Luke 1:1-9

Explanatory Preface

1:1 Now ¹  many have undertaken to compile an account ²  of the things ³  that have been fulfilled ⁴  among us, 1:2 like the accounts ⁵  passed on ⁶  to us by those who were eyewitnesses and servants of the word ⁷  from the beginning. ⁸  1:3 So ⁹  it seemed good to me as well, ¹⁰  because I have followed ¹¹  all things carefully from the beginning, to write an orderly account ¹²  for you, most excellent Theophilus, 1:4 so that you may know for certain ¹³  the things you were taught. ¹⁴ 

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

1:5 During the reign ¹⁵  of Herod ¹⁶  king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to ¹⁷  the priestly division of Abijah, ¹⁸  and he had a wife named Elizabeth, ¹⁹  who was a descendant of Aaron. ²⁰  1:6 They ²¹  were both righteous in the sight of God, following ²²  all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. ²³  1:7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, ²⁴  and they were both very old. ²⁵ 

1:8 Now ²⁶  while Zechariah ²⁷  was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, ²⁸  1:9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, ²⁹  to enter ³⁰  the holy place ³¹  of the Lord and burn incense.

[1:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Since” or “Because.” This begins a long sentence that extends through v. 4. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, the Greek sentence has been divided up into shorter English sentences in the translation.

[1:1]  ² tn This is sometimes translated “narrative,” but the term itself can refer to an oral or written account. It is the verb “undertaken” which suggests a written account, since it literally is “to set one’s hand” to something (BDAG 386 s.v. ἐπιχειρέω). “Narrative” is too specific, denoting a particular genre of work for the accounts that existed in the earlier tradition. Not all of that material would have been narrative.

[1:1]  ³ tn Or “events.”

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Or “have been accomplished.” Given Luke’s emphasis on divine design (e.g., Luke 24:43-47) a stronger sense (“fulfilled”) is better than a mere reference to something having taken place (“accomplished”).

[1:2]  ⁵ tn Grk “even as”; this compares the recorded tradition of 1:1 with the original eyewitness tradition of 1:2.

[1:2]  ⁶ tn Or “delivered.”

[1:2]  ⁷ sn The phrase eyewitnesses and servants of the word refers to a single group of people who faithfully passed on the accounts about Jesus. The language about delivery (passed on) points to accounts faithfully passed on to the early church.

[1:2]  ⁸ tn Grk “like the accounts those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word passed on to us.” The location of “in the beginning” in the Greek shows that the tradition is rooted in those who were with Jesus from the start.

[1:3]  ⁹ tn The conjunction “so” is supplied here to bring out the force of the latter part of this Greek sentence, which the translation divides up because of English style. Luke, in compiling his account, is joining a tradition with good precedent.

[1:3]  ¹⁰ sn When Luke says it seemed good to me as well he is not being critical of the earlier accounts, but sees himself stepping into a tradition of reporting about Jesus to which he will add uniquely a second volume on the early church when he writes the Book of Acts.

[1:3]  ¹¹ tn Grk “having followed”; the participle παρηκολουθηκότι (parhkolouqhkoti) has been translated causally.

[1:3]  ¹² sn An orderly account does not necessarily mean that all events are recorded in the exact chronological sequence in which they occurred, but that the account produced is an orderly one. This could include, for example, thematic or topical order rather than strict chronological order.

[1:4]  ¹³ tn Or “know the truth about”; or “know the certainty of.” The issue of the context is psychological confidence; Luke’s work is trying to encourage Theophilus. So in English this is better translated as “know for certain” than “know certainty” or “know the truth,” which sounds too cognitive. “Certain” assumes the truth of the report. On this term, see Acts 2:36; 21:34; 22:30; and 25:26. The meaning “have assurance concerning” is also possible here.

[1:4]  ¹⁴ tn Or “you heard about.” This term can refer merely to a report of information (Acts 21:24) or to instruction (Acts 18:25). The scope of Luke’s Gospel as a whole, which calls for perseverance in the faith and which assumes much knowledge of the OT, suggests Theophilus had received some instruction and was probably a believer.

[1:5]  ¹⁵ 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.

[1:5]  ¹⁶ 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.

[1:5]  ¹⁷ 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.”

[1:5]  ¹⁸ 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.

[1:5]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “and her name was Elizabeth.”

[1:5]  ²⁰ tn Grk “a wife of the daughters of Aaron.”

[1:6]  ²¹ 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.

[1:6]  ²² tn Grk “walking in” (an idiom for one’s lifestyle).

[1:6]  ²³ tn The predicate adjective has the effect of an adverb here (BDF §243).

[1:7]  ²⁴ 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.

[1:7]  ²⁵ tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).

[1:8]  ²⁶ tn Grk “Now it happened that.” 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.

[1:8]  ²⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Zechariah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:8]  ²⁸ tn Grk “serving as priest in the order of his division before God.”

[1:9]  ²⁹ tn Grk “according to the custom of the priesthood it fell to him by lot.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged in the translation to make it clear that the prepositional phrase κατὰ τὸ ἔθος τῆς ἱερατείας (kata to eqo" th" Jierateia", “according to the custom of the priesthood”) modifies the phrase “it fell to him by lot” rather than the preceding clause.

[1:9]  ³⁰ tn This is an aorist participle and is temporally related to the offering of incense, not to when the lot fell.

[1:9]  ³¹ tn Or “temple.” Such sacrifices, which included the burning of incense, would have occurred in the holy place according to the Mishnah (m. Tamid 1.2; 3.1; 5-7). A priest would have given this sacrifice, which was offered for the nation, once in one’s career. It would be offered either at 9 a.m. or 3 p.m., since it was made twice a day.