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39 And Mary, rising up in those days, went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,

40 and entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elizabeth.

41 And it came to pass, as Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with [the] Holy Spirit,

42 and cried out with a loud voice and said, Blessed [art] *thou* amongst women, and blessed the fruit of thy womb.

43 And whence [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

44 For behold, as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the babe leaped with joy in my womb.

45 And blessed [is] she that has believed, for there shall be a fulfilment of the things spoken to her from [the] Lord.

46 And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord,

47 and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.

48 For he has looked upon the low estate of his bondmaid; for behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

49 For the Mighty One has done to me great things, and holy [is] his name;

50 and his mercy [is] to generations and generations to them that fear him.

51 He has wrought strength with his arm; he has scattered haughty [ones] in the thought of their heart.

52 He has put down rulers from thrones, and exalted the lowly.

53 He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent away the rich empty.

54 He has helped Israel his servant, in order to remember mercy,

55 (as he spoke to our fathers,) to Abraham and to his seed for ever.

56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her house.

57 But the time was fulfilled for Elizabeth that she should bring forth, and she gave birth to a son.

58 And her neighbours and kinsfolk heard that [the] Lord had magnified his mercy with her, and they rejoiced with her.

59 And it came to pass on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they called it after the name of his father, Zacharias.

60 And his mother answering said, No; but he shall be called John.

61 And they said to her, There is no one among thy kinsfolk who is called by this name.

62 And they made signs to his father as to what he might wish it to be called.

63 And having asked for a writing-table, he wrote saying, John is his name. And they all wondered.

64 And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue, and he spake, blessing God.

65 And fear came upon all who dwelt round about them; and in the whole hill-country of Judaea all these things were the subject of conversation.

66 And all who heard them laid them up in their heart, saying, What then will this child be? And [the] Lord's hand was with him.

67 And Zacharias his father was filled with [the] Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,

68 Blessed be [the] Lord the God of Israel, because he has visited and wrought redemption for his people,

69 and raised up a horn of deliverance for us in the house of David his servant;

70 as he spoke by [the] mouth of his holy prophets, who have been since the world began;

71 deliverance from our enemies and out of the hand of all who hate us;

72 to fulfil mercy with our fathers and remember his holy covenant,

73 [the] oath which he swore to Abraham our father,

74 to give us, that, saved out of the hand of our enemies, we should serve him without fear

75 in piety and righteousness before him all our days.

76 And *thou*, child, shalt be called [the] prophet of [the] Highest; for thou shalt go before the face of [the] Lord to make ready his ways;

77 to give knowledge of deliverance to his people by [the] remission of their sins

78 on account of [the] bowels of mercy of our God; wherein [the] dayspring from on high has visited us,

79 to shine upon them who were sitting in darkness and in [the] shadow of death, to guide our feet into [the] way of peace.

80 —And the child grew and was strengthened in spirit; and he was in the deserts until the day of his shewing to Israel.

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Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea,(A) 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.(B) 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women,(C) and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord(D) should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

Mary’s Song(E)

46 And Mary said:

“My soul glorifies the Lord(F)
47     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,(G)
48 for he has been mindful
    of the humble state of his servant.(H)
From now on all generations will call me blessed,(I)
49     for the Mighty One has done great things(J) for me—
    holy is his name.(K)
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
    from generation to generation.(L)
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;(M)
    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.(N)
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
    but has lifted up the humble.(O)
53 He has filled the hungry with good things(P)
    but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful(Q)
55 to Abraham and his descendants(R) forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors.”

56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

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(S) 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.”(T)

61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

62 Then they made signs(U) 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.”(V) 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak,(W) praising God. 65 All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea(X) 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.(Y)

Zechariah’s Song

67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit(Z) and prophesied:(AA)

68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,(AB)
    because he has come to his people and redeemed them.(AC)
69 He has raised up a horn[a](AD) of salvation for us
    in the house of his servant David(AE)
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),(AF)
71 salvation from our enemies
    and from the hand of all who hate us—
72 to show mercy to our ancestors(AG)
    and to remember his holy covenant,(AH)
73     the oath he swore to our father Abraham:(AI)
74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
    and to enable us to serve him(AJ) without fear(AK)
75     in holiness and righteousness(AL) before him all our days.

76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet(AM) of the Most High;(AN)
    for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,(AO)
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
    through the forgiveness of their sins,(AP)
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
    by which the rising sun(AQ) will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
    and in the shadow of death,(AR)
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”(AS)

80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit[b];(AT) and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:69 Horn here symbolizes a strong king.
  2. Luke 1:80 Or in the Spirit