Luke 1 - Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

Bible Comments
  • Introduction open_in_new

    SECTION 1.

    The Birth and Growth To Maturity Of John And Jesus (Luke 1-2).

    This first section of Luke's Gospel can be analysed as below. It will be noted that the analysis, as we would expect, centres on the birth of Jesus. This is what all in the section is preparing for and leading up to, and what then follows puts its stamp on His uniqueness and glory. So central to the whole is Jesus, and this is what the chiasmus brings out.

    a Introduction - wisdom is being offered to Theophilus (lover of God), who represents all God lovers, so that they might ‘know' the truth (Luke 1:1-4).

    b Zacharias goes up to the Temple and is promised a son, John, who will prepare the way for God's Messiah, and he is made dumb in God's presence (Luke 1:5-25).

    c Mary receives the promise that she will bear the Messiah and she responds in obedience (Luke 1:26-38).

    d Mary visits Elizabeth who prophesies by the Holy Spirit over Jesus and Mary and rejoices and worships God (Luke 1:39-56).

    e Elisabeth's child is born and is circumcised (Luke 1:57-60).

    f Zacharias's tongue is loosed and the news of the remarkable events go round the neighbourhood (Luke 1:61-66).

    g Zacharias prophesies by the Holy Spirit concerning the coming of the Messiah, and his own son's part in preparing the way for the Messiah. (Luke 1:67-80).

    h Jesus is born in Bethlehem among the domestic animals, being laid in a manger (Luke 2:1-7).

    g The angels declare the coming of the Messiah and bless God for His goodness in sending the Messiah, and appear to the shepherds in the fields to prepare the way for His coming (Luke 2:8-14).

    f The shepherds see Him and filled with wonder give thanks to God and spread the word around the neighbourhood (Luke 2:15-20).

    e Jesus is circumcised and presented at the Temple (Luke 2:21-24).

    d Simeon, inspired by the Spirit, blesses God and prophesies over Jesus, and rejoices and worships God (Luke 2:25-35).

    c Anna the prophetess comes to where Jesus is in the Temple and gives thanks to God and spreads the news (Luke 2:36-40).

    b Jesus goes up to the Temple and receives understanding in the things of God in His Father's presence (Luke 2:41-51).

    a ‘And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man' (Luke 2:52).

    Note that in ‘a' wisdom is offered to all God-lovers that they might grow in it and enjoy God's favour, and in the parallel Jesus grows in wisdom and in favour with God and men. In ‘b' Zacharias goes up to the Temple and receives a word from God, and in the parallel Jesus does the same. In ‘c' Mary receives the promise of the Messiah, and in the parallel Anna comes to the promised Messiah and spreads news of Him all around. In ‘d' Elizabeth prophesies over Jesus and praises and blesses God, and in the parallel Simon prophesies over Jesus and praises and blesses God. In ‘e' John is circumcised and in the parallel Jesus is circumcised. All is rooted in the promise to Abraham. In ‘f' Zacharias's tongue is loosed and the word goes round the neighbourhood, and in the parallel the shepherds spread the word around the neighbourhood. In ‘g' Zacharias prophesies the coming of the Messiah and in the parallel the angels do the same. And in ‘h' the Messiah comes.

    Chapter 2 The Birth And Development of the Child Jesus.

    We now come to the event on which the two opening Chapter s are centred (see opening analysis), the birth of the One of Whom the Gospel testifies, the One Who is called ‘great', the Son of the Most High, the everlasting King over the everlasting kingdom (compare Isaiah 9:6-7). And yet it is all over in two verses. There is nothing sentimental about it. For it is why He was born that is Luke's interest, not the details of the birth. Perhaps magical stories were already being invented by some (as we find them later in the apocryphal Gospels) and he wanted nothing to do with them. While being the King of glory He was coming as a man among men, and that was how He was to be seen. It is noteworthy that Luke does not mention the visit of the Magi (Matthew 2:1-11). This is quite understandable, for it would not have fitted into the theme of this chapter, which is based around humility and humble beginnings. Rather does he stress the visit of the shepherds to the child lying in a manger, placing it in direct contrast with the rulers in their palaces.

    But this description of His lowly birth is then followed by a series of testimonies, first by angels, and then by the Holy Spirit, to His status and future. These may be seen as paralleling the inspiration that has gone before in chapter 1. Jesus is to be seen as celebrated by God both before and after His birth. Heaven bears witness while the earth is silent. And the chapter then ends with Him briefly in His Father's house, an indication of what is to come.

    How quietly the event itself takes place, for the birth is all over in two verses. Nevertheless in this passage Luke brings out all that needs to be brought out, and among these things he deliberately and emphatically draws attention to the fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, as a scion of the house of David. This is emphasised by the background history so that it cannot be missed. It is stressing that He was of the house and family of David.

    We cannot doubt that Luke had in mind the prophecy which would be well known to his readers, that the One Who was to be ruler in Israel, Whose origin was from of old, from ancient days, would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) and would be the root of Jesse, David's father (Isaiah 12:1). But he does not draw attention to the prophecies specifically. He leaves the inference to be drawn. There is a studied silence about it, a silence which is typical of Luke in a number of places. He often gets over his message by silence.

    Chapter 1 has been full of the divine as being revealed to the human, with great emphasis on the coming event. Chapter Luke 2:8 onwards is the same, except that it looks back on the great event. But the great event itself passes in a way that is so ordinary that we can hardly credit it (in total contrast to His death). The King is being born in order to commence His Kingly Rule, and yet all we see, and are told of, in Luke is a baby lying in a manger arrayed in a swaddling cloth. It reminds us that He came into the world as true man.

    It tells us too that as a result of the instructions of mighty Rome, His adoptive father had to attend at Bethlehem for enrolment. Joseph is revealed as fulfilling his political obligations, in obedience to the ‘powers that be' (Romans 13:1). He is a man under authority. Yet every reader knows that really it is this baby that the Gospel of Luke is all about, for this is Jesus Christ the Lord made man, a fact emphasised here by understatement. The great oak that is to come springs from the tiny acorn.

    So the opening draws attention to the fact that Jesus came as a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, into a world ruled by Rome, and in a land governed by Rome, even though in the case of Palestine indirectly, and that His own life will be very much affected by Rome's decisions. Even Herod is very much a vassal king under Roman control, and has to submit to Caesar's decrees, as is made clear here. Rome controls all. This emphasis on Roman authority at the beginning of Luke's writings ties in with Luke's later emphasis at the end of his two books on the fact that the Kingly Rule of God must be established and proclaimed by an Apostle in Rome (Acts 23:11; Acts 28), by which time the accomplishment of this baby will be resounding throughout the Roman Empire as the word mightily prevails.

  • Luke 1:1,2 open_in_new

    ‘Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to draw up a narrative concerning those matters which have been fulfilled among us, even as they delivered them to us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word,'

    These first four verses are presented in classical Greek, in contrast with what follows in Chapter s 1 & 2. We note here that ‘many' are said to have put in writing certain facts about Jesus Christ and His life and teaching. Thus Luke had a number of writings from which to draw, and concerning which he could consult Paul and the twelve. These may well have included Mark's manuscript of his own Gospel, or a draft of it, which he may well have lent to Luke as containing the testimony of Peter. But Mark's Gospel could never be sufficient for a historian like Luke. It did not contain sufficient of Jesus' teaching. He clearly then had sources, or a source, for the teaching of Jesus. But we can be sure that he checked their accuracy with the living voices themselves. On top of this he travelled to places like Caesarea and Jerusalem, at one stage remaining in Caesarea for two years, where he would meet a good number of people who had been present at many of the events described. Given that Luke spent so much time with Paul and would certainly have been in contact with Peter, and definitely was with Mark, it would have been incredible if a careful historian like he was had not checked with them the reliability of the material. It is clear that he was not fully satisfied with what had already been produced. He would not therefore just accept what they said. He was a genuine historian and wanted to do the life of Jesus justice.

    His words in themselves emphasise the importance of his subject. He speaks of ‘the things fulfilled among us'. What Jesus was and what He had done was seen as something ‘fulfilled'. It was a fulfilment of the Old Testament Scriptures, and His was a life, seen not as tragically cut short in death, but as a life which had achieved its full potential. It was a fulfilled life. Speaking of Jesus he could hardly have meant anything less. The perfect participle emphasises that they have been fulfilled and are still being so.

    And he then stresses that the information contained in his Gospel comes from ‘eyewitnesses and ministers of the word'. While in another this might have indicated that they were simply its original source, Luke's circumstances and travels make quite clear that he would actually have met these eyewitnesses. He could not have failed to do so. And having done so, had that not been what he was signifying here, he would have added a further comment. The fact that he did not do that stresses that these eyewitnesses were ones whom he had talked with himself.

    The use of ‘the word' here does not go quite as far as John 1:1-18 in personifying the Logos (the Word), but in Luke's writings ‘the word' is something powerful and effective that goes forth and changes men's lives, and the prime thing about it is that it concerns Jesus. Indeed one of the main themes of Acts is the going forth of ‘the word' (e.g. Luke 4:4; Luke 4:29; Luke 6:4; Luke 6:7; etc), and there it means the word about Jesus Christ, the Messiah. And here he closely connects that word with the life of Jesus as witnessed by eyewitnesses. The word is the word concerning Him which goes forth and produces life (Isaiah 55:11). In the parable of the sower it is the word which is sowed so as to result in the establishment of the Kingly Rule of God (Luke 8:11). In Luke 11:28 Jesus can say, ‘blessed are those who hear the word of God --', compare also Luke 5:1 where the people press to hear ‘the word of God'. It is called ‘the word of God' because its source was in God. This is why Paul could say that ‘the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God'. And it is that word of power that Luke wants to present. Compare Luke 4:32; Luke 4:36 where it is both Jesus' word of authority in teaching and His word of authority in casting out evil spirits.

    ‘Ministers of the word.' In Acts it is the Apostles and their close associates who are the ministers of the word (Acts 6:4). As this introduction introduces both books Luke may well be intending us to see by this description Apostolic men who had been with Jesus. Papias had said, ‘For I did not assume that whatever comes from books is as helpful to me as what comes from a living and lasting voice.” There is really no reason for Luke not to have thought the same, and he had the advantage of meeting at least some of the Apostles face to face.

  • Luke 1:1-4 open_in_new

    Introduction (1:1-4).

    In approaching this introduction we should recognise that it conforms with literary practise in the world of Luke's day.

    Josephus in ‘Against Appion' opens his writings similarly. In his opening to book 1 he says, “In my history of our Antiquities, most excellent Epaphroditus, I have, I think, made sufficiently clear to any who may peruse that work the extreme antiquity of our Jewish race, the purity of the original stock and the manner in which it established itself in the country which we occupy today..... Since, however, I observe that a considerable number of persons,.... discredit the statements in my history concerning our antiquity,.... I consider it my duty to devote a brief treatise to all these points, in order at once to convict our detractors of malignity and deliberate falsehood, to correct the ignorance of others, and to instruct all who desire to know the truth concerning the antiquity of our race.”

    He then commences book 2 in this way:

    “In the first volume of this work, my most esteemed Epaphroditus, I demonstrated the antiquity of our race, corroborating my statements by the writings of the Phoenicians, Chaldaeans, and Egyptians..... I also challenged the statements of Manetho, Chaeremon and some others. I shall now proceed to refute the rest of the authors who have attacked us.” It will be seen how similar in general terms this is to Luke's openings, not because either was acquainted with the other, but because it was a standard literary method of the day.

    But note that Luke is able to point to eyewitnesses, which Josephus was necessarily unable to do.

  • Luke 1:3,4 open_in_new

    ‘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.'

    So Luke tells us that, unsatisfied with other writings, he went back to basics. As a genuine historian he ‘traced all things accurately from the first', so that Theophilus and his readers may be able to be sure that what he tells them are facts, and might ‘know the certainty concerning the things in which they were instructed'. ‘From the first' is probably intended to signify that he began at the beginning with the birth of John and what led up to it. For that is where this new activity of God had begun. In view of his accuracy where it can be tested historically we have every reason to accept that he meant this to be taken literally. He was that kind of writer. Thus it is not reasonable to suggest that he meant that he merely accumulated traditional material. That would not have satisfied Luke.

    ‘Most excellent Theophilus.' ‘Most excellent' was a title used of Roman procurators. Compare the ‘most excellent Felix' (Acts 23:26). But it could also be used as a title of respect, and it may thus be that Theophilus was an influential man who had become, or was on the verge of becoming, a Christian. But however that may be, we must not see this as a personal communication with Theophilus, although a copy might well have been sent to him, and he may well have offered to have it reproduced and sent out. As with Josephus's work the idea was that it be read widely. Indeed Luke may well have chosen his patron because his name ‘lover of God' adequately depicted those by whom he wanted his Gospel to be read.

    ‘To write to you in order.' This does not necessarily mean in strict chronological order, although clearly the general outline is chronological. Much of the teaching would not have been given only once. Much must have been spoken again and again as Jesus went everywhere preaching the word, and some would have been remembered in differing contexts, and other would have been remembered without a context. We must always remember this when we speak of similar sayings in the Gospels having different contexts, as though that meant that one writer must be wrong. For the truth was that some of the sayings had many contexts. And others were well remembered but had no context. Luke would fit these latter in as it suited the message he was conveying. And we must remember that Luke was not writing for twentieth century man who is obsessed with time. He was writing for 1st century man who was more interested in meaning and significance, and portraying a total picture.

    The people of Palestine in the first century AD depended a good deal on memory. And as the Sermon on the Mount brings out vividly, Jesus deliberately catered for that by speaking in a memorable way. What He said was spoken in a way helpful for memorising, and the deliberate continual repetition would fix it in the mind.

    And all would know who were the ones who had the most reliable memories. It was to them that Luke would go. Whether there was a Q document of sayings or not, we would be doing Luke an injustice to suggest that he relied on that alone when he came across so many who had actually heard Jesus speak a good number of times. We are thus assured that Luke actually heeded the eyewitnesses.

  • Luke 1:5,6 open_in_new

    ‘There was in the days of Herod, king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.'

    Herod, king of Judaea (this is to be seen as Judaea in its widest sense, the lands of the Jews, including Samaria, Galilee and Peraea - compare Acts 2:9; Acts 10:37), otherwise known as Herod the Great, reigned from c. 37 BC to around 5 to 1 BC. The latter dating depends mainly on whether the coins issued by his sons were ‘optimistically' dated or not, and on which eclipse of the moon Josephus was referring to. These are the main bases for dating the time of Herod's death. If the enrolment of Joseph at the time of Jesus' birth was that of the celebration of the 25th year of Augustus' reign, when a decree went out that all men of quality should declare their loyalty to Caesar, it occurred in 3 BC which would suggest that 1 BC may well be correct for the death of Herod, and would indicate that his death occurred shortly after his slaughtering of the innocent babes in Bethlehem, which took place within the two years after Jesus' birth (Matthew 2:16).

    But for Israel those were dark days. They did not relish being under the Roman yoke, nor did they like having an Idumaean king. He may have commenced the rebuilding of the Temple, but he was only a ‘half-Jew' (descended from the Edomites who had been forced to be circumcised under John Hyrcanus), and he had also built pagan temples and other pagan buildings in the land. Furthermore he was a bloodthirsty tyrant, as dangerous to his wife and children as to anyone else. He was, of course, submissive to Rome, for it was from Rome that he gained his authority. He would not have been king otherwise. And that too would put him in disfavour. Thus Luke is stressing that it was in the days of such a king, tyrannical, bloodthirsty, treacherous (in Jewish eyes), and totally worldly, that God revealed His plan to raise up the true ‘son of David' promised by the Scriptures. There could have been no greater contrast.

    Zacharias was a priest of the course of Abijah. Since the time of David the priesthood had been split into twenty four courses, one of which was the course of Abijah. History had to some extent decimated those courses, but they had been re-established again from what remained. These ‘courses' took it in turns to staff the Temple services, each course being on duty for a week twice a year, with all present for the great feasts, and because there were so many priests, lots would be cast to see who should perform what ritual. Because there were so many priests, officially no priest ever had the opportunity to offer the incense more than once in his lifetime. (Those who had done so would be excluded from the lot). Thus what was about to happen to Zacharias was a once in a lifetime sacred moment. Zacharias' wife was also a daughter of Aaron, called Elisabeth. So both were of priestly families. It was considered a blessing to a woman of Israel to be married to a priest, and for a priest to marry a wife of priestly descent was seen as a highly respected and honoured thing, and as revealing his dedication to God. So these two, although unknown and living in ‘the hill country of Judaea', were both seen in Israel as being the salt of the earth.

    ‘And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.' This really indicates that they were good living people who sought as best they could to observe God's requirements. It is not saying that they were perfect. But it demonstrates that their desire was always to please the Lord, and that they were careful to obey His word. In the Old Testament the idea was used in this way of Noah (Genesis 6:9).

    ‘Righteous before God.' From a human point of view they could not be faulted in their fulfilment of what He required. ‘Ordinances' - ‘dikaiomasin' - were something declared to be right.

    The name Zacharias (Hebrew Zechariah) means ‘YHWH remembers'. It was very appropriate here for what is about to happen demonstrates that God has not forgotten His people. We do not know the meaning of Elisabeth although attempts have been made.

  • Luke 1:5-25 open_in_new

    Zacharias Goes Up to the Temple and Is Promised a Son Who Will Prepare the Way for God's Messiah, and He is Made Dumb in God's Presence (1:5-25).

    From this point on until the end of chapter 2 all is written in Aramaic Greek in vivid contrast to the classical Greek of Luke 1:1-4, and the more general Greek that follows. This may partly reflect Luke's sources, but he later has no difficulty in turning his Aramaic sources into more general Greek. Thus we must see the Aramaic Greek here as deliberately retained and expanded on in order to give atmosphere to the story. It reflects the old from which the new will come.

    For four hundred years there had been no prophet in Israel. Heaven had been silent, and the people had been waiting for the fulfilment of the last words of the last of the prophets, who had declared on God's behalf, “Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6). And now it is being clearly indicated that those dark days were ended, and God was about to act. Another has come ‘in the Spirit and power of Elijah' to fulfil the words of Malachi.

    It is indeed interesting that those words were spoken by a man who was called Malachi - ‘My messenger'. And now another will arise of whom it is said that he is ‘My messenger' (Luke 7:27; compare Matthew 11:10; Mark 1:2). In the purposes of God, after the passage of the silent years, one messenger takes up where another has left off.

  • Luke 1:7 open_in_new

    ‘And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.'

    But there was one respect in which they were not seen as the salt of the earth. For Elizabeth was barren, and they had grown old together childless. This would have seemed to many a contradiction to what they were, for to be childless would be seen by many as a reproach on her, and a hint of something lacking in her response to God. It would certainly be to her a deep sadness of heart, and she must often have wondered what she had done to deserve this fate. It is almost impossible for us now to conceive quite what a grief of heart it was, or to recognise the stigma that this lack brought on this godly couple. People would look at them both and shake their heads. The Rabbis would silently condemn them. To them a childless couple were under God's heavy disapproval. But in her ‘reproach' little did she know what God had planned for her. She was to bear a son, and he would be the greatest of all the prophets, the preparer of the way for the Messiah, the expected deliverer of Israel.

    When we become discouraged in our service for God, or when we seek to pass judgment on what God is doing in the short term, we would do well to remember Elisabeth. She waited long for her vindication, but when it came, what a vindication!

  • Luke 1:8,9 open_in_new

    ‘Now it came about that, while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.'

    Zacharias had been ‘on duty' in the Temple all week, but on this day he had ‘won the lottery' by being selected by lots to offer up the incense in the Temple at the hour of prayer. This offering was made twice a day by priests, and fortunate was the one who was chosen for the purpose of making it. Normally speaking it could only happen to him once in a lifetime, for once he had done it he would be excluded from the drawing of lots. And on this day it was Zacharias' lot to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. His excitement and awe must have been almost too much for him, for he was a godly man who approached his duties with great devotion.

    God's care in His selection of place and time should be noticed. The selection was in order that the declaration of the birth of Zacharias' son might take place at the most sacred time in the worship of the Temple, at the offering of the incense, so that it would be known to all that the child was a gift directly from God. He was making it as clear as possible to Israel how important John was to be, and how he came in response to the prayers of all Israel, which were offered at the time of the offering of the incense (Psalms 141:2). Everything about this announcement was sacred, and intended to be observed and remembered.

    So there he stood in the outer sanctuary in the semi-gloom, lit only by the lampstand, while his companion priests, having completed their duties, went out through the great doors. He would then wait for the signal from the sacerdotal priest that it was the time for the incense offering. On one side of the sanctuary he could see in the dim light the golden table of showbread, with its twelve loaves of bread neatly arranged, and on the other the seven-branched golden lampstand with its flickering flames providing the only illumination in the sanctuary, while peering ahead he could see the golden altar on which he would make the incense offering, and behind which was the way of entry into the Holiest of All, over which hung the ancient veil. There at that golden altar, as he offered the incense, he knew that he would approach as close to God as any man dared in daily life, and there he would offer the incense on the behalf of the whole of Israel and pray for the salvation of Israel. The whole weight of Israel would be on his shoulders. It was a thrilling moment, the moment of a lifetime.

  • Luke 1:10 open_in_new

    ‘And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the hour of incense.'

    Meanwhile at that hour of incense a fairly large crowd of worshippers would gather in the Temple courtyards so that as the incense fumes arose they might all worship God together. Such crowds gathered three times a day at the hours of prayer, two of which occurred at the times of the offering of the incense. So the scene was set. Zacharias alone in the sanctuary, as was required, probably apprehensive because of his sacred task, and all the people waiting expectantly outside ready to burst into worship and to receive the officiating priest's blessing.

  • Luke 1:11 open_in_new

    ‘And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of altar of incense.'

    And then suddenly, alone in the semi-darkness, there in that outer sanctuary lit only by the seven-branched lampstand, Zacharias received a terrible shock. For it was obligatory for the sanctuary to be empty at the time of the offering of the incense, and yet in the dim light he became aware of a figure, standing to the right of the golden altar of incense, the side of privilege. And he was not dressed as a priest. There was an intruder in the sanctuary.

  • Luke 1:12 open_in_new

    ‘And Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell on him.'

    Fear and horror gripped his heart. What was this man doing in the sanctuary? The ‘fear' and ‘trouble' might have arisen at the thought that this man was defiling the sanctuary by his presence, or it may have been because something emanated from the man which indicated something of the divine, something that did declare his right to be there. But whichever it was, Zacharias was afraid. All his life he had thought of this moment, and he had taken such care over his preparations, and now it was being marred, indeed might even become disastrous. He would remember others before him who had been smitten down because of sacrilege at the moment of the offering of the incense (Leviticus 10:1-2). Was he now also to face such a death?

  • Luke 1:13 open_in_new

    ‘But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias: because your supplication is heard, and your wife Elisabeth will bear you a son, and you will call his name John.” '

    During his offering of the incense Zacharias would have prayed on behalf of all the people, a prayer for the deliverance of Israel. And now the angel, for such it was, knowing his thoughts, spoke gently to him. He told him not to be afraid, for he was not there to cause him harm, but to bring him good news from the presence of God. The good news was that God had heard his prayers, and that His deliverance was about to come to Israel, and not only that but that his wife too was to be involved in it and was to bear a son. And he was to be called Yo-annen, ‘the Lord is gracious', for through him God was going to act graciously.

    The angel replies in poetic and chiastic form, which we will first give in full:

    a “And you will have joy and gladness,

    a And many will rejoice at his birth.

    a For he will be great in the sight of the Lord,

    a And he will drink no wine nor strong drink,

    b And he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.

    c And many of the children of Israel will he turn to the Lord their God.

    b And he will go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah,

    a To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,

    a And the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the righteous,

    a To make ready for the Lord,

    a A people prepared.”

    Central to the chiasmus in ‘c' is that he will turn many of his people to the Lord His God, for that is why he is to be born. Surrounding that central purpose in ‘b' and parallel is that it will be by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit and power of Elijah. He will be the Mainspring of his activity. And in ‘a' we have the rejoicing at the coming of the herald and a description of his potential, and in the parallel what he will accomplish through that potential.

  • Luke 1:14,15 open_in_new

    “And 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, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.”

    And through the birth of this son he will have joy and gladness. But that joy and gladness will not be for him alone. It will be for many. For many will rejoice at his birth. And that will be because of what his son will be. For his son will be great in the eyes of the Lord, and will not need to be fortified by wine and strong drink. For from his mother's womb he will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

    Thus both for his strength, and for his joy and satisfaction, he will look only to the Holy Spirit of God. He will turn his back on wine and strong drink and rely only on God for his greatness, which will be a greatness as seen in God's eyes, and from God's point of view. He will not require the pleasures of life, or the wine that the world takes in order to fortify itself. Instead his heart will be taken up with God.

    He will be ‘filled (pimplemi) with the Holy Spirit' even from before his birth. This phrase has special significance in Luke. ‘Filling (pimplemi) with the Holy Spirit' is always in Luke's writings (where it only appears) a filling that produces inspired words. In almost all cases it is a temporary experience. But for John (and later for Paul - Acts 9:17) it will be permanent. So John will be a permanently inspired man, right from his very birth. In other words from the very womb he is called to be a prophet of God. (We must distinguish being filled (pimplemi) with the Holy Spirit, from being filled (pleroo) with the Holy Spirit and being full (pleres) of the Holy Spirit. It is the latter two which are for all Christians and have some permanence).

    Drinking wine and strong drink has always been the way in which man fortifies himself for what he has to face. By it man dulls his senses. And it was seen as indicating worldly sophistication as against natural purity, and as the main source of man's happiness. It was the sign of those who dwelt in large houses or cities, or who enjoyed worldly pleasures and aims. Thus John was to abstain from all forms of ‘worldliness', and from any need to ‘fortify' himself. He would need neither the one nor the other. God would be both his joy and his strength. To the pure soul who lived in the wilderness, away from the world and alone with God, such things would not be available, nor would they be desired. Rather he would become strong in God.

    He was not being called on to be a permanent Nazirite, for no mention is made of growing his hair, but all would recognise that this signified that he was called to a special dedication. Priests on duty were also expected to abstain from wine and strong drink (Leviticus 10:9). The idea may be that as the son of a priest he was to see himself as always on duty. However, there is nothing about his ministry that suggests that he saw himself as involved in priestly action. Thus he would be distinct both from Nazirites and priests and would be a mixture of the best in both, and he was being paralleled with those who had been set apart by God in the past (Judges 13:7). To abstain from wine and strong drink was a sign of special separation to holiness (Numbers 6:3, contrast Amos 2:12).

  • Luke 1:16 open_in_new

    “And many of the children of Israel will he turn to the Lord their God.”

    Such will be the inspiration of which he partakes that he will turn many in Israel to the Lord their God (bring them to repentance). For this is why he is being sent. He is coming in order to bring God's people back to Himself (compare Isaiah 49:6), ready for God's great deliverance. This turning of the people of Israel to Himself is a constant theme of the Old Testament, and was especially associated with the last days (e.g. Isaiah 30:15; Isaiah 31:6; Isaiah 44:22; Jeremiah 3:14; Jeremiah 24:7; Ezekiel 33:11; Daniel 12:3; Hosea 3:5; Hosea 6:1; Hosea 12:6; Hosea 14:1-2; Joel 2:12-13; Joel 2:28-32; Zechariah 1:3; Malachi 3:7; Malachi 4:6) and was a requirement for the coming of the Redeemer (Isaiah 59:20).

  • Luke 1:17 open_in_new

    “And he will go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”

    For Zacharias' promised son John is to be the Elijah who was promised by Malachi 4:5, walking in the spirit and power of Elijah, walking before the face of God, to bring unity and love in Israel, to reconcile fathers and sons, and to make those who are disobeying God and His word, walk in the wise way proclaimed by just men, whether of the present or of the past. Elijah was a prophet very much connected with the Spirit, and his ‘spirit' was passed on to Elisha (2 Kings 2:9; 2 Kings 2:15). Now again it would be passed on to another, to the son of Zacharias. ‘The wisdom of the just' might very much have in mind such words as those of the wisdom books like Proverbs and Ecclesiastes and also include the words of the prophets. And the final purpose in all this will be to produce a people whose hearts are prepared to be ready to receive the Lord. He will ‘make ready a people prepared for Him', as Malachi had declared.

    The idea of ‘turning the hearts of the fathers to the children' in Malachi seems to mean reconciliation between fathers and sons, in other words the restoration of harmony in Israel (compare the references in Acts to the harmony of God's new people), but it might also include the idea that the ancient fathers, who would be despairing of what their children had now become, would now be reconciled to them because of the change that would take place in their lives. Compare Isaiah 63:16, where the people cried ‘Israel (Jacob) does not know us'. But now as a result of the work of John ‘Israel' (Jacob) would once more know them. This would then see ‘the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just' as a reverse parallel, the disobedient being the children and the just the ancient fathers, including the prophets. The children would once more walk as their fathers had walked, as receptive and open to God and all His ways.

    It will be noted that at this point there is no definite reference to the Messiah, but that is probably because the description is based on Malachi 4:5 where also there is no reference to the Messiah. The stress therefore is on the fact that John will be the expected Elijah. But as he was to come before ‘the great and terrible Day of the Lord' the connection with the Messiah can hardly be doubted. In his later prophecy (Luke 1:67-79) the connection of John with the Messiah is made very clear.

  • Luke 1:18 open_in_new

    ‘And Zacharias said to the angel, “By what means will I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.” '

    But this was all too much for Zacharias. As he thought back on those long years of childlessness, how could he now expect a son to be born to him, and especially one in whom such wonderful things would be fulfilled? It was beyond belief. So he asked for a sign. And he was given one!

  • Luke 1:19 open_in_new

    ‘And the angel answering said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you these good tidings.” '

    The answer comes. He can know that a son will be born to him because of the authority and position of the one who speaks. ‘I AM Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God.' The ‘I am' is emphatic. Could such a one lie? For one who stands in the presence of God could not come with lying promises. What he promises is directly from God. And he had been sent specifically to bring him these good tidings.

    Gabriel (Daniel 8:16; Daniel 9:21) is one of two angels whose names are given in the Bible. His name means ‘man of God'. The other was Michael (Daniel 10:13; Daniel 10:21; ).

    Bread is in fact very much connected with ‘the last days', a phrase which in the New Testament includes the life and ministry of Jesus, and this was what the feeding of the crowd had symbolised. And we must remember that to the disciples He had ‘brought in' these last days. And in the last days the belief was that the Messiah would give bread from Heaven, as Moses had (compare John 6:31-32 in the context of the feeding of the crowds with bread). And that is why Jesus referred to Himself as ‘the bread of life' (John 6:35). He said that He had come to bring God's bread to His people. He had come as God's Bread from Heaven, that men might eat of Him and not die.

    Thus we may see here that Jesus' prayer, given for us to pray, should be seen as pointing to a prayer for the final fulfilment of God's purposes, a fulfilment to be achieved ‘each day' as we partake of His Holy Spirit. He is saying to His disciple, pray that the imminent approach of the Kingly Rule of God under the Christ, where you will eat of the bread of God, (which He later makes clear then refers to Himself), may not be delayed, but may be enjoyed now through the coming of His Holy Spirit. Pray that it will come ‘today'. It is essentially a prayer that they might almost immediately partake of the fullness of Christ and enjoy life with Him. It was an indication that the Kingly Rule of God was here in which they could daily partake. And they were to pray that they might have their share in it along with all His people. That they should not miss out on what God has given.

    So we have ‘Tomorrow's bread' available to us today, while at the same time looking forward to the time when we will eat and drink with Him in His heavenly rule.

    However, whichever way we take it the prayer is for daily sustenance, whether physical or spiritual, so that we can properly serve God. It is not a suggestion that we can ask for whatever we like.

    ‘And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive every one who is indebted to us.' Central to participation in the Kingly Rule of God is forgiveness of sins (Luke 3:3; Luke 5:20; Luke 7:41-50). Without forgiveness we can have no place there. We are thus called on daily to walk in His light and seek the forgiveness of sins (1 John 1:7-10). And He points out that in doing so we must also be those who forgive others. ‘Debtors' is a very Jewish way of looking at sin. We must forgive those who are indebted to us because they have sinned against us. Then God will forgive us our debts in that we have sinned against Him (Luke 7:41-43). In both cases there is the assumption of repentance. God will forgive us when we repent. We are to forgive others when they repent (Luke 17:3-4). And just as God is willing to forgive many times, we must do the same.

    The thought is not that we will be forgiven because we forgive. The thought rather is that as already His believing people, and having because of that forgiven others, we are coming as those who have done all the preparatory work necessary for our own daily forgiveness. We have repented and set our lives right, and this is especially revealed in our forgiveness of others. We are therefore ripe for God's mercy to be revealed in forgiveness to us. This is not the initial forgiveness at our first repentance. As God's men we are coming to Him as those who are obedient to His ways. We are praying like this because having once for all been forgiven in the past, we have learned to freely forgive, so that now we have the confidence to come for the daily forgiveness that we need as well. Our forgiving others is an evidence of the fact that we are already His and that our lives have been transformed and that our approach is genuine.

    But this forgiveness of sins is itself an evidence of the last days. The last days will introduce a forgiveness of sins that will spread throughout the world (Luke 24:47; Isaiah 43:25; Isaiah 44:22; Jeremiah 31:34). And it is noteworthy that in this prayer of Jesus there is no mention anywhere of God as in any way being restricted to Judaism. It is not a Jewish prayer, it is not a Greek prayer. It is a world prayer, for it is for His disciples who must have a world vision, and it is for all mankind.

    ‘And bring us not into testing.' We should notice immediately the implication of these words. It is that we are being ‘brought', we are being ‘led', in the way in which we go. They are words of personal care. The Lord is our Shepherd and we are His sheep. And what we are praying is that we will not have to face the tests that the world has to face, and especially the Scribes and Pharisees have to face, under the wrath of God (Luke 11:42-51) and away from the flock outside His protection.

    But one thing we can be sure of, and that is that this is not a prayer that we will never be tested. For the Scriptures makes clear that testing is one thing that every believer can be certain of (Matthew 7:14; Matthew 10:28; John 16:33; Acts 14:22; Acts 20:19; James 1:12-15). To pray not to be tested would be to ask the impossible, because it would be to ask that the Scriptures are not fulfilled. We will be tested by our own desires (James 1:13-14), we will be tested in ways that are common to man (1 Corinthians 10:13), we will be tested by the activities of God's enemies, sharing His reproach (1 Peter 4:12-13), we will be tested by the Evil One as Jesus was (Ephesians 10:13). And when we are we can be sure of this that God will provide a way of escape (if we are willing to take it) so that we will be able to bear it (1 Corinthians 10:13), because He is leading us.

    But what we are praying will not happen here is for  God  to bring us into His testing. For when God brings a man into testing he is naked and unprotected. He has no way of escape. He is laid bare in his sin. He is undone. To be led into testing is to be a lost soul. We do not want God to lead us there.

    In other words what we are asking is that we may walk continually under God's protection, not having to face what His enemies have to face. This involves us therefore in walking where we know His protection is available. The sheep who deliberately goes out to face the wolf because he fancies a good scrap has lost his right to protection by the shepherd (and demonstrated that he is not a sheep).

    So this is rather a prayer that we will be kept from the way of those who are tested by God, the way of the world, that God will walk with us and will never allow us to be tested in the way that cannot be overcome, that He will not bring us into a way in which we are without His protection. Note that the whole idea is that God is leading and bringing. God is here seen as a shepherd. It is spoken by those under His protection.

    Of course the believer should certainly never seek for God to test him, for that would be to display arrogance. Those who sought martyrdom were often those who failed in the end. Rather, says Jesus, we should pray at all costs to avoid it. We should pray to be led safely in the ways where God does not test men, the protected way, safe from the trials and tests that God brings on the ungodly, and safe from His judgments.

    We will be tested by sin (temptation), we will be tested by God's enemies and we will be tested by the Evil One. In those cases God is not leading us into them, He is bringing us through them (Isaiah 43:2). All these God will keep us in. But we do not want to be laid bare, we do not want to be tested by God, for those whom God tests are without hope. Nothing can protect them from it. They may build what shelters they may, but they will simply be blown away (Isaiah 28:17). And the command that we pray this is the guarantee that God will fulfil it. It is a prayer that we might walk under His umbrella, in the narrow way that leads us safely through all temptations as His own.

    Those who pray this are praying to be delivered from evil and the Evil One, as Matthew 6:13 makes clear. Many manuscripts include the words here as well, but as other good manuscripts exclude the words (including p45, aleph, B and f1) it is likely that they have been added by copyists from Matthew. They are, however, quite Scriptural (they are there in Matthew).

    For the idea of not being led into testing by God contains within it the opposite notion of being led in the way that is free from God's testing. Prayer for safety and deliverance is intrinsic within the desire not to be tested, for the only way in which we can be ‘not led into testing' is by our being protected from it, by our being led in the right way, in the way free from God's testing. Thus we are here asking to be led in the reverse of the God-tested way, in the God-protected way. We are asking God to drive us through the hail of His own missiles and bullets in a bullet-proof car. It goes without saying that we are also declaring by this that we ourselves will not walk into the way of testing. We will avoid all such ways. We will keep our eyes fixed on Him in the not-God-tested way. For the whole prayer is based on our being ‘led' and ‘brought'.

    As we are constantly told elsewhere, testing is inevitable for believers (Matthew 7:14; Matthew 10:28; John 16:33; Acts 14:22; James 1:12-15), and sometimes it may seem to overwhelm us. (The bullet-proof car may be surrounded and put under huge pressure). But the believer knows that he will never be overwhelmed (Isaiah 43:2), for the Lord is his protector (Hebrews 13:5-6). Nevertheless there is in this the opposite lesson that testing must never be sought. That would be folly. But as Jesus makes clear in Luke 10:19-20; Luke 11:21-23, when we are tested we need not fear, for He has delivered from the Evil One.