Luke 1:17 (LSB)

Passage

And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Nearby Context

Luke 1:15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will not drink any wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb.

Luke 1:16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.

Luke 1:17 And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Luke 1:18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”

Luke 1:19 And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands before God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "Spirit", "before", "power", "elijah", "turn", "hearts", "fathers", and "back". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "Spirit" and "before", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "And he will turn many of the..." into verse 18's "And Zechariah said to the angel How...", so "Spirit" and "before" belong inside that flow. In Luke context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "Spirit" and "before" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.