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57 Now Elisabeth’s time was fulfilled that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son. 58 And her neighbors and her kinsfolk heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy towards her; and they rejoiced with her. 59 And it came to pass on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father. 60 And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John. 61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. 62 And they made signs to his father, what he would have him called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all. 64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judaea. 66 And all that heard them laid them up in their heart, saying, What then shall this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him.

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

68 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people,
69 And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of his servant David
70 (As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old),
71 Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
72 To show mercy towards our fathers,
And to remember his holy covenant;
73 The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father,
74 To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies
Should serve him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 Yea and thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Most High:
For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to make ready his ways;
77 To give knowledge of salvation unto his people
In the remission of their sins,
78 Because of the [a]tender mercy of our God,
[b]Whereby the dayspring from on high [c]shall visit us,
79 To shine upon them that sit in darkness and the shadow of death;
To guide our feet into the way of peace.

80 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:78 Or, heart of mercy
  2. Luke 1:78 Or, Wherein
  3. Luke 1:78 Many ancient authorities read hath visited us.

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise(A) the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”(B)

61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

62 Then they made signs(C) to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.”(D) 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak,(E) praising God. 65 All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea(F) people were talking about all these things. 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.(G)

Zechariah’s Song

67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit(H) and prophesied:(I)

68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,(J)
    because he has come to his people and redeemed them.(K)
69 He has raised up a horn[a](L) of salvation for us
    in the house of his servant David(M)
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),(N)
71 salvation from our enemies
    and from the hand of all who hate us—
72 to show mercy to our ancestors(O)
    and to remember his holy covenant,(P)
73     the oath he swore to our father Abraham:(Q)
74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
    and to enable us to serve him(R) without fear(S)
75     in holiness and righteousness(T) before him all our days.

76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet(U) of the Most High;(V)
    for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,(W)
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
    through the forgiveness of their sins,(X)
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
    by which the rising sun(Y) will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
    and in the shadow of death,(Z)
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”(AA)

80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit[b];(AB) and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:69 Horn here symbolizes a strong king.
  2. Luke 1:80 Or in the Spirit