Word Pictures in the New Testament - David Cox

Word Pictures in the NT [Luke: Chapter 2]
2:19 {Kept} (\sunet•rei\). Imperfect active. She kept on keeping
together (\sun-\) all these things. They were meat and drink to
her. She was not astonished, but filled with holy awe. The verb
occurs from Aristotle on. She could not forget. But did not Mary
keep also a Baby Book? And may not Luke have seen it? {Pondering}
(\sunballousa\). An old Greek word. Placing together for
comparison. Mary would go over each detail in the words of
Gabriel and of the shepherds and compare the sayings with the
facts so far developed and brood over it all with a mother's high
hopes and joy.
2:21 {His name was called Jesus} (\kai ekl•th• to onoma autou
I•sous\). The \kai\ is left untranslated or has the sense of
"then" in the apodosis. The naming was a part of the ceremony of
circumcision as is shown also in the case of John the Baptist
(Lu 1:59-66).
2:22 {The days of their purification} (\hai h•merai tou
katharismou aut•n\). The old manuscripts have "their" (\aut•n\)
instead of "her" (\aut•s\) of the later documents. But it is not
clear whether "their" refers to Mary and Joseph as is true of
"they brought" or to Mary and the child. The mother was
Levitically unclean for forty days after the birth of a son (Le
12:1-8). {To present him to the Lord} (\parast•sai t•i Kuri•i\).
Every first-born son was thus redeemed by the sacrifice (Ex
13:2-12) as a memorial of the sparing of the Israelitish
families (Nu 18:15f.). The cost was about two dollars and a
half in our money.
2:23 {In the law of the Lord} (\en nom•i Kuriou\). No articles,
but definite by preposition and genitive. Vincent notes that
"law" occurs in this chapter five times. Paul (Gal 4:4) will
urge that Jesus "was made under the law" as Luke here explains.
The law did not require that the child be brought to Jerusalem.
The purification concerned the mother, the presentation the son.
2:24 {A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons} (\Zeugos
trugon•n • duo nossous perister•n\). The offspring of the poor,
costing about sixteen cents, while a lamb would cost nearly two
dollars. The "young of pigeons" is the literal meaning.
2:25 {Devout} (\eulab•s\). Used only by Luke (Ac 2:5; 8:2;
22:12) in the N.T. Common in ancient Greek from Plato on. It
means taking hold well or carefully (\eu\ and \labein\) and so
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