Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

The Magnificat: Mary’s Song of Praise

46 Mary responded,

“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.

47 How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!

48 For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,

and from now on all generations will call me blessed.

49 For the Mighty One is holy,

and he has done great things for me.

50 He shows mercy from generation to generation

to all who fear him.

51 His mighty arm has done tremendous things!

    He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.

52 He has brought down princes from their thrones

    and exalted the humble.

53 He has filled the hungry with good things

    and sent the rich away with empty hands.

54 He has helped his servant Israel

    and remembered to be merciful.

55 For he made this promise to our ancestors,

    to Abraham and his children forever.”

56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

The Birth of John the Baptist

57 When it was time for Elizabeth’s baby to be born, she gave birth to a son. 58 And when her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had been very merciful to her, everyone rejoiced with her.

59 When the baby was eight days old, they all came for the circumcision ceremony. They wanted to name him Zechariah, after his father. 60 But Elizabeth said, “No! His name is John!”

61 “What?” they exclaimed. “There is no one in all your family by that name.” 62 So they used gestures to ask the baby’s father what he wanted to name him. 63 He motioned for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s surprise he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Instantly Zechariah could speak again, and he began praising God.

65 Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread throughout the Judean hills. 66 Everyone who heard about it reflected on these events and asked, “What will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way.

Zechariah’s Prophecy

67 Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:

68 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,

    because he has visited and redeemed his people.

69 He has sent us a mighty Savior[h]

    from the royal line of his servant David,

70 just as he promised

    through his holy prophets long ago.

71 Now we will be saved from our enemies

    and from all who hate us.

72 He has been merciful to our ancestors

    by remembering his sacred covenant—

73 the covenant he swore with an oath

    to our ancestor Abraham.

74 We have been rescued from our enemies

    so we can serve God without fear,

75 in holiness and righteousness

    for as long as we live.

76 “And you, my little son,

    will be called the prophet of the Most High,

    because you will prepare the way for the Lord.

77 You will tell his people how to find salvation

    through forgiveness of their sins.

78 Because of God’s tender mercy,

    the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,[i]

79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,

    and to guide us to the path of peace.”

80 John grew up and became strong in spirit. And he lived in the wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.

LUKE 1:39-80, NLT

Practice the pause!

Lean into the fact that, if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you have the Holy Spirit living inside of you. In moments where negative thoughts or reactions try to rise to the surface, lean into the Holy Spirit and allow the Spirit to lead you.

Great job finishing Day 2 of our Journey Through Luke! Keep going and make sure to set a daily reminder on your phone to stay consistent!