incense, appeareds to him.12 And Zechariah, visibly shaken when he saw the angel,t was seized with fear.t13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard,ts and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son; yout will name him John.ts14 Joy and gladness will comet to you, and many will rejoice att his birth,t15 for he will be great in the sight oft the Lord. Het must never drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.ts16 Het will turns many of the peoplet of Israel to the Lord their God.

17 And he will go as forerunner before the Lordt in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,s to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”
18 Zechariaht said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this?t For I am an old man, and my wife is old as well.”t19 Thet angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who standst in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bringt you this good news.

20 And now,t because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time,s you will be silent, unable to speak,s until the day these things take place.”
21 Nowt the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they began to wondert why he was delayed in the holy place.t22 Whent he came out, he was not able to speak to them. Theyt realized that he had seen a visiont in the holy place,t becauset he was making signs to them and remained unable to speak.t

23 When his time of service was over,t he went to his home.
24 After some timet his wife Elizabeth became pregnant,t and for five months she kept herself in seclusion.s She said,t

25 “This is whatt the Lord has done for me at the timet when he has been gracious to me,t to take away my disgraces among people.”t

Birth Announcement of Jesus the Messiah

26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy,t the angel Gabriels was sent byt God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,ss27 to a virgin engagedt to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of David,ts and the virgin’s name was Mary.28 Thet angelt camet to her and said, “Greetings, favored one,t the Lord is with you!”s29 Buts she was greatly troubleds by his words and began to wonder about the meaning of this greeting.t30 Sot the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid,s Mary, for you have found favorts with God!31 Listen:t You will become pregnantt and give birth tot a son, and you will name himt Jesus.ts32 Het will be great,s and will be called the Son of the Most High,s and the Lord God will give him the throne of his fathert David.33 Het will reign over the house of Jacobts forever, and his kingdom will never end.”34 Maryt said to the angel, “How will this be, since I have not had sexual relations witht a man?”

35 The angel replied,t “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadows you. Therefore the childt to be borns will be holy;t he will be called the Son of God.
36 “And look,t your relativet Elizabeth has also become pregnant witht a son in her old age – although she was called barren, she is now in her sixth month!t37 For nothingt will be impossible with God.”

38 Sot Mary said, “Yes,t I am a servantt of the Lord; let this happen to met according to your word.”s Thent the angel departed from her.

Mary and Elizabeth

39 In those dayss Mary got up and went hurriedly into the hill country, to a town of Judah,s40 and entered Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.41 Whent Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leapeds in hert womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.s42 Shet exclaimed with a loud voice,t “Blessed are you among women,s and blessed is the childt in your womb!43 And who am It that the mother of my Lord should come and visit me?44 For the instantt the sound of your greeting reached my ears,t the baby in my womb leaped for joy.s

45 And blesseds is she who believed thatt what was spoken to her byt the Lord would be fulfilled.”ts

Mary’s Hymn of Praise

46 And Marys said,s
“My soul exaltst the Lord,s

47 and my spirit has begun to rejoicet in God my Savior,

48 because he has looked upon the humble state of his servant.t
Fort from now ons all generations will call me blessed,s

49 because he who is mightyt has done great things for me, and holy is his name;

50 fromt generation to generation he is mercifuls to those who feart him.

51 He has demonstrated powert with his arm; he has scattered those whose pride wells up from the sheer arrogancet of their hearts.

52 He has brought down the mightyt from their thrones, and has lifted up those of lowly position;ts

53 he has filled the hungry with good things,s and has sent the rich away empty.s

54 He has helped his servant Israel, rememberingt his mercy,t

55 as he promisedt to our ancestors,t to Abraham and to his descendantst forever.”

56 Sot Mary stayed with Elizabetht about three monthss and then returned to her home.

The Birth of John

57 Now the time camet for Elizabeth to have her baby,t and she gave birth to a son.

58 Hert neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shownt great mercy to her, and they rejoicedt with her.
59 Ont the eighth days they came to circumcise the child, and they wanted to namet him Zechariah after his father.60 Butt his mother replied,t “No! He must be namedt John.”s61 Theyt said to her, “Butt none of your relatives bears this name.”t62 Sot they made signs to the baby’st father,s inquiring what he wanted to name his son.t63 Het asked for a writing tablets and wrote,t “His name is John.” And they were all amazed.s64 Immediatelyt Zechariah’st mouth was opened and his tongues released,t and he spoke, blessing God.65 Allts their neighbors were filled with fear, and throughout the entire hill country of Judea all these things were talked about.

66 Allt who heard these thingst kept them in their hearts,t saying, “What then will this child be?”t For the Lord’s hands was indeed with him.

Zechariah’s Praise and Prediction

67 Thent his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied,ts

68 “Blesseds be the Lord God of Israel,
because he has come to helps and has redeemedts his people.

69 Fort he has raised ups a horn of salvations for us in the house of his servant David,s

70 as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from long ago,t

71 that we should be savedt from our enemies,s
and from the hand of all who hate us.

72 He has done thist to show mercys to our ancestors,t
and to remember his holy covenants –

73 the oatht that he swore to our ancestort Abraham.
This oath grantst

74 that we, being rescued from the hand of ours enemies,
may serve him without fear,t

75 in holiness and righteousnesss before him for as long as we live.t

76 And you, child,s will be called the prophett of the Most High.s
For you will go befores the Lord to prepare his ways,ts

77 to give his people knowledge of salvations through the forgivenesss of their sins.

78 Because oft our God’s tender mercys
the dawns will breakt upon us from on high

79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,s
to guide our feet into the wayt of peace.”

80 And the child kept growingt and becoming strongt in spirit, and he was in the wildernesst until the day he was revealedt to Israel.