^1:61They¹⁸⁵ said to her, “But¹⁸⁶ none of your relatives bears this name.”¹⁸⁷^1:62So¹⁸⁸ they made signs to the baby’s¹⁸⁹ father,¹⁹⁰ inquiring what he wanted to name his son.¹⁹¹^1:63He¹⁹² asked for a writing tablet¹⁹³ and wrote,¹⁹⁴ “His name is John.” And they were all amazed.¹⁹⁵

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Footnotes

185 Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
186 The word “but” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
187 Grk “There is no one from your relatives who is called by this name.”
188 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action described.
189 Grk “his”; the referent (the baby) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
190 The crowd was sure there had been a mistake, so they appealed to the child’s father. But custom was not to be followed here, since God had spoken. The fact they needed to signal him (made signs) shows that he was deaf as well as unable to speak.
191 Grk “what he might wish to call him.”
192 Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
193 The writing tablet requested by Zechariah would have been a wax tablet.
194 Grk “and wrote, saying.” The participle λέγων (legōn) is redundant is English and has not been translated.
195 The response, they were all amazed, expresses a mixture of surprise and reflection in this setting where they were so certain of what the child’s name would be.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then they said to her, “None of your relatives has that name.” So they motioned to his father to find out what he wanted him to be called. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they were all amazed.

NLTNew Living Translation

“What?” they exclaimed. “There is no one in all your family by that name.” So they used gestures to ask the baby’s father what he wanted to name him. He motioned for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s surprise he wrote, “His name is John.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And they said to her, “There is no one of your relatives who is called by this name.” So they made signs to his father asking what he wanted him to be named, and he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, saying, “John is his name.” And they were all astonished.

KJV 1900King James Version

And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.

Public Domain