57 When it was time for Elizabeth’s baby to be born, she gave birth to a son. 58 And when her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had been very merciful to her, everyone rejoiced with her.
59 When the baby was eight days old, they all came for the circumcision ceremony. They wanted to name him Zechariah, after his father. 60 But Elizabeth said, “No! His name is John!”
61 “What?” they exclaimed. “There is no one in all your family by that name.” 62 So they used gestures to ask the baby’s father what he wanted to name him. 63 He motioned for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s surprise he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Instantly Zechariah could speak again, and he began praising God.
65 Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread throughout the Judean hills. 66 Everyone who heard about it reflected on these events and asked, “What will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way.
Zechariah’s Prophecy
67 Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:
68 “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited and redeemed his people.69 He has sent us a mighty Savior from the royal line of his servant David,70 just as he promised through his holy prophets long ago.71 Now we will be saved from our enemies and from all who hate us.72 He has been merciful to our ancestors by remembering his sacred covenant—73 the covenant he swore with an oath to our ancestor Abraham.74 We have been rescued from our enemies so we can serve God without fear,75 in holiness and righteousness for as long as we live.
76 “And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord.77 You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins.78 Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”
80 John grew up and became strong in spirit. And he lived in the wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.
Dear God,
I think you used all those months of silence for Zechariah to prepare him to parent John the Baptist (JTB). He was ready to go. I would imagine he might have spent those months studying and reading. He might have been looking at the prophecies to try to figure out what this boy would be like and what being like Elijah would be all about.
It is interesting that his prophecy starts with Jesus. That is what makes me think he spent a lot of time studying the texts and prophecies. The closest Gabriel gets to talking about the Messiah during his visitation is when he says, “He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord.” Everything else Gabriel says is about John, according to the text. So, when Zechariah starts prophesying about Jesus my personal opinion is that he allows some of the prophecy to be tainted by his own expectations of what the Messiah will do for Israel. For example, “Now we will be saved from our enemies and from all who hate us.” (Luke 1:71) But he knows the Messiah is coming.
Then he turns his attention to JTB: “And you, my little son …” I love that little bit of adoration for his child. He does not know exactly what this all will look like. He does not know how he is going to parent this child. As the years go by, I am sure he will be confused and wonder if it was all a dream because this kid is just a little weird. And I do not know if Zechariah lived long enough to see JTB living in the wilderness, but I am sure that gave rise to questions as well.
Father, I have often said that you keep us on a need-to-know basis, and we very rarely need to know. Help me to live into that spirit. Help me to meet each situation, ask your counsel, and listen for your still, small voice. I do not need to know how all of this will turn out. In fact, it is probably better if I do not know. But whatever happens, I pray that you will find me faithful in the midst of it.
I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,
Amen
