Zacharias and Elizabeth are great examples of a united couple who learned, at times from mistakes, and were bold to speak for God. They were filled by the Holy Spirit and saw God’s grace, forgiveness, service, and deliverance in their lives.
God’s Grace to Give Them a Son
This elderly couple didn’t expect to ever have children. They were both of a believing background and served God they best they could. Then God sent His angel to give them some amazing news.
Luke 1:5-7:
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.
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
God’s angel appeared to Zacharias while he was making a special offering in the Temple area. This messenger from God foretold of John’s birth.
Luke 1:12-17:
And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
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.
And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
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.
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 [Elijah], 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.
The angel foretold that Zacharias’s son would fufill a prophecy by the Prophet Malachi, nearly 400 years before.
Malachi 4:5,6:
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers….
This was to be no ordinary birth–and no ordinary child!
God’s Forgiveness for Zacharias’s Unbelief
This was “unbelievable” news for Zacharias. He looked at his own advanced age and the barren womb of his wife. He did not immediately believe God’s promise to him. He should have remembered Abraham long before, when he had been in a similar situation.
Romans 4:18-21;
Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
And being not weak in faith, he considered…his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old… [and] the deadness of Sara’s womb:
He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
Abraham considered his physical age and Sara’s apparently barren womb. But he knew that God was able to perform what He had promised. It took Zacharias some time, and forgiveness—but he finally came around and believed. There were consequences of his unbelief. He was not able to speak until the child was born, when he could carry out his fatherly duty of naming his son.
Luke 1:18-20, 23-25:
And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.
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.
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.
And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,
Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.
Elisabeth Serving Mary to Encourage Her
Elisabeth believed this miraculous news, had conceived, and had hidden herself for five months. This kept away distractions, gossip, and any attacks from the Devil through people where she lived. God also worked in her relative, Mary of Nazareth, to come and visit her during this God-sent pregnancy. Mary had news of an even greater miracle that would bring the birth of God’s Own Son. Elizabeth was filled by the Holy Spirit and spoke words of comfort and encouragement to Mary.
Luke 1:39-45:
And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda;
And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.
And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:
And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.
And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.
God’s Deliverance for Zacharias at the Birth of John ; Zacharias’s Prophecy
For nine months, Zacharias had been silently praying and awaiting the birth of his son. He knew that he should name him “John” when the time came. This was not a “family” name, and Elisabeth’s neighbors and cousins had a problem with it. At the child’s circumcision, they spoke up. But Elisabeth was adamant to carry out God’s will. And so was Zacharias.
Luke 1:57-66:
Now Elisabeth’s full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.
And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her.
And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.
And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.
And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.
And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.
And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judaea.
And all they that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be! And the hand of the Lord was with him.
Now able to speak, Zacharias was filled by the Holy Spirit and prophesied about this young baby, and about another child soon to be born. Zacharias’s son would be the forerunner of God’s Messiah. John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ were relatives who changed the future of all mankind.
Luke 1:67-79:
And his [John’s] father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:
That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,
That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,
To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
God showed Zacharias that his son, John, would be a prophet of God who would prepare the world for His Son, the Messiah and Lord. Zacharias spoke of God’s promise to Abraham, a promise so much like what he and Elisabeth had seen come to pass in their lives. And he foretold of God’s deliverance, salvation, and peace that would come through the Messiah’s life and ministry.
The Bible doesn’t give much detail about Zacharias and Elisabeth raising John from childhood. But it does summarize their care in a beautiful way. Their son grew up and become spiritually strong. He knew the scriptures and learned from his parents. They were faithful to remind John of who he was, and what great things he was to do.
Luke 1:80:
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.
