Luke 1:8

Luke 1:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course,
• New International Version (NIV)Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God,
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,
• New King James Version (NKJV)So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division,

Context of Luke 1:8

6Zechariah and Elizabeth had God’s approval. They followed all the Lord’s commands and regulations perfectly. 7Yet, they never had any children because Elizabeth couldn’t become pregnant. Both of them were too old to have children. Zechariah was on duty with his division of priests. As he served in God’s presence, 9he was chosen by priestly custom to go into the Lord’s temple to burn incense. 10All the people were praying outside while he was burning incense.

Luke 1:8 word by word

Ἐγένετο δὲ ἐν τῷ ἱερατεύειν αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ τάξει τῆς ἐφημερίας αὐτοῦ ἔναντι τοῦ θεοῦ,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andδέde · thenG1161
• it came to passγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• that whileἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• heαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• executed the priest’s officeἱερατεύωhierateuō · to serve as priestG2407
• beforeἔναντιenanti · beforeG1725
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• the orderτάξιςtaxis · orderG5010
• courseἐφημερίαephēmeria · divisionG2183

Cross-references for Luke 1:8

• Exodus 28:1⌞The Lord continued,⌟ “Out of all the Israelites, bring your brother Aaron and his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar to you. They will serve me as priests.
• Exodus 29:1⌞The Lord continued,⌟ “Now, this is what you must do in order to set Aaron and his sons apart to serve me as priests: “Take a young bull that has no defects and two rams that have no defects.
• Exodus 30:30Anoint Aaron and his sons as well. In this way you will set them apart for their holy duties of serving me as priests.
• Numbers 18:7Only you and your sons may do the work of priests—everything done at the altar and under the canopy. This is my gift to you: You may serve me as priests. Anyone else who comes near ⌞the holy place to do this work⌟ must die.”
• 1 Chronicles 24:2Nadab and Abihu died before their father died, and neither had any children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.
• 2 Chronicles 11:14The priests abandoned their land and property and went to Judah and Jerusalem because Jeroboam and his descendants rejected them as the Lord’s priests.
• Luke 1:5When Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the division of priests named after Abijah. Zechariah’s wife Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron.
• 1 Chronicles 24:19These were their priestly groups when they went to serve at the Lord’s temple. Their ancestor Aaron made these rules for them, as the Lord God of Israel had commanded him.
• 2 Chronicles 8:14As Solomon’s father David had directed, he set up the divisions of priests for their service and the ⌞divisions of⌟ Levites for their appointed places. ⌞The Levites⌟ were to lead in praising ⌞the Lord⌟ and to serve beside the priests by doing whatever needed to be done each day. Solomon also set up divisions of doorkeepers at every gate because this is what David, the man of God, had commanded.
• 2 Chronicles 31:2Hezekiah assigned the priests and the Levites to divisions. Each priest or Levite was put in a division based on the service he performed: sacrificing burnt offerings, sacrificing fellowship offerings, serving, giving thanks, or praising within the gates of the Lord’s camp.
• Ezra 6:18The priests were assigned to their divisions and the Levites to their groups ⌞to lead⌟ the worship of God in Jerusalem by following the directions written in the Book of Moses.

Commentaries on Luke 1:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8Before God - In the temple, where God used to manifest his presence, though long before this time he had forsaken it; yet, on this important occasion, the angel of his presence had visited it.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Before God - In the temple, where God dwelt by the symbols of His presence. The temple was regarded by the Jews as the “house” or dwelling of God; and in the “first” temple there was, in the most holy place, a “cloud” called the Shechinah, or a visible sign of the presence of God. It was thus “before God” that Zechariah offered incense.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-25Verses 5-25 The father and mother of John the Baptist were sinners as all are, and were justified and saved in the same way as others; but they were eminent for piety and integrity. They had no children, and it could not be expected that Elisabeth should have any in her old age. While Zacharias was burning incense in the temple, the whole multitude of the people were praying without. All the prayers we offer up to God, are acceptable and successful only…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9Zechariah's division was on duty … he was chosen by lot: It was common in Old Testament times to cast lots (similar to throwing dice) to determine God’s will (1 Chronicles 26:13–16; Nehemiah 11:1; Proverbs 16:33; Jonah 1:7). There were 24 orders of priests that took turns serving in the temple (1 Chronicles 24:1–19). They cast lots to choose which priest would serve in the sanctuary of the temple. There were many priests, so this honor might come only…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-255. Herod--(See on Mt 2:1). course of Abia--or Abijah; the eighth of the twenty-four orders of courses into which David divided the priests (see 1Ch 24:1, 4, 10). Of these courses only four returned after the captivity (Ezr 2:34-39), which were again subdivided into twenty-four--retaining the ancient name and order of each. They took the whole temple service for a week each. his wife was of the daughters of Aaron--The priests might marry into any tribe…Read the comment

Topics related to Luke 1:8

• Barrenness
• Elisabeth (Elizabeth)
• Joy
• Priest
• Temple
• Zacharias (Zechariah)

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Begin
• Certainty
• Conceive
• Estate
• Hail!
• Ministration
• Noise
• Righteousness

Commentaries on Luke 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings