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Luke 1:7
New English Translation
Luke 1:7
New English Translation
7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren,[a] and they were both very old.[b]
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- 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.
- Luke 1:7 tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).
Luke 1:13
New English Translation
Luke 1:13
New English Translation
13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard,[a] and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son; you[b] will name him John.[c]
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- 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.
- 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.
- 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).
Luke 1:39
New English Translation
Luke 1:39
New English Translation
Mary and Elizabeth
39 In those days[a] Mary got up and went hurriedly into the hill country, to a town of Judah,[b]
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- Luke 1:39 sn The expression In those days is another general time reference, though the sense of the context is that the visit came shortly after Mary miraculously conceived and shortly after the announcement about Jesus.
- Luke 1:39 sn The author does not say exactly where Elizabeth stayed. The location is given generally as a town of Judah. Judah is about a three day trip south of Nazareth.
New English Translation (NET)
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