The Angelic Promise of John's Birth
Luke 1:5-25
Since many took in hand to draw up a narrative of the things which have occurred among us, which have been given to us from the beginning by eyewitnesses and servants of the word, it seemed good to me as well, having investigated these things from their sources, to accurately write to you, most excellent Theopohilus, that you might know with certainty those things about which you were instructed.
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There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a priest named Zechariah, of the course of Abia, and his wife, a descendant of Aaron as well, named Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, practicing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. And they had no child. Now Elisabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in age.
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Now it came to pass in his priestly duty, when his detachment was on duty and he was serving before God, according to the custom of the priest's office, his assignment was to burn incense upon entering the temple of the Lord. Meanwhile, the whole multitude of the people were outside praying at the time of incense burning.
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And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the incense altar. Seeing him, Zechariah was troubled, and panic fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Fear not, Zechariah. Your request was heard and your wife, Elisabeth, will bear a son to you, and you shall call his name John. He will bring joy and gladness to you. And many will rejoice over his birth for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must not drink wine or strong drink, but he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb.
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“He will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord as their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to prepare a people for the Lord.”
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And Zechariah said to the angel, “By what sign shall I know this, for I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in age?”
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And the angel answered him and said, “I am Gabriel, the one standing before God, and I was sent to speak to you and tell you these things. Now, look, you will be silent and unable to speak, until the day these things happen because you didn’t believe what I said, which will be fulfilled exactly on time.”
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And the people were waiting outside for Zechariah, and wondered about his delay. And when he came out, he could not speak to them. And they knew that he had seen a vision in the temple for he beckoned to them, but remained speechless. Shorty, his wife Elisabeth conceived and hid herself for five months, saying, “The Lord has done this for me when he looked upon me, to take away my reproach among men.”
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