Zechariah’s Redemption
In the beginning of the book of Luke, we found Zechariah in the holy place offering incense to the Lord. He encounters the angel of the Lord who tells him of a miracle he cannot believe. It is his unbelief which results in some, shall we say, holy imposed quiet time. Now it is the time for the birth of he and Elizabeth’s amazing miracle baby. Over the course of the past 9 months, Zechariah has had ample time to think, listen and watch. Now, he will discover God’s great redemption.
Vs 57-63 Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she had a son. Then her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her His great mercy, and they rejoiced with her. When they came to circumcise the child on the eighth day, they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. But his mother responded, “No! He will be called John.” 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.
In Biblical times, names were extremely important. It was believed that a name expressed the essence of the person. We find this throughout Scripture as names play an important role in what is taking place. God also changed several names to further express this point. Think of Abram to Abraham and Jacob to Israel. So, here we find ourselves glimpsing this special time. It is the eighth day, the day when the child was to be circumcised and named. Everyone in attendance assumed the child would be named after Zechariah. Why? Interestingly, we do not see this trend throughout the Old Testament – that is sons being named after their fathers – so why would it be assumed here? After a bit of research, I found out at some point during the Roman Empire, there seemed to be a fear of losing their identity. We can see from this point on, many children were named after their parents or ancestors to preserve their history and memories. So, it must have been quite a shock to everyone to hear that, not only was this child not going to be named after his father, but not after any ancestors either. Even though it was traditional for the mother to name the child, they wanted to make sure, so they asked the father for confirmation. To their shock, Zechariah confirmed this. So why John? What expression of essence was being given to this child by God? In Hebrew the name would be Yohanan and it means graced by God. Interestingly, the name John in Greek means God is good. And so, this name describes a person who was born out of grace, would walk in grace and proclaim the goodness of God.
Vs 64-66 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came on all those who lived around them, and all these things were being talked about throughout the hill country of Judea. All who heard about him took it to heart, saying, “What then will this child become?” For, indeed, the Lord’s hand was with him.
The moment Zechariah wrote down His Name Is John, he exhibited the faith which he lacked just 9 months prior. Instead of doubting, he learned to trust and obey. Instead of being bitter about his circumstance, (being mute), he chose to watch, listen and learn. He saw the miracle of God take place as Elizabeth did indeed have a child in her old age. He learned, in his time of quietness, more about God then in all his years of speech. At that very moment, his tongue was set free. He was free to speak! After all he had learned, it is not surprising that the first words out of his mouth was praise. This must have been quite a sight, and sound! So much so, the people experienced fear. The Greek word for fear in this passage is phobos, which means panicked flight or terror. Here is a man who had not spoken since he came home 9 months earlier suddenly lifting his voice in praise to God. They were terrified and awestruck. They realized this was no ordinary child. He was going to be someone special and anointed. He was, and would be, graced by God. He was John.
Vs 67-80 Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and provided redemption for His people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets in ancient times; salvation from our enemies and from the clutches of those who hate us. He has dealt mercifully with our fathers and remembered His holy covenant— the oath that He swore to our father Abraham. He has given us the privilege, since we have been rescued from our enemies’ clutches, to serve Him without fear in holiness and righteousness in His presence all our days. And child, you will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways, to give His people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins. Because of our God’s merciful compassion, the Dawn from on high will visit us to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. The child grew up and became spiritually strong, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
As if they weren’t already terrified by what they had already witnessed, Zechariah’s prophesy must have perplexed them even further. I have separated this out into three points. First was praise. Second, Zechariah recognizes who is really important. Third, Zechariah speaks of his newborn son.
A. Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and provided redemption for His people. Zechariah begins his prophecy fixing his eyes on the redemption God has brought – not only to himself, but to us as well. He had been redeemed from his unbelief. He was mute and now could speak the praises of God aloud. He acknowledges God’s redemptive power for all. He knows of Elizabeth’s encounter with Mary and understands what is to come.
B. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets in ancient times; salvation from our enemies and from the clutches of those who hate us. He has dealt mercifully with our fathers and remembered His holy covenant— the oath that He swore to our father Abraham. He has given us the privilege, since we have been rescued from our enemies’ clutches, to serve Him without fear in holiness and righteousness in His presence all our days. Instead of focusing in on his own son John, Zechariah points us toward the One whom his son will point us to – that is Jesus. Jesus is the horn of salvation (Psalm 18:2) Jesus is the one from the house of David of whom the prophets foretold. He will give us salvation from our enemies (Psalm 62:1-2). Jesus fulfills the covenant given to Abraham. And because of Jesus, we no longer have to fear, but can serve him all our days. Zechariah, along with countless others before him, had hoped for the coming of the Messiah. He is ecstatic that he will be able to see the coming of the Lord. Not only that, his son will be the one who goes before – Elijah – the one crying in the wilderness.
C. And child, you will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways, to give His people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins. Because of our God’s merciful compassion, the Dawn from on high will visit us to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. Now Zechariah prophecies about his son John. He will be a prophet that will go before the Lord. He will prepare the way. Isaiah 40:2-4 says, “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and announce to her that her time of forced labor is over, her iniquity has been pardoned, and she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.” A voice of one crying out: Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert. Every valley will be lifted up, and every mountain and hill will be leveled; the uneven ground will become smooth and the rough places, a plain.” This is who John was going to be. He was the fulfillment of Scripture. Zechariah’s redemption is more than he could have ever imagined. To be the father of this prophet. What a honor. What a responsibility. John would be the forerunner of the One he has been waiting for. His son would give people the knowledge of salvation as he would preach for them to repent and come back to the Lord.
Finally, we find that John “grew up and became spiritually strong, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.” Zechariah and Elizabeth understood who their son was going to be. They had been entrusted with the one who would go before the Messiah. They recognized their role, their son’s role and Mary’s role in this amazing journey. It began with a man who didn’t believe and ended with a man redeemed. It began with a woman who suffered great shame in her barrenness, only to be a woman lifted up to bare the one who would go before the Lord. It began with Elizabeth’s recognition of the baby Mary was carrying, to end with the hope of all hopes and grace of all grace being born. It gave her faith. Faith enough to name him John in spite of what everyone else was saying. Faith to understand that God had graced her and Zechariah with a miracle that would change the world. In all probability, given their age, they did not live to see the fruition of that hope, but they knew God was faithful to redeem.
Bible Study Blog 