Luke 1:5-25
It never ceases to amaze me that God was manifest in the flesh. When it happened was on God’s timetable. “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son” (Gal 4:4).1 We are told why it happened. Full deity taking on full humanity was necessary for God to “save his people from their sins” (Mat 1:21). Where it happened was also part of God’s plan, even moving a Caesar to make a decree that would ensure Christ would be born in Bethlehem, fulfilling Micah’s ancient prophecy. How it happened is a mystery we will explore throughout eternal ages. His journey from heaven to earth, from being lauded on a glorious throne to being laid in a grimy feeding trough, will fill us with wonder forever.
In this series of articles, our focus will be on the narratives surrounding the Savior’s birth. We will examine the star, the shepherds, the swaddling clothes and the sages, and the role they all played in the Christmas story. Human, angelic and divine activity all combine in history’s first chapter of the greatest story ever told. Even if it’s not December, may we never lose the meaning and wonder of the incarnation of the eternal Son of God. To die in our place and to be our Savior, He must become like us (sin apart). And so, in love He came from glory All the Way to Bethlehem.
But first, we have to consider another miracle baby. After his preface, Luke begins his Gospel with relatives. He informs us that Mary, the mother of Jesus, had a blood relative, Elisabeth (Luk 1:36), who was married to a priest named Zacharias. In fact, Elisabeth was also of priestly descent for she “was of the daughters of Aaron” (v5). She even had the same name as Aaron’s wife (see Exo 6:23). Talk about holy heritage! But it wasn’t only their history that was holy but also their lives. “And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless” (Luk 1:6). Luke spares no words in telling us that these two were saints in every sense of the word. But they were also …
Senior Saints
“They both were now well stricken in years” (v7). Ordinarily, we might wonder why such a statement would be made. Yet God, in His perfect plan, was going to use this couple to bring forth a special son. They never had a child before, since Elisabeth was barren (v7), and they were resigned to the fact that children were not to be in their future. It is difficult to fully convey how barrenness was considered in ancient Hebrew culture. Some viewed it as a punishment from the Lord, and most regarded it, at the very least, a disgrace. We can hear hints of this from Elisabeth herself later in the narrative: “This is what the Lord did for me when he looked favorably on me and took away my public disgrace” (v25 ISV).
Note that the text tells us both Zacharias and Elisabeth were righteous and blameless before the Lord, but she was barren. We should not make the mistake of thinking that righteous lives will lead to physical blessings. Here is a couple who pleased God consistently but never had a crib in their little home. Perhaps you’re reading this and wondering why it has never happened for you. You and your spouse have waited patiently and there are still only two people in your home. We can always trust God’s perfect plan, even if it does not make sense to us at the moment.
Zacharias and Elisabeth were not the only couple in Scripture who were unable to have children. And they were not the only couple beyond the age of expectancy when a child was given to them. Abraham and Sarah were senior saints, and we remember how that turned out – Isaac, the child of promise, was born. The next generation was faced with a similar problem. Rebekah was barren for 20 years after marrying the miracle man himself, Isaac. He prayed and God answered, not with one son but two, Esau and Jacob. The next generation came along. Jacob married Rachel and she too was childless until, after many painful years, Joseph was born. And we should not forget about Hannah, and the wife of Manoah, and the unnamed woman of Shunem. Scripture is saturated with story after story of barrenness. But God, in each case, did the impossible. How? Because, as Dale Ralph Davis put it, “promise trumps genetics.”2 So even though we happen upon these words, “And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years” (v7), we are being set up to expect another miracle baby. God can always do the impossible.
An Ancient Messenger
There’s someone in our story even older than Zacharias and Elisabeth, but we’re getting too far ahead. First, we find our senior saint, Zacharias, officiating in priestly capacity in the temple.3 There were approximately 8,000 priests living in Palestine at this time. They were grouped into 24 divisions. Zacharias’ division, “the course of Abijah” (v5), served for two one-week periods per year, as did the others. “Each division was further subdivided into orders, and each order served a daily rotation during its week of service at the temple.”4 Particular responsibilities were assigned by the casting of lots. On this occasion, Zacharias’ “lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord” (v9). The offering of incense at the altar would be considered the greatest ministry of his priestly career, a privilege some priests were never granted. Once selected for this special responsibility, a priest would never be chosen for it again. Therefore, we find Zacharias on what was likely the biggest day of his life. It was serious business, not only to enter the holy place, but to stand just before the cherubim-embroidered veil separating him from the most holy place. Flanked by the table of shewbread on one side and the golden lampstand on the other, Zacharias cautiously approached the altar with incense ready. He couldn’t wait to tell Elisabeth all about it. And that’s when it happened. Someone else was in the holy place. Who would dare to enter?
“And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him” (vv11-12). It is not until verse 19 that we learn who the angel is – Gabriel, the ancient messenger who appeared to Daniel in Babylon some 500 years earlier.5 Zacharias’ big day just got bigger.
Old Prayers
Perhaps even more surprising than the appearance of Gabriel was the message Gabriel brought. “Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John” (v13). Thy prayer is heard? It had been years, maybe decades, since Zacharias and his dear wife had prayed for a child. They had forgotten those old prayers long ago. But God had not forgotten them. God remembered – which, interestingly, is the meaning of Zacharias’ name. We can be encouraged that God can answer our prayers when it looks like the window of opportunity has forever closed upon them. Keep praying for your lost son or daughter. Keep praying for your spouse who needs the Lord. And never give up. God delights to hear and answer the prayers of His own.
God was on a timetable with Zacharias and Elisabeth, as He always is. The last time Gabriel made an appearance, prophecies were given in relation to the exact timing of the Messiah’s arrival (see Dan 9). And God had in mind the right person for announcing the Messiah’s coming – the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth. Twenty years before would have been too early. One year before would have been too early. God is always right on time.
Sometimes the Lord has us wait because there might be something better for us down the road. And when we wait patiently upon Him, He often gives us more than we ever imagined possible. Zacharias and Elisabeth prayed for a child. They received so much more, for the child born would be a prophet, and not just any prophet – the prophet who would prepare the way for Israel’s glorious Messiah. God still answers prayer, even if some seem past their expiration date.
New Promises
Gabriel made many promises on behalf of the Lord he represented. The son to be born would “be great in the sight of the Lord …. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, 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” (vv15-17). Zacharias would recognize these promises as the closing words of their last prophet, Malachi (4:5-6). But Zacharias was having a hard time taking this all in. “And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years” (Luk 1:18). In fact, he did not believe this would come to pass. And so another promise was given by Gabriel, but this time, not a very pleasant one.
“And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season” (v20). The language used here can mean that Zacharias would be not only mute but deaf. Verse 62 seems to confirm this since his family and friends “made signs” to communicate with him. So, this promise was one of coming discipline for his refusal to believe what Gabriel said. Can you imagine having news like Zacharias had but be unable to speak about it?
The angelic encounter must have soaked up a considerable amount of time. “And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple” (v21). Perhaps rumors began to circulate that something frightful had happened inside. At last, they saw him emerging from the temple. They were awaiting the priestly benediction of Numbers 6, but it would have to be offered by a different priest. When Zacharias opened his mouth, only silence followed. “And when he came out, he could not speak unto them … he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless” (v22). But it wasn’t all bad news. Zacharias was given two promises, one about a son to be born and another about a mouth to be closed. And because promise number two had just been fulfilled, he could know that promise number one would be also. God is even good in His discipline. They wouldn’t have to wait long for that first promise. “And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived …” (v24). The miracle baby was on the way, with another miracle Baby on the way within the family just months thereafter.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV unless otherwise noted.
2 Dale Ralph Davis, Luke 1-13: The Year of the Lord’s Favor (Scotland, UK: Christian Focus Publications, 2021), 21.
3 God restricted the age of priests to 25-50 (see Num 8:24-26), but service by those over 50 was not completely prohibited. “They may assist their colleagues in the tent of meeting” (v26 NET). This explains how Zacharias, who was likely well beyond 50 years of age, was able to offer incense on the altar.
4 Darrell L. Bock, Luke: Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1996), 1:76.
5 The accounts of Gabriel’s appearances to Daniel and Zacharias share a number of similarities: a fearful human response, being rendered speechless, occurring at the time of evening sacrifice, and announcements related to the coming of the Messiah. See R. Kent Hughes, Luke Volume One: That You May Know the Truth (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1998), 22.
