Luke 2:17 (WEB)

Passage

When they saw it, they publicized widely the saying which was spoken to them about this child.

Nearby Context

Luke 2:15 When the angels went away from them into the sky, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem, now, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

Luke 2:16 They came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby was lying in the feeding trough.

Luke 2:17 When they saw it, they publicized widely the saying which was spoken to them about this child.

Luke 2:18 All who heard it wondered at the things which were spoken to them by the shepherds.

Luke 2:19 But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "publicized", "widely", "saying", "spoken", and "child". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "publicized" and "widely", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "They came with haste and found both..." into verse 18's "All who heard it wondered at the...", so "publicized" and "widely" 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 "publicized" and "widely" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.