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| 1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, |
Forasmuch – It would have been easy for dishonest men to have omitted these introductory words and have given the gospel the name of James, Paul, Andrew, Peter, or Nathaniel. R2816:4
Believed among us – Among us primitive Christians. R2816:3
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| 2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; |
Even as they – The apostles. R2816:3
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| 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, |
To me – Luke, a physician. R2924:1
To write – The transition from oral to written teaching was gradual. R434:5*
Most excellent Theophilus – A friend, supposed to have been a person of considerable dignity and influence. R2924:1
Comparing this with Acts 1:1, we see that Luke is the author of that book as well. R5829:1
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| 4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. |
That thou mightest know – The oral word being committed to writing by apostles and evangelists, and accredited publicly by the churches in the lifetime of the writers. R434:5*
The certainty – The unerring certainty. R434:5*
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| 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. |
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| 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. |
Both righteous – John was given them in answer to prayer. R1671:6
The preparation for John's ministry began before he was born, in the hearts of his parents. R1915:3
The "chosen vessel" is always a prepared vessel and this preparation from God begins long before the chosen one knows of it. R1915:6
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| 7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. |
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| 8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course, |
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| 9 According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. |
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| 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. |
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| 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. |
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| 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. |
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| 13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. |
John – The Redeemer's forerunner and herald. R4940:4, 4939:2; B253; CR400:2
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| 14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. |
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| 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. |
Shall be great – Because of favorable prenatal conditions. R1671:3, 1916:1
Most highly honored of all the prophets in that he was chosen to introduce the Son of God to Israel and the world. R1916:4
He was a great man, preacher and prophet; great in the sense that he that ruleth his own spirit, according to divine principles, is greater than he that taketh a city. (Prov. 16:32) R1916:1
At maturity he was ready for the work of introducing to Israel the long-promised Messiah. R1916:1
"He that is greatest among you, let him be as ...he that doth serve." ( Luke 22:26) R1916:5
Patiently submit to the humbling now, and joyfully wait for the glory by and by. R1916:5
Sight of the Lord – Because meek and lowly of heart. R1916:2
But not in the eyes of man; never a guest in the palace of Herod, but a prisoner; no orator, but a "voice crying in the wilderness" (Isa. 40:3); not arrayed in purples, but in camels' hair. R1916:1
The great ones of earth have passed away; they have all come to naught, and in the Millennial judgment they will come forth to shame and confusion of face. R1916:4
Wine – From Greek, oinos, grape wine, which always intoxicates when used to excess. R509:4
Filled with the Holy Spirit – God's power began to operate upon him at his birth, and even before. CR400:2
After the same manner that the other prophets throughout the Jewish age had been under that holy Spirit. R2562:3
We must not understand this to mean that he was begotten of the holy Spirit, in the sense that Christians are begotten of it. R2562:3
From his mother's womb – The Scriptures make plain the fact that children may and should be consecrated to the Lord by their parents before their birth, or even their begetting; so that the little one may ratify the covenant of consecration at a tender age. R1671:3
His prenatal influences were such that, from his birth, his heart was inclined toward God and holiness. R1916:1
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| 16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. |
Shall he turn – Restore harmony between Israel and "the fathers", the patriarchs, etc. R557:4
Representing that the world shall come into a condition of harmony and peace with God. R557:4
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| 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. |
Shall go before him – Jesus. R556:6
In the spirit – John the Baptist was not actually Elijah returned to earth, neither is the Church. B253
We know positively that John was not Elijah for we have his own testimony on the subject. "And they asked him, Art thou Elijah? And he said, I am not." (John 1:21) Q772:4, 817:2
And power of Elias – An uncompromising and fearless spirit, backed by the power of divine truth. R1379:2
Doing an Elijah work for fleshly Israel, introducing Christ in the flesh. B253
All who have this spirit and the power of present truth concerning the Kingdom and Christ's presence, constitute the Elias. R1379:2
As the man Christ Jesus was introduced by the man John doing an Elijah work, so the glorious Christ must be preceded by a great Elijah, making ready for the second advent. R2839:1
The Elijah class will now call attention to the present Christ. R557:2
Elijah and John represented the true and faithful witnesses of this Gospel age. R557:2
John the Baptist stood for, or represented, a multitudinous Elijah, as Jesus stood for, or represented, a multitudinous Christ. R557:1
"If ye will receive it, this is the Elias." (Matt. 11:14) R1379:1
To turn the hearts – To prepare the way of Messiah by performing a reformation work in preaching repentance and baptism for the remission of sins and declaring the Kingdom of heaven at hand. Q772:4
John's work as Elijah did not fail because of his own lack of faith, but because of the Jews' unreadiness of heart to be influenced by him. R2838:6
To the wisdom – In a word, to restore harmony between Israel and the "fathers," the patriarchs, and, in a fuller sense, the world whom Israel typified shall come into a condition of harmony with God, similar to that of the "fathers." R557:4
As a forerunner or introducer. R2838:6
Make ready a people – Preparing the way for the reign of the glorified Church and its glorious head, by making ready a people prepared, the Little Flock. R557:2
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| 18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. |
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| 19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings. |
Gabriel – One of the most honored angels, but inferior to Michael. R490:5
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| 20 And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season. |
Thou shalt be dumb – If Zacharias' faith was tested, it was found strong, and was assisted by his nine-month experience of dumbness. R4940:4
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| 21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. |
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| 22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless. |
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| 23 And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. |
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| 24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying, |
Elizabeth conceived – As, in the cases of Sarah (Gen. 18:9-14), Hannah (1 Sam. 1:5-27) and the Shunamite (2 Kings 4:14-17), the miraculous interposition of divine power quickened the natural forces where they had been dormant, inoperative or entirely suspended. R560:6*
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| 25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men. |
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| 26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, |
In the sixth month – Probably on Christmas day of the year 3 BC. B62
Gabriel was sent – The chiefest messenger remaining in the courts of glory. R490:5
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| 27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. |
Virgin – This child was specially begotten by divine power though Mary was still a virgin when she brought forth the child. R4964:1
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| 28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. |
The angel came in – Christmas day is more properly the annunciation day, or the date of his human begetting. R3468:2, 3114:3, 2558:4; B61
Blessed art thou – The fact that Mary was honored by the Lord above all other women, in that she was chosen to be the mother of Jesus according to the flesh, would prove her nobility of character and purity of heart. R2558:3
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| 29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. |
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| 30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. |
Fear not – Not fearing reproach from Joseph or the world. E102
Found favor – Mary was full of faith and the joy of the Lord, to be an instrument in his plan. E102
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| 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. |
Jesus – Signifies Savior, or Liberator--"For he shall save his people from their sins." (Matt. 1:21) R1006:1, 270:2, 134:2
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| 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: |
He shall be great – Naturally sustaining the misconception of the character of the first advent. This was the Messiah they were looking for, not "a man of sorrows." (Isa. 53:3) Yet he taught, by precept and example: "He that would be great, let him be the servant of all." (Mark 10:43,44) HG72:1
Son of the Highest – Fulfilling the predictions respecting the Messiah; the long-promised seed of Abraham. R5157:2, 5300:5
The title of the Son of God officially applied to the man Christ Jesus before his birth, and this title he constantly approved. NS256:6
And the Lord God – The whole gospel dispensation comes between the beginning and ending of this text. HG52:5
Throne of his father – Christ Jesus is the promised scion of David's house, the heir of his throne, referring to the dignity, power and authority of office which David exercised. C257
Not needful that he should have a human father of the Davidic line. The principle of inherited royalty through a mother is illustrated in the current (1883) heir apparent to the throne of Great Britain, the Prince of Wales, not through his father, but through his mother, the queen. R453:1
In Jewish genealogies it was customary to reckon lineage through either parent. R453:1
The throne of David is the emblem, or symbol, of David's reign, or kingdom; and David's reign, or kingdom, is a type, or figure, or shadow, of the reign, or Kingdom, of David's Son and Lord. R1283:1*
David – The throne of David is the symbol of David's reign; a type of the Kingdom of David's Son and Lord. R1283:1, 1063:1
The long-promised King of David's line, the Messiah. PD65/77; SM210:2; C257; E130, E133
Also called the "seed of Abraham" (Gal. 3:16; Rom. 4:13) and the "seed of the woman [Eve]." (Gen. 3:15) R1063:1*
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| 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. |
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| 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? |
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| 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. |
The Holy Spirit – Jesus was begotten, not by Joseph, but by the holy Spirit. R3291:2, 4964:1, 432:4, 84:3
Come upon thee – The narrative of Jesus' miraculous conception has the very best and oldest Greek MSS. to support it--the Sinaitic, Vatican and Alexandrian in Luke; though the account is missing in Matthew--not omitted. R434:4
The life principle by which Jesus was conceived came directly from the Heavenly Father. R5064:3, 1031:1*, 432:4
That holy thing – "Holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners." (Heb. 7:26) E95; R5748:2, 3710:3, 3291:6, 776:1, 453:1, 432:4
Holy, because his life did not come from Adam, the contaminated fountain. E103; R777:1,5, 432:4
He knew no sin, while all other men are sinners by nature. (2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 5:18; 1 Pet. 2:22) R776:2
He partook of the human nature without its condemnation. R1247:5
He did not partake of the condemned or forfeited life of Adam through Joseph, but of a life as directly from God as was the first Adam's; an unforfeited life which he could give for the life of Adam and all who died in him. R432:4*, 316:1*
His life came directly from heaven (Heb. 1:5) and he was therefore, though human, yet free, both from Adamic sin and its penalty, death. R1031:1*, 997:6
The only obstacle to the generation of a perfect man is the lack of a perfect father to give a perfect life-germ. In the case of Jesus a perfect life-germ was transferred by divine power from a pre-existent condition to the embryo human condition. R777:1; E103
If we can have a perfect life germ we can have a perfect child from an imperfect mother. If a breeder of stock wishes to raise the standard of his stock, he selects a fine bull, and thus improves his entire herd. And so, if we had perfect fathers, we would soon have a perfect race. R4964:1
What was needed was not merely a sacrifice for sins, but a sinless sacrifice, which would thus pay the sinner's penalty. E96
Our Lord was unlike sinners in respect to sin, imperfection; but like them in the sense of having their same nature or flesh--he, in its perfection; they, in various degrees of imperfection through sin. R997:6
Born of thee – Though retaining perfection, he partook of the nature of his mother. R777:5, 1247:5
He was the seed of the woman (Gen. 3:15), and not the seed of man. His very nature was perfectly holy, unlike our nature. R84:3*
Though life or being comes from the father, form and nature come from the mother. E103
Illustrated by the improper union between the "daughters of men" (Gen. 6:2) and those angels which kept not their proper estate or condition. The wonderful offspring were born of imperfect, dying mothers, but begotten by vigorous, unimpaired fathers. E103
The Son of God – He became man, and was a Son of God; as Adam was a son of God. R316:1*
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| 36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. |
The sixth month – John the Baptist was six months older than our Lord and began to preach six months before our Lord became of age and began his ministry. B58
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| 37 For with God nothing shall be impossible. |
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| 38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. |
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| 39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah; |
A city of Judah – Ain-Karim, marked by tradition as the birthplace of John the Baptist. R1381:6
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| 40 And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. |
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| 41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit: |
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| 42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. |
Blessed art thou – The hope to be the mother of the long promised "seed of the woman" (Gen. 3:15) seems to have filled the heart of Eve's daughters through the line of the family of godly Seth, all the way down to and including Mary. R1175:3
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| 43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? |
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| 44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. |
The babe leaped – "Filled with the holy Spirit even from his mother's womb." ( Luke 1:15) R1671:6
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| 45 And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. |
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| 46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, |
And Mary said – Compare the language and sentiment of her poetic-prayer-prophecy with that of Hannah in 1 Sam. 2:1-10. R1813:2
My soul – Being; life and body combined. R205:1
Magnify the Lord – Not fearing the reproaches of Joseph or others. E103
The mind of Jesus' mother, instead of being antagonistic to his perfect development, cooperated to that result. E103
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| 47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. |
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| 48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. |
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| 49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. |
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| 50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. |
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| 51 He hath showed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. |
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| 52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. |
Put down the mighty – Solomon's line; from being Messiah's ancestors. E133
Exalted – The crown and diadem were removed from Zedekiah, and from the line of Solomon, to be given to him whose right it is--the Righteous Branch of the Davidic root. E133
Them of low degree – Nathan's line. E133
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| 53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. |
Filled the hungry – Referring to the restitution blessings to be granted to all the meek of the earth through the Millennial reign of Christ. R1754:6
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| 54 He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; |
His servant Israel – The whole twelve tribes. C293; R1341:1
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| 55 As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever. |
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| 56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house. |
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| 57 Now Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son. |
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| 58 And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had showed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her. |
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| 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. |
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| 60 And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John. |
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| 61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. |
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| 62 And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. |
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| 63 And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all. |
John – Signifying, "the favor of God." R4940:2
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| 64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God. |
His tongue loosed – His faith had been helped. He had triumphed over all doubts and manifested this by giving him the name mentioned by Gabriel. R4940:2
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| 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. |
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| 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. |
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| 67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying, |
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| 68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, |
Blessed be the Lord – Praise to God, the Fountain of every good and perfect gift, comes first. R4940:3
In verses 68 to 70, of this prophecy praise to God comes first. R4940:3
God of Israel – The whole twelve tribes. C293; R1341:1
He hath visited – After the usual manner of prophecies, the thing about to be accomplished is spoken of as though it had been done. R4940:3
In fulfillment of his gracious promises of old. R4940:3
Redeemed his people – Greek, poieolutrosin, to make a loosing, i.e., to set at liberty, to deliver, occurring only once. Literally, wrought redemption for his people. E433
This word should not have been translated redeemed but rather delivered, as a guard against confusion of thought by the English readers. E433
Things not completed are here mentioned as though they had been accomplished: the first step toward Israel's deliverance had been taken, and it was spoken of joyously as though the entire matter were already accomplished. E433
Applies not only to the redeeming work accomplished by Jesus at baptism, but is comprehensive enough to take in the entire work of reclaiming humanity. R4940:5
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| 69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David; |
Raised up an horn – Symbol of power. T42
The begetting of Jesus had already taken place. The holy Spirit spoke of the things begun, but not yet accomplished, as though finished. R4940:5
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| 70 As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the age began:
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| 71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; |
We should be saved – Verses 71 to 75, relate to the deliverance of God's people from the power of their enemies. R4940:5
None but God's people will ever be delivered from the enemies here referred to. R4940:5
From our enemies – Enemies through wicked works, blinded by the god of this world. R4940:6
Satan is an enemy. Sin is an enemy. And "the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." (1 Cor. 15:26) R4940:6
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| 72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; |
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| 73 The oath which he sware to our father Abraham, |
The oath – The church are the children of the oath, the Abrahamic Covenant. R5300:5
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| 74 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, |
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| 75 In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life. |
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| 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; |
And thou – Verses 76 to 79 tells of a work to be accomplished before the destruction of all enemies and the lifting up of those worthy to be sons of God. R4941:1
Shalt go before – Be the forerunner of Jesus. R4941:1
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| 77 To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins, |
To give knowledge – To show them the "high calling" of this present age. R4941:4
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| 78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, |
The dayspring – The "Morning Star" or "Day Star," before the Sun of Righteousness arises to scatter the darkness of mankind during Messiah's reign. R4941:4
This "Day Star" guides the feet of the saints, even while still in the time of trouble, before the new dispensation is ushered in. R4941:4
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| 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. |
To give light – Truth. A20, A25
Shining into the hearts of believers with sanctifying power and setting them afire with zeal for the truth. R4941:4
All shall have at least 100 years of opportunity under the clear light of "the Sun of Righteousness." (Mal. 4:2) R1772:5
Sit in darkness – Ignorance. A18, A25; B163
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| 80 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel. |
The child grew – Probably as a forester. R2562:5
Strong in spirit – Greek, pneuma--mind, character. E318
In the deserts – Not in the sandy deserts, but more properly in the wilds, the uncultivated regions, perhaps in the "hill country" where his parents resided. R2562:5
Possibly the Lord's providences ordered the affairs of his parents so that they were forced to reside in such a wilderness where they would have comparatively little intercourse with others. R2562:5
Till the day – The period, not the 24-hour day. R2836:1
When he was 30 years of age. R2563:1
Unto Israel – No longer regarded by our Lord and the apostles as the "ten tribes" merely, but, as it is expressed, "All Israel." R1341:1; C293
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