Sermon Bible Commentary - Luke 1:5
Luke 1:5 Man's Extremity God's Opportunity. Reflect: I. On the low ebb to which the fortunes of the house of Israel were reduced at the period when St. John the Baptist was miraculously born. The very language in which the sacred books are written, had long ceased to be a spoken language. The noble spirit of the ancient days had, in a great measure, died out. The very nationality of the Jews had been broken up. Mixed races inhabited Galilee; aliens dwelt in the cities of Samaria; Judea itself... read more
Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary - Luke 1:5-25
CRITICAL NOTESLuke 1:5. Herod, the king of Judæa.—He also ruled over Galilee, Samaria, and the greater part of Peræa. He was the son of Antipater, an Edomite, and had been imposed upon the Jewish nation by the Romans. The sovereignty of Herod and the enrolment under Cæsar Augustus (Luke 2:1) are indications of the fact that the sceptre had departed from Judah (Genesis 49:10), and that the appearance of the Messiah might now be looked for. A certain priest.—Not the high priest. Of the course of... read more