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Read the Bible

Complete Jewish Bible

Luke 1:7

But they had no children, because Elisheva was barren; and they were both well along in years.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Barrenness;   Elisabeth (Elizabeth);   Joy;   Temple;   Zacharias (Zechariah);   Thompson Chain Reference - Childlessness;   Family;   Home;   Trouble;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Years;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Elisabeth;   John;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Elizabeth;   John the baptist;   Marriage;   Remnant;   Zechariah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Jerusalem;   John the Baptist;   Miracle;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Angel;   Union Hypostatical;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Barren;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Juttah;   Luke, the Gospel According to;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Barren, Barrenness;   Jesus, Life and Ministry of;   John;   Luke, Gospel of;   Mother;   Resurrection of Jesus Christ;   Zacharias;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - John the Baptist;   Vision;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Deaf and Dumb;   Elisabeth;   Lots ;   Priest (2);   Zacharias ;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Elisabeth ;   1910 New Catholic Dictionary - parable of the pharisee and the publican;   pharisee and publican;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Theophilus;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Elisabeth;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - John the Baptist;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - John, the Baptize;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Barren;   Child;   Priesthood in the New Testament;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - John the Baptist;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But they had no children because Elizabeth could not conceive, and both of them were well along in years.
King James Version (1611)
And they had no childe, because that Elizabeth was barren, and they both were now well striken in yeeres.
King James Version
And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
English Standard Version
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.
New American Standard Bible
And yet they had no child, because Elizabeth was infertile, and they were both advanced in years.
New Century Version
But they had no children, because Elizabeth could not have a baby, and both of them were very old.
Amplified Bible
But they were childless, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both far advanced in years.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.
Legacy Standard Bible
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.
Berean Standard Bible
But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both of them were well along in years.
Contemporary English Version
But they did not have children. Elizabeth could not have any, and both Zechariah and Elizabeth were already old.
Darby Translation
And they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.
Easy-to-Read Version
But they had no children. Elizabeth could not have a baby, and both of them were very old.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And they had no childe, because that Elisabet was barren: and both were well stricken in age.
George Lamsa Translation
But they had no son, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well on in years.
Good News Translation
They had no children because Elizabeth could not have any, and she and Zechariah were both very old.
Lexham English Bible
And they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren. And they were both advanced in years.
Literal Translation
And no child was born to them, because Elizabeth was barren. And both were advanced in their days.
American Standard Version
And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
Bible in Basic English
And they were without children, because Elisabeth had never given birth, and they were at that time very old.
Hebrew Names Version
But they had no child, because Elisheva was barren, and they both were well advanced in years.
International Standard Version
They had no children because Elizabeth was barren and because both of them were getting on in years.in their days
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Etheridge Translation
But they had no son because Elishaba was barren, and both had become many in their days.
Murdock Translation
But they had no child, because Elisabeth was barren: and they were both advanced in life.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And they had no chylde, because that Elizabeth was barren: and they both were nowe well stricken in age.
English Revised Version
And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
World English Bible
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were well advanced in years.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And they had no child, because Elisabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.
Weymouth's New Testament
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren; and both of them were far advanced in life.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And thei hadden no child, for Elizabeth was bareyn, and bothe weren of grete age in her daies.
Update Bible Version
And they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were [now] well stricken in years.
Webster's Bible Translation
And they had no child, because Elisabeth was barren, and they both were far advanced in years.
New English Translation
But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both very old.
New King James Version
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.
New Living Translation
They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old.
New Life Bible
They had no children because Elizabeth was not able to have a child. Both of them were older people.
New Revised Standard
But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and they had no child, inasmuch as Elizabeth was barren, and, both, had become, advanced in their days.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they had no son, for that Elizabeth was barren: and they both were well advanced in years.
Revised Standard Version
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And they had no chylde because that Elizabeth was barre and booth were well stricken in age.
Young's Literal Translation
and they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and both were advanced in their days.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And they had no childe, for Elizabeth was baren, and they were both well stricken in age.
Mace New Testament (1729)
they had no children, because Elizabeth was steril, and they were both advanced in years.
Simplified Cowboy Version
They were both timeworn, and Elizabeth had never gotten pregnant despite her and her husband's many prayers.

Contextual Overview

5 In the days of Herod, King of Y'hudah, there was a cohen named Z'kharyah who belonged to the Aviyah division. His wife was a descendant of Aharon, and her name was Elisheva. 6 Both of them were righteous before God, observing all the mitzvot and ordinances of Adonai blamelessly. 7 But they had no children, because Elisheva was barren; and they were both well along in years. 8 One time, when Z'kharyah was fulfilling his duties as cohen during his division's period of service before God, 9 he was chosen by lot (according to the custom among the cohanim) to enter the Temple and burn incense. 10 All the people were outside, praying, at the time of the incense burning, 11 when there appeared to him an angel of Adonai standing to the right of the incense altar. 12 Z'kharyah was startled and terrified at the sight. 13 But the angel said to him, "Don't be afraid, Z'kharyah; because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elisheva will bear you a son, and you are to name him Yochanan. 14 He will be a joy and a delight to you, and many people will rejoice when he is born,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

they had: Genesis 15:2, Genesis 15:3, Genesis 16:1, Genesis 16:2, Genesis 25:21, Genesis 30:1, Judges 13:2, Judges 13:3, 1 Samuel 1:2, 1 Samuel 1:5-8

well: Genesis 17:17, Genesis 18:11, 1 Kings 1:1, 2 Kings 4:14, Romans 4:19, Hebrews 11:11

Reciprocal: Genesis 11:30 - barren Genesis 24:1 - was old Genesis 29:31 - he opened Leviticus 20:20 - childless Joshua 13:1 - Joshua Luke 1:18 - for

Cross-References

Genesis 1:8
and God called the dome Sky. So there was evening, and there was morning, a second day.
Genesis 1:9
God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let dry land appear," and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:11
God said, "Let the earth put forth grass, seed-producing plants, and fruit trees, each yielding its own kind of seed-bearing fruit, on the earth"; and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:15
and let them be for lights in the dome of the sky to give light to the earth"; and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:24
(A: iii) God said, "Let the earth bring forth each kind of living creature — each kind of livestock, crawling animal and wild beast"; and that is how it was.
Genesis 1:28
God blessed them: God said to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the air and every living creature that crawls on the earth."
Genesis 1:29
Then God said, "Here! Throughout the whole earth I am giving you as food every seed-bearing plant and every tree with seed-bearing fruit.
Job 26:8
He binds up the water in his thick clouds, yet no cloud is torn apart by it.
Psalms 104:10
You make springs gush forth in the vadis; they flow between the hills,
Psalms 148:4
Praise him, highest heaven, and waters above the heavens!

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And they had no child,.... Son or daughter: and which was accounted a great infelicity: but this was not owing to the judgment of God upon them for any sins they had been guilty of, as the above character of them shows: and it had been the case of some righteous pairs before them for a great while, as Abraham and Sarah, Manoah, and his wile, Elkanah and Hannah:

because that Elizabeth was barren; so that it was peculiarly her case, and not Zacharias's: and though God had promised the people of Israel that there should be no male nor female barren among them, Deuteronomy 7:14 yet there were instances and exceptions to this general rule, as before mentioned, when it was the pleasure of God to make himself known, and magnify his power in the extraordinary conception and birth of any person; and therefore, though barrenness was reckoned a reproach to a person, there was, in this case, a particular hand of God, to answer a special purpose: the signs of sterility are, according to the Jews b, when a woman had not breasts as other women have, her voice gross, so that it could not be discerned, whether it was a man's or a woman's, c.

and they both were now well stricken in years which made the conception and birth of John the more extraordinary, and even

miraculous, and so the belief of it the more difficult; see Genesis 17:17 It may be literally rendered, "they had proceeded", or had far advanced "in their days": it is an "Hebraism", and answers to, באים בימים in

Genesis 18:11 where the Septuagint render it by the same phrase as here. The Mahometan writers Beidavi and Jallallo'din say c that Zacharias was "ninety nine" years of age, and his wife "eighty nine".

b T. Bab. Yebamot, fol. 80. 2. Maimon. & Bartenora. in Misn. Yebamot, c. 1. sect. 1. & Maimon. Hilch. Ishot, c. 2. sect. 6. c In Koran, c. 3.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Well stricken in years - Old or advanced in life, so as to render the prospect of having children hopeless.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Luke 1:7. Both were now well stricken in years. — By the order of God, sterility and old age both met in the person of Elisabeth, to render the birth of a son (humanly speaking) impossible. This was an exact parallel to the case of Sarah and Abraham, Genesis 11:30; Genesis 17:17. Christ must (by the miraculous power of God) be born of a virgin: whatever was connected with, or referred to, his incarnation must be miraculous and impressive. Isaac was his grand type, and therefore must be born miraculously - contrary to the common course and rule of nature: Abraham was a hundred years of age, Sarah was ninety, Genesis 17:17, and it had CEASED to be with Sarah AFTER THE MANNER OF WOMEN, Genesis 18:11, and therefore, from her age and state, the birth of a child must, according to nature, have been impossible; and it was thus; that it might be miraculous. John the Baptist was to be the forerunner of Christ; his birth, like that of Isaac, must be miraculous, because, like the other, it was to be a representation of the birth of Christ; therefore his parents were both far advanced in years, and besides, Elisabeth was naturally barren. The birth of these three extraordinary persons was announced nearly in the same way. God himself foretells the birth of Isaac, Genesis 17:16. The angel of the Lord announces the birth of John the Baptist, Luke 1:13; and six months after, the angel Gabriel, the same angel, proclaims to Mary the birth of Christ! Man is naturally an inconsiderate and incredulous creature: he must have extraordinary things to arrest and fix his attention; and he requires well-attested miracles from God, to bespeak and confirm his faith. Every person who has properly considered the nature of man must see that the whole of natural religion, so termed, is little else than a disbelief of all religion.


 
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