He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Luke spoke often of the people (Gr. laos) that God was preparing for Himself. These people prepared for the Lord included Jewish hearers but also those who formerly were not "a people" (1 Peter 2:10), namely, the Gentiles. They are the elect who would compose the church. With this word Luke constantly reminded his original Greek readers that God’s plan included Gentiles who responded to the gospel as well as Jews.