Zacharias and Elizabeth

Luke 1:5–25 KJV 1900

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. 8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 9 According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. 14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17 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. 18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. 19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings. 20 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. 21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless. 23 And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. 24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying, 25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.

Introduction

Introduction to Zacharias and Elizabeth 5-7

They lived during the days of Herod the Great.

Herod was a larger than life figure during the years leading up to the birth of Jesus.

He is called the king of Judea, here, by Luke.

He was only king because of the grace of Rome.

He accomplished several grand building projects.

He introduced beautiful architecture into the region.

Some of that architecture, though, was in the form of pagan temples.

He also introduced pagan sports games to the people.

Herod may have been given the title “king of the Jews,” but he was a violent pagan.

Luke contrasts Herod by introducing us to someone who represented the exact opposite personality.

Zacharias

Elisabeth

Zacharias was a priest of the order of Abijah.

The order of Abijah was one of the 24 orders of priests in Judaism.

David had divided the priests into these 24 groups and given them all names.

Abijah was the 8th of these orders.

After the Babylonian exile, only 4 of the orders had survived.

These 4 were again divided into 24 orders and were identified by the old names.

Elizabeth was also from a priestly family.

There was a saying in those days when you might meet an excellent woman.

It was common to remark that “She deserves to be married to a priest.”

To be a part of a priestly family, was considered to be an honorable distinction.

For both a husband and wife to be priestly in their lineage was seen as a double honor.

They were righteous before God.

This is not to say that they were sinless.

It does mean that their faith in God and His coming Messiah was genuine.

On the outside, it was plain to see the religious activities of Zacharias and Elisabeth.

God looks beyond the outward appearance.

Luke records, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that God considered them to be blameless.

God’s opinion of them is important, because this couple had a cultural black mark against them.

They had no children.

Children were seen to be an evidence of God’s pleasure.

A couple that had no children, even if no one verbalized it, they were considered to have upset God in some way.

Another stigma associated to childlessness in these days had to do with the long-expected messiah.

A couple with no children meant that they had no chance of being the messiah’s parents or ancestors.

This was the condition of this sweet couple as Luke opens his book talking about what happened to Zacharias on one momentous day.

We drop in on Zacharias while he was performing his ministry at the Temple 8-17

Each priestly order served at the Temple for 2 weeks out of the year.

There were a number of jobs for them to attend to.

You look at the number of jobs we have around the CBT and we are a local congregation, more like a synagogue.

Imagine how much there was to do at the central focal point of Judaism.

Ritual cleansings.

Sacrifice preparations.

Baby dedications.

Offering collection and accounting.

Cleaning.

Teaching.

so, so much to do.

It was a busy week for Zacharias.

Every day there were a couple of highlights in the schedule.

Morning and Evening offering of incense.

3x of daily prayer attended by large groups of people.

A priest was only allowed to offer incense once in his entire life.

They would cast lots among the order to see who would get a chance, but since there were so many priests, you were only eligible to offer incense once in your life.

Once your name was chosen, you didn’t get another chance.

Verse 9 tells us that, as a very old man, Zacharias’ lot had been chosen, he was given the opportunity to go into the holy place to offer incense.

Though we know what will happen inside, the temple, Zacharias didn’t.

Even without that knowledge, Zacharias entered the temple that day (morning or evening) knowing that this was the most important day of his life.

Think about Zacharias’ life to this point.

All of these years serving and never having your name called...

Had he started his priestly duties anxiously waiting to see if his lot would be chosen?

How many younger priests had he trained to offer incense, and yet he, himself, had never been given the opportunity?

Finally, he gets the call.

I have to imagine there were cheers from his brothers in the order when it was announced that Zacharias was going in.

Everyone else left the Holy place while Zacharias did his ministry.

Zacharias was alone.

The people waited outside and prayed.

They were waiting to see the smoke of the incense rising from the temple.

As Zacharias went about his duties, he realizes that he is not alone in the Temple.

Gabriel appears to Zacharias in the Temple.

The Bible is clear that Zacharias was seriously shaken by the appearance of Gabriel.

An angel appearing would shake you up, no matter where you were when it appeared.

Zacharias would have already been on edge given the activities he was engaged in.

Offering incense was not just a privilege, it was also dangerous.

There was always the possibility that God would be displeased with the people and would kill the priest that entered the temple.

Gabriel puts Zacharias at ease.

He tells him not to fear.

He tells Zacharias that his prayer had been heard.

Zacharias would have been praying as he offered the incense.

He would have been praying for the redemption of Israel.

There was undoubtedly another prayer that Zacharias had offered many times in the past if not on that day, a prayer for a child.

Gabriel announcing that Zacharias’ prayer had been heard would fulfill both requests.

God was soon to send Israel’s redemption, with the birth of Jesus.

To prepare for that miracle, God would also give Zacharias and Elizabeth a son as the promised forerunner to the messiah.

He describes the mission and character of the coming prophet.

Zacharias will name his son John.

He will be a great man.

His birth will cause many to rejoice.

John would be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb.

Imagine, a clump of cells, indwelt by the Holy Spirit...

John would have no need for alcohol or strong drink.

He is filled by the Holy Spirit.

He has no need for the stimulation of strong drink.

His life would be used to point people to God.

Through his preaching families would be restored.

The people would be prepared for the arrival of the Messiah.

This is all good news, but is it too good to be true?

Zacharias doubts the message that he received 18-22

He asks Gabriel for a sign.

He says I am an old man.

My wife is an old woman.

How do I know this will really happen?

Before we get too judgy on Zacharias, let’s remember something.

He was a spiritual man, well versed on the stories of the Old Testament.

So many godly men were granted signs when God told them incredible things.

Abraham, Moses, David, Hezekiah...

Why is Zacharias about to be reprimanded for unbelief, when all of these other Bible characters were not?

It’s precisely because Zacharias had and knew all these testimonies, and yet he still doubted.

He had all of the OT as proof that God was able to do what he said.

Gabriel chastises Zacharias for his unbelief.

He starts by contrasting Zacharias’ statement “I am an old man.”

Gabriel is all like I see your old man, and I raise you an “I’m Gabriel and I stand in the presence of God.”

Because of his unbelief, Zacharias would not be bale to speak until his son was born.

When Zacharias finally emerges from the temple, the people have grown nervous.

Remember there was always the possibility that Zacharias had been killed by God.

They were worried that something had happened to the old man that had entered the Temple so long ago now.

When he did appear, he could not speak.

Everyone knew that he had seen a vision.

God keeps His word 23-25

As soon as Zacharias’ week of ministry was over, he returned home.

Elisabeth was soon found to be with child.

She hid herself for 5 months.

Why?

Ummm you ladies that have had babies, you know how many questions and dumb things people say and do when you’re expecting.

Now imagine you are woman whose own husband described to an angel as “well stricken in years.”

She wrote a psalm.

Though Zacharias and Elisabeth had been childless for so long, they had not allowed this to embitter them against God.

That doesn’t mean that they did not feel the pain of unrealized hopes and dreams.

We see the rhythm of this short song.

Thus hath the Lord dealt with me.

In the days wherein He looked on me.

To take away my reproach among men.

Some things to think about.

Jesus’ birth changed the world.

His time on earth is the most consequential event in all of history.

As grand as the cosmos.

But, it is also intensely personal.

Jesus’ appearance among men is powerful and impactful to even the lowliest of individuals.

We see this in Zacharias Elisabeth’s story.

God’s Son coming to earth necessitated a forerunner as prophesied.

God could have given that child to any family, but He chose to give it to Zacharias and Elisabeth.

He even specifically calls out the fact He had heard their prayers.

All those decades of waiting God was not ignoring them, He was just waiting for the right moment.

The preparations for Jesus’ birth brought joy to the family of John.

What effect does Jesus’ birth need to have on you and your family this season?

Do you believe that God can remove the reproach?

Have you asked Him to?

If God can give Zacharias and Elisabeth a baby, in answer to their prayers, what can He do to answer your prayers?

Can He reach that wayward one that is heavy on your heart?

Can He change your heart and give you the victory over the vices that have plagued you this year?

Can He strengthen you in the health battle that you are facing?