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Luke 1:11-17
By J.D. Myers | January 22, 2009
1:11-12. In light of all this, Zacharias probably expected the worse when an angel of the Lord appeared to him. It is understandable that he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. He probably thought that he was about to be struck dead.
1:13. The angel Gabriel (cf. v. 19) immediately tries to calm Zacharias’ fears by telling Zacharias to not be afraid. The angel is not there to harm Zacharias, but rather, to announce an answer to prayer. What had he been praying for? Undoubtedly, he had been praying for a child, and Gabriel tells Zacharias that not only will Elizabeth bear a son, but that they should call his name John. This is not a predication, but a command. The fact that God had selected the name of his child before he was even conceived indicates that this would be used greatly by God. And this is what the angel confirms to Zacharias in verses 14-17.
1:14. Not only will Zacharias and Elizabeth have joy and gladness when their son is born, but many will rejoice as his birth. The angel provides five reasons why many will rejoice.
1:15. The first reason many will rejoice at the birth of John is because he will be great in the sight of the Lord. John will grow up to be a great man of God. Though the narrative does not fully explain here how great John will be, Luke reveals later that according to Jesus, John was the greatest of all Hebrew prophets, because he prepared the way for the Messiah (cf. Isa 40:3; Luke 7:27-28).
The angel explains next that John shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. This was certainly not something John would do naturally, but was something Zacharias and Elizabeth would have to instruct John in. In a culture that frequently drank wine with meals, someone who did not drink wine generally did so as part of a vow, to publicly show that they were setting themselves apart from culture. It is likely that this was part of the Jewish Nazarite vow, which can be read about in Numbers 6:1-21.
Only two other times in Scripture do parents make Nazarite vows on behalf of their unborn children: Samson (Judg 13:4-5) and Samuel (1 Sam 1:11). Both men were Judges of Israel, though Samuel was also a Prophet and Priest. Samson did not live in full accordance with his Nazarite vows, but Samuel did. Samuel was also the prophet who inaugurated the reign of King David. Zacharias certainly knew all this, and had to wonder whether his son John would be used in a similar fashion.
Third, the angel explains that John will also be filled with the Holy Spirit. In Israelite history, only select individuals (such as prophets and kings) were filled with the Holy Spirit, and even then, only for a specific time to accomplish specific tasks. That John will be filled with the Holy Spirit indicates that God has selected him for a very special purpose. Furthermore, John would not only be filled, but filled from his mother’s womb. It was very rare for a child to be filled with the Holy Spirit, let alone from before the child was even born! The indication here is that there was even divine work for the child to do while in his mother’s womb (cf. 1:44) and that since he was filled with the Spirit before he was even born, John would be filled with the Spirit for his entire life. God had great purposes for John.
1:16. The fourth reason many will rejoice about John is that he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. The idea here is one of repentance. Israel, as the people of God, had been straying from God, and John would be influential in bringing many of them back to God. John fulfills through his preaching and baptisms at the Jordan (cf. Luke 3:1-22).
1:17. The final reason is that the ministry of John will be in the spirit and power of Elijah, one of Israel’s greatest prophets. But more than just being a great prophet, the Scriptures predict that one like Elijah will be the forerunner for the long-awaited Messiah. The angel is here announcing that John would be that forerunner. To reinforce this, he quotes from the Hebrew Scriptures that John, in the spirit of Elijah, will ‘turn the hearts of the fathers to the children.’ This quote is from Malachi 4;6, which in context is talking about Elijah (Mal 4;5). Malachi 4:6 is the last verse in the English Old Testament. Thought not the last of the Hebrew writing prophets, he probably wrote his prophecy around 445 BC. And just as Zacharias had been waiting a long time for a son, so Israel had been waiting a long time for another prophet to arrive, especially one in the spirit of Elijah who would prepare the way for the Messiah.
The angel follows his quote from Malachi with a pronouncement that John will also turn the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Though not exactly quotes, these are further allusions to other Hebrew prophets, such as Isaiah 40:1-5 (cf. Luke 3:4-6). The goal of John is to restore justice and righteousness among the people of Israel so that they would be ready to receive the Lord, that is, their King.
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