LUKE 2:14 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.)

Key: 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 “Glory in the highest to God,
⇔  and on earth, peace among men
⇔  of good pleasure.”

UST “In the highest heaven may all the angels praise God! And on the earth may all the people who please God be peaceful with God and each other!”

2:14 Or peace, good will among men; CT peace to men on whom His favor rests or peace to men with whom He is pleased

BLB "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased!"

AICNT “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace {among men of goodwill}.”[fn]

2:14, among men of goodwill: Or “goodwill among men.”

OEB ‘glory to God on high,
⇔ and on earth peace among those in whom he finds pleasure.’

2DT “Splendor in the highest places to God, and on the land, peace among Godpleased humans.”

WEBBE “Glory to God in the highest,
⇔ on earth peace, good will towards men.”

WMBB (Same as above)

NET “Glory to God in the highest,
⇔ and on earth peace among people with whom he is pleased!”

LSV “Glory in the highest to God, and on earth peace, among men—good will!”

FBV “Glory to the God of heaven, and on earth peace to those with whom he is pleased!”

TCNT ⇔ “Glory to God in the highest,
⇔ and peace on [fn]earth,
⇔ good will among men.”

2:14 earth, good will among men 98.8% ¦ earth among men of good will CT 0.4%

T4T “May all the angels in the highest heaven praise God! And on the earth may the people to whom God has shown his favor have peace with him!”

LEB • “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace
• among people with whom he is pleased !”[fn]

2:13 Literally “of good pleasure”

BBE Glory to God in the highest, and on the earth peace among men with whom he is well pleased.

Moff "Glory to God in high heaven,
⇔ and peace on earth for men whom he favours!"

Wymth "Glory be to God in the highest Heavens, And on earth peace among men who please Him!"

ASV Glory to God in the highest,
⇔ And on earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased.

DRA Glory to God in the highest; and on earth peace to men of good will.

YLT 'Glory in the highest to God, and upon earth peace, among men — good will.'

Drby Glory to [fn]God in the highest, and on earth peace, good pleasure in men.

2.14 Elohim

RV Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men in whom he is well pleased.

SLT Glory to God in the highest ones, and upon earth peace, benevolence in men.

Wbstr Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men.

KJB-1769 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

KJB-1611 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good wil towards men.
(Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men.)

Bshps Glorie to God on hye, and peace on the earth, and vnto men a good wyll.
(Glory to God on high, and peace on the earth, and unto men a good will.)

Gnva Glory be to God in the high heauens, and peace in earth, and towards men good will.
(Glory be to God in the high heavens, and peace in earth, and towards men good will. )

Cvdl Glory be vnto God an hye, & peace vpon earth, and vnto men a good wyll.
(Glory be unto God an high, and peace upon earth, and unto men a good will.)

TNT Glory to God an hye and peace on the erth: and vnto men reioysynge.
(Glory to God an high and peace on the earth: and unto men reioysing. )

Wycl and seiynge, Glorie be in the hiyeste thingis to God, and in erthe pees be to men of good wille.
(and saying, Glory be in the highest things to God, and in earth peace be to men of good will.)

Luth Ehre sei GOtt in der Höhe und Friede auf Erden und den Menschen ein Wohlgefallen!
(honour(n) be God in the/of_the Höhe and peace/quietness on/in/to earth/land/ground and the people a pleasure!)

ClVg [Gloria in altissimis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis.][fn]
([Glory in/into/on very_highs to_God, and in/into/on earth/land peace to_humans good of_will.] )

2.14 Et in terra pax. Quando peccando eramus a Deo extranei, extraneos nos angeli deputabant; sed quia cognovimus regem nostrum, recognoverunt nos angeli cives suos. Et timet angelus adorari ab humana natura quam in suo rege considerat. Hominibus bonæ voluntatis. BEDA. Qui suscipiunt natum Christum, non his qui audita ejus nativitate sunt turbati et eum persecuti. Non est pax impiis, dicit Dominus Isa. 48..

2.14 And in/into/on earth/land peace. When by_sinning eramus from to_God outsidenei, outsideneos us messengers/angels deputabant; but because we_knew the_king our, rethey_knew us messengers/angels citizen his_own. And he_is_afraid messenger/angel adorari away human nature/element how in/into/on his_own king considers. Manbus good of_will. BEDA. Who they_undertake born Christ/Messiah, not/no his who/which heard his birth are troubled and him persecuted. Not/No it_is peace wicked, he_says Master Isa. 48..

UGNT δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις Θεῷ, καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκίας!
(doxa en hupsistois Theōi, kai epi gaʸs eiraʸnaʸ en anthrōpois eudokias!)

SBL-GNT Δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις θεῷ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη ἐν ἀνθρώποις ⸀εὐδοκίας.
(Doxa en hupsistois theōi kai epi gaʸs eiraʸnaʸ en anthrōpois ⸀eudokias.)

RP-GNT Δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις θεῷ, καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη· ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκία.
(Doxa en hupsistois theōi, kai epi gaʸs eiraʸnaʸ; en anthrōpois eudokia.)

TC-GNT ⇔ Δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις Θεῷ,
⇔ καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη·
⇔ ἐν ἀνθρώποις [fn]εὐδοκία.
( ⇔ Doxa en hupsistois Theōi,
⇔ kai epi gaʸs eiraʸnaʸ;
⇔ en anthrōpois eudokia. )

2:14 ευδοκια 98.8% ¦ ευδοκιας CT 0.4%

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

TTN Tyndale Theme Notes:

The Birth of Christ

The accounts of the birth of Jesus (Matt 1:18–2:12; Luke 2:1-20) are a study in contrasts. On the one side is the lowliness of the birth. A poor peasant couple makes their way to their ancestral home of Bethlehem to register for a census imposed on them by the oppressive Roman Empire. Their journey is a long and hard one from Galilee, and when they arrive they can find no place of lodging. They are consigned to a place reserved for animals. There is a sense of poverty, rejection, and obscurity. At the birth of the child, announcements are sent not to great kings or to the rich and powerful, but to lowly shepherds watching their flocks in a field.

Yet beside this humble lowliness is a message of unspeakable power and grandeur. The child who is laid in a manger is the Messiah, the long-awaited descendant of King David. He will reign triumphant over the people of Israel and his kingdom will never end. He is the one spoken about by all the prophets. All of history has been pointing forward to its climax in him. A group of wise men from the East come to pay homage to him. And an army of mighty angels comes from heaven to announce his birth.

These contrasts are a foretaste of things to come. In Jesus, the God of Israel and Lord of all the earth has come to visit and to save his people. The Divine One reaches down to meet them where they are. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus will show special concern for the lowly, the poor, the outcast, and sinners. These are the ones he has come to save because they recognize their need for him. They receive the message of salvation with joy and rejoicing.

The contrast between lowliness and exaltation also relates to Jesus’ mission. Though wicked people reject him and put him to death, Jesus is vindicated at his resurrection and exalted to the right hand of God, where he reigns as Lord and Messiah. From there he pours out the Spirit of God to guide and direct his church. Through his life, death, resurrection, and exaltation, Jesus provides forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all those who respond in faith to him.

Passages for Further Study

Matt 1:18–2:12; Luke 2:1-20

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:8–20: Angels announced to shepherds that the Savior was born

In this section some shepherds were taking care of their sheep in fields near Bethlehem. An angel came to them and told them that Christ the Savior had been born that night in Bethlehem. He told them that they would find the baby lying in a feeding box for animals. Then other angels came and praised God. After the angels left, the shepherds went to Bethlehem and found the baby, just as the angel had said they would.

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

Angels tell shepherds about Jesus’ birth and the shepherds visit him

The Shepherds and the Angels (GNT)

2:14

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests: This verse has two clauses that have parallel words or phrases. In some languages it may be good to translate this verse as poetry.In the Greek text, this verse has two clauses that have parallel words or phrases. These phrases, translated more literally, are:Glory in the heavens to Godpeace on the earth to favored menThe chart above shows that Glory and peace are parallel. God and “favored men” are parallel. Glory… “in the heavens” is parallel to peace… “on the earth.”

In Greek, there is no verb in this verse. You should use a verb form that is natural for praise in your language. This poem of praise expresses the results of Jesus’ birth. Some ways to translate it are:

Glory comes to God in the heavens, and peace comes to favored men on the earth.

God receives glory in the heavens, and favored men receive peace on the earth.

This is not a command. The angels are not commanding the shepherds to give glory to God.

2:14a

“Glory to God in the highest,

“Glory/Honor belongs to God in the highest heaven!
“God receives praise in heaven!
“Those in heaven praise God

Glory to God in the highest: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as in the highest refers to heaven. There are two views about how it is related to the phrase Glory to God:

It refers to the place where God receives glory. For example:
God receives glory in heaven.
It refers to the place where God is. For example:
Glory to God who is in heaven.

Most English versions are ambiguous. It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Most commentators seem to follow this view that in the highest refers to the place where God receives glory.

Glory to God: In this context the word Glory refers to praise and honor. As the note on 2:14 said, in some languages it will be necessary to supply a verb for the phrase Glory to God. Some ways to do this are:

Praises belong to God

God deserves honor/glory

Notice that the meaning of Glory here is different from the meaning of “glory” in 2:9b. See also glory, sense A3, in KBT.

in the highest: The phrase in the highest refers to heaven. It is the place where God lives with the angels.Most commentators seem to follow the view that “in the highest” refers to the place where God receives glory. Other views are that “in the highest” refers to the place where God is. The Bible mentions three heavens. The first heaven is the sky, where the birds fly. The second heaven is outer space, where the sun, moon, and stars are located. The third heaven is beyond that. It is the home of God and the good angels. Another way to translate this is:

in heaven (CEV)

Some languages have an idiom that refers to heaven as being “on top” or “on top of everything.” If this is true in your language, you may be able to use it here.

2:14b

and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests!”

On earth there will be peace with those people whom he favors.”
He provides/makes peace on earth for those people who have his good will.”
and there is harmony between him and the people on earth whom he blesses.”

on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests: There is a textual issue here: (1) The earliest Greek manuscripts say “and on earth peace among men of goodwill.” Nearly every major English version follows these manuscripts. For example, the GNT says “and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!” This text is followed by BSB, RSV, NIV, GNT, NASB, NLT96, NLT, GW, CEV, NET, JBP, REB, NCV, and NJB. (2) Other Greek manuscripts say “and on earth peace, good will toward men.” The KJV follows these manuscripts. It is recommended that you follow option (1). It has early and strong manuscript support. Also, nearly every major English version follows this option. This recommendation is based on Swanson, p. 33; Greek NT UBS 4th ed.; Metzger, p. 111; and Exegetical Summaries on TW. The phrase on earth tells where the men will receive peace. It is parallel to “in the highest,” where God will receive praise. The phrase peace to men on whom His favor rests refers here to harmony between God and the people whom God favors. They are not in conflict.

Some ways to translate this part of the verse are:

he has peaceful relations on earth with people whom he favors

he and the people whom he favors on earth are in harmony/peace

peace: In Jewish cultures the word peace has a very broad meaning. It describes a situation of well-being that can include safety, wholeness, health, and prosperity. It often describes harmony and friendship between God and people or between individuals or groups of people. This harmony is in contrast to war, hostility, or conflict.

Some other ways to translate peace here are:

harmony

freedom

In English the word peace is a noun. In some languages it may be more natural to translate peace with a verb or in another way. For example:

be whole/free/peaceful

live peacefully/well

In many languages there may be an idiom to express this. See peace, Meaning 1, in the Glossary.

to men on whom His favor rests: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as men on whom His favor rests is literally “people of goodwill/favor.” The goodwill refers to God’s goodwill or favor toward people. So the phrase to men on whom His favor rests means “to people whom God favors/blesses.” Other ways to say this are:

in people whom God favors/blesses

for people with whom God is pleased

Parallel LUKE 2:14

Section 2:8–20: Angels announced to shepherds that the Savior was born

2:14

2:14a

2:14b