TheSacredScripture.org: Luke 1:67-80

Luke 1:67-80

67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,

68 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for He has visited and made redemption for His people,

69 and has raised··up a horn of salvation for us in the house of David His servant^◦,

70 as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from the ages,

71 Salvation from^◦ our enemies, and from^◦ the hand of all who hate us;

72 to do mercy with our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant;

73 the oath which He swore to Abraham our father,

74 that He would give to us, that we, being delivered^◦ out of the hand of our enemies, might serve^▵ Him without fear,

75 in sacredness and justice in· His ·sight, all the days of our life.

76 And thou, little··child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest; for^◦ thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways;

77 to give the knowledge of salvation to His people for the forgiveness of their sins,

78 through the tender mercy¹ of our God, by^◦ which the Dayspring² from^◦ on high has visited us;

79 to appear to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to direct^◦ our feet into the way of peace.

80 And^◦ the little··child³ grew, and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his appearing to Israel.

¹literally, “viscera or bowels of mercy” (see AC 6588:2, AE 622:10)

²The Greek word means “Sunrise” or “East.”

³The words “the little child” refer to John (AC 2708:9 and elsewhere), and in the internal sense, they also refer to the Lord (AC 1457, 1927).