1:21 Now 4 the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they began to wonder 5 why he was delayed in the holy place. 6 1:22 When 7 he came out, he was not able to speak to them. They 8 realized that he had seen a vision 9 in the holy place, 10 because 11 he was making signs to them and remained unable to speak. 12
1 tn Grk “according to the custom of the priesthood it fell to him by lot.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged in the translation to make it clear that the prepositional phrase κατὰ τὸ ἔθος τῆς ἱερατείας (kata to eqo" th" Jierateia", “according to the custom of the priesthood”) modifies the phrase “it fell to him by lot” rather than the preceding clause.
2 tn This is an aorist participle and is temporally related to the offering of incense, not to when the lot fell.
3 tn Or “temple.” Such sacrifices, which included the burning of incense, would have occurred in the holy place according to the Mishnah (m. Tamid 1.2; 3.1; 5-7). A priest would have given this sacrifice, which was offered for the nation, once in one’s career. It would be offered either at 9 a.m. or 3 p.m., since it was made twice a day.
4 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
5 tn The imperfect verb ἐθαύμαζον (eqaumazon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
6 tn Or “temple.” See the note on the phrase “the holy place” in v. 9.
7 tn Grk “And when.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
8 tn Grk “and they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
9 tn That is, “he had had a supernatural encounter in the holy place,” since the angel came to Zechariah by the altar. This was not just a “mental experience.”
10 tn Or “temple.” See the note on the phrase “the holy place” in v. 9.
11 tn Grk “and,” but the force is causal or explanatory in context.
12 tn Grk “dumb,” but this could be understood to mean “stupid” in contemporary English, whereas the point is that he was speechless.