Luke 1:5

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

1:5 During the reign ¹  of Herod ²  king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to ³  the priestly division of Abijah, ⁴  and he had a wife named Elizabeth, ⁵  who was a descendant of Aaron. ⁶ 

Luke 2:4

2:4 So ⁷  Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth ⁸  in Galilee to Judea, to the city ⁹  of David called Bethlehem, ¹⁰  because he was of the house ¹¹  and family line ¹²  of David.

Luke 15:4

15:4 “Which one ¹³  of you, if he has a hundred ¹⁴  sheep and loses one of them, would not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture ¹⁵  and go look for ¹⁶  the one that is lost until he finds it? ¹⁷ 

Luke 21:4

21:4 For they all offered their gifts out of their wealth. ¹⁸  But she, out of her poverty, put in everything she had to live on.” ¹⁹ 

¹ 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 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 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 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 tn Grk “and her name was Elizabeth.”

⁶ tn Grk “a wife of the daughters of Aaron.”

⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action.

⁸ sn On Nazareth see Luke 1:26.

⁹ tn Or “town.” The translation “city” is used here because of its collocation with “of David,” suggesting its importance, though not its size.

¹⁰ sn The journey from Nazareth to the city of David called Bethlehem was a journey of about 90 mi (150 km). Bethlehem was a small village located about 7 miles south-southwest of Jerusalem.

¹¹ sn Luke’s use of the term “house” probably alludes to the original promise made to David outlined in the Nathan oracle of 2 Sam 7:12-16, especially in light of earlier connections between Jesus and David made in Luke 1:32. Further, the mention of Bethlehem reminds one of the promise of Mic 5:2, namely, that a great king would emerge from Bethlehem to rule over God’s people.

¹² tn Or “family,” “lineage.”

¹³ tn Grk “What man.” The Greek word ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used here in a somewhat generic sense.

¹⁴ sn This individual with a hundred sheep is a shepherd of modest means, as flocks often had up to two hundred head of sheep.

¹⁵ tn Or “desert,” but here such a translation might suggest neglect of the 99 sheep left behind.

¹⁶ tn Grk “go after,” but in contemporary English the idiom “to look for” is used to express this.

¹⁷ sn Until he finds it. The parable pictures God’s pursuit of the sinner. On the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, see John 10:1-18.

¹⁹ tn Grk “out of what abounded to them.”

²⁰ tn Or “put in her entire livelihood.”