2:14 “Glory 12 to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among people 13 with whom he is pleased!” 14
2:15 When 15 the angels left them and went back to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem 16 and see this thing that has taken place, that the Lord 17 has made known to us.”
1 tn Grk “behold.”
2 tn Grk “I evangelize to you great joy.”
3 sn The Greek word for today (σήμερον, shmeron) occurs eleven times in the Gospel of Luke (2:11; 4:21; 5:26; 12:28; 13:32-33; 19:5, 9; 22:34, 61; 23:43) and nine times in Acts. Its use, especially in passages such as 2:11, 4:21, 5:26; 19:5, 9, signifies the dawning of the era of messianic salvation and the fulfillment of the plan of God. Not only does it underscore the idea of present fulfillment in Jesus’ ministry, but it also indicates salvific fulfillment present in the church (cf. Acts 1:6; 3:18; D. L. Bock, Luke [BECNT], 1:412; I. H. Marshall, Luke, [NIGTC], 873).
4 tn Or “town.” See the note on “city” in v. 4.
5 tn This is another indication of a royal, messianic connection.
6 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
7 tn Grk “And this.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
8 sn The sign functions for the shepherds like Elizabeth’s conception served for Mary in 1:36.
9 tn Or “a feeding trough,” see Luke 2:7.
10 tn Grk “And suddenly.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
11 tn Grk “a multitude of the armies of heaven.”
12 sn Glory here refers to giving honor to God.
13 tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") referring to both males and females.
14 tc Most witnesses (א2 B2 L Θ Ξ Ψ Ë1,13 Ï sy bo) have ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκία (en anqrwpoi" eudokia, “good will among people”) instead of ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκίας (en anqrwpoi" eudokia", “among people with whom he is pleased”), a reading attested by א* A B* D W pc (sa). Most of the Itala witnesses and some other versional witnesses reflect a Greek text which has the genitive εὐδοκίας but drops the preposition ἐν. Not only is the genitive reading better attested, but it is more difficult than the nominative. “The meaning seems to be, not that divine peace can be bestowed only where human good will is already present, but that at the birth of the Saviour God’s peace rests on those whom he has chosen in accord with his good pleasure” (TCGNT 111).
15 tn Grk “And it happened that when.” 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. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
16 map For location see Map5-B1; Map7-E2; Map8-E2; Map10-B4.
17 sn Note how although angels delivered the message, it was the Lord whose message is made known, coming through them.