New Living Translation
Luke 2:9
9Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified,
Luke 2:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
- New International Version (NIV)An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
Context of Luke 2:9
7She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. 8That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
Read all of Luke 2Luke 2:9 word by word
καὶ ἄγγελος κυρίου ἐπέστη αὐτοῖς, καὶ δόξα κυρίου περιέλαμψεν αὐτούς, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν φόβον μέγαν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·φόβοςphobos · fearG5401
- Andκαίkai · andG2532
- loὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
- the angelἄγγελοςaggelos · angelG32
- of the Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
- came uponἐφίστημιephistēmi · to approachG2186
- themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- the gloryδόξαdoxa · gloryG1391
- shone round aboutπεριλάμπωperilampō · to shine aroundG4034
- they wereφοβέωphobeō · to fearG5399
- soreμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
Cross-references for Luke 2:9
- Luke 1:11While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar.
- Judges 6:11Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.
- Matthew 1:20As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.
- Acts 27:23For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me,
- 1 Timothy 3:16Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith: Christ was revealed in a human body and vindicated by the Spirit. He was seen by angels and announced to the nations. He was believed in throughout the world and taken to heaven in glory.
- Exodus 16:7In the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your complaints, which are against him, not against us. What have we done that you should complain about us?”
- Exodus 40:34Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.
- 1 Kings 8:11The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple of the Lord.
- Isaiah 6:3They were calling out to each other, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies! The whole earth is filled with his glory!”
- Isaiah 35:2Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon, as lovely as Mount Carmel or the plain of Sharon. There the Lord will display his glory, the splendor of our God.
- Isaiah 40:5Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The Lord has spoken!”
- Isaiah 60:1“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you.
- Ezekiel 3:23So I got up and went, and there I saw the glory of the Lord, just as I had seen in my first vision by the Kebar River. And I fell face down on the ground.
- John 12:41Isaiah was referring to Jesus when he said this, because he saw the future and spoke of the Messiah’s glory.
- 2 Corinthians 3:18So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.
- 2 Corinthians 4:6For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.
Commentaries on Luke 2:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9The angel of the Lord came upon them - Or, stood over them, . It is likely that the angel appeared in the air at some little distance above them, and that from him the rays of the glory of the Lord shone round about them, as the rays of light are projected from the sun. They were sore afraid - Terrified with the appearance of so glorious a being, and probably fearing that he was a messenger of justice, coming to denounce Divine judgments, or punish them…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9The glory of the Lord - This is the same as a “great” glory - that is, a splendid appearance or “light.” The word “glory” is often the same as light, 1 Corinthians 15:41; Luke 9:31; Acts 22:11. The words “Lord” and “God” are often used to denote “greatness” or “intensity.” Thus, “trees of God” mean great trees; “hills of God,” high or lofty hills, etc. So “the glory of the Lord” here means an exceedingly great or bright luminous appearance perhaps not…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-20Verses 8-20 Angels were heralds of the new-born Saviour, but they were only sent to some poor, humble, pious, industrious shepherds, who were in the business of their calling, keeping watch over their flock. We are not out of the way of Divine visits, when we are employed in an honest calling, and abide with God in it. Let God have the honour of this work; Glory to God in the highest. God's good-will to men, manifested in sending the Messiah, redounds to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9-10terrified: Like Zechariah and Mary, the angel's presence was both glorious and frightening. The angel told the shepherds, "Do not be afraid!" (compare 1:11–13, 28–30). I bring you good news: This Greek verb (euangelizō, meaning “to bring good news”) comes from the same root as the word euangelion (“good news” or “gospel”). In the Berean Standard Bible, euangelion is often translated as “gospel” (for example, Galatians 2:5, 7, 14). Isaiah’s prophecies…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. glory of the Lord--"the brightness or glory which is represented as encompassing all heavenly visions" [Olshausen]. sore afraid--So it ever was (Da 10:7, 8; Lu 1:12; Re 1:17). Men have never felt easy with the invisible world laid suddenly open to their gaze. It was never meant to be permanent; a momentary purpose was all it was intended to serve.Read the comment
Topics related to Luke 2:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Luke 2
- 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
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