9 and lo, a messenger of the Lord stood over them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they feared a great fear.
and we all, with unvailed face, the glory of the Lord beholding in a mirror, to the same image are being transformed, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
and, confessedly, great is the secret of piety -- God was manifested in flesh, declared righteous in spirit, seen by messengers, preached among nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory!
And after these things I saw another messenger coming down out of the heaven, having great authority, and the earth was lightened from his glory,
because `it is' God who said, Out of darkness light `is' to shine, who did shine in our hearts, for the enlightening of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
at mid-day, I saw in the way, O king, out of heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me a light -- and those going on with me; and we all having fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew dialect, Saul, Saul, why me dost thou persecute? hard for thee against pricks to kick!
and it came to pass, in my going on and coming nigh to Damascus, about noon, suddenly out of the heaven there shone a great light round about me, I fell also to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why me dost thou persecute? `And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? and he said unto me, I am Jesus the Nazarene whom thou dost persecute -- and they who are with me the light did see, and became afraid, and the voice they heard not of him who is speaking to me --
and a messenger of the Lord through the night opened the doors of the prison, having also brought them forth, he said,
these things said Isaiah, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.
And the messenger having come in unto her, said, `Hail, favoured one, the Lord `is' with thee; blessed `art' thou among women;'
And on his thinking of these things, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream appeared to him, saying, `Joseph, son of David, thou mayest not fear to receive Mary thy wife, for that which in her was begotten `is' of the Holy Spirit,
Arise, be bright, for come hath thy light, And the honour of Jehovah hath risen on thee.
And revealed hath been the honour of Jehovah, And seen `it' have all flesh together, For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken.
And this one hath called unto that, and hath said: `Holy, Holy, Holy, `is' Jehovah of Hosts, The fulness of all the earth `is' His glory.' And the posts of the thresholds are moved by the voice of him who is calling, and the house is full of smoke. And I say, `Wo to me, for I have been silent, For a man -- unclean of lips `am' I, And in midst of a people unclean of lips I am dwelling, Because the King, Jehovah of Hosts, have my eyes seen.'
and the priests have not been able to stand to minister because of the cloud, for the honour of Jehovah hath filled the house of Jehovah.
And the messenger of Jehovah cometh and sitteth under the oak which `is' in Ophrah, which `is' to Joash the Abi-Ezrite, and Gideon his son is beating out wheat in the wine-press, to remove `it' from the presence of the Midianites; and the messenger of Jehovah appeareth unto him, and saith unto him, `Jehovah `is' with thee, O mighty one of valour.'
And the cloud covereth the tent of meeting, and the honour of Jehovah hath filled the tabernacle; and Moses hath not been able to go in unto the tent of meeting, for the cloud hath tabernacled on it, and the honour of Jehovah hath filled the tabernacle.
and it cometh to pass, when Aaron is speaking unto all the company of the sons of Israel, that they turn towards the wilderness, and lo, the honour of Jehovah is seen in the cloud.
and, (so terrible was the sight,) Moses said, `I am fearful exceedingly, and trembling.'
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Luke 2
Commentary on Luke 2 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 2
In this chapter, we have an account of the birth and infancy of our Lord Jesus: having had notice of his conception, and of the birth and infancy of his forerunner, in the former chapter. The First-begotten is here brought into the world; let us go meet him with our hosannas, blessed is he that cometh. Here is,
And this, with what we have met with (Mt. 1 and 2), is all we have concerning our Lord Jesus, till he entered upon his public work in the thirtieth year of his age.
Luk 2:1-7
The fulness of time was now come, when God would send forth his Son, made of a woman, and made under the law; and it was foretold that he should be born at Bethlehem. Now here we have an account of the time, place, and manner of it.
According to this decree, the Jews (who were now nice in distinguishing their tribes and families) provided that in their enrolments particular care should be had to preserve the memory of them. Thus foolishly are they solicitous to save the shadow, when they had lost the substance.
That which Augustus designed was either to gratify his pride in knowing the numbers of his people, and proclaiming it to the world, or he did it in policy, to strengthen his interest, and make his government appear the more formidable; but Providence had another reach in it. All the world shall be at the trouble of being enrolled, only that Joseph and Mary may. This brought them up from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judea, because they were of the stock and lineage of David (v. 4, 5); and perhaps, being poor and low, they thought the royalty of their extraction rather than a burden and expense to them than a matter of pride. Because it is difficult to suppose that every Jew (women as well as men) was obliged to repair to the city of which their ancestors were, and there be enrolled, now, at a time when they kept not to the bounds of their tribes, as formerly, it may be offered as a conjecture that this great exactness was used only with the family of David, concerning which, it is probable, the emperor gave particular orders, it having been the royal family, and still talked of as designed to be so, that he might know its number and strength. Divers ends of Providence were served by this.
Luk 2:8-20
The meanest circumstances of Christ's humiliation were all along attended with some discoveries of his glory, to balance them, and take off the offence of them; for even when he humbled himself God did in some measure exalt him and give him earnests of his future exaltation. When we saw him wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger, we were tempted to say, "Surely this cannot be the Son of God.' But see his birth attended, as it is here, with a choir of angels, and we shall say, "Surely this cannot be the Son of God.' But see his birth attended, as it is here, with a choir of angels, and we shall say, "Surely it can be no other than the Son of God, concerning whom it was said, when he was brought into the world, Let all the angels of God worship him,' Heb. 1:6.
We had in Matthew an account of the notice given of the arrival of this ambassador, this prince from heaven, to the wise men, who were Gentiles, by a star; here we are told of the notice given of it to the shepherds, who were Jews, by an angel: to each God chose to speak in the language they were most conversant with.
Luk 2:21-24
Our Lord Jesus, being made of a woman, was made under the law, Gal. 4:4. He was not only, as the son of a daughter of Adam, made under the law of nature, but as the son of a daughter of Abraham was made under the law of Moses; he put his neck under that yoke, though it was a heavy yoke, and a shadow of good things to come. Though its institutions were beggarly elements, and rudiments of this world, as the apostle calls them, Christ submitted to it, that he might with the better grace cancel it, and set it aside for us.
Now here we have two instances of his being made under that law, and submitting to it.
At his circumcision, according to the custom, he had his name given him; he was called Jesus or Joshua, for he was so named of the angel to his mother Mary before he was conceived in the womb (Lu. 1:31), and to his supposed father Joseph after, Mt. 1:21.
Luk 2:25-40
Even when he humbles himself, still Christ has honour done him to balance the offence of it. That we might not be stumbled at the meanness of his birth, angels then did him honour; and now, that we may not be offended at his being presented in the temple, like other children born in sin, and without any manner of solemnity peculiar to him, but silently, and in the crowd of other children, Simeon and Anna now do him honour, by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.
The account given of him here is,
Now,
Luk 2:41-52
We have here the only passage of story recorded concerning our blessed Saviour, from his infancy to the day of his showing to Israel at twenty-nine years old, and therefore we are concerned to make much of this, for it is in vain to wish we had more. Here is,