Luke 1:57-66
The Birth of John
57 Now the time came ▼▼ Grk “the time was fulfilled.”
for Elizabeth to have her baby, ▼▼ The words “her baby” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity.
and she gave birth to a son. 58Her ▼▼ Grk “And her.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown ▼▼ Grk “had magnified his mercy with her.”
great mercy to her, and they rejoiced ▼▼ The verb συνέχαιρον (sunecairon) is an imperfect and could be translated as an ingressive force, “they began to rejoice.”
with her. 59 On ▼
▼ Grk “And 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. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
the eighth day ▼ they came to circumcise the child, and they wanted to name ▼▼ This could be understood as a conative imperfect, expressing an unrealized desire (“they were trying to name him”). It has been given more of a voluntative nuance in the translation.
him Zechariah after his father. 60But ▼▼ Grk “And,” but with clearly contrastive emphasis in context.
his mother replied, ▼▼ Grk “his mother answering, said.” The combination of participle and finite verb is redundant in English and has been simplified to “replied” in the translation.
“No! He must be named ▼▼ This future passive indicative verb has imperatival force and thus has been translated “he must be named.”
John.” ▼ 61They ▼▼ Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
said to her, “But ▼▼ The word “but” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
none of your relatives bears this name.” ▼▼ Grk “There is no one from your relatives who is called by this name.”
62So ▼▼ Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action described.
they made signs to the baby’s ▼▼ Grk “his”; the referent (the baby) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
father, ▼▼ The crowd was sure there had been a mistake, so they appealed to the child’s father. But custom was not to be followed here, since God had spoken. The fact they needed to signal him (made signs) shows that he was deaf as well as unable to speak.
inquiring what he wanted to name his son. ▼▼ Grk “what he might wish to call him.”
63He ▼▼ Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
asked for a writing tablet ▼▼ The writing tablet requested by Zechariah would have been a wax tablet.
and wrote, ▼▼ Grk “and wrote, saying.” The participle λέγων (legōn) is redundant is English and has not been translated.
“His name is John.” And they were all amazed. ▼▼ The response, they were all amazed, expresses a mixture of surprise and reflection in this setting where they were so certain of what the child’s name would be.
64Immediately ▼▼ Grk “And immediately.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
Zechariah’s ▼▼ Grk “his”; the referent (Zechariah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
mouth was opened and his tongue ▼▼ The mention of both mouth and tongue here is a figure called zeugma and emphasizes that the end of the temporary judgment came instantly and fully upon Zechariah’s expression of faith in naming the child. He had learned to trust and obey God during his short period of silence. He had learned from his trial.
released, ▼▼ “Released” is implied; in the Greek text both στόμα (stoma) and γλῶσσα (glōssa) are subjects of ἀνεῴχθη (aneōcqē), but this would be somewhat redundant in English.
and he spoke, blessing God. 65All ▼▼ Grk “And all.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
▼▼ Fear is the emotion that comes when one recognizes something unusual, even supernatural, has taken place.
their neighbors were filled with fear, and throughout the entire hill country of Judea all these things were talked about. 66All ▼▼ Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. A new sentence was begun at this point in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.
who heard these things ▼▼ Grk “heard them”; the referent (these things, from the previous verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
kept them in their hearts, ▼▼ Grk “heart.” The term “heart” (καρδία, kardia) could also be translated as “mind,” or “thoughts,” and the entire phrase be rendered as “kept them in mind,” “thought about,” or the like. But the immediate context is clearly emotive, suggesting that much more is at work than merely the mental processes of thinking or reasoning about “these things.” There is a sense of joy and excitement (see the following question, “What then will this child be?”) and even fear. Further, the use of καρδία in 1:66 suggests connections with the same term in 2:19 where deep emotion is being expressed as well. Therefore, recognizing both the dramatic nature of the immediate context and the literary connections to 2:19, the translation renders the term in 1:66 as “hearts” to capture both the cognitive and emotive aspects of the people’s response.
saying, “What then will this child be?” ▼▼ Or “what manner of child will this one be?”
For the Lord’s hand ▼ was indeed with him.
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