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    Luke 1:57-80
    Lesson 104

    Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

    In this lesson:
     
    The messenger is born.
     
    In Lesson 103, we read the Magnificat, Mary's song of praise. 
    Now read the Benedictus, Zacharias' song of praise and prophesy (1:68-79).
    The infant John the Baptist with parents Zacharias and Elisabeth.
    Study Tip:
     
    The more we know about The Old Testament, the more we understand The New.  Click The Old Testament links, they help us see God's plan.

    The Gospel According to St. Luke

    The King James Bible    ​

    Luke 1:57-80
    John the Baptist is born

    57 Now Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.

    58 And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.

    59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.

    60 And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.

    61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.

    62 And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.

    63 And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.

    64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.

    65 And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judaea.

    66 And all they that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be! And the hand of the Lord was with him.

    67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,

    68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

    69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;

    70 As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:

    71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;

    72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;

    73 The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,

    74 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,

    75 In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.

    76 And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;

    77 To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,

    78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,

    79 To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

    80 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.    ​​​
    ​Margin notes: 
     
    "They rejoiced with her." (1:58) - Just as the elderly Sarah celebrated centuries earlier after delivering her son Isaac child (Genesis 21:5-7).
     
    "On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child." (1:59) - As instructed in Genesis 17:9-14 and Leviticus 12:3, Jewish boys were circumcised at eight days old.  It was also the custom to name children at the same time.
     
    "He shall be called John." (1:60) - The name specified by the angel, Gabriel (1:13).
     
    "None of thy kindred." (1:61) - "No one in your family."
     
    "He asked for a writing table." (1:63) - "He (Zacharias) asked for writing paper."  Remember, Gabriel struck him mute for not believing that the aging Elisabeth could deliver a child (Luke 1:20). 
     
    "All that dwelt round about them." (1:65) - Refers to  Zacharias' and Elisabeth's neighbors.
     
    "All these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judaea." (1:65) -"All these things were talked about throughout the hills of Judea."
     
    "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel." (1:68) - Zacharias is quoting from Psalm 41:13; 72:18; 106:48.
     
    "He hath visited and redeemed his people." (1:68) - Zacharias is paraphrasing Psalm 111:9.
     
    "Horn of salvation." (1:69) - Psalm 18:2. 
     
    "That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us." (1:71) - This is the fulfillment of Psalm 106:10.  Many Jews read Psalm 106 and falsely assumed that the Messiah would be a powerful military/political leader who would save them from their enemies.
     
    "To remember his holy covenant." (1:72) - Means, "To remember His holy agreement."  God remembers His promises (Psalm 105:8).  In the covenant, God promised to send a Savior.  God's covenant with Abraham can be found in Genesis 12:1-3. 
     
    "The oath which he sware to our father Abraham." (1:73) - The oath is called the Abrahamic Covenant (Psalm 105:9; Genesis 22:16-18; Jeremiah 31:33.
     
    "In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life." (1:75) - See Ephesians 4:22-32.
     
    "And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest." (1:76) - Zacharias knows that his son is the prophesied messenger come to prepare the way for the Messiah (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1).
     
    "Thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways." (1:76) - "You will go before the Lord and prepare the way for Him."  This is John the Baptist's mission, to prepare the way for Jesus Christ.
     
    "To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins." (1:77) - As prophesied six hundred years earlier and fulfilled in Mark 1:4-5.  Why?  Because God loves us. 
     
    "Dayspring." (1:78) - "Sunrise."
     
    "To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death." (1:79) - Just as God promised in Isaiah 9:2; 58:8; 60:1-2.  The promise was kept in Matthew 4:16-17.
      
    "Waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel." (1:80) -"Became spiritually strong, and lived in the desert until he appeared in Israel."  John moved to the desert to get away from worldly distractions and to focus on prayer and his spiritual growth.


                                                  New Living Translation 
     

    Luke 1:57-80
    The Birth of John the Baptist
     
    57 When it was time for Elizabeth's baby to be born, she gave birth to a son.

    58 And when her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had been very merciful to her, everyone rejoiced with her.
     
    59 When the baby was eight days old, they all came for the circumcision ceremony. They wanted to name him Zechariah, after his father.

    60 But Elizabeth said, "No! His name is John!"
     
    61 "What?" they exclaimed. "There is no one in all your family by that name."

    62 So they used gestures to ask the baby's father what he wanted to name him.

    63 He motioned for a writing tablet, and to everyone's surprise he wrote, "His name is John."

    64 Instantly Zechariah could speak again, and he began praising God.
     
    65 Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread throughout the Judean hills.

    66 Everyone who heard about it reflected on these events and asked, "What will this child turn out to be?" For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way.
     
    Zechariah's Prophecy
     
    67 Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:
     
    68 "Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
          because he has visited and redeemed his people.

    69     He has sent us a mighty Savior
          from the royal line of his servant David,

    70     just as he promised
          through his holy prophets long ago.

    71     Now we will be saved from our enemies
          and from all who hate us.

    72     He has been merciful to our ancestors
          by remembering his sacred covenant-

    73     the covenant he swore with an oath
          to our ancestor Abraham.

    74     We have been rescued from our enemies
          so we can serve God without fear,

    75     in holiness and righteousness
          for as long as we live.
     
    76 "And you, my little son,
          will be called the prophet of the Most High,
          because you will prepare the way for the Lord.

    77     You will tell his people how to find salvation
          through forgiveness of their sins.

    78     Because of God's tender mercy,
          the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,

    79     to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
          and to guide us to the path of peace."
     
    80 John grew up and became strong in spirit. And he lived in the wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.
    ​This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible.  However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."  
    Today's question:
     
    1. What did Zacharias sing about, and why? (1:67) 
     
     
     
          

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    ​​
    1. Zacharias sang to praise God for sending the Messiah, Jesus Christ.  Since the Holy Spirit was speaking through Zacharias (1:67), he might not have understood where his words were coming from.  But as a priest, he recognized that all the Old Testament prophecies were coming to fruition.  After generations of waiting, the victory over sin was at hand, and his son John would be "the prophet of the Highest" (1:76), called to pave the way for the Messiah.  This filled him with such joy, his first words spoken after nine months of silence were a song of praise to God.  "Through the tender mercy of our God" (1:78), Jesus will "give light to them that sit in darkness."  And this light will "guide our feet into the way of peace." (1:79)     
           




    Application thought for the day:
     
    What does this passage teach about faith in God?
     
    Also -
    John the Baptist announced the coming of Jesus Christ.      How can you be a modern-day John the Baptist spreading the good news of Jesus Christ?  
    Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress Books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; "The Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies"; "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible."  All were critical in putting these lessons together.
    © 2020 evolke