Luke 1:5

Luke 1:5

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

a. ASV: 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. [Thomas Nelson & Sons first published the American Standard Version in 1901. This translation of the Bible is in the public domain.]

b. 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;  [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. Classic Amplified: In the days when Herod was king of Judea there was a certain priest whose name was Zachariah, of the daily service (the division) of Abia; and his wife was also a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.  [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

d. Peshitta Eastern Text: There was in the days of Herod, king of Judaea, a priest whose name was Zacharias, of the order of ministry of the house of Abijah; and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. [HOLY BIBLE FROM THE ANCIENT EASTERN TEXT. Copyright  Ⓒ 1933 by A.J. Holmon Co.; copyright  Ⓒ renewed 1968 by A.J. Holmon Co.; All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.]

e. NLT: When Herod was king of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a member of the priestly order of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was also from the priestly line of Aaron.  [Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.]

1. “There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia…”

a. [There] was [Strong: 1096 gínomai, ghin'-om-ahee; a prolongation and middle voice form of a primary verb; to cause to be ("gen"-erate), i.e. (reflexively) to become (come into being), used with great latitude (literal, figurative, intensive, etc.):—arise, be assembled, be(-come, -fall, -have self), be brought (to pass), (be) come (to pass), continue, be divided, draw, be ended, fall, be finished, follow, be found, be fulfilled, + God forbid, grow, happen, have, be kept, be made, be married, be ordained to be, partake, pass, be performed, be published, require, seem, be showed, × soon as it was, sound, be taken, be turned, use, wax, will, would, be wrought.]

b. in [Strong: 1722 en, en; a primary preposition denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by implication) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between G1519 and G1537); "in," at, (up-)on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-)by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-)in(-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-)on, (open-)ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, (speedi-)ly, × that, × there(-in, -on), through(-out), (un-)to(-ward), under, when, where(-with), while, with(-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) preposition.]

c. the [Strong: 3588. [tais] ὁ ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tais] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.] [Additional variants: tē, hoi, oi, tēn, ta, tēs, tois, tais, tō, tōn, tou, Hē, hé  hē, hai, tas.]

d. days [Strong: 2250 hēméra, hay-mer'-ah; feminine (with G5610 implied) of a derivative of ἧμαι hēmai (to sit; akin to the base of G1476) meaning tame, i.e. gentle; day, i.e. (literally) the time space between dawn and dark, or the whole 24 hours (but several days were usually reckoned by the Jews as inclusive of the parts of both extremes); figuratively, a period (always defined more or less clearly by the context):—age, + alway, (mid-)day (by day, (-ly)), + for ever, judgment, (day) time, while, years.]

e. [of] Herod [Strong: 2264 Hērṓdēs, hay-ro'-dace; compound of ἥρως hḗrōs (a "hero") and G1491; heroic; Herod, the name of four Jewish kings:—Herod.]

1). The Outline of Biblical Usage was created by Larry Pierce, creator of the Online Bible, and is used with permission[By Blue Letter Bible].

a). Herod: the name of a royal family that flourished among the Jews in the times of Christ and the Apostles. Herod the Great was the son of Antipater of Idumaea. Appointed king of Judaea B.C. 40 by the Roman Senate at the suggestion of Antony and with the consent of Octavian, he at length overcame the great opposition which the country made to him and took possession of the kingdom B.C. 37; and after the battle of Actium, he was confirmed by Octavian, whose favour he ever enjoyed. He was brave and skilled in war, learned and sagacious; but also extremely suspicious and cruel. Hence he destroyed the entire royal family of Hasmonaeans, put to death many of the Jews that opposed his government, and proceeded to kill even his dearly beloved wife Mariamne of the Hasmonaean line and his two sons she had borne him. By these acts of bloodshed, and especially by his love and imitation of Roman customs and institutions and by the burdensome taxes imposed upon his subjects, he so alienated the Jews that he was unable to regain their favour by his splendid restoration of the temple and other acts of munificence. He died in the 70th year of his age, the 37th year of his reign, the 4th before the Dionysian era. In his closing years John the Baptist and Christ were born; Matthew narrates that he commanded all the male children under two years old in Bethlehem to be slain.

f. the [Strong: 3588. [tou] ὁ ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tou] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.] [Additional variants: tē, hoi, oi, tēn, ta, tēs, tois, tais, tō, tōn, tou, Hē, hé  hē, hai, tas.]

g. king [Strong: 935 basileús, bas-il-yooce'; probably from G939 (through the notion of a foundation of power); a sovereign (abstractly, relatively, or figuratively):—king.]

h. [of] judea [Strong: 2449 Ioudaía, ee-oo-dah'-yah; feminine of G2453 (with G1093 implied); the Judæan land (i.e. Judæa), a region of Palestine:—Judæa.]

i. [a] certain [Strong: 5100 tìs, tis; an enclitic indefinite pronoun; some or any person or object:—a (kind of), any (man, thing, thing at all), certain (thing), divers, he (every) man, one (X thing), ought, + partly, some (man, -body, - thing, -what), (+ that no-)thing, what(-soever), × wherewith, whom(-soever), whose(-soever).]

j. priest [Strong: 2409 hiereús, hee-er-yooce'; from G2413; a priest (literally or figuratively):—(high) priest.]

k. Zacharias [Strong: 2197 Zacharías, dzakh-ar-ee'-as; of Hebrew origin (H2148); Zacharias (i.e. Zechariah), the name of two Israelites:—Zacharias.]

l. of [Strong: 1537 ek, ek; a primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence action or motion proceeds), from, out (of place, time, or cause; literal or figurative; direct or remote):—after, among, × are, at, betwixt(-yond), by (the means of), exceedingly, (+ abundantly above), for(- th), from (among, forth, up), + grudgingly, + heartily, X heavenly, × hereby, + very highly, in, …ly, (because, by reason) of, off (from), on, out among (from, of), over, since, × thenceforth, through, × unto, × vehemently, with(-out).]

m. [the] course [Strong: 2183 ephēmería, ef-ay-mer-ee'-ah; from G2184; diurnality, i.e. (specially) the quotidian rotation or class of the Jewish priests' service at the Temple, as distributed by families:—course.]

n. [of] Abia [Strong: 7 Abiá, ab-ee-ah'; of Hebrew origin [H29]; Abijah, the name of two Israelites:—Abia.]

1). Alfred Edersheim, in his wonderful work, The Life And Times of Jesus The Messiah, says that the course of Abia occurred in our month of October. “It was the first week in October 748 A.U.C., that is, in the sixth year of our present era, when the ‘course of Abia—the eighth in the original arrangement of the weekly service—was on duty in the Temple.” Life and Times of Jesus  The Messiah, Book II, Chapter III.

a). As much as I have been blessed by the work of Alfred Edersheim, I have to disagree with him on his determinism on the timing of the course of Abia. Edersheim was a proponent of the December 25th date for the birth of Jesus, a date I agreed with for most of my Christian life but now do not. The reason is the fact that the Feasts of the Lord that God had given to the Jewish people were types and foreshadows of events in the New Covenant. 

b). Hebrews 10:1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

c). Colossians 2:16, 17 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

2). For well over 30 years of my Christian life I did not see the significance of the meaning of “the course of Abia”. It is a fact that if one was familiar with the Jewish calendar and the timing of the 24 courses of the priesthood as they were executed during the calendar, one could determine  approximately the conception of John the Baptist and following that the conception and the birth of Christ. There are some good teachings on the web that go through all of the necessary Scriptural information. I attempted to choose the easiest to understand. The material put forth by John J Parsons at Hebrew For Christians was easiest for me. The following is by John J. Parsons  at www.hebrew4christians.com.

a). As you will see, the crux of the arguments both for and against the late December dating of the birth of Yeshua depend upon the date assigned to the “course of Abia” and the precise time that Zacharias -- John the Baptist’s father -- was in the Temple when he was visited by the angel Gabriel. But what is the “course of Abia” and why is it important?

b). King David (1 Chr 28:11-13) divided the sons of Aaron into 24 “courses” or groups (1 Chr 24:1-4) to create an orderly schedule by which the Temple of the Lord could be staffed for the year. Once these courses were established, lots were drawn to determine the sequence each group would serve in the Temple (1 Chr 24: 7-19). Each of the 24 courses of priests would begin and end their service on the Sabbath for a tour of duty of one week (2 Chr 23:8, 1 Chr 9:25). The issue turns on the date assigned to the “course of Abia” and the precise time that Zacharias was in the Temple when he was visited by the angel Gabriel.

c). The Jewish calendar begins in the Spring (Nisan), so the first course of priests (Jehoiarib) would serve for seven days. The second week would then fall to the family of Jedaiah. The third week would be the festival of Passover, when all priests would be present for service, so the schedule would resume with the third course of priests (Harim) on the fourth week. By the tenth week, since both Passover and Shavu’ot had occurred, the 8th course of Abia (Abijah) would be called for temple service. By means of this arrangement, after the 24th course was completed, the cycle of courses would repeat, so that in a given year each group of priests would serve in the Temple twice per year (in addition to the three major festivals).

d). Argument for a Tishri (Sukkot) Birth: There are several reasons to believe that Yeshua was born during the Fall, in particular, during the festival of Sukkot. Among the reasons cited are as follows:

(1) Yeshua's cousin, John the Baptist, was conceived in mid Sivan (May/June) and born 40 weeks later on Nissan 15, the Passover.

(2) John's father (Zacharias) was a Levite who was assigned to serve in the temple

during the course of "Abia," the 8th course of the year. (Luke 1:5, 1 Chr 24:10)

(3) Since the cycle of service began on the first Shabbat of Nisan but both Passover and Shavu'ot require all priestly courses to serve, the actual time the 8th course would serve would be during the 10th week of the year. This places Zacharias' service in the Temple as beginning on the second Sabbath of the month of Sivan (May/June).

(4) It is written that John was conceived shortly after this tour of duty

(Luke 1:23-4). Therefore, John the Baptist was probably conceived shortly after

the third Sabbath of the month of Sivan (i.e., late Sivan).

(5) Therefore John the Baptist was born around Passover (Nisan 15). (Recall that

Yeshua said that John the Baptist was a type of Elijah the prophet (Matt 17:10-13, cp. Luke 1:17). (Even today it is customary for Jews to set out a special cup of wine during the Passover Seder meal in anticipation of the arrival of Elijah for the festival.)

(6) Yeshua was conceived in late Kislev (Nov/Dec) and born 40 weeks later during Sukkot.

(7) Yeshua was conceived six months after John the Baptist (Luke 1:24-27, 36). Note that the "sixth" month refers to Elizabeth's pregnancy, not the month of Elul (cp. Luke 1:36).

(8) Six months added to late Sivan is late Kislev, which is the time of the conception of Yeshua (note that the first day of the Jewish festival of Chanukah, the Festival of Lights, is celebrated on the 25th day of Kislev, and Yeshua is called the Light of the world (John 8:12, 9:5, 12:46)).

(9) From the 15th day of Nisan (John's birthday), we add six months to arrive at the 15th day of the 7th month, Tishri - the first day of the festival of Sukkot.

If the day of his birth were the first day of Sukkot, the day of his circumcision would be the eighth day, Shemini Atzeret/Sinchat Torah, which, like the first day, is a day of sacred assembly (Leviticus 23:39). On this day the Jews complete their annual cycle of Torah readings and start again from Bereshit (Genesis). Simchat Torah is considered to be a time of "fulfillment" of the Torah. The circumcision of Yeshua at this time indicates how he had come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 5:17-18).

(10) Summary: Since Zacharias served during the tenth week and Elizabeth conceived shortly thereafter, we can place the date of Yeshua' birth during the festival of Sukkot.

2. “...and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.”

a. and [Strong: 2532 kaí, kahee; apparently, a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also a cumulative force; and, also, even, so then, too, etc.; often used in connection (or composition) with other particles or small words:—and, also, both, but, even, for, if, or, so, that, then, therefore, when, yet.]

b.  his [Strong: 846 autós, ow-tos'; from the particle αὖ aû (perhaps akin to the base of G109 through the idea of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:—her, it(-self), one, the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy- )self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at, - by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man), those, together, very, which.]

c. wife [Strong: 1135 gynḗ, goo-nay'; probably from the base of G1096; a woman; specially, a wife:—wife, woman.]

d. [was] of [Strong: 1537 ek, ek; a primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence action or motion proceeds), from, out (of place, time, or cause; literal or figurative; direct or remote):—after, among, × are, at, betwixt(-yond), by (the means of), exceedingly, (+ abundantly above), for(- th), from (among, forth, up), + grudgingly, + heartily, X heavenly, × hereby, + very highly, in, …ly, (because, by reason) of, off (from), on, out among (from, of), over, since, × thenceforth, through, × unto, × vehemently, with(-out).]

e. the [Strong: 3588. [tōn] ὁ ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tōn] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.] [Additional variants: tē, hoi, oi, tēn, ta, tēs, tois, tais, tō, tōn, tou, Hē, hé  hē, hai, tas.]

f. daaughters [Strong: 2364 thygátēr, thoo-gat'-air; apparently a primary word (compare "daughter"); a female child, or (by Hebraism) descendant (or inhabitant):—daughter.]

g. [of] Aaron [Strong: 2 Aarṓn, ah-ar-ohn'; of Hebrew origin [H175]; Aaron, the brother of Moses:—Aaron.]

h. and [Strong: 2532 kaí, kahee; apparently, a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also a cumulative force; and, also, even, so then, too, etc.; often used in connection (or composition) with other particles or small words:—and, also, both, but, even, for, if, or, so, that, then, therefore, when, yet.]

i. her  [Strong: 846 autós, ow-tos'; from the particle αὖ aû (perhaps akin to the base of G109 through the idea of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:—her, it(-self), one, the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy- )self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at, - by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man), those, together, very, which.]

j. name [Strong: 3686 ónoma, on'-om-ah; from a presumed derivative of the base of G1097 (compare G3685); a "name" (literally or figuratively) (authority, character):—called, (+ sur-)name(-d).]

k. Elisabeth [Strong: 1665 Elisábet, el-ee-sab'-et; of Hebrew origin (H472); Elisabet, an Israelitess:—Elisabeth.]