About Kevin

My photo
I know nothing about everything. I know everything about nothing.

Search This Blog

Story 5 of 15; The Birth Of John The Baptist_Luke 1:57-66

Luke 1:57-66 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. 58 And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, 60 but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Luke 1:57-66 New International Version (NIV)

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”
61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”
62 Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. 65 All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.


Luke 1:57-66 King James Version (KJV)

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.

Luke 1:57-66 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

John Is Born

57 Now the time [a]had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had [b]displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her.
59 And it happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to call him Zacharias, [c]after his father. 60 But his mother answered and said, “No indeed; but he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by that name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called. 63 And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, “His name is John.” And they were all astonished. 64 And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak in praise of God. 65 Fear came on all those living around them; and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country of Judea. 66 All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, “What then will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him.

Footnotes:

  1. Luke 1:57 Lit was fulfilled
  2. Luke 1:58 Lit magnified
  3. Luke 1:59 Lit after the name of

Luke 1:57-66 Good News Translation (GNT)

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 The time came for Elizabeth to have her baby, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard how wonderfully good the Lord had been to her, and they all rejoiced with her.
59 When the baby was a week old, they came to circumcise him, and they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. 60 But his mother said, “No! His name is to be John.”
61 They said to her, “But you don't have any relative with that name!” 62 Then they made signs to his father, asking him what name he would like the boy to have.
63 Zechariah asked for a writing pad and wrote, “His name is John.” How surprised they all were! 64 At that moment Zechariah was able to speak again, and he started praising God. 65 The neighbors were all filled with fear, and the news about these things spread through all the hill country of Judea. 66 Everyone who heard of it thought about it and asked, “What is this child going to be?” For it was plain that the Lord's power was upon him.
Luke 1:57-66     THE CHILDREN'S NEW TESTAMENT
The Birth Of John The Baptist
     57 When the time came, Elizabeth gave birth to a son.  58 Her neighbors and family heard how the Lord had shown loving pity to her.  They were happy for her.  59 On the eighth day they did the religious act of the Jews on the child.  They named him Zacharias, after his father.  60 But his mother said, "No!  His name is John."  61 They said to her, "No one in your family has that name."
     62 Then they talked to his father with their hands to find out what he would name the child.  63 He asked for something to write on.  He wrote, "His name is John."  They were all surprised and wondered about it.  64 Zacharias was able to talk from that time on and he gave thanks to God.
     65 All those who lived near them were afraid.  The news of what had happened was told through all the hill country of Judea.  66 And all who heard those words remembered them and said, "What is this child going to be?"  For the hand of the Lord was on him.

Luke 1:57-66 Living Bible (TLB)

57 By now Elizabeth’s waiting was over, for the time had come for the baby to be born—and it was a boy. 58 The word spread quickly to her neighbors and relatives of how kind the Lord had been to her, and everyone rejoiced.
59 When the baby was eight days old, all the relatives and friends came for the circumcision ceremony. They all assumed the baby’s name would be Zacharias, after his father.
60 But Elizabeth said, “No! He must be named John!”
61 “What?” they exclaimed. “There is no one in all your family by that name.” 62 So they asked the baby’s father, talking to him by gestures.[a]
63 He motioned for a piece of paper and to everyone’s surprise wrote, “His name is John!” 64 Instantly Zacharias could speak again, and he began praising God.
65 Wonder fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread through the Judean hills. 66 And everyone who heard about it thought long thoughts and asked, “I wonder what this child will turn out to be? For the hand of the Lord is surely upon him in some special way.”

Footnotes:

  1. Luke 1:62 talking to him by gestures. Zacharias was apparently stone deaf as well as speechless, and had not heard what his wife had said.

Luke 1:57-66 New English Translation (NET Bible)

The Birth of John

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to have her baby, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they wanted to name him Zechariah after his father. 60 But his mother replied, “No! He must be named John.” 61 They said to her, “But none of your relatives bears this name.” 62 So they made signs to the baby’s father, inquiring what he wanted to name his son. 63 He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they were all amazed. 64 Immediately Zechariah’s mouth was opened and his tongue released, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 All their neighbors were filled with fear, and throughout the entire hill country of Judea all these things were talked about. 66 All who heard these things kept them in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the Lord’s hand was indeed with him.

Luke 1:57-66 Modern English Version (MEV)

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 Now Elizabeth’s time had come to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and cousins heard how the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they rejoiced with her.
59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they were calling him Zechariah, after the name of his father. 60 But his mother answered, “Not so! He shall be called John.”
61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.”
62 They made signs to his father, asking what he would have him called. 63 He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all were amazed. 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he spoke and praised God. 65 Fear came on all who lived around them. And all these facts were talked about throughout all the hill country of Judea. 66 All those who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will he be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Luke 1:57-66 English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK)

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. 58 And her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, 60 but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, enquiring what he wanted him to be called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbours. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Story 4 of 15; The Magnificat_Luke 1:46-56

I've chosen to separate the passage Luke 1:39-56 into two shorter portions, one being Luke 1:39-45 (ESV subtitle: Mary Visits Elizabeth), and the second being Luke 1:46-56 (ESV subtitle: Mary's Song of Praise: The Magnificat).  Bible stories don't need to be told; it's probably better when they are sung.  When the Bible gives us the words from a song of praise, however, I'm not sure that merely reading those words gives them justice.  Every language, people group, generation, culture, and subculture should read those words, pray, and put them to a melody in a way that holds the details of the passage, if not the verbatim words, and strives to communicate the mood, feeling, and emotion of the passage musically.  Scriptural integrity is important, as it is with all Bible storytelling.  So, for the songs of Mary (The Magnificat in Luke 1:46-56) and Zechariah (Luke 1:67-80 ESV subtitle: Zechariah's Prophecy), lyrics & links to their songs will be included.  By looking at the lyrics alongside Scripture, we can see how accurate they are.  Maybe they will inspire new melodies or covers of these songs that are true to Scripture and in the heart-music of a culture that doesn't have a Magnificat or a Zechariah's Prophecy.  In addition to Luke 1:46-56, we'll take a look at a few Magnificat songs (capitalization, punctuation, and lack of formatting mine).

Luke 1:46-56 English Standard Version (ESV)

Mary's Song of Praise: The Magnificat

46 And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
47     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
    and exalted those of humble estate;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and the rich he has sent away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
    in remembrance of his mercy,
55 as he spoke to our fathers,
    to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
56 And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.
Magnificat song #1:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqeY7JQ4rAg
"My soul proclaims, My soul proclaims, My soul proclaims, My soul now glorifies, my spirit sings in God my Savior.  For He is mindful of the humble state of His servant.  From now on all generations will call me blessed.  My soul proclaims, My soul proclaims, The Greatness of The LORD.  For The Mighty One has done great things and Holy is His Name.  His Mercy touches all who live in reverence and fear, from generation to generation.  He has done mighty deeds; He has scattered those who are proud within their thoughts.  He has brought down rulers from their thrones and lifted up the meek.  He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich are empty.  My soul proclaims, My soul proclaims, the Greatness of The LORD.  For He has come to Israel to remember Mercy.  My soul proclaims, My soul proclaims, The Greatness of The LORD.   For He has come to Israel to remember Mercy.  The Promise made to Abraham to his sons forever."

Luke 1:46-56 New International Version (NIV)

Mary’s Song

46 And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
47     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
    of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49     for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
    holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
    from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
    but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
    but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors.”
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

Magnificat song #2:   'I Will Magnify':
My eyes can see, my mind cannot imagine, yet I'll believe what cannot be, that You should smile and call on me to be set apart unlike no other.  What did I do to merit such a favor, a simple girl like me,  to be the one blessed of God, to be the one, to be the vessel, to bear the Chosen One?  My soul magnifies The LORD, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for You have done a great thing unto me, and Holy, Holy is Your Name.  Holy, Holy is Your Name.  He pours out Mercy to those who fear His Name, and He will scatter the proud.  He will put down the mighty kings with His arm of indignation.  My soul magnifies The LORD and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for You have done a great thing unto me, and Holy, Holy is Your Name.  Holy, Holy is Your Name.  He will fill the hungry with all that is good, and send away the rich with empty hands.  His promise of Mercy, His promise of peace, given to our Fathers, will be remembered, will be remembered oh, Israel.  My soul magnifies The LORD and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for You have done a great thing unto me, and Holy is Your Name.  Holy is Your Name.  I will magnify, I will magnify, I will magnify The LORD.  I will magnify, I will magnify, I will magnify The LORD.  My soul magnifies The LORD and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for You have done a great thing unto me; Holy, Holy is Your Name.  You who are Gracious and Merciful, yes, I will magnify Your Name.


Luke 1:46-56 King James Version (KJV)

46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.
51 He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
53 He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.
54 He hath helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy;
55 As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.
56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.

Luke 1:46-56 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Magnificat

46 And Mary said:
“My soul [a]exalts the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 “For He has had regard for the humble state of His [b]bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
49 “For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
50 “And His mercy is [c]upon generation after generation
Toward those who fear Him.
51 “He has done [d]mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the [e]thoughts of their heart.
52 “He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
53 “He has filled the hungry with good things;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
54 “He has given help to Israel His servant,
[f]In remembrance of His mercy,
55 As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his [g]descendants forever.”
56 And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.

Footnotes:

  1. Luke 1:46 Lit makes great
  2. Luke 1:48 I.e. female slave
  3. Luke 1:50 Lit unto generations and generations
  4. Luke 1:51 Lit might
  5. Luke 1:51 Lit thought, attitude
  6. Luke 1:54 Lit So as to remember
  7. Luke 1:55 Lit seed

Magnificat song #3: 'Magnificat - Mary's Song' composed by Todd Agnew:

My soul magnifies the Lord
My spirit rejoices in my saviour
He has seen the humble state of my heart
And now all will call me blessed
Praise the almighty God;
He's done great things for us
Holy is His name
His mercy is free
For those who fear His justice
May generation to generation
Loudly proclaim His fame
Proclaim His fame
He has shown the strength of His hands
And brought down the mighty
From their pretense
He scattered the pride in their hearts
And lifted the lowly to meet Him
Praise the almighty God;
He's done great things for us
Holy is His name
His mercy is free
For those who fear His justice
May generation to generation
Loudly proclaim His fame
Proclaim His fame
He has filled the hungry with good things
And the rich He sent, empty, away
He hath remembered His servant, Israel
And we will remember Him always, always
Praise the almighty God;
He's done great things for us

Holy is His name
His mercy is free
For those who fear His justice
May generation to generation proclaim
Praise the almighty God;
He's done great things for us


Holy is His name
His mercy is free
For those who fear His justice
May generation to generation

Loudly proclaim His name
May generation to generation


Loudly proclaim His name


Luke 1:46-56 Good News Translation (GNT)

Mary's Song of Praise

46 Mary said,
“My heart praises the Lord;
47     my soul is glad because of God my Savior,
48     for he has remembered me, his lowly servant!
From now on all people will call me happy,
49     because of the great things the Mighty God has done for me.
His name is holy;
50     from one generation to another
    he shows mercy to those who honor him.
51 He has stretched out his mighty arm
    and scattered the proud with all their plans.
52 He has brought down mighty kings from their thrones,
    and lifted up the lowly.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things,
    and sent the rich away with empty hands.
54 He has kept the promise he made to our ancestors,
    and has come to the help of his servant Israel.
55 He has remembered to show mercy to Abraham
    and to all his descendants forever!”
56 Mary stayed about three months with Elizabeth and then went back home.

Luke 1:46-56 New English Translation (NET Bible)

Mary’s Hymn of Praise

46 And Mary said,
“My soul exalts the Lord,
47 and my spirit has begun to rejoice in God my Savior,
48 because he has looked upon the humble state of his servant.
For from now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 because he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name;
50 from generation to generation he is merciful to those who fear him.
51 He has demonstrated power with his arm; he has scattered those whose pride wells up from the sheer arrogance of their hearts.
52 He has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up those of lowly position;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering his mercy,
55 as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
56 So Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned to her home.

Luke 1:46-56 New Living Translation (NLT)

The Magnificat: Mary’s Song of Praise

46 Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
47     How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
48 For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
    and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
49 For the Mighty One is holy,
    and he has done great things for me.
50 He shows mercy from generation to generation
    to all who fear him.
51 His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
    He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
52 He has brought down princes from their thrones
    and exalted the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
    and sent the rich away with empty hands.
54 He has helped his servant Israel
    and remembered to be merciful.
55 For he made this promise to our ancestors,
    to Abraham and his children forever.”
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

Luke 1:46-56     THE CHILDREN'S NEW TESTAMENT
Mary's Song Of Thanks
     46 Then Mary said, "My heart sings with thanks for my Lord.  47 And my spirit is happy in God, the One Who saves from the penalty of sin.  48 The Lord has looked on me, the one He owns and the one who is not important.  But from now on all people will honor me.  49 He Who is powerful has done great things for me.  His name is holy.  50 The loving pity of the Lord is given to the people of all times who honor Him.  51 He has done powerful works with His arm.  He has divided from each other those who have pride in their hearts.  52 He has taken kings down from the place where they sit.  He has put those who are in a place that is not important to a place that is important.  53 He has filled those who are hungry with good things.  He has sent the rich people away with nothing.  54 He has helped the Jews who are the people He owns.  This was done to remember His loving pity.  55 He promised He would do this to our early fathers and to Abraham and to his family forever."
     56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months.  Then she went to her home.