Gospel of Luke. The Gospel of Luke - Analysis of the New Testament Introduction to the Gospel of Luke
Synodal translation. The chapter is voiced by role by the studio “Light in the East”.
1. As many have already begun to compose narratives about events that are completely known among us,
2. As those who from the very beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word conveyed to us,
3. Then it was decided for me, after a thorough examination of everything at first, to describe to you in order, venerable Theophilus,
4. that you may know the solid foundation of the doctrine in which you have been instructed.
5. In the days of Herod, king of Judah, there was a priest from the order of Abia, whose name was Zechariah, and his wife from the family of Aaron, whose name was Elizabeth.
6. Both of them were righteous before God, walking according to all the commandments and statutes of the Lord blamelessly.
7. They had no children, for Elizabeth was barren, and both were already advanced in years.
8. One day, when he served in the order of his turn before God,
9. By lot, as was usual among the priests, he was to enter the temple of the Lord for incense,
10. And all the multitude of people prayed outside during the incense, -
11. Then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
12. When Zechariah saw him, he was troubled and fear came over him.
13. The angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will call his name John;
14. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,
15. For he will be great before the Lord; He will not drink wine or strong drink, and will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb;
16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God;
17. And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to restore the hearts of the fathers to the children, and to the disobedient to the minds of the righteous, to present to the Lord a prepared people.
18. And Zechariah said to the angel: By what will I know this? for I am old, and my wife is advanced in years.
19. The angel answered him: I am Gabriel, who stands before God, and was sent to speak with you and bring this good news to you;
20. And behold, you will remain silent and will not be able to speak until the day when these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will come to pass in due time.
21 Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah and were amazed that he was lingering in the temple.
22. But when he went out, he could not speak to them; and they understood that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he communicated with them by signs, and remained mute.
23. And when his days of service were ended, he returned to his house.
24. After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and hid herself for five months, and said:
25. Thus did the Lord do for me in these days, in which he looked upon me, to remove from me the reproach of men.
26. In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee called Nazareth
,
27. to a virgin betrothed to a husband named Joseph, of the house of David; The name of the Virgin is: Mary.
28. The angel, entering to her, said: Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with You; Blessed are You among women.
29. When she saw him, she was embarrassed by his words and wondered what kind of greeting this would be.
30. And the Angel said to Her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for You have found favor with God;
31. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a Son, and you will call His name Jesus.
32. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;
33. And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.
34. Mary said to the Angel: How will this be when I don’t know my husband?
35. The angel answered Her: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36. Behold your relative Elizabeth, who is called barren, and she conceived a son in her old age, and she is already in her sixth month,
37. For with God no word will be powerless.
38. Then Mary said: Behold, the Servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word. And the Angel departed from Her.
39. And Mary arose in those days, and went with haste into the hill country, to the city of Judah,
40. And she went into the house of Zechariah, and greeted Elizabeth.
41. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby in her womb leaped; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,
42. And she cried with a loud voice and said: Blessed are You among women, and blessed is the fruit of Your womb!
43. And where does it come from for me that the Mother of my Lord came to me?
44. For when the voice of Your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped joyfully in my womb.
45. And blessed is she who believed, for what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled.
46. And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord,
47. And my spirit rejoiced in God my Savior,
48. that He looked upon the humility of His Servant, for from now on all generations will please Me;
49. That the Mighty One has done great things for Me, and holy is His name;
50. And His mercy endures throughout all generations to those who fear Him;
51. He showed the strength of His arm; He scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52. He brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble;
53. He filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty;
54. He received His servant Israel, remembering mercy,
55. As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his seed forever.
56. Mary stayed with her about three months, and returned to her home.
57. The time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.
58. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had magnified His mercy upon her, and they rejoiced with her.
59. On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child and wanted to name him, after his father’s name, Zechariah.
60. To this his mother said: no, but call him John.
61. And they said to her: There is no one in your kindred who is called by this name.
62. And they asked his father by signs what he would like to call him.
63. He demanded a tablet and wrote: “His name is John.” And everyone was surprised.
64. And immediately his mouth and his tongue loosened, and he began to speak, blessing God.
65. And there was fear on all those living around them; and they told about all this throughout the entire hill country of Judea.
66. All who heard it laid it on their hearts and said, “What will happen to this child?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.
67. And Zechariah his father was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying:
68. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that he hath visited his people, and brought deliverance unto them,
69. And He raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David,
70. As He declared by the mouth of His holy prophets who have been from the ages,
71. which will save us from our enemies and from the hand of all those who hate us;
72. He will show mercy to our fathers and remember His holy covenant,
73. The oath which He swore to Abraham our father to give us,
74. without fear, after being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
75. To serve Him in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
76. And you, little child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77. to make His people understand His salvation in the forgiveness of their sins,
78. according to the gracious mercy of our God, by which the East visited us from above,
79. to enlighten those sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet on the path of peace.
80. And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the wilderness until the day of his appearance to Israel.
1 As many have already begun to compose narratives about events that are completely known among us,
2 As they who from the very beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word conveyed it to us,
3 Then it was decided for me, after carefully examining everything first, to describe to you in order, venerable Theophilus,
4 that you may know the sure foundation of the doctrine in which you have been instructed.
Saint Luke. Artist Frans Hals 17th century.
5 In the days of Herod king of Judah, there was a priest from the order of Abius, whose name was Zechariah, and his wife, from the family of Aaron, whose name was Elizabeth.
6 They were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord blamelessly.
7 They had no children, for Elizabeth was barren, and both were already advanced in years.
8 One day, while he was ministering before God in the order of his turn,
9 By lot, as was usual among the priests, he was to enter the temple of the Lord to burn incense,
10 And all the multitude of the people were praying outside during the incense, 11 then the angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
12 When Zechariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear came over him.
An angel appears to Zechariah. Artist Domenico Ghirlandaio 1486-1490 13 The angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will call his name John.”
14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,
The angel Gabriel predicts the birth of John to Zechariah. Artist Y. Sh von KAROLSFELD 15 For he will be great before the Lord; He will not drink wine or strong drink, and will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb;
16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God;
17 And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to restore the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the minds of the righteous, to present to the Lord a prepared people.
18 And Zechariah said to the angel, By what will I know this? for I am old, and my wife is advanced in years.
19 The angel answered and said to him: I am Gabriel, who stands before God, and was sent to speak with you and bring this good news to you;
An angel appears to Zechariah. Artist Alexander Andreevich Ivanov 1850 20 And behold, you will remain silent and will not be able to speak until the day when these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will come to pass in due time.
21 Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah and were amazed that he was lingering in the temple.
22 But when he went out, he could not speak to them; and they understood that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he communicated with them by signs, and remained mute.
23 And when his days of service were ended, he returned to his house.
24 After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and hid herself for five months, and said:
25 Thus did the Lord do for me in these days, in which he looked upon me, to remove from me the reproach of men.
26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee called Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David; The name of the Virgin is: Mary.
28 The angel came to her and said: Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with You; Blessed are You among women.
Annunciation. Artist G. Dore 29 But when she saw him, she was troubled by his words and wondered what kind of greeting this would be.
30 And the Angel said to Her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for You have found favor with God;
Annunciation. Artist Leonardo da Vinci 1474 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a Son, and you will call His name Jesus.
32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of His father David;
33 And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.
34 And Mary said to the angel: How will this be, since I do not know the husband?
35 The angel answered and said to her: The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 Behold your relative Elizabeth, who is called barren, and she conceived a son in her old age, and she is now in her sixth month,
37 For with God no word will fail.
38 Then Mary said, Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word. And the Angel departed from Her.
Annunciation. Artist Y. Sh von KAROLSFELD 39 And Mary arose in those days, and went with haste into the hill country, to the city of Judah,
40 And she went into Zechariah's house and greeted Elizabeth.
Visit. Artist Jan Lievens 1638-1640 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child in her womb leaped; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,
43 And where do I come from, that the Mother of my Lord came to me?
45 And blessed is she who believed, for what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled.
Maria and Elizabeth. Artist Y. Sh von KAROLSFELD 46 And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit rejoiced in God my Savior,
48 that He looked upon the humility of His Servant, for from now on all generations will please Me;
49 that the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is His name;
50 And His mercy endureth unto all generations unto them that fear Him;
51 He showed the strength of His arm; He scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 He brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble;
53 He filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty;
54 He received His servant Israel, remembering mercy,
55 as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his seed forever.
56 And Mary stayed with her about three months, and returned to her house.
57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.
Birth of John the Baptist. Artist Artemisia Gentileschi 1632 58 And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had magnified His mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child and wanted to name him, after his father’s name, Zechariah.
60 To this his mother said, “No, but call him John.”
61 And they said to her, There is no one in your kindred who is called by this name.
62 And they asked his father by signs what he would like to call him.
63 He demanded a tablet and wrote: John is his name. And everyone was surprised.
Zechariah writes the name of John. Artist Domenico Ghirlandaio 1486-1490 64 And immediately his mouth and his tongue loosened, and he began to speak, blessing God.
65 And there was fear on all those living around them; and they told about all this throughout the entire hill country of Judea.
66 All who heard it laid it on their hearts and said, “What will happen to this child?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.
Birth of John. Artist Y. Sh von KAROLSFELD 67 And Zechariah his father was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying:
68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, that he hath visited his people, and brought deliverance unto them,
69 And he raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,
70 as He declared by the mouth of His holy prophets who have been since the ages,
71 that will save us from our enemies and from the hand of all those who hate us;
72 He will show mercy to our fathers and remember His holy covenant,
73 the oath which He swore to Abraham our father to give us,
74 without fear, after being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
75 to serve Him in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
76 And you, little child, will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77 to make His people understand His salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 according to the gracious mercy of our God, by which the East from above visited us,
79 to enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.
80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the wilderness until the day of his appearing to Israel.
. As many have already begun to compose narratives
Who were the many who started? False apostles. For indeed many composed gospels, such as, for example, the gospel of the Egyptians and the gospel with the inscription “of the twelve.” They just started, not finished. Since they began without the grace of God, that is why they did not finish. So, Luke said it well: “Many began.” Truly a few, namely Matthew and Mark, not only began, but also finished, for they had the Spirit to create perfect things.
about events that are completely known between us,
For what pertains to Christ is not only known from unfounded tradition, but is true, completely true and completely demonstrable. How, tell me, Luke, is this proven?
. as those who from the very beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word conveyed to us,
From this it is clear that Luke was a disciple not from the beginning, but later in time. For others were disciples of the Word from the very beginning, for example Peter and the sons of Zebedee (). It was they who conveyed to Luke what he himself had not seen or heard.
. then I decided, after a thorough examination of everything from the beginning, to describe to you in order, venerable Theophilus,
. that you may know the solid foundation of the doctrine in which you have been instructed.
I understand this in two ways, firstly, this way: before, Theophilus, I taught you without scripture, and now, by conveying the Gospel to you in scripture, I strengthen your mind so that it does not forget what was taught without scripture; secondly, this way: we people often have the custom, when someone tells us without writing, to suspect him that perhaps he is telling a lie, but when he writes his words, we believe that he is not I would have written if I had not been confident in the truth of my words. So the evangelist says: for this reason I wrote the Gospel to you, so that you would contain with greater confidence what you were taught without scripture, having more confidence in me now that I am so confident in what was taught without scripture that I have set it out in scripture. He did not say: so that you “know”, but “learn”, that is, so that you receive twice as much knowledge and at the same time bold confidence that I am not lying.
. In the days of Herod, king of Judea,
I mentioned the reign of Herod, on the one hand, out of a desire to narrate the story following the example of the prophets, for they begin like this: in the days of Ahaz and Hezekiah and such and such the following happened (; ; )), and on the other hand, since I intend to talk about Christ, for he mentioned Herod to show that under Herod Christ truly came. Since this Herod was there when, according to the prophecy of Jacob (), there were no princes among the Jews, this is where it is proven that Christ came. It also achieves some other goal: speaking about time, it shows the truth of the Gospel, for it gives those who wish it the opportunity to rejoice and from time to time learn the truth of the Gospel.
there was a priest from the Abiev order named Zechariah,
It is decent to start from Zechariah and the birth of John. Since he intends to talk about the Nativity of Christ, and John is the Forerunner of Christ, therefore, before the Nativity of Christ, he decently talks about the birth of John, which itself is not without a miracle. Since the Virgin was about to give birth, grace arranged for the old woman to give birth not according to the law of nature, although with her husband. What do the words mean: "from the Avian chain"? Some understand that there were two priests who successively performed the divine service, one named Abijah, and the other Zechariah, and since Abijah celebrated the service, after his turn Zechariah served. But that doesn't seem to be the case. For Solomon, having finished the temple, also established daily orders, that is, weeks: in one week, for example, he appointed the sons of Korah, in another - Asaph, in the next - Abijah, in another - another (;). Therefore, when he says that Zechariah was “from the order of Abijah,” one must understand that he was in the week of Abijah, and not that he accepted ministry after the week of Abijah; for then he would have said: after the succession of Abiev; and now that he said: "from the Avian chain", represents that he was from the series and week of Abijah.
and his wife was from the family of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
And, wanting to show that John on both sides (on his father and mother) was legitimately from a priestly family, he says: "and his wife was of the clan of Aaron", for it was not allowed to take a wife from someone else’s tribe, but from the same one (). Elizabeth, according to interpretation, means “the rest of God,” and Zechariah means “memory of the Lord.”
. Both of them were righteous before God, walking according to all the commandments and statutes of the Lord blamelessly.
Often some are righteous, but not before God, but apparently before people. Zechariah and Elizabeth "they were righteous before God". The commandments are, for example: "Thou shalt not commit adultery", “Do not steal” (), and the statutes (“justifications”) are, for example: “Whoever curses his father or his mother must be put to death.”(): for it is righteous. But know that a commandment can also be called justification, since it makes a person righteous and even more so is God’s justification. For on that day he will judge us, having the commandments as a kind of written justification, “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have had sin.”(), and again: "the word that I have spoken will judge him at the last day"(). Why use words? "walking according to all the commandments" added “immaculately”? Listen. Often some people act according to the Law of God, but they do everything in order to appear to people (). These are not blameless. But Zechariah kept the commandments, and kept them immaculately, and not in order to please people by fulfilling them.
. They had no children, for Elizabeth was barren, and both were already advanced in years.
The wives of the righteous and the righteous themselves were often childless, so that you would know that the Law requires many children, not carnal, but spiritual. “Both were already advanced in years” both in body and in spirit, for in soul they grew old, that is, they made great success, believing "ascension into the hearts" e"() and having life as day and not night(), acting decently as in the light.
. One day, when he was serving before God in the order of his turn,
Only the pure perform sacred acts before God, but He turns His face away from the unclean.
. by lot, as was usual among the priests, he got to enter the temple of the Lord for incense,
. and the whole multitude of people prayed outside during the incense, -
When did it come to his turn to confess? Without a doubt, on the day of atonement, when one high priest entered into the Holy of Holies, so that we might learn that just as this high priest, having entered into the Holy of Holies, received fruit, so the Lord Jesus, the one and great truly Bishop, entered the Holy of Holies, that is with the flesh to heaven, received the fruit of His appearance in the flesh - our adoption to God and salvation.
. then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
The angel does not appear to everyone, but to a pure heart, as Zechariah was. The altar (in Church Slavonic - altar) was called incense because there was another altar - burnt offerings.
. Zechariah, seeing him, was embarrassed, and fear attacked him.
. The angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for you are heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will call his name John;
. and you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,
Zechariah is embarrassed; for an extraordinary vision outrages even the saints. But Angel stops the outrage. For everywhere by this, divine and demonic visions are recognized: if the thought is at first confused, but then, with the dispersal of fear, soon completely calms down, then the vision is truly from God; if fear and indignation become more intense, then the vision is from demons. Why did the Angel say: “Your voice is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son.”, for Zechariah prayed not for his son, but for the sins of the people? Some say: since Zechariah prayed for the sins of the people, and was about to give birth to a son crying: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away: to myself peace" (), then the Angel decently says to him: your prayer has been heard for the remission of the sins of the people, for you will give birth to a son through whom there will be remission of sins. Others understand it this way: Zechariah! Your prayer has been heard, and God has forgiven the sins of the people. Then, as if he said: Where can you see this? The angel says: Here I give you a sign: "Elizabeth will bear you a son"; and from the fact that Elizabeth gives birth, you must also be convinced of the remission of sins of the people.
. for he will be great before the Lord;
The angel announces that John will be “great,” but “before the Lord,” for many are called great before men, but are not so before God, for example, hypocrites. But John is great in soul, just as everyone who is tempted is small in soul. For no one who is great is tempted, but the small and the faint-hearted, just as the Lord says: "Whoever causes one of these little ones to stumble"(). Just as John’s parents were righteous “before God,” so their son was great “before the Lord.”
will not drink wine or strong drink,
“Strikey” is the name given to everything that, not being made from grapes, can produce intoxication.
and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb;
He was filled with the “Holy Spirit” while he was still in his mother’s womb. When the Mother of the Lord came to Elizabeth, the baby, rejoicing at the coming of the Lord, “jumped” ().
. and he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God;
. and will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to restore the hearts of the fathers to the children,
"Return the hearts of fathers to children", that is, to convert the Jews to the apostles, for the Jews were fathers, and the apostles were their children. He turned the hearts of the Jews to the apostles with the teaching and testimony of Christ; and he who bears witness to Christ makes His disciples completely trustworthy. John did not convert everyone, but “many”; and the Lord enlightened everyone. He came “in the spirit of... Elijah,” because just as grace acted in Elijah, so did it in John, and just as Elijah is the forerunner of the second coming, so John is the forerunner of the first. And in the “power of Elijah,” because the coming of both, Elijah and John, has the same power, namely: it leads to Christ. And in another sense, John came in the strength and spirit of Elijah, because he too was a hermit, abstinent and accuser, like Elijah.
and the disobedient way of thinking of the righteous,
that is, the teaching of the apostles; the wisdom of the apostles is the grace of the Spirit in them, by which they were guided.
to present to the Lord
that is, Christ,
people are prepared.
that is, people capable of accepting preaching. I'll say something similar. When some prophet came to preach, not everyone believed, but those who were able, that is, those who had prepared themselves for it, for just as if someone comes into a house at night, not everyone receives him, but those who are awake and waiting for him and prepared for acceptance, so John also prepared people for the Lord, not disobedient, but capable, that is, prepared to receive Christ.
. And Zechariah said to the angel: By what means do I know this? for I am old, and my wife is advanced in years.
Although Zechariah was righteous and holy, however, taking into account the extraordinary nature of the birth of his son, he did not easily believe.
. The angel answered him: I am Gabriel, who stands before God, and was sent to speak with you and bring this good news to you;
Why does the Angel tell him about his dignity: “I am Gabriel,” who stands before God, not a seducing demon, but God’s Angel.
. and behold, you will remain silent and will not be able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true in due time.
So, because you do not believe, you will be deaf and unable to speak. He is rightly subjected to both - deafness and dumbness, for as a disobedient he is punished with deafness, and as a contradictor - with silence. In addition, he foreshadowed what happened to the Jews. For just as he, old and barren and disbelieving, gave birth to a son greater than the prophets, so the Jewish hierarchy, although old and barren and unfaithful and disobedient, nevertheless gave birth in the flesh to the Word of God, the Lord of the prophets, with whose birth formerly disobedient they turned to faith and confession.
. Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and were amazed that he was delaying in the temple.
Do you see how the Jews waited and remained until the high priest came out? And we, Christians, have only just entered the church, and we already think that something bad will happen to us if we don’t leave.
. He, having gone out, could not speak to them; and they understood that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he communicated with them by signs, and remained mute.
Zechariah made signs to the people, who were probably asking about the reason for the silence; but since he could not speak, he explained it with signs.
. And when his days of service were ended, he returned to his home.
Consider also that Zechariah did not go to his home until the days of his ministry were over, but remained in the temple. For the mountainous country is indeed far from Jerusalem. Yes, the priest, if he had a house in Jerusalem itself, was not allowed to leave the temple courtyard during his turn. And, alas, how we neglect divine services! The fact that Zechariah could not speak, but used signs, indicates the unreasonable life of the Jews. For, having killed the Word, they cannot give an account either of their deeds or of their speeches. Even if you ask them about something prophetic, they will not open their mouths and cannot give you either a word or an answer.
. After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and hid herself for five months and said:
. Thus did the Lord do for me in these days, in which he looked upon me, to remove from me the reproach of men.
Elizabeth, being chaste, was ashamed and, having conceived in old age, “hidden for five months” until Mary also conceived. When did she (Mary) conceive and the child "jumped... in her womb"(Elizabeth), she no longer hid and even behaved boldly, like the mother of such a son, who even before his birth was honored with the dignity of a prophet.
. In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee called Nazareth,
In the "sixth" month, counting from the time of John's conception.
. to a virgin betrothed to a husband named Joseph, from the house of David; The name of the Virgin is: Mary.
He says that the Virgin was betrothed to her husband "from the house of David" to show that she also came from the same family of David; for there was a law that both halves (of a marriage) should be from the same family and from the same tribe ().
. The angel, coming to Her, said: Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with You; Blessed are You among women.
Because the Lord said to Eve: “In illness you will give birth to children”(), now this disease is resolved by the joy that the Angel brings to the Virgin, saying: “Rejoice, O Blessed One!” Because Eve was cursed, Mary now hears: "blessed are you".
. She, seeing him, was embarrassed by his words and wondered what kind of greeting this would be.
Mary thought about the greeting, what it was: whether it was vile and vicious, like a man’s address to a girl, or divine, since God was also mentioned in the greeting: "The Lord is with you"?
. And the Angel said to Her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for You have found favor with God;
The angel, firstly, calms Her heart from fear, so that She accepts the divine answer in an unperturbed position; for in a state of confusion she could not properly listen to what was about to come true, - then, as if to explain the above word “Gracious”, she says: "You have found favor with God". For to be favored means to receive grace from God, that is, to please God. But this happiness is common, for many others have received grace from God, but the greeting offered to Mary does not go to anyone.
. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a Son, and you will call His name Jesus.
“And now you will conceive” - no other virgin has ever received this advantage. He said: “in the womb”; This shows that the Lord essentially became incarnate from the very falsehood of the Virgin. He who came to save our race is rightly called “Jesus,” for this name translated into Greek means “salvation from God.” Jesus, according to the interpretation, means the Savior, because salvation is also called “iao”.
. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord will give Him the throne of His father David;
John was great, but he was not yet the son of the Most High, but the Savior was great in His teaching and - "Son of the Most High" also by teaching, for He taught as He who had authority, and by performing wondrous miracles. Called "Son of the Most High" visible Man: for since there was one Face, then truly Man, the Son of the Virgin, was the Son of the Most High. The Word was the Son of the Most High even before the ages, but was not called so and was not known; when he became incarnate and appeared in the flesh, then he was called the Son of the Most High, Visible and Worker of miracles. When you hear about the “throne of David,” do not think about the sensual kingdom, but think about the Divine, with whom He reigned over all nations through His Divine preaching.
. and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.
“The House of Jacob” are those who believed both from the Jews and from other nations, for such are Jacob and Israel. How is it said that He sat on the throne of David? Listen. David was the youngest among his brothers; and the Lord was despised and reproached as one who loved to eat and drink wine, and the Son of a carpenter, and in dishonor even among His brothers, the sons of Joseph. "For His brothers also, - it is said, - they did not believe in Him"(). David, despite his charity, was persecuted; and the Lord, who works miracles, was slandered and stoned. David conquered and reigned with meekness; and the Lord reigned, accepting the cross out of meekness. So, do you see in what sense it is said that He sat on the throne of David? Just as David accepted the sensual kingdom, so the Lord accepted the spiritual kingdom, which "there will be no end". For there will be no end to the reign of Christ, that is, the knowledge of God and Christianity. For even in persecution we shine with the grace of Christ.
. Mary said to the Angel: How will this be when I don’t know my husband?
The virgin said: “How will this be?” not because she didn’t seem to believe it, but because she, being wise and reasonable, wanted to know the image of the present event, for nothing like this had happened before and nothing like it would happen after this. Therefore, the Angel forgives Her and does not condemn Her like Zechariah, but also explains the image of the event. Zechariah is rightly condemned: he had many examples, since many barren children gave birth, but the Virgin did not have a single example.
. The angel answered Her: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You; therefore the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
“The Holy Spirit,” he says, “will come upon You,” making Your womb fruitful and creating flesh for the consubstantial Word. "And the power of the Most High, - the Son of God, for Christ is the power of God (), - will overshadow You,” that is, will cover You, surround You on all sides. For just as a bird completely overshadows its chicks, covering them with its wings, so the power of God completely embraced the Virgin; this means “to overshadow.” Perhaps someone else will say: just as a painter first sketches a shadow, then paints it completely, so the Lord, creating flesh for Himself and composing the image of man, first shaded the flesh in the womb of the Mother, mixing it from the blood of the Ever-Virgin, and then formed it. But this is doubtful. For some say that when the Lord overshadowed the Virgin’s womb, the child immediately became a perfect child, while others do not accept this. Listen to what he says: “for this reason also is the Holy One to be born”, that is, growing in your womb gradually, and not suddenly appearing in perfect form. Hence the mouth of Nestorius is blocked. For he said that it was not the Son of God, who dwelt in the womb of the Virgin, who became incarnate, but a simple man, born of Mary, who subsequently began to have God as his companion. Let him hear that what was born in the womb was precisely the Son of God; there was not another Son of God carried in the womb, but one and the same Son of the Virgin and the Son of God. Look how he also pointed to the Holy Trinity, naming the Holy Spirit, the power - the Son, the Most High - the Father.
. Behold your relative Elizabeth, who is called barren, and she conceived a son in her old age, and she is already in her sixth month,
. for with God no word will be powerless.
Perhaps others wonder how Elizabeth was related to the Virgin, when the Virgin was from the tribe of Judah, and Elizabeth was from the daughters of Aaron, for the Law required that marriages be from the same tribe, and therefore the kinship was between those who came from the same and the same knee. To this we can also say that since the time of captivity the clans have mixed, or better yet, the following: Aaron had Elizabeth, the daughter of Amminadab, as his wife, and this one was from the tribe of Judah. You see, the Mother of God was a relative of Elizabeth from the very beginning, from Aaron. Since Aaron’s wife came from the tribe of Judah, from which the Mother of God was, and Elizabeth was from the daughters of Aaron, therefore, Elizabeth is a relative of the Mother of God. For her foremother, Aaron's wife, was from the tribe of Judah. Look at the succession of kinship: Aaron’s wife is Elizabeth, and Zechariah’s wife is Elizabeth, as descended from her. But let's see what Virgo says.
. Then Mary said: Behold, the Servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.
I am the painter's board; let the painter paint what he wants; let the Lord do what He pleases. Obviously, what was said before: “how will it be” was not an expression of disbelief, but of a desire to recognize the image; for if I didn’t believe it, I wouldn’t say: “Behold, the Servant of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your word.”.
And the Angel departed from Her.
Know also that Gabriel means the man of God, Mary means the mistress, and Nazareth means sanctification. Therefore, when God had to become a man, Gabriel was decently sent, which means: man of God; and the greeting is performed in a holy place, that is, in Nazareth, for where there is nothing unclean.
. And Mary arose in those days, and went with haste into the hill country, to the city of Judah,
The Virgin, having heard from the Angel that Elizabeth had conceived, hurried to her, partly rejoicing at the well-being of her relative, and partly, as a very prudent woman, wanting to finally be sure whether the one who appeared to her was telling the truth, so that, according to the justice of what was said about Elizabeth, she would not doubt what concerns Her. herself. For although She hoped, she was still afraid, lest she would somehow be deceived, and this not out of unbelief, but out of a desire to know the matter more precisely. Zechariah lived in a mountainous country; That’s why Virgo hurries there.
. and she entered into the house of Zechariah, and greeted Elizabeth.
. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby in her womb leaped; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,
And John, having received some special gift before other people, plays in the womb, which is why he is “more of a prophet” (), for they prophesied after their birth, and he was awarded such a gift while still in the womb. See: Virgo "greeted Elizabeth", that is, I started talking to her.
. and she cried with a loud voice and said: Blessed are You among women, and blessed is the fruit of Your womb!
So, the voice of the Virgin was the voice of God incarnate in Her, and therefore He honored the Forerunner with grace while still in the womb and made him a prophet, for the prophetic words of Elizabeth to Mary were not the words of Elizabeth, but of a baby; and the lips of Elizabeth only served him, just as the lips of Mary served the One who was in Her womb - the Son of God. For Elizabeth was then filled with the Spirit, when the child leapt in the womb; if the baby had not jumped, she would not have prophesied. Just as they say about prophets that they first came to a supernatural state and were inspired, and then prophesied, so, perhaps, John, as if inspired, first leaped, then prophesied through the mouth of his mother. What did he prophesy? . Then, since many holy wives gave birth to unworthy children, for example, Rebekah Esau says: "and blessed is the fruit of your womb". It can be understood another way: "Blessed are You among women". Then, as if someone asked: why? - states the reason: because "Blessed is the fruit of your womb", that is, because "fruit of your womb"- since God alone is blessed, as David says: "Blessed is He Who Comes"(). For in Scripture it is usual to use the conjunction “and” instead of the conjunction “for”; For example: “Give us help from sorrow: and human salvation is in vain”() instead of “for human salvation is vain”; and again: “Behold, You are angry, and we have sinned”() instead of “for we have sinned.”
He calls the Lord “the fruit of the womb” of the Mother of God, because the conception took place without a husband. Other babies are the birth of fathers, but Christ is the fruit of one womb of the Mother of God, for She alone bore Him.
. And where does it come from for me that the Mother of my Lord came to me?
. And blessed is she who believed, because what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled.
Just as later, when Christ came to be baptized, John rebuked Him out of reverence, saying: “I am not worthy” (), so now he speaks through his mother: “Where is it from me that the Mother of my Lord came to me?”, calling the womb-bearing Mother before She gave birth to the Lord. It is not customary for other wives to be called mothers before they give birth, for fear of an unsuccessful birth, that is, eruption; but there was no such suspicion regarding Virgo. Maria! And before You gave birth, You are a Mother, and you are blessed, because you believed that what the Lord said to You would be fulfilled.
. And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord,
. and my spirit rejoiced in God my Savior,
. that He looked upon the humility of His Servant, for from now on all generations will please Me;
. that the Mighty One has done great things for Me, and holy is His name;
. and His mercy throughout all generations is upon those who fear Him;
The Virgin, being completely confident in the truth of what was predicted to Her, glorifies God, attributing the miracle not to Herself, but to Him; for He,” he says, “looked upon Me, the humble one, and it was not I who looked upon Him; He showed Me mercy, and it was not I who sought Him. AND “From now on all generations will call me blessed”, not only Elizabeth, but also the generations of believers. Why please? Is it really for My virtue? No! But because God showed greatness to Me.
She called Him “Mighty,” so that everyone would believe Her words, taking into account that the Lord is strong to do this. She called “His Name” “holy” to show that the Pure One, being conceived in the womb of a woman, is not at all defiled, but remains Holy "His mercy is not to Me alone, but also to all who fear Him; for those who do not fear Him, but are completely unworthy, do not receive mercy. Having said that the mercy of God is "for all generations," he indicated that those who fear God receive mercy and in the present generation, that is, in the present age, and in the future generation, that is, in the endless age; for here too “they receive a hundredfold,” and there even more (). Pay attention: first the soul magnifies the Lord, then the spirit rejoices. Or what is the same: he who walks worthy of God magnifies God. You are called a Christian - do not belittle the dignity and name of Christ through unworthy deeds, but magnify it through the performance of great and heavenly deeds. Then your spirit will rejoice, that is, the spiritual gift you received through great deeds will leap and prosper, and will not be diminished. and, so to speak, will die. Know also that Scripture, apparently, simply calls spirit and soul the same thing, but in fact it distinguishes. For it calls a spiritual man one who lives by nature and is guided by human thoughts, for example, in case of hunger he eats, hates the enemy and generally does not seem to rise above nature in any way; and he calls the one spiritual who overcomes the laws of nature and does not philosophize about anything human. This is the difference in Scripture between soul and spirit (;). Perhaps doctors distinguish them differently, but we need to listen to Scripture, and let doctors be mistaken.
. He showed the strength of His arm; He scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
Muscle of the Father - Son; So, God and the Father in His Son revealed power and strength over nature, for during the incarnation of the Son, nature was conquered: the Virgin gave birth, God became man, and man became God. Lord "scattered the arrogant" demons, expelling them from human souls and sending some into the abyss, and others into pigs. We can also talk about the Jews, whom he scattered throughout every country and who are still scattered today.
. dethroned the mighty from their thrones,
that is, demons who dominated people and had thrones in human souls, resting in them. But the Pharisees are also strong as thieves of what belongs to the poor and as teachers, they have thrones from which they have been deposed.
and exalted the humble;
. He will show mercy to our fathers and remember His holy covenant,
“Do mercy” not only with the living, but also "with our fathers", for the grace of Christ extended to them, although they had already died. Namely: He gave us the living hope of resurrection, and we will be resurrected; but not only we will be awarded this benefit, but also those who have died before. For all nature received this benefit.
And in other words: “create mercy with the fathers" in that he fulfilled their expectations, for what they hoped for, they saw fulfilled in Christ. And seeing their children in bliss from so many blessings, fathers rejoice and, participating in the joy, accept mercy, as if done for them.
. the oath which He swore to Abraham our father to give us,
What covenant did he mention and what oath was given to Abraham? Without a doubt about this: “By blessing I will bless you and by multiplying I will multiply your seed”(). Abraham has truly multiplied now that all nations have become his sons through faith; for as he believed, so they also became his sons through faith.
. fearlessly, after being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Often others are delivered, but with fear and much labor and struggle; and Christ was crucified for us without any labor on our part and finally delivered us without fear, that is, without danger.
. to serve Him in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
Why did He deliver us? Isn't it so that we can live in pleasure? No, but so that we serve Him, and not a day, not two, but every day, and serve not only with carnal worship and service, but "in holiness and truth" ("in honor and truth"). Reverence is righteousness in relation to God, and truth is justice in relation to people. For example, whoever keeps himself at a distance from sacred objects and does not impiously touch divine things, but maintains perfect respect for what is venerable, is reverend; He who honors his parents is equally reverent, for they too are household gods. And whoever is neither covetous, nor a predator, nor a thief, nor an adulterer, nor a fornicator, he is righteous. Thus, one must serve God with “reverence,” that is, reverence for divine objects, and “righteousness,” that is, a praiseworthy way of life in human relations, serve before Him, and not before people, like people-pleasers and hypocrites.
. And you, little child, will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
It seems strange that Zechariah speaks such words to a child, for it is not typical to talk to a baby who does not yet understand anything. We can say to this that this child had an extraordinary birth, for at the coming of Mary she played and prophesied in the womb, but there is nothing incredible if even after birth she understood the words of her father. “You go ahead,” he says, “ before the face of the Lord", leaving me soon. For Zechariah knew that a little later he would lose John, since he was about to retire into the wilderness. Why “previously”? Then, to "prepare His ways". And the paths are the souls to which the Lord comes. So, the Forerunner prepared souls so that the Lord could walk in them. How did he prepare them? By communicating to people the knowledge of salvation.
. to make His people aware of His salvation in the forgiveness of their sins,
Salvation is the Lord Jesus. So, John taught people the knowledge of salvation, that is, of Christ, for John testified about Jesus. Knowledge consisted in the remission of sins, for the Lord would not otherwise have been recognized as God if he had not forgiven the sins of the people. For it is characteristic of God to forgive sins.
. according to the gracious mercy of our God, by whom the East visited us from above,
But He forgave us our sins out of the compassion of mercy, and not because of our deeds; for we have not done anything good, but He, called the East, looked down on us from above. For He is the Sun of righteousness and shone for us who were in darkness, that is, in sin. Two evils dominated human nature: ignorance of God, which the pagans were in, and which the Jews had, although they knew God.
. to enlighten those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet on the path of peace.
So He appeared to human nature to enlighten and "sitting in darkness", that is, in ignorance and atheism, and those sitting in the “shadow of death,” that is, in sin. And sin is the shadow of death in the sense, I think, that like a shadow follows the body, so where there is death, there is sin. For example, from the fact that Adam died, it is clear that there was sin. Likewise, you will find the death of Christ not without sin, for Christ died, but for our sins. Therefore, sin, always accompanied by death, is rightly called the shadow of death. There is something else that can be said to this, and I think we said it when explaining the Gospel of Matthew. But is it enough to just shine upon the darkened? No; we still need to direct our feet to the path of peace, that is, righteousness. For just as sin is enmity with God, so righteousness is peace. So, the path of peace is a righteous way of life, to which Christ, who has risen from above, directed the steps of our souls.
. The child grew and became stronger in spirit,
The youth “grew in body” and “strengthened the axis in spirit,” for with the body spiritual talent also increased; and the more the child grew, the more the powers of the spirit were revealed, since the instrument (body) was capable of containing them.
and he was in the wilderness until the day of his appearing to Israel.
Why was John in the desert? In order for him to live outside the malice of many and, without being ashamed (falsely) of anyone, to denounce anyone with boldness - for if he were in the world, then, perhaps, from cohabitation and communication with people he would have lost his purity; - and at the same time so that, when he preaches about Christ, he will enjoy complete trust, as a hermit and superior to others in life. He hid in the deserts until then, when God deigned to reveal him to the people of Israel.
I. Prologue to the Gospel and the purpose of writing it (1:1-4)
Onion. 1:1-4. Luke, the only one of the four evangelists, explains from the very beginning how and why he wrote this Gospel. He was already familiar with other “narratives” of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ (verse 1). And his goal was for you (Theophilus) to be convinced of the solid foundation of the teaching in which you were instructed (verse 4), for which Luke, after carefully examining everything first, in order (verse 3) sets out to him the events from the life of Jesus Christ.
Luke clearly declares himself to be a believer in Christ (verse 1). He, however, was not among His companions, as follows from his reference to eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word who told “us” about the events (that is, about everything that happened during the life and ministry of Christ). In other words, Luke himself was not an “eyewitness”, but a researcher of the events mentioned, from their very beginning, that is, from the birth of Jesus.
The name Theophilus, meaning "Lover of God", was popular in the first century. However, who exactly was the person to whom the evangelist was addressing can only be guessed at. Some even believe that by this name Luke meant all those who “love God” and are disposed to read his Gospel. However, it is more likely that he was addressing a specific person, his first reader, who was then to spread this Gospel in the early Church. It is very possible that this man held some kind of official position, judging by the fact that Luke calls him venerable (compare Acts 23:26; 24:3; 26:25, where the same Greek word “kratiste” appears).
II. Birth and maturation years of John the Baptist and Jesus (1:5 - 2:52)
A. Announcements of their birth (1:5-56)
In this and in subsequent sections, Luke arranges the material in such a way as to draw a deliberate parallel between the birth and formative years of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ. In both cases, he first introduces their parents, and then notes that the birth of both was preceded by the appearance of an Angel (compare verses 5-7 with verses 26-27 and verse 8:23 with verses 28-30).
1. PROCLAMATION OF THE BIRTH OF JOHN (1:5-25)
A. Introduction of John's Parents (1:5-7)
Onion. 1:5-7. John's parents were: the priest Zechariah and Elisabeth his wife from the clan of Aaron (that is, she also belonged to the priestly clan). John would thus have to become a priest by inheritance. His parents lived during the time of Herod the Great, who ruled Judea from 37 to 4 BC.
Naturally, bewilderment: how could Herod the Great die before the birth of Jesus Christ if, on his orders, the Bethlehem babies were “beaten”? The fact is that when Jesus was born, chronology was carried out from the founding of Rome. The monk Dionysius, who compiled a new calendar in 562 AD, mistakenly attributed the birth of Christ to 753 from the founding of Rome, when it should have been attributed to 749 (or 1-2 years earlier).
Zechariah and Elizabeth were God-fearing people and were righteous before God, walking blamelessly according to all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. And they were already advanced in years, so that, being childless, they no longer had any hope of having a child. This circumstance constantly depressed Elizabeth, as can be seen from her own words (verse 25). The Old Testament describes several cases when, by the will of God, children were born to barren women (for example, the mothers of Isaac, Samson and Samuel).
b. Revelation of the Angel to Zechariah (1:8-23)
Onion. 1:8-9. Luke notes that Zechariah, in the order of his turn, served before God in the temple. Beginning with the time of David, all the priests from the line of Aaron were divided into 24 groups or “orders” to serve in the temple (1 Chronicles 24:7-19). And each “sequence” (that is, the priests who belonged to it) carried out this service twice a year, for a week. Zechariah belonged to the Abiite order (Luke 1:5; compare 1 Chronicles 24:10).
He was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord for incense, that is, for burning incense. Due to the large number of priests, this honorable assignment to burn incense in the temple could fall to him only once in his life. As in other places of the Scriptures (for example, Esther 3:7), the idea is conveyed here that in matters seemingly determined by blind chance (casting lots), the will of God is also reflected.
Onion. 1:10-11. While Zechariah was burning incense in the temple, many people were praying outside its walls. The fragrant smoke of incense, rising up, symbolized the prayers of all Israel. So at these moments Zechariah seemed to be the focus of the entire Jewish people. And it was at this special moment in his life that the Angel of the Lord appeared to him. Zechariah suddenly saw him on the right side of the incense altar.
Onion. 1:12-13. An angel appeared to announce to Zechariah that he and Elizabeth would have a son. But at the sight of the Angel, Zechariah... became embarrassed, and fear attacked him. In Luke, fear (phobos) is a characteristic reaction of people when they encounter manifestations of God’s mighty power (1:30,65; 2:9-10; 5:10, 26; 7:16; 8:25,37,50; 9 :34.45; 12:4-5.32; 21:26; compare with 23:40).
From the words of the Angel: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard... - we can conclude that, when he died, Zechariah asked God for a son, or perhaps asked that He send the Messiah to earth, and then announce to him about the upcoming birth John was, as it were, a partial answer to his prayer. An angel told Zechariah what he should name his unborn son. The same thing happened when the Angel appeared to Mary (1:31).
Onion. 1:14-17. As for the Baptist, the Angel not only named his name, but also destined for Zechariah six features of his character, life and activity.
1. He will be your joy and gladness (verse 14). In both of his books, Luke often uses the word “joy” (Introduction) when speaking about salvation. A striking example of this is chapter 15 in the Gospel of Luke, where the feeling of joy due to the fact that something lost is found (symbolism of salvation) is emphasized three times. The ministry of John the Baptist was a source of joy for those Israelites who listened to and believed his preaching about repentance for the forgiveness of sins (3:3).
2. He will be great before the Lord. Literally the second part of this phrase reads “in the eyes (Greek word “enopion”) of the Lord”; This turn of phrase is very characteristic of Luke. In his two books, enopion occurs 35 times, and, in addition, only once - in John. 20:30 (in Russian, however, the expression “in the eyes” is also rendered there as “before”).
3. Will not drink wine or strong drink. John, having reached maturity, voluntarily took the Nazarite vow, one of the provisions of which was not to drink anything alcoholic (Num. 6:1-21). Luke does not talk about the “term” of John’s keeping this vow (the Old Testament Nazirites usually accepted it for a certain period). In relation to John, his Nazariteship (accepted, apparently, for life) should rather have served as a sign of his moral height, which, in turn, should have testified to the truth and urgency of his preaching. This understanding was subsequently supported not only by his aversion to wine, but also by his manner of dressing, behaving and eating - like Elijah the prophet (compare Matt. 3:4; 2 Kings 1:8).
4. And he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb. When Mary visited Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John, the baby in her womb “jumped joyfully,” as if announcing the imminent coming of Jesus into the world. For Luke, the ministry of the Holy Spirit has a special meaning, and he emphasizes this in every possible way. Both the father and mother of John the Baptist were both filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:41,67).
5. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. Through the ministry of John the Baptist, many Israelites actually turned to the Lord (Matt. 3:5-6; Mark 1:4-5).
6. And he will come before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah. John the Baptist "came before" the Lord Jesus, he was His "forerunner" who announced His coming - "in the spirit and power of Elijah." Here Luke refers to three verses from the book of the prophet Malachi, which speak of “messengers”; in Mal. 3:1 is the “Angel” who was to “prepare the way” before the Lord, and in Mal. 4:5-6 speaks of the promised return of the prophet Elijah before the onset of the “day of the Lord” - in order to return the hearts of the fathers to the children.
Zechariah apparently understood that the Angel identified his future son, John, with the “Angel” spoken of in Mal. 3:1, because later (Luke 1:76; compare with 3:4-6), in his song of praise, he will say: “And you, a child, will come before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.” That in John the prophecy of Malachi, recorded in Mal. 3:1, Jesus Himself spoke (Matt. 11:10); and in Matt. 11:14 He makes it clear that if the people were willing to accept the word of John, then another prophecy of Malachi, recorded in Mal. 4:5-6.
Onion. 1:18-20. Zechariah doubted what the Angel said, since he and his wife were already advanced in years. But the Angel, who called himself Gabriel, assured Zechariah that his gospel was from God. When Gabriel spoke twice to Daniel (Dan. 8:16; 9:21), both times he explained his revelations to him. He apparently did the same in his conversation with Zechariah - judging by the mentioned song of praise and faith that Zechariah sings later (1:67-79).
Zechariah's loss of speech until the moment when what was announced to him by the Angel Gabriel was fulfilled was both a punishment for unbelief and at the same time a sign. In the Old Testament, signs were often associated with some human observable phenomenon that confirmed the word of prophecy. Here, Zechariah's unsuccessful attempts to speak over the next nine months testified to the truth of the Angel Gabriel's words.
Onion. 1:21-23. When Zechariah, who had been staying in the temple for a long time, finally came out to the people who were waiting for him, he only made them understand by signs that he had had a vision. And they understood it. Then, at the end of his service at the temple, Zechariah returned to his home, “in the hill country,” to one of the cities (which one is unknown) that belonged to the tribe of Judah (1:39).
V. Elizabeth's pregnancy (1:24-25)
Onion. 1:24-25. After these days, Elizabeth his wife conceived and hid herself for five months. This may have been because she did not want to attract idle interest from her neighbors (verse 25). It is likely that the third person, after Elizabeth herself and Zechariah, to learn of Elizabeth’s pregnancy was Mary, who was told the news by an Angel (verse 36).
In verse 25, Luke does not say whether Elizabeth knew her son's destiny in those days. However, from the fact that she knew what name to give him (verse 60), even before Zechariah regained the power of speech, it can be concluded that he communicated his vision to her in writing. One way or another, the “barren” woman was filled with joy and gratitude to God for giving her a child and thereby removing the reproach from her among people.
2. ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE BIRTH OF JESUS (1:26-56)
A. Introduction to the Narrative of Mary and Joseph (1:26-27)
Onion. 1:26-27. In the sixth month (i.e., when Elizabeth was in the sixth month of pregnancy), the Angel Gabriel was sent from God to the city of Nazareth.
Luke emphasizes that Mary was a virgin ("parthenon"; compare 1:34) and reports that she was betrothed to Joseph (compare 2:5). According to the Jewish customs of those days, a man and a woman were “betrothed to each other” some period of time before their actual marriage took place. However, betrothal was approached much more seriously then than in our time, because from the moment the two were already considered husband and wife, despite the fact that before the wedding they lived separately.
b. Angel's Good News about the Birth of Jesus (1:28-38)
Onion. 1:28-31. The angel came to her and said: Rejoice, full of grace! (kecharitomene; it is interesting to note that the verb of the same root - “has favored” - is found only in Eph. 1:6) ... for you have received special grace from God (meaning “you have received special honor from Him”). The Angel's speech to Mary is similar to that with which he addressed Zechariah: Do not be afraid... a Son will be born to you (verses 30-31 compare with verse 13). As with Zechariah's son (verse 13b), Gabriel told Mary the name of her future Son (verse 31).
Onion. 1:32-33. The Angel foretold five revelations to Mary about her Son.
1. He will be great.
2. He will be called the Son of the Most High (compare verse 76). The word “elion” (“the Most High”), highly revered by the Jews, could not pass by the consciousness of Mary. The fact that her child would be called "Son of the Most High" could only mean one thing - He would be equal to Jehovah. In the understanding of the Semites, a son is always a “copy” of his father, and the inner essence of one is similar to the inner essence of the other; hence the special meaning that was put into the expressions “son of such and such” or “son of so and so” (for example, “son of iniquity” in Ps. 89:23 means a wicked person, a person who tramples the law).
3. And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. Jesus, a maternal descendant of King David, will sit on his throne in the Millennial Kingdom (2 Sam. 7:16; Ps. 89:4-5,28-29).
4. And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever... The reign of Jesus Christ over the people of Israel will begin in the Millennial Kingdom and will be built on the foundation of eternity.
5. And His kingdom will have no end. This promise was meant to remind Mary of Jehovah’s promise once given to David (2 Sam. 7:13-16). David then realized that the prophecy he received applied not only to his immediate successor and son, Solomon, who was to build the temple, but also to a certain future Son who would reign forever. The fact that David perceived the words of Jehovah as referring to the distant future follows from 2 Sam. 7:19. As for Mary, she could understand that the Angel was telling her about the Messiah, long promised to Israel.
Onion. 1:34-38. Apparently, Mary was not surprised by the news that the Messiah would soon come, but she was surprised that she would become His mother, especially since she “did not know” her husband. But the Angel did not rebuke Mary, as he reproached Zechariah (verse 20). Apparently because Maria did not doubt his words, but simply wanted to know how this could happen.
And the Angel answered her: The Holy Spirit, by His creative power, will bring about physical conception in you (verse 35). (Jesus Christ has a Divine nature, and His existence has neither beginning nor end, and therefore His conception and birth in human flesh could not but be miraculous; Isa. 7:14; 9:6; Gal. 4:4.)
Like Zechariah, Mary was given a “sign”: Behold, Elizabeth, your relative, who is called barren... has conceived a son... Mary unconditionally accepted the role assigned to her by God in the birth of her future Son, saying to the Angel: Let it be done to me according to your word. For she humbly considered herself a servant of the Lord.
V. Mary's visit to Elizabeth and her return home (1:39-56)
Onion. 1:39-45. Having received a sign (the news of the conception of barren Elizabeth), Mary hastened to go to her. Elizabeth and Zechariah lived in a hill country (possibly referring to the hilly area surrounding Jerusalem). When Mary appeared, the baby leaped in Elizabeth’s womb, and she was filled with the Holy Spirit... (Later Zechariah would be filled with the Holy Spirit; verse 67.)
And Elizabeth exclaimed with a loud voice and said: Blessed are you among women, that is, of all women, you have been awarded special honor. Further, Elizabeth called her relative Mary the Mother of her Lord. Luke often calls Jesus Lord (kyrios)—for a twofold purpose. The fact is that to his pagan readers the term “Lord” spoke more than the Greek term “Christ” (“Messiah”) - after all, they did not expect the coming of the Messiah with the same tense excitement with which the Jews expected him. On the other hand, the Septuagint often uses the term "Lord" to refer to Jehovah.
Again Elizabeth calls Mary blessed (verse 45) - in the sense of “happy”, because she believed what was told her from the Lord. From this it follows that Mary came to Elizabeth, not driven by a feeling of mistrust, but by a feeling of joy, wanting only to be convinced of what was announced to her.
Onion. 1:46-55. And convinced, inspired by everything that had happened, Mary sang a song of praise and gratitude to God for His mercy to her and her people. This song, called “Glorious” (“Magnificat”), consists almost entirely of references and allusions to the Old Testament and quotations from it. The same can be said about the hymns of Zechariah and Simeon (1:68-79; 2:29-32). The song of Mary echoes the song of Hannah, the mother of Samuel (1 Samuel 2:1-10). First of all, she thanks God for His special favor towards her (Luke 1:46-50).
Mary was part of that “remnant” of the people of Israel who remained faithful to Jehovah. She calls God her Savior, thereby expressing her closeness to Him. She speaks of His faithfulness (verse 48), His power (verse 49), holiness (verse 49), and mercy (verse 50). And he concludes by giving glory to the Lord for His special favor to Israel (verses 51-55). Through the Son, whom she will bear, God will show His mercy to Abraham and all his descendants. Mary recognized that in the Child promised to her, God's covenant promises given to Abraham and his people would be fulfilled.
Onion. 1:56. Mary stayed with her for about three months (apparently until the birth of John; verse 36), and returned to her home. From the last words it follows that Mary was still not married to Joseph, to whom she was betrothed.
B. Birth and childhood of John and Jesus (1:57 - 2:52)
As in the previous section (1:5-56), Luke continues to adhere to the “parallel narrative” method. However, he pays more attention to the birth of Jesus, which he describes in greater detail than the birth of John.
1. THE BIRTH AND GROWTH OF JOHN (1:57-80)
A. Birth of John (1:57-66)
Onion. 1:57-66. Luke fits the message about the birth of John into one verse (verse 57), further saying that Elizabeth’s neighbors and relatives rejoiced with her. The theme of the next few verses is Elizabeth and Zechariah's obedience to God. The newborn, as required by law, was circumcised on the eighth day. And although according to custom he should have received the name of his father, Elizabeth, contrary to general opinion, declared that he would be named John. Zechariah immediately confirmed his wife’s decision in writing.
And as soon as he did this, he began to speak, blessing God. Fear and awe gripped everyone who witnessed this, and the news of what happened spread throughout the mountainous country of Judea (in the Jerusalem area). People understood that an unusual child was born into Zechariah’s family. Who will this baby be? - they said. It goes on to say that the hand of the Lord was with this child. Years later, when John went into ministry, many of his fellow countrymen could not help but recall the amazing events that accompanied his birth (Matt. 3:5).
b. Prophecy and song of Zechariah (1:67-79)
Onion. 1:67-79. This psalm, called the Psalm of Doxology ("Benedictus"), is also full of references to and quotations from the Old Testament. Thematically it can be divided into four parts.
1. Zechariah's offering of praise to God (verse 68a).
2. An indication of the reason for this praise - God visited His people and created deliverance for them (verse 68b).
3. Zechariah describes the deliverance of Israel that will be accomplished by the Messiah (verses 69-75). The Messiah is the horn of Israel's salvation (verse 69). The fact is that in the worldview of the ancients, the horns of animals symbolized their strength. So the “horn” is a picture of the power of the Messiah, who will deliver Israel from all her enemies (verse 74). Of particular significance in this context is the reference to God's holy covenant and the oath that He swore to Abraham (verses 72-73; compare Gen. 22:16-18).
4. Zechariah prophetically describes John's future ministry (1:76-79). He correctly understood the meaning of the message brought to him by the Angel, and therefore repeats his words that John will go before the face of the Lord - to prepare the way for Him (compare Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1); he says that his son will be a prophet of the Most High (1:76 compare with verse 32). Verse 77 refers more to the Lord than to John. However, John preached the same thing: the forgiveness of sins (3:3).
The phrase in verse 78 - ...the East from above visited us in English. The Bible is translated as “the sun rising from above will visit us” (ed.).
V. John's maturity and solitary life (1:80)
Onion. 1:80. As John grew older, he became stronger in spirit, that is, he became a stronger and more courageous man. Living in deserts, that is, isolated from society, was unusual for a young man. But John, who knew from childhood about his special destiny, decided to follow the example of Elijah (verse 17). Only for a short period of his public service did he find himself in the sight of his people and in the center of their attention.