LUKE 1:5 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) [ref]It started with the priest Zekaryah (Zechariah) and his wife Elizabeth at the time when Herod was the king of Yudea. (Zekaryah was in the priestly division of Abiyah, and Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a certain priest named Zechariah, from the division of Abijah. And his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

UST When Herod was the ruler of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a descendant of Abijah, and so he took his turn serving in the temple with other priests who were also descendants of Abijah. His wife was named Elizabeth. She was a descendant of Aaron, and so she was also from the priestly line.

BSB In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to [the] priestly division of Abijah, and [whose] wife Elizabeth [was] a descendant of Aaron.

BLB There was in the days of Herod king of Judea a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.

AICNT In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah, and {he had a wife}[fn] from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

1:5, he had a wife: Later manuscripts read “his wife was.” BYZ TR

OEB In the reign of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the division called after Abijah. His wife, whose name was Elizabeth, was also a descendant of Aaron.

WEBBE There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the priestly division of Abijah. He had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

WMBB There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zechariah, of the priestly division of Abijah. He had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisheva.

NET During the reign of Herod king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah, and he had a wife named Elizabeth, who was a descendant of Aaron.

LSV There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the division of Abijah, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth;

FBV During the time when Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest called Zechariah, who came from the Abijah priestly division. He was married to Elizabeth, who was also descended from Aaron the priest.

TCNT In the days of Herod, the king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah who belonged to the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

T4T When King Herod the Great ruled Judea district, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He belonged to the group of priests called the Abijah group. He and his wife Elizabeth were both descended from the first priest of Israel, Aaron.

LEB ¶ It happened that in the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a certain priest, Zechariah by name, of the division of Abijah. And _⌊he had a wife_⌋[fn] from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

1:5 Literally “a wife to him”

BBE In the days of Herod, king of Judaea, there was a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the order of Abijah; and he had a wife of the family of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

Moff In the days of Herod king of Judaea there was a priest called Zechariah, who belonged to the division of Abijah; he had a wife who belonged to the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

Wymth There was in the time of Herod, the king of Judaea, a priest of the name of Zechariah, belonging to the class of Abijah. He had a wife who was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

ASV ¶ There was in the days of Herod, king of Judæa, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

DRA There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zachary, of the course of Abia; and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.

YLT There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the course of Abijah, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elisabeth;

Drby There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the course of Abia, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.

RV There was in the days of Herod, king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
(There was in the days of Herod, king of Yudea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. )

SLT There was in the days of Herod, king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the daily order of Abia: and his wife the daughter of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.

Wbstr There was in the days of Herod the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

KJB-1769 ¶ There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judæa, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
(¶ There was in the days of Herod, the king of Yudea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. )

KJB-1611 ¶ There was in the dayes of Herode the king of Iudea, a certaine Priest, named Zacharias, of the course of Abia, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
(¶ There was in the days of Herod the king of Yudea, a certain Priest, named Zacharias, of the course of Abia, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.)

Bshps There was in the dayes of Herode the kyng of Iurie, a certaine priest, named Zacharias, of the course of Abia, & his wyfe was of the daughters of Aaron, & her name was Elizabeth.
(There was in the days of Herod the king of Yury/Yudea, a certain priest, named Zacharias, of the course of Abia, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.)

Gnva In the time of Herod King of Iudea, there was a certaine Priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabet.
(In the time of Herod King of Yudea, there was a certain Priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabet. )

Cvdl In the tyme of Herode kynge of Iewry, there was a prest named Zachary of the course of Abia: and his wife of the doughters of Aaron, & hir name Elizabeth.
(In the time of Herod king of Yewry, there was a priest named Zachary of the course of Abia: and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.)

TNT There was in the dayes of Herode kynge of Iurie a certayne prest named zacharias of the course of Abia. And his wyfe was of the doughters of Aaron: And her name was Elizabeth.
(There was in the days of Herod king of Yury/Yudea a certain priest named zacharias of the course of Abia. And his wife was of the daughters of Aaron: And her name was Elizabeth. )

Wycl In the daies of Eroude, kyng of Judee, ther was a prest, Sakarie bi name, of the sorte of Abia, and his wijf was of the douytris of Aaron, and hir name was Elizabeth.
(In the days of Herod, king of Yudea, there was a priest, Sakarie by name, of the sort of Abia, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.)

Luth Zu der Zeit Herodes, des Königs Judäas, war ein Priester von der Ordnung Abia mit Namen Zacharias und sein Weib von den Töchtern Aarons, welche hieß Elisabeth.
(To/For the/of_the time/period Herod, the kings Yudäas, what/which a priest(s) from the/of_the order(n) Abia with name(s) Zacharias and be woman from the daughters Aarons, which was_called Elisabeth.)

ClVg Fuit in diebus Herodis, regis Judææ, sacerdos quidam nomine Zacharias de vice Abia, et uxor illius de filiabus Aaron, et nomen ejus Elisabeth.[fn]
(It_was in/into/on days Herodis, king Yudahæ, priest some by_name Zacharias from/about time Abia, and wife of_that from/about daughters Aaron, and name his Elisabeth. )

1.5 Fuit in diebus Herodis regis Judææ. AMBR. Vitulus sacerdotalis hostia. Per vitulum ergo hoc Evangelium figuratur, in quo a sacerdotibus inchoatur, et in vitulo consummatur, id est in Christo, qui pro mundi vita immolatur. Sacerdos quidam. Implevit ordinem, dixit regem, et regionem in qua fuit, sacerdotem et gentem ejus et uxorem illius indicat. Zacharias. Zacharias, memor Domini: cui apparet Angelus a dextris altaris, quia ei qui memor Domini est demonstratur mysterium. De vice Abia. BEDA. Abia, Pater Dominus, etc., usque ad sicut per septem Testamentum declaratur Vetus. Elizabeth. Elizabeth, Dei mei saturitas, signat Mariam quæ plena Deo fuit.

1.5 It_was in/into/on days Herodis king Yudahæ. AMBR. Vitulus sacerdotalis sacrifice/victim. Per calf therefore this the_Gospel is_figured, in/into/on where from to_the_priests inchoatur, and in/into/on calf finishur, that it_is in/into/on to_Christ/Messiah, who/which for world life is_sacrificed. Priest some. Implevit order, he/she_said the_king, and country in/into/on which it_was, a_priest and nation his and wife of_that indicates. Zacharias. Zacharias, memory Master: to_whom appears Angelus from on_the_right altar, because to_him who/which memory Master it_is demonstratur mystery. From/About time Abia. BEDA. Abia, Pater Master, etc., until to like through seven Testamentum declaratur Old. Elizabeth. Elizabeth, of_God my/mine satiety/abundance, signs Mariam which full to_God it_was.

UGNT ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἡρῴδου βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας, ἱερεύς τις ὀνόματι Ζαχαρίας ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά, καὶ γυνὴ αὐτῷ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῆς, Ἐλεισάβετ.
(egeneto en tais haʸmerais Haʸrōdou basileōs taʸs Youdaias, hiereus tis onomati Zaⱪarias ex efaʸmerias Abia, kai gunaʸ autōi ek tōn thugaterōn Aʼarōn, kai to onoma autaʸs, Eleisabet.)

SBL-GNT Ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ⸀Ἡρῴδου βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἱερεύς τις ὀνόματι Ζαχαρίας ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά, ⸀καὶ γυνὴ ⸀αὐτῷ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῆς Ἐλισάβετ.
(Egeneto en tais haʸmerais ⸀Haʸrōdou basileōs taʸs Youdaias hiereus tis onomati Zaⱪarias ex efaʸmerias Abia, ⸀kai gunaʸ ⸀autōi ek tōn thugaterōn Aʼarōn, kai to onoma autaʸs Elisabet.)

RP-GNT Ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἡρῴδου τοῦ βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἱερεύς τις ὀνόματι Ζαχαρίας, ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά· καὶ ἡ γυνὴ αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῆς Ἐλισάβετ.
(Egeneto en tais haʸmerais Haʸrōdou tou basileōs taʸs Youdaias hiereus tis onomati Zaⱪarias, ex efaʸmerias Abia; kai haʸ gunaʸ autou ek tōn thugaterōn Aʼarōn, kai to onoma autaʸs Elisabet.)

TC-GNT Ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἡρῴδου [fn]τοῦ βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἱερεύς τις ὀνόματι Ζαχαρίας, ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά· καὶ [fn]ἡ γυνὴ αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών, καὶ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῆς [fn]Ἐλισάβετ.
(Egeneto en tais haʸmerais Haʸrōdou tou basileōs taʸs Youdaias hiereus tis onomati Zaⱪarias, ex efaʸmerias Abia; kai haʸ gunaʸ autou ek tōn thugaterōn Aʼarōn, kai to onoma autaʸs Elisabet. )

1:5 του ¦ — CT

1:5 η γυνη αυτου ¦ γυνη αυτω CT

1:5 ελισαβετ ¦ ελεισαβετ WH

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 1:5–25: An angel said that John the Baptizer would be born

An angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah while he was working in the temple as a priest. The angel told him that his wife Elizabeth would become pregnant and have a baby, and that he must name him John. Zechariah and Elizabeth were old, and Elizabeth was not able to have children. So Zechariah did not believe the angel. Because he did not believe that what the angel said would happen, the angel made him unable to speak. But later, Elizabeth became pregnant.

It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it. Some other possible headings for this section are:

The Birth of John the Baptist is Announced (GNT)

The angel Gabriel predicts the birth of John the Baptizer

The angel Gabriel announces/prophesies to Zechariah that his wife will have a son

Paragraph 1:5–7

In these verses, Luke told about Zechariah and Elizabeth, who are the main people in chapter 1. Luke did not mention them in the rest of the book except in 3:2. Use a natural way in your language to introduce them.

1:5a

In the time of Herod king of Judea

¶ During the time/period when Herod was king of Judea,
¶ When Herod ruled the region/province of Judea,
¶ When these things began, Herod was the king of Judea.

In the time of Herod king of Judea: The Greek word that the BSB translates as time is literally “days” (as in the RSV). The phrase the time of Herod refers to the time when Herod ruled Judea. Some other ways to translate this are:

In the reign of Herod king of Judea (REB)

When Herod was king of Judea (CEV)

During the time when Herod was king of Judea (GNT)

Herod: The name Herod here refers to Herod the Great.Herod the Great was the father of the Herod who was king when Jesus was crucified. Luke mentioned Herod here in order to indicate the time period during which the events of this chapter happened. It was common in Bible times to indicate when events happened by telling the name of the king who was ruling at the time.

Judea: Judea was the name of a region or province that King Herod ruled. In some languages, it may helpful to indicate this. For example:

the region/land of Judea

1:5b

there was a priest named Zechariah,

a priest whose name was Zechariah was living there.
a man called Zechariah was one of the men there who offered sacrifices to God.
There was/lived a certain man named Zechariah. He was a priest for the people of Israel.

there was a priest named Zechariah: Zechariah is the main person in this first section of Luke. Introduce him in a natural way in your language.

Luke implied here that Zechariah lived in Judea, where Herod was king. In some languages, it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:

a priest named Zechariah lived there

priest: In this context the word priest refers specifically to a priest for the people of Israel. An Israelite priest was a man who offered sacrifices to God on behalf of the people. He also performed other rituals for them. All Israelite priests, including Zechariah, were descendants of Aaron, the brother of Moses.

Some ways to translate priest are:

Use a descriptive term that focuses on the function of a priest. For example:
sacrificer
man/person who offers sacrifices to God
one who represents people to God
Use a local word for priest. This option may be acceptable if the duties of a local priest are similar to those of an Israelite/Jewish priest. You may need to indicate that the word refers to a Jewish priest. For example:
Jewish people’s priest
sacrificer for the Jewish people

If possible, you should choose a term that can be used in both Old Testament and New Testament contexts. Remember that in the book of Hebrews believers are called priests and Christ is called our high priest.

See priest in the Glossary.

Zechariah: A few English versions spell Zechariah as “Zecharias” (NASB, KJV). In English, either spelling is acceptable. You may want to check the spelling of this name in the national language version.

General Comment on 1:5a–b

In some languages it may be necessary to reverse the order of 1:5a and 1:5b in order to keep the focus on Zechariah:

^5bThere was a priest named Zechariah who lived ^5aduring the time that Herod ruled over the province of Judea.

1:5c

who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah,

He belonged to the group of priests named after Abijah.
He was part of the grouping/section of priests called “Abijah’s group.”

the priestly division of Abijah: The phrase priestly division refers here to a group of priests who performed duties during a certain time period. Some other ways to translate this are:

priestly group (CEV)

class of priests

section of the priesthood (JBP)

The group of priests that Zechariah belonged to was named after the priest Abijah, who had died long before Zechariah was born.It would be incorrect to say in a translation that Zechariah was a “descendant” of Abijah. Here is why: The Abijah division was one of twenty-four divisions of priests. This is described in 1 Chronicles 24. Only four of these divisions returned from exile, and the Abijah division was not one of them. However, the four remaining divisions were then divided into twenty-four divisions and given the same names as the original twenty-four divisions to reflect the original system. There were twenty-four groups of priests in Zechariah’s time. Each group worked in the temple for one week at a time, and they did this twice in a year.

The priests served in the temple in the city of Jerusalem. Many priests, including Zechariah, did not live in Jerusalem. During their time of service, they left their families, traveled to Jerusalem, and stayed there for the week.

1:5d

and whose wife Elizabeth was a daughter of Aaron.

His wife was Elizabeth, and she too was from the family/clan of Aaron, the clan that all priests come from.
Like him, his wife was a descendant of the first Israelite priest Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth.

and whose wife Elizabeth was a daughter of Aaron: The word and indicates here that just like Zechariah, Elizabeth, too, was one of Aaron’s descendants. Before this the text has not explicitly stated that Zechariah was a descendant of Aaron, so you may need to make this explicit here. For example:

…Elizabeth was, like him, a descendant of Aaron (JBP)

a daughter of Aaron: The Greek phrase that the BSB has translated as a daughter of Aaron is literally “of the daughters of Aaron.” This is a figurative way to say that she was among Aaron’s female descendants. Use a natural term in your language. You may be able to use the same term for both Zechariah and Elizabeth. For example:

his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron (NIV)

Aaron: Aaron was the brother of Moses and was the first high priest of Israel. All the Jewish priests were descended from him. So Elizabeth, like Zechariah, was from a family of priests. In some languages it may be necessary to make this clear by saying:

Aaron the ancestor of the priestly clan

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: writing-newevent

ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἡρῴδου βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας

in the days ˱of˲_Herod king ¬the ˱of˲_Judea

This time reference introduces a new event. Alternate translation: [During the time when King Herod ruled over Judea]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις

in the days

Here, Luke uses the term days to refer to a particular period of time. Alternate translation: [During the time when]

Note 3 topic: writing-participants

ἐγένετο & ἱερεύς τις

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἐγένετο ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἡρῴδου βασιλέως τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἱερεύς τὶς ὀνόματι Ζαχαρίας ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά καί γυνή αὐτῷ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών καί τό ὄνομα αὐτῆς Ἐλισάβετ)

This phrase introduces a new character in a story. If your language has an expression of its own that serves this purpose, you could use it here.

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ἐξ ἐφημερίας Ἀβιά

of division ˱of˲_Abijah

Luke assumes that his readers will know that this expression refers one of the different groups of priests who each served in the temple for a certain number of days at a time, and that the name of the group means that Abijah was the ancestor of these priests. Alternate translation: [who belonged to the group of priests who were descended from Abijah]

Note 5 topic: translate-names

Ἀβιά

˱of˲_Abijah

Abijah is the name of a man.

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

γυνὴ αὐτῷ ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών

Here, the word daughters means “descendants.” Alternate translation: [his wife was a descendant of Aaron]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ἐκ τῶν θυγατέρων Ἀαρών

of the daughters ˱of˲_Aaron

This means implicitly that she, like Zechariah, was descended from the line of priests going back to Aaron, the first high priest. Alternate translation: [his wife also came from the line of priests]