Paragraph 1:80

1:80

In this verse Luke gave a summary statement about John’s childhood and youth. Your translation should indicate clearly that 1:80 returns to Luke’s account of events. It is not something that Zechariah said.

1:80a

And the child grew: The word child refers to John. He grew up and became a man.

became strong in spirit: The phrase became strong in spirit is literally “was being strengthened in spirit.” It means that as John grew, he became confident, courageous, and mature in his thinking and character.

1:80b

he lived in the wilderness until the time of his public appearance to Israel: John lived in the wilderness until the time when he began to preach publicly to the Israelites. He also continued to live in the wilderness while he was preaching to them. Translate in a way that will not imply that John stopped living in the wilderness after he began to preach publicly.

Another way to translate this is:

He lived in uninhabited areas when he grew up. Then he began to preach publicly to the people of Israel.

he lived in the wilderness: The word wilderness refers to a wild, desolate area where few people lived. It was often dry in this area, and so many English versions translate this word as “desert.” However, the focus of the word is that few people lived there, not that it was dry.

Other ways to translate this are:

he lived in an uninhabited area
-or-
he lived in a desolate area
-or-
he lived in an area where few people lived

the time of his public appearance to Israel: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as his public appearance refers to the time when John began to preach to the people of Israel. Great crowds of people then saw him and listened to him.

Some other ways to translate this are:

he began his public ministry to Israel (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
he began to preach publicly to the people of Israel

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