Luke 1:21 (YLT)

Passage

And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondering at his tarrying in the sanctuary,

Nearby Context

Luke 1:19 And the messenger answering said to him, `I am Gabriel, who have been standing near before God, and I was sent to speak unto thee, and to proclaim these good news to thee,

Luke 1:20 and lo, thou shalt be silent, and not able to speak, till the day that these things shall come to pass, because thou didst not believe my words, that shall be fulfilled in their season.'

Luke 1:21 And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and wondering at his tarrying in the sanctuary,

Luke 1:22 and having come out, he was not able to speak to them, and they perceived that a vision he had seen in the sanctuary, and he was beckoning to them, and did remain dumb.

Luke 1:23 And it came to pass, when the days of his service were fulfilled, he went away to his house,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "people", "waiting", "zacharias", "wondering", "tarrying", and "sanctuary". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "people" and "waiting", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "and lo thou shalt be silent and..." into verse 22's "and having come out he was not...", so "people" and "waiting" 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 "people" and "waiting" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.