21. Ford (1984: 1–12) describes first-century Palestine as a “seething cauldron.”
22. Bond 2013: 380.
23. 1 Chr 24:6–19; Neh 12:1–7; Josephus Ant. 7.363–66.
24. Gen 15:6; Ps 17:15; Isa 32:17.
25. Gen 20:18; Lev 20:21.
26. Gen 29:31—30:23 (Rachel); 1 Sam 1:1–20 (Hannah); Judg 13:2–24 (Manoah and his wife).
27. Exod 29:38–42; 30:7–8; m. Tamid 5:1—7:3. So Hamm 2003: 220–21.
28. Fitzmyer 1981: 324–25.
29. Gen 21:17; Judg 6:23; Luke 1:30; 2:10.
30. In Luke John is identified with the eschatological Elijah of Mal 3, whereas the depiction of Jesus frequently contain allusions to the historical Elijah of 1–2 Kgs (e.g., 4:24–26; 7:11–17; 9:52–55). See Miller 2007: 1–16.
31. 1 En. 20:1–7; 40:1–10; T. Levi 3:5–8.
32. Sitting in the shadow of nearby Sepphoris, the capital of Galilee, Nazareth was small and poor. Cf. John 1:46.
33. Matt 1:18; m. Ketub. 4:5; Brown 1993: 123–24. Ancient betrothal was not analogous to the modern notion of engagement, it served an economic function for the two families to finalize the dowry (Hanson 2008: 31, 34–35).
34. Exod 4:22; Isa 63:16; 64:8; Jer 31:20.
35. Isa 9:6–7; 11:1–10; Jer 23:5; 33:15; Ezek 34:23–24; 37:24–25; Amos 9:11; Mic 5:2; Zech 6:12–13; 9:9–10; 4Q174 3 I, 11; 4Q252 V, 3–4; 4Q285 V, 2–4; 4 Ezra 12:32; Pss. Sol. 17–18.
36. Landry 1995: 72–76.
37. The Greek words eulogēmenē (1:42) and makaria (1:45) are both translated as “blessed” in the NRSV. Although eulogeō usually means “to give thanks,” it can denote blessedness (Mark 11:10).
38. In Luke, Jesus is called “Lord” by those who exhibit faith in him (5:8; 7:6; 9:54; 10:17, 40; 11:1; 12:41; 13:23; 18:41; 22:33, 38, 49). This may reflect the postresurrection perspective of the author and his audience.
39. Exod 15:1–21 (Moses and Miriam); Judg 5:1–31 (Deborah); 1 Chr 16:7–36 (Asaph).
40. Deut 10:17–18; Prov 3:34; Isa 2:11–12.
41. Evidence of such a practice is found in later Jewish literature (Nolland 1989: 79).
42. Jub. 11:15; Josephus J.W. 5.534; Josephus Ant. 14.10; 20.197.
43. Seth, Moab, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Onan, and Shelah were all named by their mothers (Gen 4:25; 19:26–37; 29:32–35; 38:4–5).
44. See p. 21, n. 20.
45. Gathercole (2005: 471–85) suggests that 1:78 further emphasizes the heavenly origin of the Davidic Messiah, who is traditionally expected to be a human figure.
46. Strauss 1995: 103–8.
Luke 2
Birth of Jesus (2:1–20)
When Gabriel announced the supernatural births of John and Jesus, Jesus’ superiority over John was already evident in the description of each child’s status and role.47 The same pattern is found in the account of each birth. For instance, the author locates John’s birth “in the days of King Herod of Judea” (1:5), but places Jesus’ birth on a much wider religio-political platform during the reign of Augustus Caesar and the governorship of Quirinius (2:1). Whereas friends and relatives spread the miraculous happenings surrounding John’s birth through the human grapevine (1:65), an angel announces the birth of Jesus (2:9). Over and above the Spirit-filled Zechariah who interprets the significance of John’s birth and prophesies over his newborn son (1:67–79), angelic hosts now declare the heavenly and earthly implications of the coming of God’s Son (1:13–14). Luke clearly elevates the status of Jesus above that of John. He includes details of Jesus’ dedication at the temple and the child’s return twelve years later. While John and Jesus are both key players in God’s plan of salvation, there is no mistaking the lesser as the greater, or confusing the forerunner with the long-awaited Messiah.48
Augustus Caesar, born Gaius Octavian, was the first of twelve Caesars in the Roman Empire of the first century. He was the grandnephew of Julius Caesar, who adopted him and made him his heir. After the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE, the Roman Republic crumbled until Octavian persevered over his rivals, unified the empire in 31 BCE, and inaugurated the golden era of the Pax Romana (“Roman Peace”). In 27 BCE, the Roman Senate conferred upon him the honorific title of Augustus, which not only meant eminent and majestic, but was suggestive of something numinous.49 After the posthumous deification of Julius Caesar, Augustus assumed the title Divi Filius (“son of the divine” or “son of a god”), paving the way for his own veneration in the imperial cult. Augustus died in 14 CE and was succeeded by his stepson Tiberius.50
Setting the birth of Israel’s king against the backdrop of Augustus’s reign, Luke makes a bold theological and political statement. There are ample literary, numismatic, archaeological, and inscriptional records to show that the titles “Savior,” “Ruler” (“Imperator”), “Son of God,” and “Father of the Fatherland” had all been used of Augustus.51 For us modern readers, when the angel refers to Jesus as “Savior” and “Lord” (2:11), we are reminded of God as “Savior” and “Lord” in the OT. But in the first century, every proclamation of Jesus in royal and