New Testament 3 2007 Brendan Moar

Luke 1:1-171
Luke 1:1-4; The Prologue
Context
These four verses serve as a preface to Luke's two volume work. They outline the
nature and purpose of his task; i.e. to carefully investigate the events surrounding
Jesus' life, death and ministry, and to present them so that we can have a degree of
clarity or 'certainty' about them.
Note the abundance of aorist tense forms, the normal method of conveying narrative
strands in Lk-Acts. This is because the perfective aspect is used to convey summary
action.

Themes
Certainty: avsfa,leia
Witness: auvto,pthj
Fulfillment: plhrofore,w

1
VEpeidh,per polloi. evpecei,rhsan avnata,xasqai dih,ghsin $peri. tw/n
of
peplhroforhme,nwn% $evn h`mi/n% pragma,twn(

1 In as much as many have attempted to compile an account of those

things that have taken place among us,
The opening word in this verse is a hapax. It describes Luke's motivation to write: he
had many predecessors.
The term dih,ghsij is applied to historical accounts in Greek literature.
peplhroforhme,nwn is a substantive participle. As such, the aspect doesn't come into
consideration. However, it does stand out in the midst of the aorist forms.
evn h`mi/n indicates both the public nature of Jesus' ministry, and Luke's own private
involvement in the events himself.
2/4 of
2
kaqw.j pare,dosan h`mi/n oi` $avpV avrch/j% auvto,ptai kai. u`phre,tai geno,menoi tou/ lo,gou(

2 Just as they were handed down to us by those who were from the
beginning eyewitnesses and became ministers of the word

auvto,pthj is a hapax meaning witness. Eyewitness is important to Luke for the

qualifications of an apostle [Acts 1:21-11].

1
This is a revision of a paper by Brendan McLaughlin. Most of the content is his, although it is heavily
edited.

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2/4 2/4 2/4 voc

3
e;doxe kavmoi. parhkolouqhko,ti a;nwqen pa/sin avkribw/j kaqexh/j soi gra,yai( kra,tiste

Qeo,file(

3 It seems good to me also, having followed carefully from the

beginning, to write to you an accurate, orderly account, o excellent
Theophilus,
‘dokew’ can also mean ‘it seems good’, as it does in this instance.
Luke uses the perfect participle of parakolouqe,w to establish his credentials as a
reliable commentator. The perfect stands out against the aorists, but as a participle its
aspect should not be overstated. We could argue however, that the imperfective
aspect of the perfect relates the verb to the action of the book, not Luke. I.e., the book
follows from the beginning, not Luke has followed from the beginning.
kaqexh/j indicates Luke's desire to give an 'ordered' account. However, it does not
indicate along which lines it is to be ordered: eg, spatial, geographical, chronological?
The Vocative is used to address the recipient of Luke's work. Translating Theophilus
as a general symbolic term for 'friend of God' is a late practice dating to Origen.
of
4
i[na evpignw/|j $peri. w-n% kathch,qhj lo,gwn th.n avsfa,leianÅ

4 so that you may know the certainty concerning that word which you
were taught.
‘evpignw/|j’ is a subjunctive, meaning ‘know, perceive, understand’.

The statement of purpose here makes it clear that Luke's intended audience has
already heard the Gospel: they are to know certainty about the word which they have
already been taught.

Luke 1:5-17; The Infancy Narratives

Context
After Luke’s prologue, in which he outlines his reasons for writing, he immediately
turns to some of ‘the events that have been fulfilled among us’ (1:1). As is the case
with the other canonical gospels, Luke regards John as the necessary point to begin to
understand Jesus' life and ministry. In this section Luke outlines the events that led to
John’s birth, which included the appearance of an angel to his father Zechariah, while
he was serving at the temple as a priest.

Structure
Vs. 5-7 The setting: the tragic setting of the childless couple
Vs. 8-20 The Announcement of John’s coming birth

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Themes
The return of God’s promised word of salvation
The promise of a righteous prophet to the nation
God’s power exercised for righteous people (Zechariah and Elizabeth)
The similarities between the birth narratives and OT birth narratives (e.g. Isaac,
Samson and Samuel)
The similarities between the Greek of these passages and OT birth narratives

Contribution
The announcement of John’s birth begins a series of great events that lead to God’s
salvation of humanity.
of of of 2/4
5
VEge,neto $evn tai/j h`me,raij% ~Hrw,|dou basile,wj th/j VIoudai,aj i`ereu,j tij ovno,mati
of 2/4 of
Zacari,aj $evx evfhmeri,aj% VAbia,( kai. gunh. auvtw/| $evk tw/n qugate,rwn% VAarw.n kai. to.
of
o;noma auvth/j VElisa,betÅ

5 (It happened) in the days of Herod the king of Judah, there was a
priest whose name was Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had
a wife, from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
Vs. 5 sees Luke now turn to some of 'the events that have been fulfilled among us'
from vs. 1.
‘VEge,neto evn tai/j h`me,raij’ is reminiscent of LXX language.
The prepositional phrase 'evn tai/j h`me,raij ~Hrw,|dou' (in the days of Herod) introduces
a temporal clause, which is decidedly vague as Herod reigned from between 37 BC –
4 BC. This range will be narrowed down by Luke 2:1-2. Compare this style of
introduction with the historical writings.
The following descriptions highlight the pedigree of both Zechariah and his wife, as
they are both descendants of priestly families. However, ‘tw/n qugate,rwn VAarw.n’
(daughter of Aaron) is an uncommon description.
The phrase 'evx evfhmeri,aj' literally means 'from the daily duties …', but came to mean
'from the division …' of the Aaronic priesthood under David.

6
h=san de. di,kaioi avmfo,teroi $evnanti,on tou/ qeou/%( poreuo,menoi $evn pa,saij tai/j
of
evntolai/j kai. dikaiw,masin% tou/ kuri,ou a;memptoiÅ

6 And they were both righteous before God, living blamelessly in all the
commands and regulations of The Lord.
Not only do these people have the right lineage, they are also righteous. Luke uses
three descriptions to outline their piety:
• righteous before God – they morally conformed to God’s standards

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• living in all the commands and regulations of the Lord – obedience to the law
• blamelessly
These descriptions liken them to other OT figures like Abraham and Solomon. It also
shows that their infertility cannot be construed as some sort of judgement on the
couple.
‘avmfo,teroi’ is an adjective, meaning ‘both’.
‘evnanti,on’ is a preposition meaning ‘in the judgement of’, or ‘before’.
‘poreuo,menoi’ is a present middle/ passive participle, meaning ‘proceeding’, ‘living’
or ‘conducting one’s life’. The term is used in Genesis and elsewhere in the OT in the
context of obedience.
The phrase ‘tai/j evntolai/j kai. dikaiw,masin’ (the commands and regulations) uses
one article to govern both nouns. Wallace believes this is an example of the first
entity being a subset of the second.2 It conveys a comprehensiveness of obedience.
‘a;mempto’ is an adjective, meaning ‘blamelessly’.
2/4
7
kai. ouvk h=n auvtoi/j te,knon( kaqo,ti h=n h` VElisa,bet stei/ra( kai. avmfo,teroi
of
probebhko,tej $evn tai/j h`me,raij% auvtw/n h=sanÅ

7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was incapable of
having children, and they had both become advanced in their days.
The description in vs. 7 seems to be in contrast to their life in vs. 6. Therefore the
‘kai’ is most likely adversative. This verse introduces the reader to the tragic
situation of Zechariah and Elizabeth: they had no children.
The pluperfect periphrastic construction between the perfect participle (probebhko,tej)
and the imperfect verb (h=san) is used as an intensive, highlighting the fact that the
couple had become resigned to their situation some time before.3
These circumstances of course recall OT figures such as Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and
Hannah. The significance of the offspring of these OT women points to the
significance of Elizabeth’s child.
of
8
VEge,neto de. $evn tw/| i`erateu,ein% auvto.n $evn th/| ta,xei% th/j evfhmeri,aj auvtou/ $e;nanti
of
tou/ qeou/%(

8 Now once while his division was serving as Priests before God, it
happened,
The phrase ‘evn tw/| i`erateu,ein’ is an ‘evn tw/| + the infinitive’ clause, introducing a
contemporaneous temporal clause: while serving ….4

2
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 287.
3
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 584.
4
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 595.

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The Greek seems difficult. ‘evn th/| ta,xei’ speaks of the ‘turn’ of ‘th/j evfhmeri,aj auvtou’
(his order of priests).
‘VEge,neto’ can almost be left untranslated.
‘e;nanti’ is a preposition, meaning ‘before’ or ‘in the presence of’.
The different divisions of priests were to serve in the Temple twice a year, according
to Josephus.
of
9
$kata. to. e;qoj% th/j i`eratei,aj e;lace tou/ qumia/sai eivselqw.n $eivj to.n nao.n% tou/

kuri,ou(

9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to

enter into the temple of the Lord to burn incense,
The aorist tense seems to be the backbone of this narrative, as the verbs used to carry
the narrative on are aorists.
The aorist verb ‘e;lace’ comes from the root verb ‘lagcanw’, which means ‘to
receive’, often through casting lots.
‘tou/ qumia/sai’ is a ‘tou/ + infinitive’ construction, showing the purpose of his choice
by lots: to offer incense.
‘eivselqw.n’ is an aorist active nominative participle of ‘eivsercomai’: to enter in.
Burning incense to the Lord was a great privilege, and perhaps the greatest honour of
Zechariah’s career. It is at this moment that God chooses to make his announcement.5
of 2/4 of
10
kai. pa/n to. plh/qoj h=n tou/ laou/ proseuco,menon e;xw th/| w[ra| tou/ qumia,matojÅ

10 and the whole number of people were praying outside at the hour of
offering incense.
‘e;xw’ is used as an adverb (outside) rather than a preposition here.
It would seem strange to mention the people praying outside, except that Luke has an
interest in prayer; especially at times of divine revelation (e.g. 3:21; 9:28).
‘th/| w[ra| tou/ qumia,matoj’ (the hour of offering incense) means it is either morning or
evening. The reference to Daniel 9:21 (Gabriel’s appearance) could point to an
evening event; but this is inconclusive. The added fact that there was a large number
of people outside praying would add extra weight to an evening offering though, as
the evening offerings were better attended than the morning ones.6
2/4 of of
11
w;fqh de. auvtw/| a;ggeloj kuri,ou e`stw.j $evk dexiw/n% tou/ qusiasthri,ou tou/
of
qumia,matojÅ

5
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 79.
6
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 80.

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11 and an angel of the Lord appeared, standing at the right of the altar of
incense.
‘w;fqh’ is an aorist passive indicative of ‘o`raw’, which means ‘to see’. This verb is
used by Luke to refer to appearances of angels or Jesus on several occasions (e.g.
24:34; Acts 2:3). In all cases of the usage of this verb for an appearance, the dative
noun (auvtw/|) is merely the recipient of the appearance.7
While the phrase ‘a;ggeloj kuri,ou’ is anarthrous (no article), Appollonius’ Corollary
shows that it should be translated definite: the angel of the Lord.8
The mention of ‘evk dexiw/n’ (the right hand side) is strange. It could refer to the fact
that the angel appeared on the favourable side (the right), indicating that he brought
good news (Fitzmeyer).
The angelic pronouncement is reminiscent of other OT figures (e.g. Issac, Jacob,
Esau, Samson). Some would claim that Luke created this parallel; however the OT
stories have the angelic announcement given to the mothers, whereas the father is the
recipient here.
The similarity with the OT motif shows that God is active for his people again.9

12
kai. evtara,cqh Zacari,aj ivdw.n kai. fo,boj evpe,pesen $evpV auvto,n%Å

12 and Zechariah was terrified by the vision, and fear fell upon him.
Understandably, fear gripped Zechariah at the appearance (ivdw.n) of the angel.
ivdw.n is the participle of the verb evidoj, meaning ‘vision’ or ‘appearance’.
The second clause ‘kai. fo,boj evpe,pesen evpV auvto,n’ is used to emphasise the fear that
Zechariah felt.
Both verbs ‘evtara,cqh’ (was terrified) and ‘evpe,pesen’ (fell) are aorists, used to continue
the narrative.
voc
13
ei=pen de. $pro.j auvto.n% o` a;ggeloj( Mh. fobou/( Zacari,a( dio,ti eivshkou,sqh h` de,hsi,j
of of 2/4 of
sou( kai. h` gunh, sou VElisa,bet gennh,sei ui`o,n soi kai. kale,seij to. o;noma auvtou/

VIwa,nnhnÅ

13 And the angel said to him, do not fear, Zechariah, because your
prayer has been heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear a son for you,
and you will call his name John.
Generally the fear of an angel’s appearance is met with a word of reassurance (not to
fear), as is the case here.

7
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 165
8
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 250.
9
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 81.

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The aorist verb ‘eivshkou,sqh’ is used in discourse here, pointing to the completed event
of Zechariah’s prayer (singular) being heard by God. In light of the angel’s
announcement, this prayer is most likely his prayer for a child.10
‘Mh. fobou’ is a negative passive imperative. It is a permissive passive, as the angel is
giving Zechariah permission not to fear.11
The pronoun ‘soi’ is a dative indirect object: for you.12
This verse is the reversal of the disappointment that Zechariah and Elizabeth had
previously resigned themselves to (vs. 7).
2/4 of
14
kai. e;stai cara, soi kai. avgalli,asij kai. polloi. $evpi. th/| gene,sei% auvtou/

carh,sontaiÅ

14 and he will be joy and gladness to you, and many will rejoice upon his
birth.
The nouns used by the angel here (cara, & avgalli,asij) are typically used of the
responses brought by God’s actions.13 Zechariah’s joy and gladness (as well as many
others) will come because God’s salvation is near.
The pronoun ‘soi’ is a dative of possession.14
The adjective ‘polloi.’ generally means ‘many’, rather than ‘all’. The context of
salvation in this verse points to ‘many’ being the preferred translation, as not
everyone is saved.

15
e;stai ga.r me,gaj $evnw,pion Îtou/Ð kuri,ou%( kai. oi=non kai. si,kera ouv mh. pi,h|( kai.
of of of of
pneu,matoj a`gi,ou plhsqh,setai e;ti $evk koili,aj% mhtro.j auvtou/(

15 For he will be great before the Lord. But wine and strong drink he
must not drink, and the Holy Spirit will fill him even in his mother’s womb,
This verse has illusions to certain OT characters (e.g. Samuel – 1 Sam 1:11). The
restriction of wine was kept for Nazarenes in the OT.
The explanatory ga.r gives the reason for the great joy of both John's parents and the
many of verse 14.
The first kai is adversative, introducing a condition to John's greatness; He will be
great, but he must not drink.
‘ouv mh’ is an emphatic construction, showing that John ‘must not’ drink wine or
strong drinks. This type of injunction was usually voluntary. However, when it is not
voluntary, it shows a special call of God.15
10
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 82.
11
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 440.
12
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 142.
13
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 83.
14
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 150.
15
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 85.

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The prepositional phrase ‘evnw,pion Îtou/Ð kuri,ou’ (before the Lord) places John’s
description of being ‘me,gaj’ (great) in perspective. John lives to serve God.16
‘pneu,matoj a`gi,ou’ is a genitive of content.17 It is also a monadic noun, not requiring
the article, as there is only one Holy Spirit.18 The reference to the Holy Spirit
highlights John’s prophetic ministry. In Luke-Acts it the Holy Spirit who spreads the
word of God, by enabling God's people as mesangers.
of of of
16
kai. pollou.j tw/n ui`w/n VIsrah.l evpistre,yei $evpi. ku,rion to.n qeo.n% auvtw/nÅ

16 and many of the sons of Israel he will turn back to the Lord their God.
John’s ministry is to ‘pollou.j tw/n ui`w/n VIsrah.l’ (many sons of Israel).
‘evpistre,yei’ is a future active indicative. It alludes to a change in orientation; turn
back.
of
17
kai. auvto.j proeleu,setai $evnw,pion auvtou/% $evn pneu,mati kai. duna,mei% VHli,ou(
of of
evpistre,yai kardi,aj pate,rwn $evpi. te,kna%, kai. avpeiqei/j $evn fronh,sei% dikai,wn(
2/4
e`toima,sai kuri,w| lao.n kateskeuasme,nonÅ

17 and he will go before him in the Spirit and power of Elijah, to call back
the hearts of fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom
of the righteous, to make ready a people who have been prepared for
the Lord.
Luke uses a three-fold description of John’s mission here:
• Go before
• Call back
• Make ready
The phrase ‘evpistre,yai kardi,aj pate,rwn evpi. te,kna’ (call back the hearts of the
fathers to their children) is almost an identical quote from Mal 3:24
‘e`toima,sai’ is an infinitive: ‘to make ready’
‘kateskeuasme,non’ is a perfect passive participle: ‘who have been prepared’. This has
an undertone of ‘a remnant’.19
All this shows that John’s ministry is heavily influenced by OT ideas.

16
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 84.
17
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 92.
18
Wallace, Greek Grammar, 248.
19
Bock, Luke 1:1-9:50, 91.

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