Luke 1:63

63 And he asking a stylus [a pointel], wrote, saying, John is his name. And all men wondered.

Luke 1:63 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 1:63

And he asked for a writing table
That is, he made signs for one, for as yet he could not speak. The Persic version renders it "ink", and the Ethiopic, a book, and the Vulgate Latin, a notebook. The word signifies "a little table", such as they used to write not only "upon", but "in"; and was sometimes of brass ^F20, sometimes of wood, and sometimes of wax ^F21, on which they wrote with a style or pen;

and wrote, saying, his name is John:
not that he must be, or shall be, so called; but this is his name, and no other; being what the angel had given him before his conception, and Zacharias now confirms:

and they marvelled all;
they were astonished, not so much at the new name brought into the family, as at the agreement between Elisabeth and Zacharias in this point, when the latter was both deaf and dumb; they knowing nothing, as yet, of the angel's message to him.

---

FOOTNOTES:

F20 Haryocration. Lex. p. 244.
F21 Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 2. c. 30.

Luke 1:63 In-Context

61 And they said to her, For no man is in thy kindred, that is called [by] this name.

62 And they beckoned to his father, what he would that he were called. [Soothly they made a sign to his father, whom he would him to be called.]

63 And he asking a stylus [a pointel], wrote, saying, John is his name. And all men wondered.

64 And at once his mouth was opened [Forsooth his mouth was opened anon], and his tongue, and he spake, and blessed God.

65 And dread was made on all their neighbours, and all these words were published on all the mountains of Judaea [on all the hilly places of Judaea].