Shared Word Translation
Luke 1
Preface
Since many have undertaken to set in order a narrative about the matters that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word handed them down to us, it seemed good to me also—having followed all things closely from the start—to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things about which you have been instructed.
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.
Now while Zechariah was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Do not fear, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb. He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
And Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 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. And look—you will be silent and unable to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not trust my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”
And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. When he came out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. He kept making signs to them and remained unable to speak. And when his days of service were ended, he went to his home.
After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when the Lord looked on me, to take away my disgrace among people.”
The Birth of Jesus Foretold
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and pondered what kind of greeting this might be.
The angel said to her, “Do not fear, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And look—you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He 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. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have not known a man?” The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the holy child to be born will be called Son of God. And look—Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.”
Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
In those days Mary rose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For look—as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who trusted that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
Mary’s Song
And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for the Lord has looked on the lowliness of the Lord’s servant. For look—from now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for generation upon generation for those who fear him. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, just as he spoke to our ancestors, to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.”
And Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned to her home.
The Birth of John the Baptist
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.
And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother answered, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, asking what he wanted him to be called. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he spoke, blessing God.
Fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the whole hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child be?” For indeed the Lord’s hand was with him.
Zechariah’s Prophecy
Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for the Lord has visited and redeemed his people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old: that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. Thus he has shown mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham— to grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 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 to prepare the Lord’s ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.