HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1289
L UKE 2
page 919
wanted to name him Zechariah, after his father.
60 But Elizabeth said, “No! His name is John!”
61 “What?” they exclaimed. “There is no one
in all your family by that name.” 62 So they
used gestures to ask the baby’s father what he
wanted to name him. 63 He motioned for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s surprise he wrote,
“His name is John.” 64 Instantly Zechariah could
speak again, and he began praising God.
65 Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood,
and the news of what had happened spread
throughout the Judean hills. 66 Everyone who
heard about it reflected on these events and
asked, “What will this child turn out to be?”
For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him
in a special way.
Zechariah’s Prophecy
67 Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the
Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:
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“Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has visited and redeemed his
people.
He has sent us a mighty Savior*
from the royal line of his servant David,
just as he promised
through his holy prophets long ago.
Now we will be saved from our enemies
and from all who hate us.
He has been merciful to our ancestors
by remembering his sacred covenant—
the covenant he swore with an oath
to our ancestor Abraham.
We have been rescued from our enemies
so we can serve God without fear,
in holiness and righteousness
for as long as we live.
“And you, my little son,
will be called the prophet of the
Most High,
because you will prepare the way
for the Lord.
You will tell his people how to find salvation
through forgiveness of their sins.
Because of God’s tender mercy,
the morning light from heaven is about to
break upon us,*
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
and to guide us to the path of peace.”
80 John grew up and became strong in spirit.
And he lived in the wilderness until he began
his public ministry to Israel.
The Birth of Jesus
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken
throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the
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1:69 Greek has raised up a horn of salvation for us.
the Morning Light from Heaven is about to visit us.
1:78 Or
first census taken when Quirinius was governor
of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral
towns to register for this census. 4 And because
Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had
to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient
home. He traveled there from the village of
Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to
whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.
6 And while they were there, the time came
for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her
firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips
of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there
was no lodging available for them.
The Shepherds and Angels
8 That night there were shepherds staying in
the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of
sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the
Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t
be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that
will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—
yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today
in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will
recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby
wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a
manger.”
13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast
host of others—the armies of heaven—praising
God and saying,
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“Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom
God is pleased.”
15 When the angels had returned to heaven,
the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to
Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 They hurried to the village and found Mary
and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in
the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds
• Mercy & Grace
LU K E 1:50
What will your children inherit? What
about your grandchildren? Would you
like for them to know God’s mercy as you
have or even more so? What a wonderful
inheritance to pass on from generation
to generation. If this is what we want for
our children, we must help them learn to
reverence the Lord. Mercy is God’s gift
to us; reverence is our gift to God. The
two work together to leave a legacy of
faithfulness to future generations.