Zechariah and Elizabeth
TRANSLATION
(5) In the time of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zachariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. (6) And they both were righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. (7) But they had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive. And they both were quite old.
(8) Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as a priest before God, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord to burn incense according to the custom of the priesthood. (10) And all the assembled worshipers were praying outside when the time for burning incense came. (11) And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. (12) When Zachariah saw him he was startled and filled with fear. (13) But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zachariah, for your prayer has been heard. And your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you will call his name John. (14) And you will be joyful and (full of) gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, (15) for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. And he must not drink wine nor strong drink, for he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb. (16) And he will turn many of the people of Israel back to the Lord their God. (17) And he will go on before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
(18) Then Zachariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this, for I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years?” (19) And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel who stands in the presence of God. I was sent to speak to you to bring you this good news. (20) And now you will be mute, unable to speak until the day when these things take place because you did not believe my words which will take place at their appointed time.” (21) And the people waiting for Zachariah wondered why he was delayed in the temple. (22) And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept on making signs to them and remained unable to speak. (23) And when the days of his (priestly) service were completed, he returned home.
(24) And soon after Elizabeth, his wife, conceived, and she remained secluded for five months saying, (25) “The Lord has done this for me. In these days he has shown me favor and has taken away my disgrace among the people.”
OBSERVATIONS
Luke’s narrative began with a detailed account of the birth of Jesus’ forerunner, John the Baptist, whom some have called “the last of the Old Testament prophets.” Repetitions again lead us to the emphases of these verses. Apart from proper names, “priest” is found twice (vss. 5 & 8) as is the phrase, “before God,” (vss. 6 & 8). “Incense” occurred in three consecutive verses (vss. 9, 10, & 11) while “angel,” referring to Gabriel, was used four times (vss. 11, 13, 18, & 19). “Turn” is found twice (vss. 16 & 17), and three words describing God’s judgment of Zechariah for his unbelief occurred in the second part of the segment: “be silent” (vs. 20), “unable to speak” (vss. 20 & 22), and “mute” (vs. 22).
OUTLINE
I. The parents of John the Baptist, Zechariah and Elizabeth, were introduced. (5-7)
II. Gabriel appeared to Zechariah in the temple to announce that his wife would have a son. (8-17)
III. Because of unbelief, Zechariah could not speak until John was born. (18-23)
IV. Elizabeth became pregnant just as the Lord had said. (24 & 25)
IDEA STATEMENT
When we respond with skepticism to what God tells us, we place ourselves in danger of experiencing his chastisement.
APPLICATION
The appearance of an angelic messenger was a rare occurrence in the ancient world of the Old and New Testaments. In this opening chapter, Luke described Gabriel making two of these unusual visitations and receiving vastly different responses. In the first visit, the priest, Zechariah, was clearly unsettled by Gabriel’s appearing inside the temple while he was carrying out his priestly duties. His initial reaction to the angel’s message that his barren wife would, at long last, have a son was to doubt the truth of what he was hearing. Due to his unbelief, God rendered him mute, unable to utter a word until John was born.
Gabriel’s second appearance to Mary in her home produced a different response. While Jesus’ mother-to-be at first wondered how she would become pregnant while remaining a virgin, she immediately accepted the brief explanation Gabriel gave her and willingly submitted herself to the plan of God with the statement, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word.” Her response of faith has inspired believers of every generation since.
Someone has characterized humanity as falling into two groups, those who see life as a glass half empty and those who see it as a glass half full. In essence we are either pessimists or optimists. While this may be a gross oversimplification, it still rings true. How much better when we embrace God’s unexpected surprises with faith like Mary rather than with unbelief and skepticism like Zechariah!