The Promise of the Birth of John the Baptist
Zechariah and Elizabeth were upright and blameless in God's sight; they observed his commandments, Zechariah was a priest who served in the temple, and Elizabeth was herself descended from Aaron. They had no children, however; and so Gabriel's promise of a son was the promise of great joy and delight to his parents. Zechariah responded in disbelief, and lost his ability to speak: he left the temple, certainly staggered by the sight of the angel and the news, and could not even tell his wife what was to come. But when Elizabeth became pregnant, she recognized the favor of the Lord, as she would no longer be disgraced among her people.
What was it like to be part of this family? Can you blame Zechariah for his response? Did Elizabeth feel the shame of her barrenness greatly? God could find no fault in them, yet they had been blessed with no children. All the years of marriage, and no babies, no children to delight in, no sons and daughters to be proud of, grandchildren to look forward to, family to take care of them in their old age- and they were both "well along in years". But their faithfulness was blessed. While some men angered God by breaking faith, either with God himself or with their wives, Zechariah was steadfast in his loyalty.
God had spoken through the prophet Malachi: "You flood the Lord's altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. You ask, 'Why?' It is because the Lord is acting as witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the Lord made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth."
Zechariah and Elizabeth had done everything right, yet without the blessing of any children in their marriage. But when the child came, he was a blessing to them and to the world. Gabriel told Zechariah to name his son John: "Yahweh is gracious". God's grace was shown to them, and to the world: John would come in the spirit of Elijah, turning the hearts of fathers to their children, fulfilling the promise with which Malachi ends the Old Testament.
What exactly is the significance of this turning of hearts? The Greek suggests a turning, twisting, change of direction- the sort of thing that soldiers do when marching, or that happens when you sprain your ankle; but not just any change of direction, it's a complete reversal or a change directed towards something. The word used for "turning" only shows up in three other places in the New Testament: in Luke 17:4, a person who sins seventy times seven and turns again saying "I repent" is to be forgiven; in 1 Corinthians 3:16 the veil which separates us from God's glory is removed for those who turn to the Lord; and, curiously enough, in James 5:19 with another reference to Elijah, whose powerful prayer worked miracles, we're told to pray for one another, and that if we "turn back" someone who has wandered from the truth we will have saved them from death and covered a multitude of sins.
But what of the fathers and children, and the significance of it being Elijah's spirit that John the Baptist would inherit? John was not the first to inherit Elijah's spirit: Elisha asked for, and received, a double portion. Elijah was the prophet who challenged the prophets of Baal to call down fire from their god, then asked the Lord for fire so the people would know that he was God and was turning their hearts back to himself. Both he and Elisha brought back to life the sons of the women who provided for their needs, in Elisha's case after the son was a miraculous gift to a woman whose husband was old. Surely Zechariah recognized the work of this spirit, before John was ever born, in John's own miraculous conception. This same spirit multiplied oil, flour, and bread, cleansed poisoned food and water, foretold the fates of kings and outcomes of battles, and saw the end of Baal-worship in the kingdom of Israel.
What was it like to be part of this family? Can you blame Zechariah for his response? Did Elizabeth feel the shame of her barrenness greatly? God could find no fault in them, yet they had been blessed with no children. All the years of marriage, and no babies, no children to delight in, no sons and daughters to be proud of, grandchildren to look forward to, family to take care of them in their old age- and they were both "well along in years". But their faithfulness was blessed. While some men angered God by breaking faith, either with God himself or with their wives, Zechariah was steadfast in his loyalty.
God had spoken through the prophet Malachi: "You flood the Lord's altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. You ask, 'Why?' It is because the Lord is acting as witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the Lord made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth."
Zechariah and Elizabeth had done everything right, yet without the blessing of any children in their marriage. But when the child came, he was a blessing to them and to the world. Gabriel told Zechariah to name his son John: "Yahweh is gracious". God's grace was shown to them, and to the world: John would come in the spirit of Elijah, turning the hearts of fathers to their children, fulfilling the promise with which Malachi ends the Old Testament.
What exactly is the significance of this turning of hearts? The Greek suggests a turning, twisting, change of direction- the sort of thing that soldiers do when marching, or that happens when you sprain your ankle; but not just any change of direction, it's a complete reversal or a change directed towards something. The word used for "turning" only shows up in three other places in the New Testament: in Luke 17:4, a person who sins seventy times seven and turns again saying "I repent" is to be forgiven; in 1 Corinthians 3:16 the veil which separates us from God's glory is removed for those who turn to the Lord; and, curiously enough, in James 5:19 with another reference to Elijah, whose powerful prayer worked miracles, we're told to pray for one another, and that if we "turn back" someone who has wandered from the truth we will have saved them from death and covered a multitude of sins.
But what of the fathers and children, and the significance of it being Elijah's spirit that John the Baptist would inherit? John was not the first to inherit Elijah's spirit: Elisha asked for, and received, a double portion. Elijah was the prophet who challenged the prophets of Baal to call down fire from their god, then asked the Lord for fire so the people would know that he was God and was turning their hearts back to himself. Both he and Elisha brought back to life the sons of the women who provided for their needs, in Elisha's case after the son was a miraculous gift to a woman whose husband was old. Surely Zechariah recognized the work of this spirit, before John was ever born, in John's own miraculous conception. This same spirit multiplied oil, flour, and bread, cleansed poisoned food and water, foretold the fates of kings and outcomes of battles, and saw the end of Baal-worship in the kingdom of Israel.