Dedication to Theophilus (Acts 1:1–3)
2 YLT as they did deliver to us, who from the beginning became eye-witnesses, and officers of the Word, — BSB BSB: just as they were handed down to us by the initial eyewitnesses and servants of the word.
3 YLT it seemed good also to me, having followed from the first after all things exactly, to write to thee in order, most noble Theophilus, BSB BSB: Therefore, having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,
4 YLT that thou mayest know the certainty of the things wherein thou wast instructed. BSB BSB: so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
Gabriel Foretells John’s Birth 6 YLT and they were both righteous before God, going on in all the commands and righteousnesses of the Lord blameless, BSB BSB: Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and decrees of the Lord.
7 YLT and they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and both were advanced in their days. BSB BSB: But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well along in years.
8 YLT And it came to pass, in his acting as priest, in the order of his course before God, BSB BSB: One day while Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God,
9 YLT according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot was to make perfume, having gone into the sanctuary of the Lord, BSB BSB: he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.
10 YLT and all the multitude of the people were praying without, at the hour of the perfume. BSB BSB: And at the hour of the incense offering, the whole congregation was praying outside.
11 YLT And there appeared to him a messenger of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of the perfume, BSB BSB: Just then an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
12 YLT and Zacharias, having seen, was troubled, and fear fell on him; BSB BSB: When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear.
13 YLT and the messenger said unto him, 'Fear not, Zacharias, for thy supplication was heard, and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear a son to thee, and thou shalt call his name John, BSB BSB: But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.
14 YLT and there shall be joy to thee, and gladness, and many at his birth shall joy, BSB BSB: He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice at his birth,
15 YLT for he shall be great before the Lord, and wine and strong drink he may not drink, and of the Holy Spirit he shall be full, even from his mother's womb; BSB BSB: for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He shall never take wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb.
16 YLT and many of the sons of Israel he shall turn to the Lord their God, BSB BSB: Many of the sons of Israel he will turn back to the Lord their God.
18 YLT And Zacharias said unto the messenger, 'Whereby shall I know this? for I am aged, and my wife is advanced in her days?' BSB BSB: “How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years.”
19 YLT And the messenger answering said to him, 'I am Gabriel, who have been standing near before God, and I was sent to speak unto thee, and to proclaim these good news to thee, BSB BSB: “I am Gabriel,” replied the angel. “I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
20 YLT and lo, thou shalt be silent, and not able to speak, till the day that these things shall come to pass, because thou didst not believe my words, that shall be fulfilled in their season.' BSB BSB: And now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day this comes to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time.”
21 YLT And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondering at his tarrying in the sanctuary, BSB BSB: Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he took so long in the temple.
22 YLT and having come out, he was not able to speak to them, and they perceived that a vision he had seen in the sanctuary, and he was beckoning to them, and did remain dumb. BSB BSB: When he came out and was unable to speak to them, they realized he had seen a vision in the temple. He kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.
23 YLT And it came to pass, when the days of his service were fulfilled, he went away to his house, BSB BSB: And when the days of his service were complete, he returned home.
24 YLT and after those days, his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying — BSB BSB: After these days, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. She declared,
25 YLT 'Thus hath the Lord done to me, in days in which He looked upon me , to take away my reproach among men.' BSB BSB: “The Lord has done this for me. In these days He has shown me favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”
Gabriel Foretells Jesus’ Birth 27 YLT to a virgin, betrothed to a man, whose name is Joseph, of the house of David, and the name of the virgin is Mary. BSB BSB: to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.
28 YLT And the messenger having come in unto her, said, 'Hail, favoured one, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women;' BSB BSB: The angel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
29 YLT and she, having seen, was troubled at his word, and was reasoning of what kind this salutation may be. BSB BSB: Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
30 YLT And the messenger said to her, 'Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favour with God; BSB BSB: So the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31 YLT and lo, thou shalt conceive in the womb, and shalt bring forth a son, and call his name Jesus; BSB BSB: Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.
32 YLT he shall be great, and Son of the Highest he shall be called, and the Lord God shall give him the throne of David his father, BSB BSB: He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David,
33 YLT and he shall reign over the house of Jacob to the ages; and of his reign there shall be no end.' BSB BSB: and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end!”
35 YLT And the messenger answering said to her, 'The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also the holy-begotten thing shall be called Son of God; BSB BSB: The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 YLT and lo, Elisabeth, thy kinswoman, she also hath conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month to her who was called barren; BSB BSB: Look, even Elizabeth your relative has conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is in her sixth month.
37 YLT because nothing shall be impossible with God.' BSB BSB: For no word from God will ever fail.”
Mary Visits Elizabeth 39 YLT And Mary having arisen in those days, went to the hill-country, with haste, to a city of Judea, BSB BSB: In those days Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah,
40 YLT and entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. BSB BSB: where she entered the home of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.
41 YLT And it came to pass, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe did leap in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, BSB BSB: When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42 YLT and spake out with a loud voice, and said, 'Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb; BSB BSB: In a loud voice she exclaimed, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
43 YLT and whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord might come unto me? BSB BSB: And why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 YLT for, lo, when the voice of thy salutation came to my ears, leap in gladness did the babe in my womb; BSB BSB: For as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.
45 YLT and happy is she who did believe, for there shall be a completion to the things spoken to her from the Lord.' BSB BSB: Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord’s word to her will be fulfilled.”
Mary’s Song (1 Samuel 2:1–11)
47 YLT And my spirit was glad on God my Saviour, BSB BSB: and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
49 YLT For He who is mighty did to me great things, And holy is His name, BSB BSB: For the Mighty One has done great things for me. Holy is His name.
50 YLT And His kindness is to generations of generations, To those fearing Him, BSB BSB: His mercy extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation.
51 YLT He did powerfully with His arm, He scattered abroad the proud in the thought of their heart, BSB BSB: He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52 YLT He brought down the mighty from thrones, And He exalted the lowly, BSB BSB: He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.
53 YLT The hungry He did fill with good, And the rich He sent away empty, BSB BSB: He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.
54 YLT He received again Israel His servant, To remember kindness, BSB BSB: He has helped His servant Israel, remembering to be merciful,
55 YLT As He spake unto our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed — to the age.' BSB BSB: as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”
56 YLT And Mary remained with her about three months, and turned back to her house. BSB BSB: Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
The Birth of John the Baptist 57 YLT And to Elisabeth was the time fulfilled for her bringing forth, and she bare a son, BSB BSB: When the time came for Elizabeth to have her child, she gave birth to a son.
58 YLT and the neighbours and her kindred heard that the Lord was making His kindness great with her, and they were rejoicing with her. BSB BSB: Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they rejoiced with her.
59 YLT And it came to pass, on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child, and they were calling him by the name of his father, Zacharias, BSB BSB: On the eighth day, when they came to circumcise the child, they were going to name him after his father Zechariah.
60 YLT and his mother answering said, 'No, but he shall be called John.' BSB BSB: But his mother replied, “No! He shall be called John.”
61 YLT And they said unto her — 'There is none among thy kindred who is called by this name,' BSB BSB: They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who bears this name.”
62 YLT and they were making signs to his father, what he would wish him to be called, BSB BSB: So they made signs to his father to find out what he wanted to name the child.
63 YLT and having asked for a tablet, he wrote, saying, 'John is his name;' and they did all wonder; BSB BSB: Zechariah asked for a tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they were all amazed.
64 YLT and his mouth was opened presently, and his tongue, and he was speaking, praising God. BSB BSB: Immediately Zechariah’s mouth was opened and his tongue was released, and he began to speak, praising God.
65 YLT And fear came upon all those dwelling around them, and in all the hill-country of Judea were all these sayings spoken of, BSB BSB: All their neighbors were filled with awe, and people throughout the hill country of Judea were talking about these events.
66 YLT and all who heard did lay them up in their hearts, saying, 'What then shall this child be?' and the hand of the Lord was with him. BSB BSB: And all who heard this wondered in their hearts and asked, “What then will this child become?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.
Zechariah’s Song 67 YLT And Zacharias his father was filled with the Holy Spirit, and did prophesy, saying, BSB BSB: Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
68 YLT 'Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, Because He did look upon, And wrought redemption for His people, BSB BSB: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and redeemed His people.
69 YLT And did raise an horn of salvation to us, In the house of David His servant, BSB BSB: He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David,
70 YLT As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, Which have been from the age; BSB BSB: as He spoke through His holy prophets, those of ages past,
71 YLT Salvation from our enemies, And out of the hand of all hating us, BSB BSB: salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,
72 YLT To do kindness with our fathers, And to be mindful of His holy covenant, BSB BSB: to show mercy to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant,
73 YLT An oath that He sware to Abraham our father, BSB BSB: the oath He swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74 YLT To give to us, without fear, Out of the hand of our enemies having been delivered, BSB BSB: deliverance from hostile hands, that we may serve Him without fear,
75 YLT To serve Him, in holiness and righteousness Before Him, all the days of our life. BSB BSB: in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
76 YLT And thou, child, Prophet of the Highest Shalt thou be called; For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord, To prepare His ways. BSB BSB: And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,
77 YLT To give knowledge of salvation to His people In remission of their sins, BSB BSB: to give to His people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 YLT Through the tender mercies of our God, In which the rising from on high did look upon us, BSB BSB: because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
79 YLT To give light to those sitting in darkness and death-shade, To guide our feet to a way of peace.' BSB BSB: to shine on those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
80 YLT And the child grew, and was strengthened in spirit, and he was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel. BSB BSB: And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until the time of his public appearance to Israel.