IN THE TIME of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly. 7But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.
8Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.
11Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. 16Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
18Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”
19The angel answered, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time.”
21Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. 22When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.
23When his time of service was completed, he returned home. 24After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 25“The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”
Original Meaning
LUKE BEGINS HIS story by placing it in an established historical setting—the reign of Herod the Great (37–4 B.C.). The NIV’s language “in the time” is a smooth rendering for the Greek “in those days,” which is adapted from the scriptural language of the Greek Old Testament, the LXX (Judg. 13:2; Judith 1:1; Tobit 1:2).1 Herod had done much building up of the nation, receiving his commission from Mark Antony in 40 B.C. and returning to Judea to rule in 37 B.C. When the angel appears to Zechariah (Luke 1:11), we are near the end of his reign (5–4 B.C.).
The announcement of the birth of John the Baptist has three aspects to it: the revelation that God has a plan to direct the affairs of humanity and restore his relationship to it, the outline of the career of John himself, and the interplay of the living drama of disappointment in the lives of righteous people, as these “blameless” servants of God had lived with the reality and frustration of being childless. All three themes are central to the original message.
In his goodness, God picks an important moment in the career of Zechariah to make his divine move. As a priest he served at the temple for two one-week periods a year.2 He was a member of one of twenty-four divisions in the first-century priesthood (Josephus, Life 1 § 2; Antiquities 7.14.7 §§ 363–67), one of approximately 18,000 priests.3 More specifically, he was a member of the eighth order, Abijah (1 Chron. 24:10). A priest only officiated at the sacrifice once in his life, having been selected by lot (m. Tamid 5:2–6:3). The setting is one of two times for daily prayer set aside at the temple (9 A.M. or 3 P.M.); it is the time of the “perpetual offering” (Ex. 29:38–42). The angel appears as Zechariah places the incense on the altar (Luke 1:11). At this high moment, God begins to work in a fresh way to redeem humankind by revealing his sending of the forerunner of the One who would take sin away from the world. How appropriate to pick a moment of worship and a time when people recognized their need for cleansing from sin!
The initial encounter produces terror in Zechariah, though that is not uncommon when one senses that God or an agent of his is present (Ex. 15:16; Judg. 6:22–23; Isa. 6:5; Dan. 8:16–17). After comforting Zechariah, the angel announces why he has come. His name, Gabriel (v. 19; cf. Dan. 8:15–16; 9:21; Tobit 12:15; 1 Enoch 40:9), probably means “God is my hero,” though Luke makes nothing of the name.4
God’s plan in the Old Testament had Israel at its hub. She would be the “model people” through whom God would show his grace (Gen. 12:1–3). Luke continues to use language and imagery drawn from the Old Testament as he tells the story of Zechariah and John the Baptist. The birth of this child is similar to other births to formerly barren wives or other announcements of the birth of a special child (Gen. 16:10–11; 17:15–17; 18:10–15; 25:23; Judg. 13:3–21). Telling the story in this manner indicates that God has renewed his work among his people. His plan is once again being taken up in a direct and active way. The story of John the Baptist and of the One who follows him is a resumption of the sacred story of God’s activity.
John has a special place in that plan. This prophet will live an ascetic lifestyle, like the special people of God who took vows to show their devotion to God. He may drink no strong drink. Since most in that culture, including the righteous, did drink some wine, this command indicates John’s special level of dedication to God (cf. Eph. 5:17–18; cf. Deut. 14:26; 29:6 [29:5 MT]; Prov. 20:1; 23:20–21, 29–35; 31:6). This is likely not a Nazirite vow, however, since there is no mention of not cutting his hair. Gabriel notes that this prophet will have the responsibility to “go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah” (Luke 1:17) and will “bring back [the people of Israel] to the Lord their God” (v.16).
The angel is alluding here to Malachi 3:1 and 4:5 [MT 3:24] (cf. Sirach 48:1). Going before the Lord describes John as a prophet of the period of restoration of the promise. His preparation for the Lord refers to God’s powerful coming through his agent, Jesus (Luke 3:15–18). God is the subject because Jesus has not even been mentioned yet. “To turn hearts” and “make ready a people” reflects John’s call for repentance as he turns the nation’s attention back to God and to righteousness (“turning” is a standard Old Testament metaphor for repentance; cf. Deut. 30:2; Hos. 3:5; 7:10).5 “A people prepared for the Lord” recalls Isaiah 40:3. For God to lead his people effectively, they must be ready to respond to him. To get them ready for the new era was John’s call; he proclaimed reconciliation within families as sons and fathers are turned to one another.
The third element in this passage is the personal story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. These righteous people have lived with deep disappointment, never having the child they longed for—what Elizabeth even calls a “disgrace” (v. 25). The personal story is clearly drawn by the personal description at the start of the passage. Both husband and wife are “upright” people (v. 6; cf. Deut. 6:25; 24:13; Ps. 106:31),6 and their situation is thus not the result of personal sin. Sometimes righteous people do have disappointments in life. The two in this story have prayed about their situation (that seems to be one aspect of their prayer being answered, v. 13), when the angel announces the coming of a child. This promised child answers two prayers at the same time: for a child in the house of Zechariah, and for God to work redemption in the nation. God is often able to work simultaneously personally and corporately.
But Zechariah and Elizabeth represent two different kinds of righteous people. Zechariah raises doubts about the angel’s message, for the prospective parents are now beyond normal childbearing age (v. 18). Sometimes even good people have doubts about God’s promise. The angel tells Zechariah in effect, “Just be quiet for awhile and watch God work.” So a sign of silence is given until God performs his word. Zechariah becomes temporarily mute until these things come to pass.7 This sign is a pointer to the major lesson of this passage: God will bring his promise to pass. He will perform his word. Zechariah must listen to God and trust that he will do what he has promised. When Zechariah departs and is unable to give the customary blessing (m. Tamid 7:2; cf. Num. 6:24–26), the crowd knows something unusual has taken place. Verse 22 adds a note of drama to the account.
Elizabeth pictures the righteous saint who takes her burden to God and rejoices when that burden is lifted. Such action by God is treated as gracious, since God “has shown his favor” (v. 25; cf. Gen. 21:6; 30:23, where praise is offered for the provision of a child). God did not owe her this response. Yet Elizabeth does not react as a victim who has been bitter at God for her lack of a child. In fact, she seems to have accepted this fate and served God faithfully anyway. Thus, when the burden is removed, she rejoices as the object of God’s personal concern.
Bridging Contexts
A FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION about applying biblical narrative must be raised with this first narrative. How does one take material from the unique culture of the first century, which involves unique events in the plan of God, and study them for current understanding about what God would have us do? The answer comes at three levels. (1) We can study the character of God. These texts reveal God at work, and we can see how God approaches people, whether they are among the faithful or not.
(2) We can study the characters in the narratives. They describe real historical people, but they also represent certain kinds of people who find themselves in a variety of positions. We see ourselves in them or in other people we know. In this way Scripture instructs us. We learn lessons from how they respond and whether they respond well or poorly. In this process of application, we must be careful where texts are like and unlike our own world. I will attempt to make clear in this commentary where links to the present are clean, where they are implied, and where they should not be made and why.
(3) A special point to consider are attitudes that the text draws us toward or away from possessing. Luke may describe a character’s state of mind, or he will summarize at the end of a unit the mood that closes the event. The attitudes may come in a monologue, a dialogue of the characters, or their direct address of God. We must also pay attention to whether a character is portrayed as reliable or has doubts raised about his or her credibility. Part of this reading requires us to have some understanding of the perspectives and responses that fit the first-century setting, since cultures differ from one another in expectation. I will therefore highlight cultural expectations by citing extrabiblical evidence from the cultural and/or religious milieu of the first century, to get a clue as to how people viewed certain situations.8 Such sources do not possess inspired authority, but they do reveal how people in Bible times lived and saw things. All of these observations are part of reading narrative and understanding history carefully, so that an ancient text’s message can be discerned.
To tell the story of salvation as it occurred in the past is to tell the basis of what God does with humanity today. So the plan of God and the role John the Baptist plays are indications of the detail God took in reaching out to save humanity. He did not just send a Savior; he sent someone to point the way to him. God often leaves indicators that he is at work, if we just keep our eyes and hearts open for them. Rarely does he just show up. In addition, the Savior did not come just to make us right with God and to give us forgiveness; he called people to be prepared to receive his coming. He wants us to embrace a new way of life, not as the basis of salvation, but in response to his goodness. Repentance, the turning of a heart to be open to him, is the door through which grace is offered and faith planted.
The story of John and Zechariah is timeless. Its fundamental facts serve as the historical foundation and bedrock of our faith. The biblical God is not a creation of human imagination. Rather, his story reflects real divine involvement with the flesh and blood affairs of people. There were no surprises when God sent John; he had designed everything. The unchanging God relates to us in the same way today, in terms of our attitudes and character. We ourselves learn how to relate to God, even in the midst of deep personal disappointment. We may, of course, ask God questions about his actions that are difficult for us to understand, as several of the psalmists do in their laments. But we must also be ready for the answer he gives. While our visits from God may not be as dramatic as Zechariah’s, it is just as personal. Often the best lessons come to us through our interaction with God in terms of real life situations, when we experience things that drive us to him and to his promises.
One of the keys to narrative, as I noted above, is to recognize that a story’s characters represent certain types of people. In Zechariah and Elizabeth, we see not just historical figures but representative personalities, and we can identify with their attitudes. We can sympathize with Elizabeth’s plight of childlessness. But she also is an example in how she responds. Despite her personal disappointment, she faithfully serves God. And even when the situation is reversed, she does not forget God, but rejoices in what he has done to renew her.
From righteous Zechariah we also learn something about walking with God. This Gospel is full of such exemplary characters. Those who teach by example (or counterexample) and those who learn from their experiences to listen to and trust God. How John the Baptist’s role belongs in this type of teaching through characterization is something we discuss below.
Both Zechariah and Elizabeth are at the heart of the bridge between the past and the present. Our pain may not be the absence of a child, but there are a myriad of things that can bring disappointment in life. Yet one thing neither Zechariah nor Elizabeth succumbed to was bitterness, even though Elizabeth felt “disgrace.” Maybe that is one reason God called them upright and blameless. But good people need to learn to rely even more on God. Sometimes the answer to their disappointment is not clear. Whether it be the loss of a child to premature death, a financial collapse, dealing with a child who falls into calamity or serious sin, or an unfortunate accident, the hard times are not always self-explanatory. God never guarantees that life will come without pain and disappointment. The central issue is how we handle it. Bitterness will yield the fruit of anger and frustration, sapping the joy from life. Trust and dependence will cause us to find fulfillment in ways we would not even have considered otherwise. For example, how many childless couples have made a life out of ministering to other children, either through service in the church or adopting a child who no longer had parents who cared? Sometimes a roadblock is not a dead end, but a fresh turn in the road.
We should also note that what had been a long-term void in this couple’s life was part of God’s sovereign plan, where he stepped in late in the game to change the direction of past disappointments. The blessing was sweeter once it came, because when the child arrived, he was not taken for granted. The child clearly was what all children are—a gift from God. The seemingly random falling of the lot to Zechariah was actually designed to set the stage for this fresh entry of God into this couple’s life and into the nation’s life as well. Sometimes God’s timing, though different from ours, is infinitely wiser.
Contemporary Significance
THE APPLICATION OF this text in terms of God’s plan is basic. It will be a refrain through the entire Gospel. Are we prepared for God and do we respond to his work through the One he sent to lead us to him? John will point the way. Do we take the path of sensing our need for God and of responding to the One who offers forgiveness to us? Are we humble before God, taking the path he calls us to, or do we opt to go our own way?
John is someone whose dedication to God is expressed even in his lifestyle. That lifestyle, as reported to Zechariah, shows how totally focused John must be as he represents God. Filled with the Spirit from birth, he will testify to Jesus even by kicking in his mother’s womb (Luke 1:44). The presence of the Spirit in Luke is often accompanied by a powerful testimony. Those who are directed by God in the Spirit do not render testimony to God in the privacy of their own home, as the many Spirit-filled characters in the book of Acts will also show. If we have the Spirit, God will be manifest in both our words and deeds.
Yet different ways for doing this exist (cf. Luke 7:24–35). John’s greatness is not found in his choice of lifestyle, but in the fact that in understanding his calling, he pursues it fully and carries out God’s will faithfully. John’s style will be different from that of Jesus. God does not make all people to minister in the same way. That diversity allows different types of ministry to impact different kinds of people. We should not make everyone minister in the same way and with the same style. The test of ministry is not its external appearances; instead, it is found in much less visible ways. As a servant of God, John became a catalyst who encouraged others to live before God in a way that honored the Creator. Not everyone responded to him, so success need not be measured by numbers. John’s mission to be a source of stimulating others to find God is something we all can seek to follow.
The turning of the fathers and sons to each other and to God (v. 17) shows how important reconciliation within the family is.9 Colossians 3:21 states clearly how the father’s approach to his child can help form or deform a child’s self-image. Yet what is needed is not merely a reconciled relationship between father and child, but a spiritual relationship secured by a strong bond uniting them to God. In this way both are turned, so that “the disobedient [are turned] to the wisdom of the righteous” (v. 17). One need only read all the wise words of the father to his son in Proverbs to sense how crucial a three-way relationship between parent, child, and God is.
We can also apply the lessons that Zechariah and Elizabeth teach us. We must not presume upon God by either always seeing struggles in life as evidence of the presence of sin or by calling on God to bless us with everything we desire. Elizabeth teaches us to take our sense of grief over our disappointments to God, and to be sure to take our rejoicing to him as well.
Elizabeth’s dilemma is different from modern expectations in one important way. She would not have had the type of concerns modern people do about self-fulfillment through her bearing a child. In the ancient world, particularly given the hazards of having children, the issue is more related to expectation of having heirs and building a family that can share in its responsibilities. In the Old Testament, this is shown by customs like Levirate marriage, where the concern is to provide an heir for a man who dies childless. Children gave a woman her place in the community (see Prov. 31). The sense of disgrace in being childless had to do with these more communal concerns. Still, the disappointment was real (cf. Elizabeth’s remarks in vv. 24–25). Though her pain and subsequent relief were rooted in different concerns from those of today, they were just as decisively met by what God graciously did.
Zechariah teaches us that God occasionally instructs saints through difficult times.10 Sometimes underestimating God is as dangerous as rebelling against him. Our sin may not be a matter of doing overt wrong but of being hesitant to pursue righteousness and to trust fully in the Lord. Once God speaks, we should respond. People often pursue relationships or actions they know are wrong, often with a sense of having been a victim, as if that justifies their turning away from God. But we can also do the same thing using more subtlety, with a type of lukewarmness that says, “I am happy with where I am spiritually, so I will not pursue God as in former days.” Such a “cruise control” approach risks a slow spiritual decline. One senses that Zechariah needed a fresh lesson of faith to avoid such a slow motion spiritual fall.
The fact that Zechariah doubted the angel’s word meant he was already at risk. What God promises, he will perform—only he will do it in his time and sometimes in surprising ways. When the time of fulfillment comes, we realize that his timing was better than ours. Perhaps we sometimes wish we could be in the boardroom of heaven, telling God how to make his plans. This passage calls us to see that his plan has its own design and timing. The Creator of the universe knows what he is doing.
Finally, God is gracious in seemingly mysterious ways. Sometimes we are deprived of something because God has better things awaiting us down the road. When we wait patiently on the Lord, he often gives us more than we imagined possible. Zechariah and Elizabeth wanted a child; what they got was a prophet. God’s ways are set to his clock, and they are often filled with things that cause us to wonder as we rejoice at his surprises.