¹ tn Grk “And it happened that.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here either.

² sn When the baby leaped John gave his first testimony about Jesus, a fulfillment of 1:15.

³ tn The antecedent of “her” is Elizabeth.

⁴ sn The passage makes clear that Elizabeth spoke her commentary with prophetic enablement, filled with the Holy Spirit.

⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. A new sentence was begun at this point in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.

⁶ tn Grk “heard them”; the referent (these things, from the previous verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁷ tn Grk “heart.” The term “heart” (καρδία, kardia) could also be translated as “mind,” or “thoughts,” and the entire phrase be rendered as “kept them in mind,” “thought about,” or the like. But the immediate context is clearly emotive, suggesting that much more is at work than merely the mental processes of thinking or reasoning about “these things.” There is a sense of joy and excitement (see the following question, “What then will this child be?”) and even fear. Further, the use of καρδία in 1:66 suggests connections with the same term in 2:19 where deep emotion is being expressed as well. Therefore, recognizing both the dramatic nature of the immediate context and the literary connections to 2:19, the translation renders the term in 1:66 as “hearts” to capture both the cognitive and emotive aspects of the people’s response.

⁸ tn Or “what manner of child will this one be?”

⁹ sn The reference to the Lord’s hand indicates that the presence, direction, and favor of God was with him (Acts 7:9b).

¹⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the conclusion of the topic.

¹¹ sn The mention of glorifying and praising God is the second note of praise in this section; see Luke 2:13-14.

¹² tn Grk “just as [it] had been spoken to them.” This has been simplified in the English translation by making the prepositional phrase (“to them”) the subject of the passive verb.

sn The closing remark just as they had been told notes a major theme of Luke 1-2 as he sought to reassure Theophilus: God does what he says he will do.

¹³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the centurion) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴ tn The participle ἀκούσας (akousas) has been taken temporally.

¹⁵ sn Why some Jewish elders are sent as emissaries is not entirely clear, but the centurion was probably respecting ethnic boundaries, which were important in ancient Greco-Roman and Jewish culture. The parallel account in Matt 8:5-13 does not mention the emissaries.

¹⁶ tn The participle ἐλθών (elqwn) has been translated as an infinitive in parallel with διασώσῃ (diaswsh) due to requirements of contemporary English style.

¹⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the parenthetical nature of the comment by the author.

¹⁸ sn See the note on tax collectors in 3:12.

¹⁹ tn Or “vindicated God”; Grk “justified God.” This could be expanded to “vindicated and responded to God.” The point is that God’s goodness and grace as evidenced in the invitation to John was justified and responded to by the group one might least expect, tax collector and sinners. They had more spiritual sensitivity than others. The contrastive response is clear from v. 30.

²⁰ tn The participle βαπτισθέντες (baptisqente") has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.

²¹ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.

²² sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.

²³ tn Or “was very confused.” See L&N 32.10 where this verse is given as an example of the usage.

²⁴ sn John refers to John the Baptist, whom Herod had beheaded (v. 9).

²⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

²⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²⁷ tn Grk “whoever” (the indefinite relative pronoun). This has been translated as “everyone who” to conform to contemporary English style.

²⁸ tn Or “will dine”; Grk “eat bread.” This refers to those who enjoy the endless fellowship of God’s coming rule.

²⁹ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

³⁰ sn The statement that the owner will come and destroy those tenants is a promise of judgment; see Luke 13:34-35; 19:41-44.

³¹ sn The warning that the owner would give the vineyard to others suggests that the care of the promise and the nation’s hope would be passed to others. This eventually looks to Gentile inclusion; see Eph 2:11-22.

³² tn Grk “they”; the referent (the people addressed in v. 9) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³³ sn May this never happen! Jesus’ audience got the point and did not want to consider a story where the nation would suffer judgment.