In holiness ... - In piety and strict justice.Before him - In the presence of God. Performed as in his presence, and with the full consciousness that he sees the heart. The “holiness” was not to be merely external, but spiritual, internal, pure, such as “God” would see and approve.All the days of our life - To death. True religion increases and expands until death. read more
Luke 1:71-75. That we should be saved from our enemies Spiritual as well as temporal, invisible as well as visible; and from the hand of all that hate us From Satan and his angels, and all adverse power, and especially from our sins. This certainly was the mind of the Spirit that now inspired Zacharias, as appears by the whole tenor of Scripture; but whether he fully understood his own words is impossible for us to say. It is certain the older prophets, in some cases, did not fully... read more
5. Birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:57-80)Elizabeth’s son was born amid much rejoicing, and eight days later was circumcised in accordance with the law of Israel. Circumcision was a minor surgical operation carried out on all Israelite baby boys, and was the covenant sign that Israel was God’s people. At this ceremony the child was usually given his name (Luke 1:57-60; cf. 2:21; Genesis 17:9-14; Leviticus 12:3). When relatives tried to interfere in the naming of the child, Zechariah proved his... read more
holiness. Toward God. righteousness. Toward men. Compare 1 Thessalonians 2:10 . Ephesians 4:24 . read more
Luke 1:75. And the days of our life.— Serving God in holiness and righteousness, as well as deliverance from enemies, being spoken of as in the merciful grant of God, we may reasonably conclude that it refers to those passages, in which God promised to pour out extraordinary degrees of a pious spirit on his people, under the reign of the Messiah. Compare Isaiah 44:1-5. Jer 31:31-34 and Ezekiel 36:25-27. read more
C. The birth and early life of John the Baptist 1:57-80As in the first part of this major section of the Gospel (Luke 1:5-56), Luke arranged his material in this one to compare and contrast John the Baptist and Jesus (Luke 1:57 to Luke 2:52). In that section there was prediction, but in this one there is fulfillment. Luke’s emphasis in his record of John’s birth was his naming and his father’s prediction of his future ministry. read more
2. Zechariah’s song of praise 1:67-79This is the second major song of praise in Luke: the "Benedictus." This title also comes from the first word in the Latin version, translated "blessed" (Gr. eulogetos). The first part of the song praises God for messianic deliverance (Luke 1:68-75), and the second part rejoices in John’s significant role in this deliverance (Luke 1:76-79). The chiastic structure of the song emphasizes the words "covenant" and "oath" (Luke 1:72-73). God’s faithfulness to His... read more
God’s deliverance through Messiah did not mean that Israel could become passive but active in another form of His service. They could do so without fear of enemy persecution negatively and in holiness toward God and righteousness toward man positively forever. read more
Birth of John. The Annunciation1-4. Preface. To write a preface to a history is not a Jewish, but a classical custom, and by following it St. Luke shows himself a true Gentile, trained in Greek culture and imitating classical models. Here he affects classical elegance and correctness of expression, but in the course of his Gospel he generally imitates the simpler synoptic style.This Preface contains all that is really known as distinguished from what is guessed about the sources of the Synoptic... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 1:74-75
The course of the Christian life. These words of Zacharias will very well indicate the course through which a Christian life passes from its commencement to its close. I. IT BEGINS IN SPIRITUAL EMANCIPATION . "We being delivered out of the hand of our enemies." In order to "walk in newness of life," we must be rescued from the thraldom of sin. And there is a twofold deliverance that we need. One is from the condemnation of our guilt ; for we cannot rest and rejoice in the... read more