Luke 1-2

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:20

Verse 20 20.And, behold, thou shalt be dumb It was suitable that this kind of punishment should be inflicted on Zacharias, that, being dumb, he might await the fulfillment of the promise, which, instead of interrupting it by noisy murmurs, he ought to have heard in silence. Faith has its silence to lend an ear to the Word of God. It has afterwards its turn to speak and to answer Amen, according to that passage, “I will say to them, Thou art my people, and they shall say, Thou art my God,”... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:21

Verse 21 21.And the people were waiting Luke now relates that the people were witnesses of this vision. Zacharias had tarried in the temple longer than usual. This leads to the supposition that something uncommon has happened to him. When he comes out, he makes known, by looks and gestures, that he has been struck dumb. There is reason to believe, also, that there were traces of alarm in his countenance. Hence they conclude that God has appeared to him. True, there were few or no visions in... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:23

Verse 23 23.When the days were fulfilled Λειτουργία is employed by Luke to denote a charge or office, which passed, as we have said, to each of them in regular order, (1 Chronicles 24:3.) We are told that, when the time of his office had expired, Zacharias returned home. Hence we conclude that, so long as the priests were attending in their turns, they did not enter their own houses, that they might be entirely devoted and attached to the worship of God. For this purpose galleries were... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:24

Verse 24 24.And hid herself This appears very strange, as if she had been ashamed of the blessing of God. Some think that she did not, venture to appear in public, so long as the matter was uncertain, for fear of exposing herself to ridicule, if her expectation were disappointed. In my opinion, she was so fully convinced of the promise made to her, that she had no doubt of its accomplishment. When she saw a severe punishment inflicted on her husband for “ speaking unadvisedly with his lips,”... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:25

Verse 25 25.Thus hath the Lord done to me She extols in private the goodness of God, until the time is fully come for making it generally known. There is reason to believe that her husband had informed her by writing of the promised offspring, in consequence of which she affirms with greater certainty and freedom that God was the author of this favor. This is confirmed by the following words, when he looked, that he might take away my reproach; for she assigns it as the cause of her barrenness... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:26

Verse 26 26.Now in the sixth month It was a wonderful dispensation of the divine purpose, and far removed from the ordinary judgment of men, that God determined to make the beginning of the generation of the herald more illustrious than that of his own Son. The prophecy respecting John was published in the temple and universally known: Christ is promised to a virgin in an obscure town of Judea, and this prophecy remains buried in the breast of a young woman. But it was proper that, even from... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:28

Verse 28 28.Hail, thou who hast obtained favor The angel’s commission being of an astonishing and almost incredible description, he opens it with a commendation of the grace of God. And certainly, since our limited capacities admit too slender a portion of knowledge for comprehending the vast greatness of the works of God, our best remedy is, to elevate them to meditation on his boundless grace. A conviction of the Divine goodness is the entrance of faith, and the angel properly observes this... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:29

Verse 29 29.When she had seen him, she was agitated Luke does not say that she was agitated by the presence of the angel, but by his address. Why then does he also mention his presence? (24) The reason, I think, is this. Perceiving in the angel something of heavenly glory, she was seized with sudden dread arising out of reverence for God. She was agitated, because she felt that she had received a salutation, not from a mortal man, but from an angel of God. But Luke does not say that she was so... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:30

Verse 30 30.Fear not, Mary He bids her lay aside fear. Let us always remember—what arises from the weakness of the flesh—that, whenever the feeblest ray of the Divine glory bursts upon us, we cannot avoid being alarmed. When we become aware, in good earnest, of the presence of God, we cannot think of it apart from its effects. (25) Accordingly, as we are all amenable to his tribunal, fear gives rise to trembling, until God manifests himself as a Father. The holy virgin saw in her own nation... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:31

Verse 31 31.Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb The angel adapts his words, first to Isaiah’s prophecy, (Isaiah 7:14,) and next to other passages of the Prophets, with the view of affecting more powerfully the mind of the virgin: for such prophecies were well known and highly esteemed among the godly. At the same time, it ought to be observed that the angel did not merely speak in private to the ear of the virgin, but brought glad tidings, ( εὐαγγέλιον ,) which were shortly afterwards to... read more

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:20

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:21

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:23

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:24

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:25

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:26

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:28

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:29

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:30

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 1:31

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