Luke 1:76

1:76 And you, child,¹ will be called the prophet² of the Most High.³

For you will go before⁴ the Lord to prepare his ways,⁵

Luke 19:38

19:38 “Blessed is the king⁶ who comes in the name of the Lord!⁷ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Luke 1:32

1:32 He⁸ will be great,⁹ and will be called the Son of the Most High,¹⁰ and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father¹¹ David.

¹sn Now Zechariah describes his son John (you, child) through v. 77.

²tn Or “a prophet”; but since Greek nouns can be definite without the article, and since in context this is a reference to the eschatological forerunner of the Messiah (cf. John 1:17), the concept is better conveyed to the English reader by the use of the definite article “the.”

³sn In other words, John is a prophet of God; see 1:32 and 7:22-23, 28.

⁴tc Most mss, especially the later ones (A C D L Θ Ψ 0130 Ë^1,13 33 Ï sy), have πρὸ προσώπου κυρίου (pro proswpou kuriou, “before the face of the Lord”), but the translation follows the reading ἐνώπιον κυρίου (enwpion kuriou, “before the Lord”), which has earlier and better ms support (Ì⁴ א B W 0177 pc) and is thus more likely to be authentic.

⁵tn This term is often translated in the singular, looking specifically to the forerunner role, but the plural suggests the many elements in that salvation.

⁶sn Luke adds the title king to the citation from Ps 118:26 to make clear who was meant (see Luke 18:38). The psalm was used in looking for the deliverance of the end, thus leading to the Pharisees’ reaction.

⁷sn A quotation from Ps 118:26.

¹¹tn Grk “this one.”

¹²sn Compare the description of Jesus as great here with 1:15, “great before the Lord.” Jesus is greater than John, since he is Messiah compared to a prophet. Great is stated absolutely without qualification to make the point.

¹³sn The expression Most High is a way to refer to God without naming him. Such avoiding of direct reference to God was common in 1st century Judaism out of reverence for the divine name.

¹⁴tn Or “ancestor.”