‘And an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord
shone round about them, and they were very much afraid.'
As they sat around talking, and peering every now and again into the
darkness for any sign of savage beasts, they must have been greatly
astonished when suddenly an angel of t... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I
bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people,
for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who
is Christ the Lord.” '
The angel assured them that they need not be afraid. Rather they
should rej... [ Continue Reading ]
“And this is the sign to you, You will find a babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger.”
And how would this babe be known? By the sign that God had given. That
is, by the fact that he was wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in
a manger. This was no accident. It was prearranged.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God, and saying,'
And then all Heaven broke loose, for as the shepherds watched in
amazement they saw with the angel a whole mass of the heavenly host,
praising God for what He was doing. Great legions would be called o... [ Continue Reading ]
“Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom
he is well pleased (literally ‘among men of favour').”
And this was what the angels said, and it is the focal point of the
chiasmus. ‘Glory to God in the Highest'. That is ever what they cry
whether they are on earth or in heaven (c... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And it came about that, when the angels went away from them into
heaven, the shepherds said one to another, “Let us now go even to
Bethlehem, and see this thing that is come about, which the Lord has
made known to us.” '
Once the angels had departed section by section like a marching
regiment (the... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And they came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and the
babe lying in the manger.'
So as rapidly as they could they hurried to Bethlehem, and there they
‘searched for and found' (aneurosko) Mary and Joseph with the baby
lying in the manger. We are not told how, but, as a midwife had
prob... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And when they saw it, they made known concerning the saying which
was spoken to them about this child, and all who heard it wondered at
the things which were spoken to them by the shepherds.'
And once they had seen what they saw they went away and continually
told everywhere what the angels had tol... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.'
And Mary, to whom the shepherds would have explained everything, kept
what they had said, along with what the angel had said to her earlier,
and everything else that she heard about those days, and pondered on
them regularly in her hea... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the
things that they had heard and seen, even as it was spoken to them.'
And as for the shepherds, they returned to the countryside, and to
their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard
and seen. Such behaviour... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And when eight days were fulfilled for circumcising him, his name
was called JESUS, which was so called by the angel before he was
conceived in the womb.'
On the eighth day after His birth Jesus was circumcised, a ritual
which had to be undergone by all Jews who did not wish to be cut off
from Isra... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS IS CIRCUMCISED AND PRESENTED AT THE TEMPLE AND IS BLESSED BY
SIMON WHO PROPHESIES OVER HIM (2:21-35).
The purification of Mary and Jesus from the ritual defilement of child
birth was necessary due to the requirements of Jewish Law, something
that would take forty days, and offerings and sacrif... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon,
and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of
Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.'
We are now introduced to an unofficial representative of the godly in
Israel (He was God's choice for the purpose). His nam... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And it had been revealed (communicated) to him by the Holy Spirit,
that he would not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Messiah.'
And during the course of his spiritual life it had been revealed to
him by the Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the
coming of the Christ, of... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents
brought in the child Jesus, that they might do concerning him after
the custom of the law.'
And the Spirit guided this man into the Temple at the right moment,
and when ‘the parents' (for this is how they would be seen in
Israel) brou... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Then he received him into his arms, and blessed God.
And going over to them he received Jesus into his arms and blessed
God. The fact that they yielded Jesus up might suggest that this man
was well known for his godliness, or it may simply have been that they
recognised in him a man of the Spirit.... [ Continue Reading ]
“Now let your servant depart, Lord,
According to your word, in peace,
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
Which you have prepared before the face of all peoples,
A light for revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of your people Israel.”
Simon's prayer was one of heartfelt gratitude. He had... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And his father and his mother were marvelling at the things which
were spoken concerning him, and Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary
his mother,'
“Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in
Israel,
And for a sign which is spoken against.
(Yes, and a sword will pierce... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of
the tribe of Asher (she was of a great age, having lived with a
husband seven years from her virginity, and she had been a widow even
unto fourscore and four years), who departed not from the temple,
worshipping with fastings and sup... [ Continue Reading ]
ANNA THE PROPHETESS COMES TO WHERE JESUS IS IN THE TEMPLE AND GIVES
THANKS TO GOD AND SPREADS THE NEWS AMONG THE GODLY IN ISRAEL
(2:36-40).
In the larger chiasmus (see on introduction to Luke 1:1) this is in
parallel with the revelation to Mary. Here womankind again acknowledge
the coming of the Me... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And when they had accomplished all things that were according to
the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city
Nazareth.'
Once they had fulfilled the requirements of the Law they eventually
returned to their own town, to Nazareth in Galilee. The emphasis is on
the fact that they... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the child grew, and waxed strong, filled with wisdom: and the
grace of God was on him.'
Meanwhile the child Jesus continued to grow. And He grew strong
spiritually, and was filled with wisdom (compare Acts 6:3; Acts 6:10).
And the gracious activity of God continued on His life. John grew
stron... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And his parents went every year to Jerusalem at the feast of the
passover.'
Year by year Jesus' parents went up to the Passover. This does not
mean that they only went up at Passover time, for this is rather an
introduction to a particular Passover visit. We in fact know from
elsewhere that the fa... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS GOES UP TO THE TEMPLE AND RECEIVES UNDERSTANDING IN THE THINGS
OF GOD IN HIS FATHER'S PRESENCE (2:41-51).
We are now given an example of how He has developed through the years,
for He meets up as a twelve year old boy with the great teachers of
Jerusalem, and they are amazed by His questions... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And when he was twelve years old, they went up after the custom of
the feast, and when they had fulfilled the days, as they were
returning, the boy Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem, and his parents
did not know it.'
Every Jewish boy came of age at thirteen from which point on he was
looked on as... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But supposing him to be in the company, they went a day's journey;
and they sought for him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance, and
when they found him not, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking for him.'
As both His parents clearly assumed that He was with them, presumably
with his cousins, neith... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And it came about, after three days, they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers, both hearing them, and asking
them questions.'
It would take the parents all night, and even some of the next day, to
get back to Jerusalem and then they began their search. Nor would they
find... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his
answers.'
The Rabbis would each sit with a group of disciples round them. They
would themselves ask questions of their listeners, and they would then
teach and explain and ask for questions. And all to whom He asked His
questions, and... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And when they saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to
him, “Son, why have you thus dealt with us? Behold, your father and
I sought you sorrowing.” '
Once again His parents were astonished. Firstly to see Him standing in
the crowd listening to the great Rabbis, secondly that He appear... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he said to them, “How is it that you sought me? Did you not
know that I must be in my Father's house?” '
But Jesus was equally astonished. He too uttered a kind of rebuke. Why
had they had to search for Him? Surely they must have known where He
was? How could they possibly have needed to look... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them.'
Meanwhile they did not understand what He was talking about. They
could not appreciate the depth of his feeling about being with His
Father. It was not surprising. No one else had a son who on coming to
Jerusalem spent the week at the... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and he was
subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.'
Responding immediately to His parents Jesus went down with them to
Nazareth (going from Jerusalem is always ‘down', even for those who
go up). And there He continued to... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God
and men.'
Meanwhile Jesus continued to grow in wisdom and in physical strength,
and in favour with God and men. He did not at this stage need to go
into the wilderness for He was guided in a way that even John did not
know, and His g... [ Continue Reading ]