Fluent Translation · Read & Reflect
Luke 1
Preface
Since many have undertaken to put together an account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after carefully investigating everything from the beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the reliability of the things you have been taught.
The Birth of John Foretold
In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah from the division of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the Lord’s commandments and requirements. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was unable to have children, and both of them were advanced in years. One day, while Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the Lord’s sanctuary and burn incense. The whole assembly of the people was 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. When Zechariah saw him, he was shaken, and fear came over him. But the angel said, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, because 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. He will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of parents toward their children and the disobedient toward the wisdom of the righteous, to prepare a people made ready for the Lord.”
Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this? I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” The angel answered, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and announce this good news to you. And look—you will be silent and unable to speak until the day these things happen, because you did not trust my words, which will be fulfilled at their appointed time.” Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he was taking so long in the sanctuary. When he came out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept making signs to them and remained unable to speak. When his days of service were completed, he went home.
After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and she kept herself secluded for five months. She said, “This is what the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me and took 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 pledged in marriage to a man named Joseph, from the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. He came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was deeply troubled by his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God. And look—you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.”
Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I have not had sexual relations with 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—your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for the woman who was called unable to have children. For nothing will be impossible with God.” Mary said, “Look, I am the Lord’s servant. Let it happen to me according to your word.” Then the angel left her.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
In those days Mary got up and hurried to the hill country, to a town of Judah. She entered Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She cried out loudly, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! Why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? Look—as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is the one who trusted that what the Lord spoke to her would be fulfilled.”
Mary’s Song
And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
because he has looked on the lowly condition of his servant.
Look—from now on all generations will call me blessed,
because the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for generation after 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 rulers down 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,
remembering his mercy,
just as he spoke to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his descendants forever.”
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned home.
The Birth of John
When the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they rejoiced with her. On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No. He is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has that name.” Then they made signs to his father, asking what he wanted the child to be called. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” They were all amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking and blessing God. Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the hill country of Judea. Everyone who heard them kept them in mind and asked, “What then will this child become?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.
Zechariah’s Prophecy
His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has visited and redeemed his people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
just as he spoke through his holy prophets from long ago:
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our ancestors
and remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
to grant that we, 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,
because you will go before the Lord 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 dawn from on high will visit us,
to shine on those sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.