Lukas 1:24-25

1:24 After some time ¹  his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, ²  and for five months she kept herself in seclusion. ³  She said, ⁴  1:25 “This is what ⁵  the Lord has done for me at the time ⁶  when he has been gracious to me, ⁷  to take away my disgrace ⁸  among people.” ⁹ 

Lukas 1:37-38

1:37 For nothing ¹⁰  will be impossible with God.” 1:38 So ¹¹  Mary said, “Yes, ¹²  I am a servant ¹³  of the Lord; let this happen to me ¹⁴  according to your word.” ¹⁵  Then ¹⁶  the angel departed from her.

[1:24]  ¹ tn Grk “After these days.” The phrase refers to a general, unspecified period of time that passes before fulfillment comes.

[1:24]  ² tn Or “Elizabeth conceived.”

[1:24]  ³ sn The text does not state why Elizabeth withdrew into seclusion, nor is the reason entirely clear.

[1:24]  ⁴ tn Grk “she kept herself in seclusion, saying.” The participle λέγουσα (legousa) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[1:25]  ⁵ tn Grk “Thus.”

[1:25]  ⁶ tn Grk “in the days.”

[1:25]  ⁷ tn Grk “has looked on me” (an idiom for taking favorable notice of someone).

[1:25]  ⁸ sn Barrenness was often seen as a reproach or disgrace (Lev 20:20-21; Jer 22:30), but now at her late age (the exact age is never given in Luke’s account), God had miraculously removed it (see also Luke 1:7).

[1:25]  ⁹ tn Grk “among men”; but the context clearly indicates a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") here.

[1:37]  ¹⁰ tn In Greek, the phrase πᾶν ῥῆμα (pan rJhma, “nothing”) has an emphatic position, giving it emphasis as the lesson in the entire discussion. The remark is a call for faith.

[1:38]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[1:38]  ¹² tn Grk “behold.”

[1:38]  ¹³ tn Traditionally, “handmaid”; Grk “slave woman.” Though δούλη (doulh) is normally translated “woman servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free woman serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times… in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v. δοῦλος). The most accurate translation is “bondservant,” sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος (doulos), in that it often indicates one who sells himself or herself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:38]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “let this be to me.”

[1:38]  ¹⁵ sn The remark according to your word is a sign of Mary’s total submission to God’s will, a response that makes her exemplary.

[1:38]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.