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Malachi 3:1-4
New English Translation

3 1 “I am about to send my messenger,[a] who will clear the way before me. Indeed, the Lord[b] you are seeking will suddenly come to his temple, and the messenger[c] of the covenant, whom you long for, is certainly coming,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

2 Who can endure the day of his coming? Who can keep standing when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire,[d] like a launderer’s soap. 3 He will act like a refiner and purifier of silver and will cleanse the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will offer the Lord a proper offering. 4 The offerings[e] of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in former times and years past.

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Footnotes

  1. Malachi 3:1 tn In Hebrew the phrase “my messenger” is מַלְאָכִי (malʾakhi), the same form as the prophet’s name (see note on the name “Malachi” in 1:1). However, here the messenger appears to be an eschatological figure who is about to appear, as the following context suggests. According to 4:5, this messenger is “Elijah the prophet,” whom the NT identifies as John the Baptist (Matt 11:10; Mark 1:2) because he came in the “spirit and power” of Elijah (Matt 11:14; 17:11-12; Lk 1:17).
  2. Malachi 3:1 tn Here the Hebrew term הָאָדוֹן (haʾadon) is used, not יְהוָה (yehvah, typically rendered Lord). Thus the focus is not on the Lord as the covenant God, but on his role as master.
  3. Malachi 3:1 sn This messenger of the covenant may be equated with my messenger (that is, Elijah) mentioned earlier in the verse, or with the Lord himself. In either case the messenger functions as an enforcer of the covenant. Note the following verses, which depict purifying judgment on a people that has violated the Lord’s covenant.
  4. Malachi 3:2 sn The refiner’s fire was used to purify metal and refine it by melting it and allowing the dross, which floated to the top, to be scooped off.
  5. Malachi 3:4 tn Or “gift.”
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Malachi 2
Malachi 4
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Luke 1:5-7
New English Translation

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

5 During the reign[a] of Herod[b] king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to[c] the priestly division of Abijah,[d] and he had a wife named Elizabeth,[e] who was a descendant of Aaron.[f] 6 They[g] were both righteous in the sight of God, following[h] all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.[i] 7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren,[j] and they were both very old.[k]

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:5 tn Grk “It happened that in the days.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
  2. Luke 1:5 sn Herod was Herod the Great, who ruled Palestine from 37 b.c. until he died in 4 b.c. He was known for his extensive building projects (including the temple in Jerusalem) and for his cruelty.
  3. Luke 1:5 tn Grk “of,” but the meaning of the preposition ἐκ (ek) is more accurately expressed in contemporary English by the relative clause “who belonged to.”
  4. Luke 1:5 sn There were twenty-four divisions of priesthood and the priestly division of Abijah was eighth on the list according to 1 Chr 24:10.
  5. Luke 1:5 tn Grk “and her name was Elizabeth.”
  6. Luke 1:5 tn Grk “a wife of the daughters of Aaron.”sn It was not unusual for a priest to have a wife from a priestly family (a descendant of Aaron); this was regarded as a special blessing.
  7. Luke 1:6 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
  8. Luke 1:6 tn Grk “walking in” (an idiom for one’s lifestyle).sn The description of Zechariah and Elizabeth as following…blamelessly was not to say that they were sinless, but that they were faithful and pious. Thus a practical righteousness is meant here (Gen 6:8; Deut 28:9).
  9. Luke 1:6 tn The predicate adjective has the effect of an adverb here (BDF §243).
  10. Luke 1:7 sn Elizabeth was barren. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth are regarded by Luke as righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly (v. 6). With this language, reminiscent of various passages in the OT, Luke is probably drawing implicit comparisons to the age and barrenness of such famous OT personalities as Abraham and Sarah (see, e.g., Gen 18:9-15), the mother of Samson (Judg 13:2-5), and Hannah, the mother of Samuel (1 Sam 1:1-20). And, as it was in the case of these OT saints, so it is with Elizabeth: After much anguish and seeking the Lord, she too is going to have a son in her barrenness. In that day it was a great reproach to be childless, for children were a sign of God’s blessing (cf. Gen 1:28; Lev 20:20-21; Pss 127 and 128; Jer 22:30). As the dawn of salvation draws near, however, God will change this elderly couple’s grief into great joy and grant them the one desire time had rendered impossible.
  11. Luke 1:7 tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).
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Mark 16
Luke 2
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Luke 1:11-17
New English Translation

11 An[a] angel of the Lord,[b] standing on the right side of the altar of incense, appeared[c] to him. 12 And Zechariah, visibly shaken when he saw the angel,[d] was seized with fear.[e] 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard,[f] and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son; you[g] will name him John.[h] 14 Joy and gladness will come[i] to you, and many will rejoice at[j] his birth,[k] 15 for he will be great in the sight of[l] the Lord. He[m] must never drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.[n] 16 He[o] will turn[p] many of the people[q] of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go as forerunner before the Lord[r] 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.”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:11 tn Grk “And an angel.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here.
  2. Luke 1:11 tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” Linguistically, “angel of the Lord” is the same in both testaments (and thus, he is either “an angel of the Lord” or “the angel of the Lord” in both testaments). For arguments and implications, see ExSyn 252; M. J. Davidson, “Angels,” DJG, 9; W. G. MacDonald argues for “an angel” in both testaments: “Christology and ‘The Angel of the Lord’,” Current Issues in Biblical and Patristic Interpretation, 324-35.
  3. Luke 1:11 sn This term is often used to describe a supernatural appearance (24:34; Acts 2:3; 7:2, 30, 35; 9:17; 13:31; 16:9; 26:16).
  4. Luke 1:12 tn The words “the angel” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
  5. Luke 1:12 tn Or “and he was afraid”; Grk “fear fell upon him.” Fear is common when supernatural agents appear (1:29-30, 65; 2:9; 5:8-10; 9:34; 24:38; Exod 15:16; Judg 6:22-23; 13:6, 22; 2 Sam 6:9).
  6. Luke 1:13 tn The passive means that the prayer was heard by God.sn Your prayer has been heard. Zechariah’s prayer while offering the sacrifice would have been for the nation, but the answer to the prayer also gave them a long hoped-for child, a hope they had abandoned because of their old age.
  7. Luke 1:13 tn Grk “a son, and you”; καί (kai) has not been translated. Instead a semicolon is used in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  8. Luke 1:13 tn Grk “you will call his name John.” The future tense here functions like a command (see ExSyn 569-70). This same construction occurs in v. 31.sn “Do not be afraid…you must call his name John.” This is a standard birth announcement (see Gen 16:11; Isa 7:14; Matt 1:21; Luke 1:31).
  9. Luke 1:14 tn Grk “This will be joy and gladness.”
  10. Luke 1:14 tn Or “because of.”
  11. Luke 1:14 tn “At his birth” is more precise as the grammatical subject (1:58), though “at his coming” is a possible force, since it is his mission, as the following verses note, that will really bring joy.
  12. Luke 1:15 tn Grk “before.”
  13. Luke 1:15 tn Grk “and he”; because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun in the translation.
  14. Luke 1:15 tn Grk “even from his mother’s womb.” While this idiom may be understood to refer to the point of birth (“even from his birth”), Luke 1:41 suggests that here it should be understood to refer to a time before birth.sn He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. This is the language of the birth of a prophet (Judg 13:5, 7; Isa 49:1; Jer 1:5; Sir 49:7); see 1:41 for the first fulfillment.
  15. Luke 1:16 tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  16. Luke 1:16 sn The word translated will turn is a good summary term for repentance and denotes John’s call to a change of direction (Luke 3:1-14).
  17. Luke 1:16 tn Grk “sons,” but clearly this is a generic reference to people of both genders.
  18. Luke 1:17 tn Grk “before him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  19. Luke 1:17 sn These two lines cover all relationships: Turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children points to horizontal relationships, while (turn) the disobedient to the wisdom of the just shows what God gives from above in a vertical manner.
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Mark 16
Luke 2
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