Greek Key Terms:
Context: Luke's birth narrative weaves together two miraculous conceptions: Elizabeth's (overcoming barrenness and age) and Mary's (overcoming virginity). The passage opens in v. 7 with the careful note about Zechariah and Elizabeth: "They had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years." This three-part description — childlessness, barrenness, old age — deliberately evokes Abraham and Sarah at the time of the original promise. Gabriel then announces to Zechariah in the temple (vv. 11-17) that Elizabeth will bear a son named John who will "go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah." Six months later, Gabriel appears to Mary (vv. 26-38) with a greater announcement: she, a virgin, will conceive through the Holy Spirit's overshadowing, and her son will be called "the Son of the Most High" (v. 32). Gabriel cites Elizabeth as evidence: "And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God" (vv. 36-37). Elizabeth's conception authenticates Mary's. The text directly echoes the LXX of Genesis 18:14, closing a canonical arc from Sarah through Hannah through Elizabeth to Mary.
OT-to-OT Development:
Connections:
Christological Connection: Elizabeth's barrenness overcome and Mary's virginity overcome are two stages of the same divine pattern — the God who "makes impossible things possible" bringing forth covenant children. John (born to the barren mother) is the forerunner; Jesus (born to the virgin) is the One for whom John prepares the way. The barren-mother trajectory reaches its climax in the virgin birth: if God can open barren wombs, He can cause a virgin to conceive. Both events answer Genesis 18:14's question.
The Gabriel-Mary dialogue is christologically loaded at every turn. The Son's titles cascade: "great" (v. 32), "the Son of the Most High" (v. 32), recipient of "the throne of His father David" (v. 32), King over "the house of Jacob forever" (v. 33), ruler of "a kingdom that will have no end" (v. 33), "holy" (v. 35), "the Son of God" (v. 35). These titles reach into the Davidic covenant (2 Samuel 7:12-16), the Isaianic child of Isaiah 9:6-7, Daniel's eternal kingdom (Daniel 7:14), and the Psalm 2 Son. The virgin birth is not an isolated miracle; it is the hinge on which all these OT promises swing into fulfillment.
The "nothing will be impossible with God" of v. 37 is a programmatic theological statement. It reaches backward to Sarah's dead womb and forward to Christ's resurrection. It is also the foundation of all NT expectation regarding regeneration, the resurrection of the body, the new creation, and the salvation of those who seem unreachable ("With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible," Matthew 19:26). Gabriel quotes Genesis 18:14 LXX not as decoration but as the thematic key to what is about to unfold through the entire Gospel: the God of impossibilities is acting decisively in the incarnation.
Elizabeth's role is both personal and theological. John's leaping in her womb at Mary's arrival (v. 41) is his first act of forerunner ministry — even in utero he points to Jesus. Elizabeth's Spirit-filled blessing — "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!" (v. 42) — is the Bible's first recorded witness to Jesus after the incarnation. The last OT barren mother confirms to the ultimate virgin mother that she has understood Gabriel rightly: God is doing the impossible through her.
The juxtaposition of Zechariah (who doubts and is silenced, vv. 18-20) and Mary (who questions but consents, vv. 34, 38) is theologically significant. Mary's "Let it be to me according to your word" (γένοιτό μοι κατὰ τὸ ῥῆμά σου) is the response every believer is called to give to God's promises. Her faith stands in the line of Sarah, Hannah, and Elizabeth — all women who eventually trusted the impossible word.
The already/not-yet framework: Elizabeth's conception and Mary's virgin conception are already accomplished history. Yet the kingdom Gabriel announces — "of His kingdom there will be no end" — is inaugurated in Christ's first coming but awaits consummation at His return.
ANTI-DEFAULT CHECK: Primary method is Typology (Providential, Backward-Looking) — Luke deliberately structures Elizabeth/Mary on the OT barren-mother pattern, with Elizabeth as the penultimate instance and Mary as the climactic fulfillment. Promise-Fulfillment is explicit — Gabriel's announcement cites the Davidic covenant, and Luke 1:37 cites Gen 18:14 LXX. Redemptive-Historical Progression is active — this is the hinge of the testaments. Not merely Analogy — the specific verbal echoes and formal annunciation structure go beyond principle.
Connection Method(s): Typology (Providential, Backward-Looking), Promise-Fulfillment — Elizabeth's barrenness overcome as the penultimate instance of the barren-mother pattern confirms Mary's virgin conception, with Luke 1:37 ("no word from God will ever fail") directly echoing Gen 18:14 LXX at the trajectory's climactic fulfillment; Gabriel's message to Mary invokes and fulfills the Davidic covenant.
Trajectory Table: 069 - Hannah (Barren Mother of Promise)