Luke 1:1-56
The New Testament > Luke > Chapter 1
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Questions
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Verses 5-25
Why does Luke begin with John the Baptist’s birth rather than with Jesus’ birth?
Why does he take so much care to make the birth stories parallel?
Zacharias was chosen to burn incense on the incense altar, the holiest place in the temple, just outside the Holy of Holies. Since the priests making the offering were chosen by lot and there were only two times a year when any particular group (“course”) of priests was eligible, the chances of this happening at all were slim; the chances of it happening to the same person twice were null. Why do you think that the Lord chose that occasion to make the announcement of John the Baptist’s birth? What did the burning incense represent? Is that relevant to understanding this event?
Lexical notes
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Exegesis
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Verses 5-25
Notice the parallels between his description of the two births: the parents are introduced (verses 5-7 and 26-27), an angel appears to announce the birth (verses 8-23 and 28-30), a sign is given (verses 18-20 and 34-38), and a woman who has had no children becomes pregnant miraculously (verses 24-25 and 42).
Related links
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