Luke 1:20

1:20 And now, ¹  because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, ²  you will be silent, unable to speak, ³  until the day these things take place.”

Luke 8:12-13

8:12 Those along the path are the ones who have heard; then the devil ⁴  comes and takes away the word ⁵  from their hearts, so that they may not believe ⁶  and be saved. 8:13 Those ⁷  on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, ⁸  but ⁹  in a time of testing ¹⁰  fall away. ¹¹ 

[1:20]  ¹ tn Grk “behold.”

[1:20]  ² sn The predicted fulfillment in the expression my words, which will be fulfilled in their time takes place in Luke 1:63-66.

[1:20]  ³ sn Silent, unable to speak. Actually Zechariah was deaf and mute as 1:61-63 indicates, since others had to use gestures to communicate with him.

[8:12]  ⁴ sn Interestingly, the synoptic parallels each use a different word for the devil here: Matt 13:19 has “the evil one,” while Mark 4:15 has “Satan.” This illustrates the fluidity of the gospel tradition in often using synonyms at the same point of the parallel tradition.

[8:12]  ⁵ sn The word of Jesus has the potential to save if it germinates in a person’s heart, something the devil is very much against.

[8:12]  ⁶ tn The participle πιστεύσαντες (pisteusante") has been translated as a finite verb here. It may be regarded as an adverbial participle of attendant circumstance. From a logical standpoint the negative must govern both the participle and the finite verb.

[8:13]  ⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[8:13]  ⁸ sn This time of temporary faith represented by the description believe for a while is presented rather tragically in the passage. The seed does not get a chance to do all it can.

[8:13]  ⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[8:13]  ¹⁰ tn Traditionally, “temptation.” Such a translation puts the emphasis on temptation to sin rather than testing of faith, which is what the context seems to indicate.

[8:13]  ¹¹ sn Fall away. On the idea of falling away and the warnings against it, see 2 Tim 3:1; Heb 3:12; Jer 3:14; Dan 9:9.