Since many have undertaken to set in order a narrative concerning those matters which have been fulfilled among us,even as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word delivered them to us,it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write to you in order, most excellent Theophilus;that you might know the certainty concerning the things in which you were instructed.
The author addresses a man named Theophilus. Many have already written accounts of Jesus, he says, and he has investigated everything carefully so that he can set out an orderly account and Theophilus can be sure of what he has been taught.
What does this mean?
"Theophilus" means "friend of God" or "loved by God" in Greek. Some have taken it as a symbolic name for any Christian reader, but most scholars think he was a real person, perhaps a patron who sponsored the work. "Most excellent" was a courtesy title for people of rank. The "eyewitnesses and servants" (KJV "ministers") "of the word" are those who handed the traditions down.
Historical context
The opening is one long, polished Greek sentence in the style of Hellenistic historians and technical writers, who began their works with similar prefaces. The Gospel does not name its author; since the second century it has been attributed to Luke, a companion of Paul. The same writer composed the Acts of the Apostles, also addressed to Theophilus. Many scholars date the Gospel around 80–90 CE, though earlier and later dates are argued.
Why does it matter?
The author says plainly that he was not an eyewitness and that he knew earlier written accounts. Most scholars think Mark's Gospel was one of them.
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:5–25
An angel promises Zechariah a son
There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the priestly division of Abijah. He had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord.But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were well advanced in years.
Now while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his divisionaccording to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.The whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.But the angel said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Zacharias, because your request has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will drink no wine nor strong drink. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to prepare a people prepared for the Lord.”
Zacharias said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”
The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God. I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.Behold, you will be silent and not able to speak until the day that these things will happen, because you didn’t believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
The people were waiting for Zacharias, and they marveled that he delayed in the temple.When he came out, he could not speak to them. They perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple. He continued making signs to them, and remained mute.When the days of his service were fulfilled, he departed to his house.After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and she hid herself five months, saying,“Thus has the Lord done to me in the days in which he looked at me, to take away my reproach among men.”
Zechariah, an elderly priest, is burning incense in the Jerusalem temple when the angel Gabriel tells him that his wife Elizabeth, who has never been able to have children, will bear a son to be named John. Zechariah doubts and is struck mute until the promise comes true. Elizabeth conceives and stays in seclusion for five months.
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”
Malachi 4:5–6 · WEB
The angel's words echo the last lines of Malachi, which promise that Elijah will come before the day of the Lord.
What does this mean?
KJV readers will see "Zacharias," the Greek form of Zechariah. Elizabeth's "reproach" is the social shame of childlessness, often wrongly taken as a sign of God's disfavour. The ban on wine and strong drink recalls the vow of a Nazirite, a person set apart for God (Numbers 6). Gabriel is the angel who explains visions in the book of Daniel.
Historical context
"Herod, the king of Judea" is Herod the Great, a client king under Rome whose death is usually dated to 4 BCE. Priests served in the temple by turns in twenty-four divisions; Abijah's was the eighth (1 Chronicles 24:10). Later Jewish tradition describes priests chosen by lot to offer the incense, an honour that might come once in a lifetime.
Why does it matter?
The Gospel opens in the temple and will end there (24:53). An old, childless couple given a promised son recalls Abraham and Sarah, and Hannah, the mother of Samuel.
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:26–38
Gabriel announces the birth of Jesus to Mary
Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,to a virgin pledged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary.Having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, you highly favored one! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women!”
But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered what kind of salutation this might be.The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.Behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and shall name him ‘Jesus.’He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. There will be no end to his Kingdom.”
Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?”
The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.Behold, Elizabeth your relative also has conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.For nothing spoken by God is impossible.”
Mary said, “Behold, the servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Six months later Gabriel is sent to Nazareth in Galilee, to Mary, a young woman engaged to Joseph, a descendant of King David. He tells her she will conceive by the Holy Spirit and bear a son, Jesus, who will be given David's throne. Mary asks how this can be, then accepts.
What does this mean?
"Espoused" (KJV) or "pledged to be married" (WEB) describes betrothal, a legally binding engagement that came before the couple lived together. "Highly favoured" translates a Greek word meaning graced by God; the Latin rendering "full of grace" became the opening of the "Hail Mary" prayer. "Son of the Most High" and "the throne of his father David" are royal language, drawing on God's promise to David of a lasting dynasty (2 Samuel 7).
Historical context
Nazareth was a small, obscure village. Girls were commonly betrothed young, often in their early teens.
Why does it matter?
Luke presents Jesus' conception as the direct work of God's Spirit, without a human father; the virginal conception became a teaching of the historic Christian creeds. Christian traditions differ in how they honour Mary, but all draw on this scene. Her reply, "the servant" (KJV "handmaid") "of the Lord," contrasts with Zechariah's doubt.
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:39–45
Mary visits Elizabeth
Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah,and entered into the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.She called out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!Why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?For behold, when the voice of your greeting came into my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy!Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord!”
Mary hurries to a town in the hill country of Judea to visit her relative Elizabeth. When Mary greets her, Elizabeth's unborn child leaps, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, blesses Mary and calls her "the mother of my Lord."
What does this mean?
"Fruit of your womb" is a Hebrew idiom for a child. "Lord" is the word Luke uses for God, and he will often use it of Jesus; Elizabeth's use of it here is an early sign of how Luke regards the child.
Historical context
The journey from Galilee to the Judean hills near Jerusalem was well over 100 km, several days on foot. Luke does not name the town; later tradition identified it with Ein Karem, west of Jerusalem.
Why does it matter?
The scene brings the two promised children together before either is born. The leaping child is often read as John already pointing to Jesus, as he will as an adult (3:16). Elizabeth's blessing of Mary as one who believed contrasts again with Zechariah's disbelief.
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:46–56
Mary's song of praise
Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord.My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,for he has looked at the humble state of his servant. For behold, from now on, all generations will call me blessed.For he who is mighty has done great things for me. Holy is his name.His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.He has put down princes from their thrones, and has exalted the lowly.He has filled the hungry with good things. He has sent the rich away empty.He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring forever.”
Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her house.
Mary responds with a song praising God for choosing her, a woman of humble status, and for overturning the order of the world: the proud and powerful are brought down, and the hungry and lowly are lifted up. She stays with Elizabeth about three months before returning home.
What does this mean?
The song is known as the Magnificat, from its first word in Latin. To "magnify" the Lord means to declare his greatness. "Low estate" (KJV) or "humble state" (WEB) refers to her lowly social position. Many verbs are in the past tense; interpreters differ on whether they describe what God has already done or speak of what he will do as if already done, a feature of Hebrew prophetic poetry.
Historical context
The song is closely modelled on the song of Hannah (1 Samuel 2:1–10) and woven from phrases of the Psalms and prophets. Scholars debate whether Luke composed it or used an existing hymn; a few early Latin manuscripts attribute it to Elizabeth rather than Mary.
Why does it matter?
The reversal of rich and poor, powerful and lowly, is a theme Luke returns to repeatedly (6:20–26; 16:19–31). The Magnificat has been sung in Christian evening worship for many centuries.
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:57–66
The birth and naming of John
Now the time that Elizabeth should give birth was fulfilled, and she gave birth to a son.Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.His mother answered, “Not so; but he will be called John.”
They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.”They made signs to his father, what he would have him called.
He asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John.” They all marveled.
His mouth was opened immediately and his tongue freed, and he spoke, blessing God.Fear came on all who lived around them, and all these sayings were talked about throughout all the hill country of Judea.All who heard them laid them up in their heart, saying, “What then will this child be?” The hand of the Lord was with him.
Elizabeth gives birth, and on the eighth day the family gathers to circumcise and name the boy. The relatives expect him to be named after his father, but Elizabeth insists on "John," and Zechariah confirms it in writing. At once he can speak again, and people throughout the region wonder what the child will become.
What does this mean?
The name John (Hebrew Yohanan) means "the Lord has been gracious." The "writing table" (KJV) was a wooden tablet coated with wax. The relatives communicate with Zechariah by signs, which suggests he was deaf as well as mute; the Greek word used of him in 1:22 can mean either.
Historical context
The Law of Moses required that boys be circumcised on the eighth day (Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3). Naming a son after a relative was common, so the break with family custom marks the name as given by God.
Why does it matter?
Zechariah's restored speech fulfils the angel's word (1:20). The question "What then will this child be?" prepares for John's adult ministry (3:1–20).
Editorial notes, not scripture.
Luke 1:67–80
Zechariah's song
His father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people;and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David(as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets who have been from of old),salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;to show mercy toward our fathers, to remember his holy covenant,the oath which he swore to Abraham our father,to grant to us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, should serve him without fear,in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways,to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins,because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the dawn from on high will visit us,to shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death; to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
The child was growing and becoming strong in spirit, and was in the desert until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
Filled with the Holy Spirit, Zechariah praises God for keeping his promises to Israel by raising up a saviour from David's family, and foretells that his own son will be a prophet who prepares the Lord's way. The child grows up and lives in the wilderness until he begins his public work.
What does this mean?
The song is called the Benedictus, from its Latin opening ("Blessed"). A "horn of salvation" is a biblical image of strength, taken from a horned animal: a mighty saviour. "Dayspring from on high" (KJV) or "dawn from on high" (WEB) pictures the coming saviour as a sunrise. God has "visited" his people means he has come to act for them.
Historical context
Many Jews of the period hoped for liberation from foreign rule; the song's language of rescue from enemies reflects that hope while also speaking of forgiveness of sins. John's years "in the deserts" (KJV) have prompted speculation about links with the community at Qumran by the Dead Sea, but there is no direct evidence.
Why does it matter?
The song ties the two children together: John prepares the way, and the descendant of David brings salvation. The Benedictus is sung in Christian morning prayer.