Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.
Parallel translations
- KJV And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
- BSB When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear.
- NKJV And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
- NASB Zechariah was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him.
- NLT Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Zacharias was startled and gripped with fear at the sight. Encountering the holy provokes awe.
Overview
Fear is a common human response to angelic and divine encounters throughout Scripture. Zacharias' reaction underscores the reality and weight of the moment. God graciously meets such fear with reassurance, as the next verse shows.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Judg 13:22Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God.”
- Judg 6:22Gideon saw that he was Yahweh’s angel; and Gideon said, “Alas, Lord Yahweh! Because I have seen Yahweh’s angel face to face!”
- Acts 10:4He, fastening his eyes on him, and being frightened, said, “What is it, Lord?” He said to him, “Your prayers and your gifts to the needy have gone up for a memorial before God.
- Luke 2:9–10Behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
- Rev 1:17When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me, saying, “Don’t be afraid. I am the first and the last,
- Dan 10:7I, Daniel, alone saw the vision; for the men who were with me didn’t see the vision; but a great quaking fell on them, and they fled to hide themselves.
- Mark 16:5Entering into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were amazed.
- Luke 1:29But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered what kind of salutation this might be.
- Job 4:14–15fear came on me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 1:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.